Raising Hell | Ep 2: Do You Have to be a Seminary Grad to Study Your Bible Critically? @RaisingHell | Uploaded April 2020 | Updated October 2024, 1 hour ago.
The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire
Free PDFs of all versions at: raisinghellbook.com
Full length version Amazon: amzn.to/2y4jCsc
Abridged version Amazon: amzn.to/2x58bBp
Spanish version (Controversia infernal) Amazon: amzn.to/2JlNwA4
patreon.com/RaisingHell
There's a fable by Hans Christian Anderson where a naive emperor paid handsomely to have two scoundrels make him some extravagant, one-of-a-kind clothing. The thread for this clothing was reported to be so light and magical that only those worthy and competent could see it.
As we remember from the tale, everyone in town pretended to see the emperor’s clothing when he paraded around town in his birthday suit. How could they not pretend? If they didn’t go along with the ruse, they would be singled out, ridiculed, and maybe even cast out.
It was only the child who advanced the emperor where he stood proudly on his carriage and said, “Why is everyone ignoring the fact that the emperor is naked?!”
My book Raising Hell challenges one such glaring, damaging falsehood in today’s church—the doctrine of hell. To allow yourself the ability to see the overwhelming evidence proving that hell cannot possibly be true requires the open, inquisitive approach of a child. A child has not yet been systematically indoctrinated, is not under the thumb of social constraints, and is able to approach life simply and honestly. I invite you to do the same.
But is it safe to question such important concepts in our modern Bibles? Do you need a seminary degree? The message of the Bible was lived, written down by, and proliferated by and for the common people, not the theologians and scholars (Pharisees) of the day. Jesus selected uneducated fishermen, tax collectors, women, and even prostitutes to understand and convey the mysteries of the Spirit, and I believe God still works this way today. In fact, the entire point of the faith journey is that it is a trail blazed from within—a personal relationship and transformational path between you and your Creator. You don’t need a pastor, a priest, a guru, or anyone else to interpret your inner dialog with the Spirit. “The Spirit will teach you all things" (John 14:26). Once you know and believe the Universe is safe, you will feel more comfortable learning to trust your inner guide and experience.
Through the centuries, the messages of Scriptures have been controlled by translators and scholars, while the rest of us common folks were at their mercy for reliability, interpretation, and authenticity. Unfortunately, these qualities were lost (and twisted at times) in translation along the way on some very important doctrines, with the most damaging to humanity being the false doctrine of hell.
Raising Hell demonstrates how the average lay person, the childlike, and even the actual child who sits in church can utilize the same online reference resources that today’s scholars, theologians, and pastors are using to discover plain lies being unwittingly proliferated about the character of God as well as beautiful hidden (in plain sight) truths.
Fact: There is no correlation between going to seminary and the ability to discern truth. Just like other institutions of our day (medical and scientific), pastors are educated in institutions with man-made biases, not with open-minded discovery. In other words, they are taught how to learn and how to think before they ever come into a pulpit (as admitted by many recovering pastors today).
One of the objectives of religion throughout time, is to control people’s thoughts and beliefs, namely with fear. "Fear sells." Unfortunately, Christianity was not immune to this problem. The main way this has been carried out is via Bible mistranslations. Most of these mistranslations are so apparent, even a 3rd grader could spot them.
If you are already a preschool graduate, you can and should bring your inner child along on this journey. You’re smart enough, capable enough, and discerning enough for this path of inquiry!
The book: Raising Hell: Christianity's Most Controversial Doctrine Put Under Fire
Free PDFs of all versions at: raisinghellbook.com
Full length version Amazon: amzn.to/2y4jCsc
Abridged version Amazon: amzn.to/2x58bBp
Spanish version (Controversia infernal) Amazon: amzn.to/2JlNwA4
patreon.com/RaisingHell
There's a fable by Hans Christian Anderson where a naive emperor paid handsomely to have two scoundrels make him some extravagant, one-of-a-kind clothing. The thread for this clothing was reported to be so light and magical that only those worthy and competent could see it.
As we remember from the tale, everyone in town pretended to see the emperor’s clothing when he paraded around town in his birthday suit. How could they not pretend? If they didn’t go along with the ruse, they would be singled out, ridiculed, and maybe even cast out.
It was only the child who advanced the emperor where he stood proudly on his carriage and said, “Why is everyone ignoring the fact that the emperor is naked?!”
My book Raising Hell challenges one such glaring, damaging falsehood in today’s church—the doctrine of hell. To allow yourself the ability to see the overwhelming evidence proving that hell cannot possibly be true requires the open, inquisitive approach of a child. A child has not yet been systematically indoctrinated, is not under the thumb of social constraints, and is able to approach life simply and honestly. I invite you to do the same.
But is it safe to question such important concepts in our modern Bibles? Do you need a seminary degree? The message of the Bible was lived, written down by, and proliferated by and for the common people, not the theologians and scholars (Pharisees) of the day. Jesus selected uneducated fishermen, tax collectors, women, and even prostitutes to understand and convey the mysteries of the Spirit, and I believe God still works this way today. In fact, the entire point of the faith journey is that it is a trail blazed from within—a personal relationship and transformational path between you and your Creator. You don’t need a pastor, a priest, a guru, or anyone else to interpret your inner dialog with the Spirit. “The Spirit will teach you all things" (John 14:26). Once you know and believe the Universe is safe, you will feel more comfortable learning to trust your inner guide and experience.
Through the centuries, the messages of Scriptures have been controlled by translators and scholars, while the rest of us common folks were at their mercy for reliability, interpretation, and authenticity. Unfortunately, these qualities were lost (and twisted at times) in translation along the way on some very important doctrines, with the most damaging to humanity being the false doctrine of hell.
Raising Hell demonstrates how the average lay person, the childlike, and even the actual child who sits in church can utilize the same online reference resources that today’s scholars, theologians, and pastors are using to discover plain lies being unwittingly proliferated about the character of God as well as beautiful hidden (in plain sight) truths.
Fact: There is no correlation between going to seminary and the ability to discern truth. Just like other institutions of our day (medical and scientific), pastors are educated in institutions with man-made biases, not with open-minded discovery. In other words, they are taught how to learn and how to think before they ever come into a pulpit (as admitted by many recovering pastors today).
One of the objectives of religion throughout time, is to control people’s thoughts and beliefs, namely with fear. "Fear sells." Unfortunately, Christianity was not immune to this problem. The main way this has been carried out is via Bible mistranslations. Most of these mistranslations are so apparent, even a 3rd grader could spot them.
If you are already a preschool graduate, you can and should bring your inner child along on this journey. You’re smart enough, capable enough, and discerning enough for this path of inquiry!
