Page Contents

 

•  Chapter Content
•  General Comment
•  Specific Comments
•  Conclusions

  

        

       

Chapter Content

   

There is little to comment upon here so we will simply keep a very basic structure.

 

P.155-157 Speculation through fiction.  Link below

  

P.157-158 Cargo Cults   Link below

  

P.158-161 The Marjoe Con    Link below

     

P.161-168 The Mormons    Link below

   

     

General Comment

   

The author's use of misleading chapter titles rises to new heights here. I expected, wrongly I see now, something more after Richard Dawkins' style of speculation about how religions come into being. I was disappointed. All we receive are three examples of dubious humanity in the guise of religion.

 

I will make the point here and try to overcome the temptation to repeat myself below. To cite examples of extreme superstition (Cargo Cults), utter gullibility (the Marjoe Con), and counterfeit believism (Mormons) really has very little to do with traditional, biblical and historical Christianity. They are good examples of how unwitting and uneducated (and educated) people are taken in, but again that has very little to do with modern Christianity which has been underpinned and reinforced by thorough and deep scholarship.

    

        

Specific Comments

   

Again we look at the specific points we have observed in the ‘Content' part above

     

P.155-157 Speculation through fiction. Citing past authors who have speculated about possibilities does little but add some colour to an otherwise colourless argument. In the midst of this comes some vitriolic writing that is not worthy of someone who appears widely read, widely travelled and widely experienced. Deriding the story of the Fall, he speaks of “impossible to obey prohibitions.” Does he use this language because he's never read it? In a land of plenty with fruit trees galore, what is so difficult in staying away from one? Adam didn't die? Pardon? He died, not immediately but that wasn't what was said. Read more carefully. There's nothing else worthy of comment here.

       

P.157-158 Cargo Cults. So he gives us an incredible example of extreme superstition. Yes, people are superstitious. See my general comments above.

    

P.158-161 The Marjoe Con.   ‘Con' is my word. He calls him a Pentecostal which seems a completely inaccurate description. On all that's said, yes, a fraudster and, yes, people are gullible, but that doesn't mean everyone is, and as I noted above this has little or nothing to do with traditional, Biblical and historical Christianity. If you're not sure what that means, please CLICK HERE.

     

P.161-168 The Mormons. Similarly this requires no comment. Many of us would agree with what is written here but all that does is show that the work of deception is alive and thriving, but again that is little to do with traditional main-stream Christianity.

  

      

Conclusions

   

There is very little to say here. Comparing these examples to mainstream Christianity is rather like comparing the two twisters in Hans Anderson's Emperor's New Clothes with Saville Row tailors. (Saville Row being where the top quality tailors work in London!). Nothing more to be said.