In this long-awaited; lavishly illustrated book; drummer Layne Redmond presents an empowering narrative history of the sacred drum in the ancient Goddess civilization; using her extensive collection of images gathered during more than five years of research and travel in the Mideast and Europe. 80 photos drawings.
#464711 in BooksColor: Other Russell Earl Kelly 2000-01-11Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.00 x .72 x 6.00l; .96 #File Name: 0595159788288 pagesShould the Church Teach Tithing A Theologian s Conclusions about a Taboo Doctrine
Review
18 of 18 people found the following review helpful. Well Done. Thank you for your service to the Body.By DriftyThose who believe in a "New Testament Tithe;" are usually quite challenged to point to a Biblical basis for their "10% of Gross Income" rule; or when they do; one can see the 'logic' of equivocation at work. Equivocation is the rhetorical use of separate meanings of a word to 'prove' a point. An example of equivocation:1. Feathers are light.2. Light is bright.3. Therefore; feathers cannot be dark.Similar tithing arguments proceed as follows.1. Abraham tithed to Melchizedek in the Old Testament.2. The New Testament mentions Abraham's tithe.3. Therefore; existence of the New Testament Tithe cannot be questioned.Both arguments leave a whole lot to be desired; Abraham's tithe was a one-shot deal of the spoils of a war he won; not "10% of gross income" year-over-year; and this book clears all of that up.Most interesting to me; is that fact that payment of Old Testament Tithes in money was forbidden (Deuteronomy 14:24-26). Someone tried to tell me that this was because they didn't know about money! (read the passage; it talks about money!)The message of Acts 15 is simple enough. There (in order of mention) Paul; Barnabas; Peter; James; Silas; and all the Apostles and Elders in Jerusalem laid out clearly and concisely what is required of New Testament believers in Christ relative to the Old Testament Laws and Traditions."It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols; from blood; from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things." Acts 15:28-29; NIV.The whole discussion of the "New Testament Tithe" should rightly begin and end with the Acts 15 quote above. However; laboriously refuting the half-truths of a "New Testament Tithe" requires a lot of work; and such is the labor taken up by this book and its author. Well done. Thank you for your service to the Body of Christ.I do of course believe in free will giving; even sacrificially; based on notes from Paul the Apostle:All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor; the very thing I was eager to do. Galatians 2:10Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give; not reluctantly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:7I've been thinking about this subject for years; but somehow had never read Dr. Kelly's book. I had simply never studied the OT tithe before. Previously; all my analysis concerning the tithe had to do with OT-to-NT relationships; and the presence of the logical fallacy of equivocation (among other fallacies) in all the arguments that attempt to splice the OT tithe into a NT "10% of gross income rule."What Dr. Kelly's book opened up to me is a completely new line of analysis. I can now boldly say;"Okay though I disagree; for thesake of discussion; let's assumejust as you say: that the OT tithestill applies to NT Christians.Let's look at what that means.However; remember that OT law islaw; and so we are obliged tointerpret it legalistically."In following that line of reasoning; one can very quickly show that God quite ingenuously designed the tithe in such a way that it could not persist after He allowed the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD.In following that line of reasoning; one can very quickly show that teaching poor Christians to tithe in support of the rich is very very wrong. The OT poor benefited from tithes; they didn't pay them.9 of 10 people found the following review helpful. This book exposes the lie that Gentiles are commaned to TitheBy millsThis is a very interesting book Dr. Kelly did his research. My first Church was in a low income area. People out of a job on unemployment and Welfare were still expected to tithe; including single or divorced mothers with young children. At no time was help given to them; yet the Pastor lived in the lap of luxury with expensive cars two homes in upscale neighborhoods (not in the low-income area of his church members). This was grossly unfair to have the church leadership pronounce cursing on already financially depressed members. It left a bitter taste in my heart to mistreat the poor this way. With what little resources I had I tried to help out the poor in our church at Xmas Holidays.Our Salvation and favor is due to the work Jesus accomplished on the Cross. He gives us Grace for every area of our lives just by asking God in faith in Jesus name.Jews had required ordinances around the clock beginning with circumcising all males on the eight day (of their lives by a Priest in the Temple) and ceasing all activity on the Sabbath (Friday not till Saturday night). All 613 Old Covenant laws had to be kept to obtain favor from God; not just the tithe law. James 2:10 "For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it".Galatians 3:10 "All who rely on observing the law are under a curse; for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law."Galatians 3:13 "Christ has rescued us from the curse of the law by dying on the Cross"Galatians 3:14 "In order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles; so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith".Hebrew 8:7 "For if that first covenant had been faultless; then should no place have been sought for the second".Romans 8:32"He who did not spare His own Son; but delivered Him over for us all; how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?"Some day the Lord's sheep are all going to wake up and believe 2nd Corinthian 9:7 that each person can give as he has purposed in their own heart; not out of compulsion or pressure. All praises should go to Jesus and the payment he paid in full on his cross. Too bad tithe testimonies encourage boasting in ones own tithe payments.8 of 8 people found the following review helpful. ExcellentBy Charles DickenThis is the most comprehensive study I have ever read on the subject of tithing. While those who claim they teach tithing in their churches; no other pastor or theologian has ever given as an in-depth study on this subject as Dr. Kelly has in this book. Unlike many sermons I have listened to; Dr. Kelly has provided scripture references to every claim he has made.The author here has tackled a subject and has come up with a different conclusion than what most pastors and theologians of our modern time have come up with. It is enlightening and invigorating to the soul; because it can lift the spirits and free the guilt that so many in our churches are experiencing today. No longer do we need to feel guilty about not giving what a man tells us what we have to give; but instead we can restore the joy in giving because we can begin to give according to what the Spirit of God lays on heart on what and how to give.
