Mega church pastor Adam Hamiltons scandalous take on Scripture. The pastor of the largest United Methodist congregation in America is sparking intense debate with his provocative new take on the Bible. Image courtesy of Adam Hamilton. As pastor of Church of the Resurrection, Adam Hamilton has the honor of leading the largest United Methodist congregation in the United States. More than 8,6. 00 attend services each week, and the Kansas congregation is considered by many to be Americas most influential mainline Protestant church. But with the release of his provocative new book, Making Sense of the Bible Rediscovering the Power of Scripture Today, Hamilton is becoming known as someone who is challenging traditional understandings the Bible. Here we discuss the message of his book and how he navigates the most difficult and debated passages. RNS You believe the Bible is divinely inspired. Can you explain what you mean exactly AH The biblical authors were people like us. Manual Of Christian Reformed Church Government In Scripture What Does Barnabas' title='Manual Of Christian Reformed Church Government In Scripture What Does Barnabas' />Christians do not hold, as Muslims do, that our holy book was dictated by God. The biblical authors wrote in particular times, for particular audiences, out of a particular context. Part of rightly interpreting Scripture is reading it in the light of what we can know about its historical and cultural context, the authors purposes in writing and knowing something about the people they were writing to. In 2 Timothy 3 1. Paul writes, All Scripture is inspired by God Christians often assume they know what this means, but Paul seems to have created the word inspired. It does not appear in the Greek language before this and is used nowhere else in the Bible. It literally means God breathed but Paul doesnt go on to explain precisely what he means. It is a metaphor, and metaphors are not precise. Manual Of Christian Reformed Church Government In Scripture The Word' title='Manual Of Christian Reformed Church Government In Scripture The Word' />Push them too far and they break down. When I think of inspired, I think of God influenced. This leaves open a variety of ways in which the biblical authors were influenced by God. Image courtesy of Harper. Manual Of Christian Reformed Church Government In Scripture AnxietyOne. RNS A lot of critics reject the Bible because of the violence in the Old Testament. What say you My premise is that the Bible is the words of people who were influenced by God, and yet who were also shaped by the times in which they lived. The violence attributed to God in the Bible is a serious issue that Christians must address. It is inconsistent with the character of God described in many places in the Old Testament, and certainly inconsistent with the Word of God revealed in Jesus Christ who calls his followers to love their enemies. In the Hebrew Bible we find God putting to death 7. Israelites to punish David for taking a census. We have God commanding Joshua to slaughter every man woman and child in 3. Canaan as a kind of offering to God. This is what, today, we would call genocide. God commands priests to burn their daughters alive if they become prostitutes. I cannot imagine God calling me to burn one of my children alive, regardless of what they had done. Other ancient near eastern people believed their gods also called them to slaughter entire cities as an offering to their gods, so this seems to have been a common cultural understanding about the relationship between war and the gods. RNS Theologian J. P. Moreland once argued that among evangelicals, There is an over commitment to Scripture in a way that is false, irrational, and harmful to the cause of Christ. What do you think about his assertionAnglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that evolved out of the practices, liturgy and identity of the Church of England following the Protestant Reformation in. Various experts on the subject tried to determine what makes a Christian denomination a part of Protestantism. A common consensus approved by most of them is that if. TABLE OF CONTENTS Syllabus LESSON 1 The Christian Philosophy of Leadership LESSON 2 The Dangers of Hierarchies LESSON 3 Principle Activities of the Christian Leader. AH I dont know the context of Morelands quote, but it sounds much like what Im saying in my book. An exaggerated or inaccurate view of Scripture is not a high view of Scripture, it is just a wrong view of Scripture. A high view of Scripture takes the Bible seriously, while also taking its historical context and the humanity of its authors seriously. A high view of Scripture is held by those who actually read Scripture, seek to understand why the human authors wrote what they did, and how they convey Gods timeless will for us today. A high view of Scripture includes not only reading the Bible, but seeking to live its timeless messages, which are discerned in the light of Jesus Christ, who is the definitive Word of God. RNS I suspect your chapter on homosexuality will rankle a few feathers, particularly among conservatives. Can you summarize your position and why you believe it is a scriptural oneAH I offer two different arguments regarding homosexuality in my book. In the first, I suggest that what Moses and Paul were addressing in their teachings on same sex intimacy was very different from two human beings entering into a covenant relationship of mutual love. In the entire Old Testament we find only two expressions of same sex intimacy Gang rape and pagan temple prostitution. This is not at all synonymous with two people entering into a lifelong covenant relationship with one another. In the New Testament, Paul, trained in rabbinic law, seems to draw upon all of these ideas in his words about same sex intimacy in Romans where he uses the Old Testament terms of clean and unclean and where he speaks of same sex intimacy in connection with idolatry. But the second argument I make is that the Bible is complex and, while influenced by God, it is not dictated by God. It reflects the humanity of the biblical authors and the times in which they lived. First, here is a good description of the Christian definition of the Trinity In Christianity, the doctrine of the Trinity states that God is one being who exists. Father of the Reformed faith. I labored at the task writing The Institutes especially for our Frenchmen, for I saw that many were hungering and thirsting after. The church and the community. This page contains an extensive description of the church and the community. It was produced in 2002 to assist in the search for a. English. Newsletter from Mission Japan Head Office Bloemfontein, South Africa. Dear supporting friend, Greetings from a hot and humid TokushimaWeve seen this in its teaching on slavery, on violence, on the status and role of women, and several other topics. Thus, I suggest, it is possible to be a faithful Christian who loves God and loves the scriptures and at the same time to believe that the handful of verses on same sex intimacy are like the hundreds of passages accepting and regulating slavery or other practices we today believe do not express the heart and character of God. RNS You say that for those who disagree on homosexuality, the issue is not Biblical authority, but Biblical interpretation. Explain this. AH Most conservatives, moderate evangelicals and progressives I know believe that the church is to love gay and lesbian people. And nearly all agree, at core the issue is not homosexuality but the Bible. God did not rewrite, edit or send down from heaven a new Bible that clarified that God was against slavery. There are over 2. Bible.  Yet somehow Christians were able to look at those verses and ultimately conclude they did not reflect Gods will for humankind despite verses directly attributed to God that allowed for owning, selling and even beating slaves. Conservatives often suggest homosexuality is an issue of biblical authority. I believe the Bible has authority in my life and for the church and, in the words of II Timothy 3 1. God may be proficient, equipped for every good work. But I also believe that the five passages that speak to some form of same sex intimacy do not describe Gods timeless will for humanity any more than the passages on violence, or slavery, or women describe Gods timeless will. The issue is not authority, it is our assumptions about the Bible and the way we interpret it. RNS What do you say to those who would accuse you of just rehashing the arguments of 2. What is new here AH My book is less about rehashing old arguments, than offering an accessible way of understanding both the Bibles divine inspiration and its humanity. I share the kind of things any seminary student in a mainline or moderate evangelical seminary would learn in their first year, but most lay people may not be aware of. Often both laity and clergy speak of the Bible in terms that are not ultimately helpful in making sense of its difficult passages, and can actually lead to misunderstanding the Bible. RNS Your book might be characterized as provocative or progressive. Do you think it is also hopeful AH Yes. I wrote the book for young adults who have been turned away from faith by things theyve read in the Bible. I wrote it to help Christians who are increasingly confronted by vocal atheists who love to focus on the Bibles more difficult passages. Missie Japan English. English. Newsletter from Mission Japan Head Office Bloemfontein, South Africa3. May 2. 01. 4Dear supporting friend ,Greetings from a hot and humid Tokushima Here below follows a newsletter from Mission Japans head office in Bloemfontein, South Africa. Please read it and pray with us for what lies aheadWithin the next week our personal newsflash will also follow, as always, this time including our final schedule for our upcoming visit to SA. Gods Peace,  Stphan, Carina and family  Dear Mission Japan Co workers, NEWS FROM THE OFFICEWe trust that you are all doing fine. With our missionaries, Stphan and Carina van der Watt and their children as well as with Gys and Linda Olivier and their little daughter, it is really going well. The work that they are doing in Japan is really being appreciated by our Japanese brothers and sisters we are deeply grateful for the special way in which the Lord is using our missionaries. Stphan and Carina and their childrens visit Stphan and his family is leaving for South Africa at the end of June, for a period of a bit more than three months. They are coming for a well deserved period of rest, but Stphan will also visit some supporting congregations and individuals in this time. The visitation schedule is almost finalized, and hell have to be working hard to make all his rounds to involved supporters. A heartfelt thank you to all who will receive him with open hearts and give him the opportunity to share about their life and work. It is very important to build and deepen personal relationships with visits like these. If someone maybe knows about a spacious vehicle big enough to fit in 4 active small children which we can hire or even borrow during their visit, please let us know. We are very much looking forward to their upcoming visit and hope that it will be really blessed. In search of a new missionary couple Mission Japans Management Committee recently decided that we will seriously have to start searching for another missionary couple to send to Japan. This request comes regularly from our sister church in Japan. To identify someone suitable and to send such a persons, will be a whole process. Before we begin to place advertisements, we want to inform all supporters about our plans. Because we will also have to find funds and other support for a new missionary couple. Please pray that the Lord will call the right people and provide the necessary support through willing co workers. Prayer schedule   For an endeavour like Mission Japan to succeed, it is essential to do everything in deep and prayerful dependence on God. Only prayer can really carry missionaries in Japan. Therefore it will be good if churches can pray for them on a regular basis. To assist in this, we compiled a prayer schedule in order to pray intentionally for the work. Our brothers and sisters in Japan can also use this schedule fruitfully to pray for the mission. Please read it here below. Thank you very much for your loyal support. Kind regards, Gideon van der WattSecretary  MISSION JAPAN PRAYER ITEMS FOR EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK  MONDAY Mission Japan missionaries and their families in Japan, the deepening of their sense of calling, their perseverance, their spiritual, emotional and physical health, their marriage and family life, the education of their children, their church life, their witness and outreach in their communities, their ministries etc. Stphan, Carina, Annlie, Cornelius, Lodewyk and Stephan in Tokushima City. Gys, Linda and Linie at SEIWA Christian School in Nankoku Town Kochi City TUESDAYWork of Reformed Church of Japan RCJ in North Eastern Japan disaster area Sakura House and Nozomi Centre, its staff members and their daily weekly monthly outreaches to and activities among victims of the 2. WEDNESDAYReformed Church in Japan, its synod and presbytery leaders, its pastors and congregations in Shikoku and rest of the country spiritual revival, witness in every community, church growth, Christian youth outreach and mission. THURSDAYJapan, its people, political leaders, social issues etc. Japan with less than 1 Christians, peace and stability, good relationships with neighbouring countries North and South Korea and China. FRIDAYMission Japan leadership and Mission Japan support base in South Africa Deepening and broadening through regular deputation, correspondence, newsletters etc. Japan, from congregations, families and individuals. Pray for the recruitment of new missionaries in South Africa. SATURDAYChurch relationship and mission cooperation between RCJ Mission Africa and DRC family Mission Japan Mutual respect and sensitivity, RCJ involvement in Botshabelo Orphanage, visits and exchange of pastors, members, young people, theological students, lecturers etc. SUNDAYThe church in Japan on Sunday worship services, ministry of the Word, fellowship and edification of believers, Sunday school Tokushima Happy Kids etc., special evangelistic services and activities, outreach to seekers and newcomers to worship services. Newsflash 1. March 2. Dear supporting friend,When the Japanese Nightingale bird starts singing we know the thaw after the lng winter has really set in, making room for spring These Magnolias in the street behind us confirms our belief Enough and Content. Its very good to be back on air. Not because we were absent recently not at all. Actually we have felt overburdened most of the time during the last few months, because there are more than enough duties and work outside our home. And inside enough tears to dry, enough diapers to change, enough books from which to read aloud, joy to share, experiences of isolation, daily house cleaning without domestic help, and so forth. With four very lively children between 0 6 years in age, we regularly feel quite overwhelmed but blessed is actually the word This is what our youngest, the 4 months old Stephan, looks like this morning. New Beginning for many  With my Stphans recent additional work as part time lecturer in pastoral care and  counselling at the Reformed Church of Japans Kobe Theological Seminary, and Carinas full time responsibility as home schooling mom without a formal support network, the days remain full. Annlie started Grade 1 in January and is making good progress. So Frenchy So Chic 2011 Rar File there. We often pray about and discuss ways how to find a meaningful balance between our available time and energy, without risking burn out. Its tough sometimes, but it remains an instructive challenge, especially regarding our own character development and our familys path of faith   Wider Ministry in Tokyo. Although our ministry is still focused on Tokushima congregation and the Shikoku Presbytery, we are becoming increasingly more involved in wider areas. I Stphan am usually on my own at work beyond our hometown, but last weekend we as a family had the privilege of visiting a dynamic congregation in Tokyo. RCJ Tokyo Bay had invited us to preach and to present a seminar together as a couple on family relationships including parent child issues, marriage growth etc. Japanese, of course. This warm and hospitable congregation is also in many ways involved in the partnership between Mission Japan on behalf of the Dutch Reformed Church family in SA and the RCJ. Their pastor, Rev. Taka Ashida, is heading exciting expansions in this regard, including their recent short term outreach to SA, as well as new plans regarding Mission Africa etc. Visit to South Africa around the corner. As mentioned at the end of last year, we will God willing be in South Africa on furlough by the middle of this year. The idea is like 3 years ago among other things to give feedback to our supporters and recruit additional support from July to September and also, of course, to rest enough beforehand and in between a full program.