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Books > Religion & Spirituality > Alternative belief systems > Syncretist & eclectic religions & belief systems > General
My book is an inspirational and challenge to others to want to know
God on a personal basis. This is my testimony of how God is working
miracles in my life. All my life I have been trying to do things on
my own. But when I realized that I could not make, i had to find
another source. When i accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior my life
change. I begin to focus on the positives of life. Trusting in God
is what makes our lives complete
After teaching and ministering twenty two years as a Christian
pastor and evangelist, author Dhungarvn the Grey became
disillusioned with the self-righteous membership and church
politics. He left the ministry and began searching for the truth.
In his re-evaluation of his concept of God and prayer, he
reconnected with nature and the idea of nature-based spirituality.
His soul stirred with a yearning toward paganism. From Pulpit to
Pagan is the story of Dhungarvn the Grey's journey from
Christianity to paganism and his quest for truth. Horus, Mithra,
Krishna, and Jesus all told their followers, "You will know the
truth, and the truth will set you free." The truth about
Christianity frees the pagan of the guilt-trips inflicted by
well-meaning family members. It frees them from the tendency to
credit Christianity, the Bible, and Jesus with more truth than is
valid. It frees them from the missionary traps and ignorant attacks
by evangelicals. Dhungarvn suspects that many in the pagan
community are programmed by their family experience and Christian
upbringing; they hold onto the Bible and Jesus out of unconscious
fear and guilt. From Pulpit to Pagan details Dhungarvn's struggles,
but also provides hope for other pagans to become truly free.
"Pursuing Your Purpose With Passion" provides a few practical steps
to help the readers begin to SOAR--See Over Average Results start
to take place in their lives.
Formerly titled "Bible Bloopers: Evidence that Demands a Verdict
Too " This is a collection of essays about the Bible from a
skeptic. This was originally written in the 1990's for the Atlanta
Freethought Society. The book was a sellout. It has been out of
print, until now. The commentary has been updated and revised. Ledo
examines numerous pop theories about Jesus and dismisses them. Many
essays are the accepted scholarly notions about the Bible which are
translated into layperson's language. Michael is also a bit of a
heretic, even among his peers. He also looks at rejected theories
about the Bible and endorses them. Michael Ledo is author of the
landmark book, "On Earth as is it is Heaven, The Cosmic Roots of
the Bible." This was the first book published by the Atlanta
Freethought Society with the aid of Ed Buckner.
Jonathan M.S. Pearce's second book (after Free Will?) continues
along the same philosophical and theological vein, aiming to
provide a cumulative case against the existence of God, and more
specifically, God's triple characteristics of omniscience,
omnipotence and omnibenevolence. Split into useful categories with
an introduction to each category, these are questions that demand
to be answered adequately and plausibly in order for the believer
to retain a rationally-based faith. Pearce's easy writing style and
explanation of philosophy, theology and science on the popular
level make this book as enjoyable to read as it is
thought-provoking. Does God change his mind when prayed to, and why
has he never produced a miracle since biblical times that couldn't
have occurred naturally anyway, like re-growing an amputee's leg?
God only knows. "Pearce demands from God a rational explanation to
all of the problems that seem illogical or incoherent. These are
... damningly challenging inconsistencies in the Christian
narrative that necessarily antagonize any rational reader. If you
are still or used to be Christian, "The Little Book of Unholy
Questions" is an overview of the critical questions you need to be
asking yourself." - Derek Murphy, Jesus Potter Harry Christ
"I call heaven to witness that I also thoroughly despised those who
laughed at the simplicity of the blind people, those who furnished
piously considerable sums of money to buy prayers. How horrible
this monopoly I do not blame the disdain which those who grow rich
by your sweat and your pains, show for their mysteries and their
superstitions; but I detest their insatiable cupidity and the
signal pleasure such fellows take in railing at the ignorance of
those whom they carefully keep in this state of blindness. Let them
content themselves with laughing at their own ease, but at least
let them not multiply their errors by abusing the blind piety of
those who, by their simplicity, procured them such an easy life.
You render unto me, my brethren, the justice that is due me. The
sympathy which I manifested for your troubles saves me from the
least suspicion. How often have I performed gratuitously the
functions of my ministry. How often also has my heart been grieved
at not being able to assist you as often and as abundantly as I
could have wished Have I not always proved to you that I took more
pleasure in giving than in receiving? I carefully avoided exhorting
you to bigotry, and I spoke to you as rarely as possible of our
unfortunate dogmas. It was necessary that I should acquit myself as
a priest of my ministry, but how often have I not suffered within
myself when I was forced to preach to you those pious lies which I
despised in my heart. What a disdain I had for my ministry, and
particularly for that superstitious Mass, and those ridiculous
administrations of sacraments, especially if I was compelled to
perform them with the solemnity which awakened all your piety and
all your good faith. What remorse I had for exciting your credulity
A thousand times upon the point of bursting forth publicly, I was
going to open your eyes, but a fear superior to my strength
restrained me and forced me to silence until my death."
Also called Christianity before Christ, this book contains new,
startling, and extraordinary revelations in religious history,
which disclose the oriental origin of all the doctrines,
principles, percepts and miracles of the Christian New Testament
and furnishing a key for unlocking many of its sacred mysteries,
besides compromising the history of 16 heathen crucified gods.
Also called Christianity before Christ, this book contains new,
startling, and extraordinary revelations in religious history,
which disclose the oriental origin of all the doctrines,
principles, percepts and miracles of the Christian New Testament
and furnishing a key for unlocking many of its sacred mysteries,
besides compromising the history of 16 heathen crucified gods.
"To those searching for truth -- not the truth of dogma and
darkness but the truth brought by reason, search, examination, and
inquiry, discipline is required. For faith, as well intentioned as
it may be, must be built on facts, not fiction -- faith in fiction
is a damnable false hope." Thomas Edison Your refill is ready. The
medicine is the Bitter Pill of Truth. Are you ready and willing to
take it? This next installment of the Bitter Truth series is
another dose of strong medicine for the believer and non-believer
alike. Whether you are strong in your faith and want to see what
new arguments are being brought forth, or if you are insecure and
are having doubts about your Judeo-Christian faith, and even if you
are among the heathen, heretical, and soulless lot that is without
faith-like myself-part two of the Bitter Pill series is for you.
Many books about faith, or the lack thereof, never take a good,
hard look at God. Those that favor God are biased, but can you
blame them? Those that discount God, or criticize Him...well, some
are great and insightful works, but many pull punches. I do not.
This book will entertain a slew of new and thought-provoking ways
to study the character of God. Is God the kind, compassionate
creator that His faithful present to the world, or is He something
else? Is God on our side and does He have our best interests at
heart, or is He the vain, jealous Lord and Master He proclaims
Himself to be? If one is to truly examine the character and
steadfastness of God, one must not wear kid gloves, and one must be
able to dissect not just what is in the holy texts and dogma of the
Judeo-Christian faith, but also one must look at history and the
world all around us-nay, the universe. Get your glass of water,
make sure your skin is nice and thick if you must, and get ready to
delve into a character study of the Almighty as you have not seen
before. The truth hurts...are you sure you want it?
Sometimes tough love is the best medicine for those who need it.
The Bitter Pill of Truth is just the prescription anyone needs if
they wish to break the chains of religious repression and
de-mystify the mystical. Whether you are secure in your faith, are
looking for reasons for abandoning it, or are interested to know
all the dirty little secrets that are kept hidden by a mask of
mysticism, secrecy, and ritual, this is the book for you. Would you
like to know the true origins of Judaism and Christianity? Are you
interested in learning where the traditions and rituals came from?
Does the mythology of ancient cultures intrigue you, and do you
want to know how they played a huge role in molding and shaping not
only history but modern-day religion? Are you ready-and willing-to
see the glaring contradictions and plagiarisms contained in the
Bible? Written in a no holds barred, gently-in-your-face manner,
this book is an eye-opening look at the Judeo-Christian religion. A
mix of history, religious insight, humor, and straight-talk, The
Bitter Pill of Truth promises to educate the reader and truly open
one's eyes. Filled with dozens of quotes from the great free
thinkers of the ages for you to ponder and lessons from humankind's
history be prepared to deal with some information you may never
have reflected upon, or never even learned. Let history and
science, combined with basic humanism, expose over 6,000 years of
deceits and mistruths. Pour a big glass of cold water and get ready
to swallow the Bitter Pill of Truth. But be warned: the truth
hurts.
THIS 48 PAGE ARTICLE WAS EXTRACTED FROM THE BOOK: American Thought:
From Puritanism to Pragmatism, by Woodbridge Riley. To purchase the
entire book, please order ISBN 0766105679.
The Fallacy of God, A Religious Conspiracy: No one could study the
Bible with an open mind and still believe that the scribble written
inside was ever inspired by some loving entity. The Bible is filled
with contradictions and superstitious beliefs of an angry, jealous,
man-made controlling God. Only through blind faith, the act of
unthinking, could anyone possibly believe that the immoral,
unjustified, homicidal stories of a greedy Creator were not just
fabrications and old mythological legends compiled into religious
propaganda. Religious leaders grow fat with money while they preach
of giving and not living for materialistic possessions. They are
hypocritical pretenders to what they teach. We should all blindly
follow and obey, for any one of us who doubts the existence of God
will face His wrath of eternal Hellfire? Its basic dogma, of one
true religion, breeds hatred between brothers and wars throughout
our world, and we must live in fear of the coming Battle of
Armageddon. Christianity is blasphemous to what Jesus believed, and
the Shroud of Turin is a fraudulent sham, no one was ever
resurrected from the dead. Some of the information presented in
this book is from my anti-religious series including "Empirical
Truth," and "Jesus Christ Revolutionary Mythology." If you want to
know how rapacious the Bible truly is, you will want to read this
book.
Is it possible with an average educated intelligence, in all good
faith (pun intended), truly and honestly to contemplate our world
and be convinced that it was created by an omniscient (all
knowing), omnipotent (all powerful), all loving God? This book is a
collection of thoughts that anybody could have if he or she took
the time to stop, wonder, think and observe the world with the
tools that our 21st century culture gave us. An open mind is
needed. Narcissism (I'm the child of a God), and self interest (I
am a soul that doesn't die) must be repressed.
This thought provoking and encouraging book, serves as both a
handbook for those that desire an intimate encounter with God and a
guide for the overcomer, searching for spiritual freedom and
victory in their lives today
When Tertium Organum burst onto the New York literary scene its
author, P. D. Ouspensky, was unaware of it. Piotr Demianovich
Ouspensky, the most famous pupil of Greco-Armenian spiritual
teacher George Ivanovitch Gurdjieff, had written Kluck Kzaradkam
(the original title) in his native Russian and it had been
published in St. Petersburg in 1912. At the time of its New York
debut his whereabouts were unknown. A Russian by the name of
Nicholas Bessarabof had emigrated to America before the 1917
Russian Revolution and had taken the book with him. He gave a copy
to architect Claude Bragdon who could read Russian and was
interested in forth-dimensional consciousness. After reading the
book a friend echoed Bragdons' sentiments saying; He has recently
discovered a young Russian who "seems to us remarkable in many
ways." The man has introduced him to Ouspensky and his book on the
fourth dimension called Tertium Organum. Bragdon believes this book
to be the "long sought New Testament of the Sixth Race which will
justify the meekness of the saint, the vision of the mystic, and
create a new heaven and a new earth." He is currently collaborating
with Bessarabof on an English translation.A " In 1920 without
Ouspensky's knowledge, Bragdon and Bessarabof published the book in
English through Manas Press in New York. Meanwhile Ouspensky, a
journalist and destitute author, had arrived in Constantinople with
hardly a penny to his name. Later that year he was gratified to
receive a substantial royalty check, and the news that Tertium
Organum was a publishing success in English, and that his fame in
literary circles was assured. In 1921 he wrote, "This translation,
made without my knowledge and participation, at a time when I was
cut off by war and revolution from the civilized world, transmits
my thought so exactly that after a very attentive review of the
book I could find only one word to correct. Such a result could be
achieved only because Mr. Bessarabof and Mr. Bragdon were not
translating words merely, but were grasping directly my thoughts at
the back of them." In May 1921 Ouspensky received the sum of GBP100
from Lady Rothermere who was in Rochester, New York; it was wired
with the message: 'Deeply impressed by your book Tertium Organum -
wish to meet you in New York or London - will pay all expenses.'
This invitation gave Ouspensky the opportunity to move to England
where he secured Gurdjieff's permission to write a book on his
philosophy. Ouspensky spent the next twenty years in England
lecturing and teaching Gurdjieff's ideas and developing his own
philosophy. His lectures in London were attended by such literary
figures as Aldous Huxley, T. S. Eliot, and other writers,
journalists and doctors. His influence on the literary scene of the
1920's and 1930's as well as on the Russian avant-garde was huge
but today he is not widely known.
"Spiritual Snake Oil" shows that the same fallacies that plague
religious apologetics also infect virtually all "new age" and
"spiritual" writing. Author Chris Edwards does this by dissecting
the arguments and assertions of the most prominent "new age" icons
and "spiritual" writers. They include Robert Pirsig ("Zen and the
Art of Motorcycle Maintenance"), James Redfield ("The Celestine
Prophecy"), Deepak Chopra ("Life After Death"), Dinesh D'Souza
("Life After Death"), Francis Collins's ("The Language of God"),
Rhonda Byrne ("The Secret"), and even Michael Crichton (a
surprising defender of New Age thinking). As Edwards shows, the
same fallacies, the same errors in argument, show up time after
time in the writings of these--and virtually all other--"new age"
and "spiritual" writers. In addition to explaining these fallacies
in the chapters devoted to the individual authors, Edwards devotes
a final chapter, "A Compendium of Fallacies," to outlining the
tricks and deceptive practices common to illogical arguments.
Written by a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day
Saints who has been severely disabled by cerebral palsy since
birth, this book gives insight into Mormon beliefs. The "talks," as
they are called by Mormons, were read to various congregations .
Because Mr. Beatty has a severe speech impediment he typed his
talks and someone would read them for him. The talks were given
over the span of 40 years and cover such subjects as faith, the
Plan of Salvation, reverence, prayer, unity, and other basic
principles which form the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Four essays are
also included. The main essay is unique because Mr. Beatty attempts
to answer the age old questions of why disability exists and what
God intends mankind (especially the person with a disability) to
learn from them. This is done from the perspective of Mormon
/Christian theology. The other essays relate to the Independent
Living Movement among those with severe disabilities in the United
States, addiction recovery, and a short biography.
The Problems With Religion answers common questions about religion
including, what is religion, where did it come from and why are
most people religious? The book primarily focuses on the major
monotheistic religions of today, what problems they present to a
harmonious world of peace, health and mutual respect. Finally, Dr.
Barrett describes what we all can do to move ourselves out of these
problems and toward a safe and tolerant world.
The Heathen's Guide to World Religions is a humorous but accurate
history of the murder, lust, greed, and sheer stupidity that have
made the world's religions what they are today. "Hopper represents
the most lethal of organized religions many opponents: a curious,
well-educated individual with a sharp wit." Queen's University
Journal Review "Wickedly fun and informative." Toronto Star "The
Heathen's Guide To World Religions has taken up permanent residence
on my bookshelves... a masterfully written, wonderfully funny, and
deliciously snarky trip down religious lane." Al Stefanelli, UNITED
ATHEIST FRONT. "Like Monty Python in religious garb... easily one
of the best places to invest your book buying dollar." Georgia
Straight
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