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A CHRISTIAN BOOK MAGAZINE | Nยบ 8
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rISEN! MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.
ANASTASIOS KIOULACHOGLOU
OSMAR LUDOVICO
FRANCIS SCHAEFFER
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WELCOME
EDITORIAL W W W . B I B L I O N . P T
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English Version
A CHRISTIAN BOOK MAGAZINE | Nº 8
hE IS
rISEN! MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.
ANASTASIOS KIOULACHOGLOU
OSMAR LUDOVICO
FRANCIS SCHAEFFER
COV E R :
RISEN DESIGN: DA N I E L G O M E S
Revista de Livros, Livros em Revista
iSSUE VIII April / May / June 2018 COLlaborating in this issue: Daniel Gomes, Susana Pires, Vitor Marini (Illustrations), Samuel Ascenção (Production Support)
EDITORIAL OFFICE
email: mag@biblion.pt web: www.biblion.pt
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MISSION/PURPOSE: To promote and encourage reading habits of Christian themes, fostering the necessary conditions to allow everyone to access these works. Learn more about our drive and our principles at www.biblion.pt. CONTENTS: The content of the articles hereby presented is subject to their authors’ opinions. CONTENT USAGE: Given that the main goal is the promotion of works and authors, content sharing is allowed for non-commercial ends only, and requires the source of this content to be mentioned. PRICING & AVAILABILITY: Prices mentioned include IVA. Products are subject to stock availability at the time of the order.
At a time when we celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we delve upon the approach of renowned author Tim LaHaye concerning the disappearance of His body as crucial evidence of His existence and divine nature. This Fourth of April marks fifty years of that fateful morning in which that notable character – Martin Luther King, Jr. – was murdered. In this issue, we will discover the historical events that shaped his life and the impact they had toward the end of racial segregation. In the exclusive interview conceded to us, Greek author Anastasios Kioulachoglou tells us of how he learned that “small is the gate and narrow is the path” in the struggle of pursuing a true Christian life. It will make for a pleasant surprise to learn the story and work of this author who, more than twenty years ago, founded a ministry within the student body of the University of Leicester, where he was finishing his thesis. That fledgling sharing of God’s Word developed into a publication – the Journal of Biblical Accuracy, which is translated today into 18 languages. Once again, it is heartwarming and dear to us at Biblion the chance to bring subjects of undeniable relevance to our readers. A blessed Easter, and a joyful reading!
PAU L O S É R G I O G O M E S
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editor's pick inspiratio osmar ludovico
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featured author
anastasios kioulachoglou Interview • The Warnings of the New Testament • Tithing, Giving and the New Testament
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Persona
Martin Luther King, jr. Biblion honors the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King's death with the book I Have a Dream.
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philosophy
Escape from reason The history of medieval and modern philosophy through the eyes of one of the most renowned Christian thinkers.
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Jesus
The Warrant of authenticity An article inspired in Tim LaHaye's work, Jesus, Who Is He?
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Fiction
The open utopia One of the most acclaimed works of fiction in the whole world is now available for free.
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GET TO KNOW US
Who we are Biblion is a free, quarterly digital magazine that promotes Christian literature and reading habits. Created in 2016, Biblion is an initiative undertaken by Portuguese publisher Unique Creations, and enjoys the support of both resident and guest collaborators. Currently, the magazine is on its seventh issue, with Digital (Issuu) and Interactive (Joomag) versions available in Portuguese (EU) and English (US)
what we do Reviews concerning books deemed beneficial for the reader’s intellectual and/or spiritual edification; Interviews of authors, pastors and personalities involved with the development and spreading of Christian literature; Chronicles relative to ethical and religious subjects; In-house content production; Dissemination of Christian and general literature; Endorsement of reading habits for all ages.
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Our mission Promoting Christian literature and its production in European Portuguese; Stimulate the publication of works from Portuguese authors; Encourage the practice of “fair pricing” and make literature available to everyone’s financial conditions; Promote wholesome reading habits; Host the healthy dialogue among different perspectives.
How you can help Subscribe to Biblion on Joomag and Issuu so you don’t miss an issue! Download our BiblionApp and stay updated! Rate our articles on www.biblion.pt and leave us your feedback!
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editor ' s pick
i n s p i r at i o O smar L u dovico E d i to r a M u n d o C r i s tão
p o r Pau l o S é r g i o G omes
Mentor. Advisor. Spiritual guide. Osmar Ludovico is deeply renowned among those who inspire themselves in his teaching, such as authors Ed René Kivitz, who forewords this work, and Maurício Zágari, the editor, who calls him the pious thinker. After O Caminho do Peregrino, written in partnership with Laurentino Gomes, and Meditatio, a hymn to intimacy with God, here is his third book – Inspiratio. Not claiming to be a writer himself, Osmar presents in an exemplar manifesto (anti-credo) that by which he guides his conscience and character. He is faithful to reclusion and contemplation, to the discrete service for the community, and to the sharing of friendship and affection. Through Inspiratio – with the double meaning of “source of creativity” and “breathing action essential to live” – we are spurred towards a deep quest for spirituality based on simplicity, prayer, silence and meditation. This book of reflections is divided in four subjects: God, the Church, Faith and Society, and Spirituality. In Divinatis, we find the greatness of 8
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God’s love in our midst, while Ecclesia highlights the legacy of Christianity’s foundations that helped prepare the movement spearheaded by Jesus throughout the last two millennia. In the chapter Fide et Societas are addressed such subjects that deal with each and every one of us: money, marriage, worship, among others. Osmar Ludovico saves Spiritus for last, where his intimate compassion becomes evident, inviting the reader to contemplative immersion and to hear God’s voice, reading the Bible, exposing all his vulnerability and taking the reader from repentance to devotion to Him.
BÍBLIA SAGRADA NA JORNADA COM CRISTO From the Greek koinonia comes the word “communion,” which Ludovico states is not a mere gathering at the temple of people who share a common social and cultural context, nor is it restricted to the mystic communion among members of the Body of Christ. To be present, to know your neighbor and develop a true spiritual relationship – to live true Biblical koinonia – requires time, tolerance and love. Regarding classical spirituality (i.e. pre-Reformation), the author states that the Holy Spirit has manifested throughout the first 1,500 years of Church history through the “contribution of saints and Church elders in the movements of priesthood, monasticism and medieval mysticism.” Such is his interest in classical spirituality that acclaimed contemporary thinkers such as Protestants Hans Burki, James Houston or Eugene Peterson, and Catholics Thomas Merton, Henri Nouwen and Anselm Grün, seek to restore the good in that tradition and fuse it with today’s spiritual quest. Instead of a “mystical, alienating practice, (…) the emphasis on silence, solitude, meditation and contemplation is not an end in itself, but a means to a life of holiness and service to our neighbor. With the lectio divina, we Evangelicals can rescue Biblical reading with our heart!”
Deep, but easily understood, texts on main doctrines of the Christian faith. Publication supported to provide the tools that helped to develop a new mind and intellectually the things of God with a series of studies and reflections on what could be seen as Scriptures in more depth and clarity. Easy to read and understand, with translation of the New Transforming Version (NVT), in Brazilian Portuguese, it is both devotional and theological, practical and theoretical. It has a central base, entitled "On the journey with Christ", contains 28 texts whose purpose is to contribute to the basic laws of the Christian faith. The "Encounters with God" section highlights life lessons drawn from the experience the 22 medical characters have had with God. The "Challenges of the journey" section brings together 22 posts with warnings and guidelines to prepare the reader to wait on their journey of faith. Each of the 66 books of the Bible was created for the purpose of presenting the book and presenting a summary of its message within the larger context of Scripture. At the end of each book, there are some and a few questions for personal or group reflection. The timeline is a timeline of major Bible events, a suggested annual Bible reading plan, and four more footnotes. A practical game, with concrete applications in the affairs of everyday life, without wasting time with superficialities, is a valuable tool for new converts and for more experienced people. Elaborated for all religions and theological beliefs, Bíblia Sagrada na Jornada com Cristo is an instrument that stimulates growth and strengthening in the spiritual life.
ANASTASIOS KIOULACHOGLOU f eatu r ed aut h o r
Meet the Greek author and consultant responsible for the foundation of one of the earliest online forums dedicated to the study of God's Word - the Journal of Biblical Accuracy - still sharing the good news to this very day.
Interview with anastasios kioulachoglou B: For the last two decades, you have played a huge role on the Journal of Biblical Accuracy, a project that has reached dozens of colleges and thousands of people. How did it all start? Did you expect it to grow this much and last this long? AK: It all started in 1995. I was doing my Ph.D. in Leicester, UK. I was involved much with the Christian Union of the University and had started fellowships in my home where I was teaching the Bible, focusing on the basics. Though just 5 guys were coming, to me this whole thing was very important. I had time then, as I had almost finished my thesis and I was fully absorbed by this fellowship. I thought to start putting into paper what I was saying, so that the guys have something written after we were gone, as the end of the academic year. But what I wrote started circulating among the students who were asking me for more copies. Soon I had about 30 students in my address book giving them a copy every time I was writing something. It was obvious that something regular was being built up, though there was no name to it and had no form. Then in January 1996 the following happen: I was going to print some additional copies. While I was picking up a copy from the printer, I saw a piece of paper with an email address on it. God speaks to us many times, usually through his peaceful assurance or still voice. But sometimes His voice is emphatic, clear and unmistakable. You know you have heard from Him and there is no mistake to it. To me this has happened 4-5 times in my whole life. One of those times was that time, that morning. Once I saw that paper my whole mind was filled with the
Anastasios "Tassos" Kioulachoglou
author's bio • Born in Greece, in 1969, • Accepted Christ as his Lord and Savior in Thessaloniki, in 1991, • Founds the Journal of Biblical Accuracy in 1996, while pursuing a Ph.D. in Leicester, • Works as a SAP consultant, • Wrote much of his works on the train to his job, • Married, with three children.
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following phrase: “get the articles on the internet!”, “get the articles on the internet!”. The funny things is that I had no idea what the Internet was! Perhaps I had heard the word once but had really no clue what it really was. Remember we are at the beginning of 96. Up to that time I had sent a couple of emails just to experiment. I had not visited a web page yet! Having this “command” very clear in my mind I went immediately to the help desk of the University’s computer room and asked them “how can I get something on the internet”? Then a very polite guy sat with me in a PC, showed me the “newsgroups” (Usenet), something like forums where you could post, and he took me directly to the Christian ones. Within a day I started posting the material to these groups. Immediately I started receiving subscriptions via email from all over the world! The same evening I decided that there will be a magazine with the name of “the Journal of Biblical Accuracy” (Biblical Accuracy was the topic I was focusing at that time). Within a couple of months I had about 100 subscribers, but no web page. Then a subscriber from Mississippi (USA), offered to set up a web page for me, which he kindly did. The web address was half a meter long
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but it did the job. Eventually I got my own domain name. Today what started that January exists in 18 languages, has about 6.000.000 visitors a year and about 80.000 subscribers. I didn’t expect it to get so big but I expected that it would be a fight to keep it going. At the same time I had decided that I would give this fight, as I considered it as one my mandates on this earth. B: I understand you became a Christian almost thirty years ago, in a small group out of Thessalonica. Can you tell us a bit more about that transition and the impact it had in your life? AK: Yes this was in 1991. I had a Christian background and education as a child but sometime in my teenage years I turned to agnostic. Internally though I was looking for the truth. I was always a truth seeker. Sometime in early 1991 I had a major crisis, which brought me to my knees. I told God: “If you exist, manifest yourself to me”. Within the same week my best friend at work told me about a Christian group and invited me to go. This was not like the strict Greek orthodox religious groups I knew and rather detested. In contrast, people looked normal and the God they were proclaiming was a Father who cared and
B I B L I O N - A C H R I S T I A N B OO K P U B L I C AT I O N
loved man. They were saying that the Bible works. So when I read “ask and you will receive”, I thought: “let’s try it”. Within weeks God had changed my life, internally and externally! It was like He was listening to every little thing I was saying and cared to do it! As the Bible says: “you have tasted that the Lord is good” (1 Peter 2:3). This is how God many times attracts us to Himself. And this I will never forget. I have passed through extreme difficult times where God does not seem to be anywhere around. Prolonged months and years of wilderness. In those times I go back to those early days and to the miracles God has done in my life and take refuge there. Walking with the Lord is not always easy. Persecution will arise, even from Christians! Let’s not forget: “small is the way and narrow the path”. At the same time God never leaves us nor forsakes us. As I have come to know: Life is hard, sometimes very hard, but God is good. Both are true! B: You've stated you're an economist by education, with several years of expertise in that field. How do you manage to juggle your job with your work in JBA and with your family?
last book was written in the train going to work. Basically all that I did the last years was done in the train and very early in the morning. In the past, before 2004, I was using the full weekend. 20 years ago in my army service I was carrying a desktop (there were no laptops at that time) in my luggage and was sending the new articles from primitive internet cafes. With the family obligations things are even more difficult but it is the way it is. In any case, I’m just one of millions of God’s people. If I don’t have the time to write something because of work or family obligations then somebody else will do. It is so in the body! B: What led you to write a book? Do you plan to write more? AK: Sometime in 2008 I moved from writing relatively short messages based on a topic to writing moved by “burdens” I had. I consider the last book, “the warnings of the New Testament”, the most important of what I have written. It was a burden I was carrying 6-7 years before I wrote it. Sometimes a topic is in my heart and mind for years before I pick up the keyboard to write about it.
AK: It is a challenge all the way through. It was like this always. The www.biblion.pt 13
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B: What does the future have in store for JBA? AK: I’m not sure. I’m just coming out of a huge trial. I will tell you another time about it. I have learned so much through it and this I believe will eventually come out in writing. What will it be about? Further on the narrow path and the small gate. Further on persecution and affliction because of the Word. We Christians are called to walk on the narrow path and not give up when persecution arises. It is the paradox we are called to live: a full of power and love God and at the same time a life which has lots of afflictions, though deliverance is there too. My message to my fellow brothers is don’t lose your courage. Keep on. Run the race of faith with patience and do not turn back. Run it to the end! Run it despite what may come against you. Faith is a journey. It will take you to places you may not want to be and may turn out much different than what you had thought and planned. Remember though that God is in charge even if it seems crazy at times. Let’s make sure we keep running so that at the end we can say what Paul said: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me 14 ISSUE #8
the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:7-8)
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Feat u red A u thor
t h e wa r n i n g s o f t h e n e w t e s ta m e n t A nastasios K io u lachoglo u
b y Dan i e l G omes
“Can a Christian apostatize?” It is one of the most pivotal questions in Christian soteriology, dividing scholars and theologians since the time of Augustine of Hippo. Its mere discussion sparked one of the most schismatic contentions in the Protestant church – the Calvinist-Arminian debate – whose effects linger among Christian scholars to this day. As if to settle the debate once and for all, Anastasios Kioulachoglou defends the view that Christians can indeed fall away from the faith, and presents a multitude of New Testament passages to support his stance in this short work.
While its title may seem a bit vague, Kioulachoglou’s book does it full justice: The Warnings of the New Testament is a ground-and-pound work that gives no quarter. From start to finish, the book is an absolute onslaught of New Testament passages appealing to the author’s point that “once saved” does not mean “forever saved.” Kioulachoglou’s succinct and straightforward writing is quite evident in this work, with the author wasting little time on theological 16 ISSUE #8
theories and postulations, preferring to draw his support straight from the biblical canon. He lays out the conditions for salvation as established by the New Covenant in the first chapter: “Salvation is given free, by grace, as a gift to everyone who believes in Jesus Christ as his Lord, the Messiah, the Son of God.” From then on, Kioulachoglou lists an impressive amount of passages that support his premise of conditional preservation, as well as excerpts from Bible commentators
(notably Albert Barnes). The author is also careful to provide the original meaning and context of specific key terms employed in some of these passages, and after presenting all his biblical evidence for the possibility of falling away from the faith, Kioulachoglou concludes his book by addressing the most common objections he has found while teaching this view of salvation. Kioulachoglou’s examination of apostasy and backsliding in The Warnings of the New Testament stacks evidence with persuasion. Rather than becoming tangled with the history and the polarizing opinions concerning these two subjects, the book is devoted unswervingly to “tell it like it is” and to show how Jesus and the Apostles address falling away from the faith and its dire consequences. This work is currently available as a free PDF on the Journal of Biblical Accuracy website, while its eBook and printed versions can be acquired on Amazon.
APOSTATIZING AND BACKSLIDING IN TOUGH TOPICS Losing salvation and apostatizing are included in Sam Storms’ Tough Topics, which argues for the Calvinist view of eternal security. Storms relies heavily on the concept of unconditional election of the predestined saints as described in Romans 8, as well as Jesus’ sayings as recorded in John 6, to prove that losing salvation is impossible. The theologian also uses John 10, Philippians 1:6 and Jude 24-25 to support his claim – passages addressed by Kioulachoglou as some of the most common objections to backsliding. In turn, Storms claims that Hebrews 6 and 10 – two passages that Kioulachoglou presents as “warnings” – do not actually advocate apostasy, devoting a section of his book to this argument: “whereas all true Christians have been enlightened, not all those who are enlightened are true Christians.” Kioulachoglou counters this by presenting Albert Barnes’ take on Hebrews 6, which backs up the Greek author. As made plainly clear in the review’s introduction, the subject of apostasy is a divisive one. The possibility of its fruition and the consequences of such have been debated for several centuries, with no end in sight. That being said, this is not a subject to be ignored; a careful cross-examination of both authors’ works may enlighten different people in different ways – and that is fine, as long as Christians do not forsake the brotherly love they are supposed to share with one another.
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tithing, giving and t h e n e w t e s ta m e n t A nastasios K io u lachoglo u
b y Dan i e l G omes
Anastasios Kioulachoglou’s first work, entitled Tithing, Giving and the New Testament, delves into the concept of Christian giving and debates the practice of tithing – an Old Covenant practice – and its place among born-again Christians. Ah, money. It never fails to be a touchy subject, does it? Yet Kioulachoglou, an economist by profession, has no qualms about it. In his raw, incisive style, the Greek author states exactly what the New Testament has to say about money and its stewardship; to that effect, he starts his first book by addressing one of the most well-known practices present in modern-day church – tithing. Backed by an impressive number of biblical passages, Kioulachoglou concludes that tithing is a part of the Mosaic Law circumscribed to the people to whom the Law was given – the Jews, the people of the Old Covenant – and that a parallel of such practice is not to be imposed
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on people who are outside the Law, i. e. Christians. Instead of considering whether they should give 10% of their earnings before or after taxes, Christians should be mindful of what the New Testament really calls for: gracious and willing giving. The author goes on to present various examples of what genuine giving is all about in the New Testament; this is giving that blesses, that is voluntary, and that does not necessarily come in the form of material possessions. Kioulachoglou also spends a chunk of his work in addressing the reality of modern-day church finances, providing his input as inferred from the biblical teachings of the NT in the role of Christians supporting
church staff salaries, missionaries and widows. He condemns the form of financial stewardship so prevalent in our days: “Why do we take what would normally go to the poor saints and to missions to further the kingdom of God and give it to maintain structures and traditions that are foreign to the Word of God?” (p. 71) He challenges the reader to “ask the tough questions,” yet to do so in love and with the sincere desire of improving the body of Christ. Tithing, Giving and the New Testament is a brief yet powerful work. It succeeds in showing God’s pleasure in genuine giving by challenging a long-held (and misunderstood) church tradition. Just like Kioulachoglou’s second book, The Warnings of the New Testament, this work is currently available as a free PDF on the Journal of Biblical Accuracy website, while its eBook and printed versions can be purchased on Amazon.
TITHING IN TOUGH TOPICS Sam Storms’ final “tough topic” in his first “Tough Topics” book happens to be tithing. Here, for a change, Storms and Kioulachoglou seem to be on the same side of the debate: both agree that tithing cannot be demanded from the Christian. Nevertheless, Storms advocates that tithing as a voluntary practice of the believer does have its place on today’s Church, so long as it respects God’s standards of genuine giving. The theologian goes on to defend that Christians have a responsibility to “be generous with their wealth” (p. 319), yet he acknowledges that such responsibility cannot be undertaken grudgingly or with guilt, which follows along Kioulachoglou’s affirmation of true giving as gracious and voluntary.
P ersona
i h av e a d r e a m M artin L u ther K ing , J r . E d i to r a B i z â n c i o
b y Pau l o S é r g i o G omes
The life of Martin Luther King, Jr. blends seamlessly with the fight against racial discrimination, which he experienced from a very early age. Although his parents had taught him the notable values of civility and dignity, the reigning system in the south of the United States, where he lived, repressed the African-American population at all costs, and he soon rebelled against it. The life of Martin Luther King, Jr. blends seamlessly with the fight against racial discrimination, which he experienced from a very early age. Although his parents had taught him the notable values of civility and dignity, the reigning system in the south of the United States, where he lived, repressed the African-American population at all costs, and he soon rebelled against it. The restrictions imposed were one of the authorities’ obsessions. King states that no black child in Atlanta could go to a local park. Likewise, he could not attend white-only schools, nor walk into a restaurant to eat a burger or drink coffee. Entertainment 20 ISSUE #8
facilities for people of color, such as movie theaters, were also rare. King’s education allowed him to develop his intellectual path with some of the best mentors of his time, studying philosophical currents, identifying with the theories of the world’s greatest leaders – preparing himself for a unique ordeal in the history of mankind. He spent the Christmas break of 1949 reading Karl Marx, attempting to understand why Communism was attracting so many people, but it was Gandhi that fascinated King upon hearing the testimony of Dr. Mordecai Johnson, who had just returned from a trip to India and spoke
B I B L I O N - A C H R I S T I A N B OO K P U B L I C AT I O N
about that notable figure, whose bold approach to love and non-violence became the example for the social reforms King sought to implement. According to King, it was Gandhi who first raised Jesus’ ethics beyond the mere interaction among individuals, employing it as a powerful and efficient large-scale social force. King believed that for Gandhi, love was a potent tool of social and collective transformation. Mahatma Gandhi inspired the African-Americans of Montgomery, AL, to start a social movement of great dignity. While Jesus inspired them to use love as a creative weapon in acts of protest, the African-American community created the most powerful weapon in their fight for freedom by combining Gandhi’s methodology of non-violence to the Christian doctrine of love. Montgomery’s Civil Rights Movement is born in response to Rosa Parks’ refusal to leave her bus seat for a white passenger. She was arrested, and King delivers the most decisive speech of his life in her defense. There began the overreaching process that, after many years and many deaths later, culminated in the end of racial segregation.
A Unique Content This work becomes even more precious by transcribing the most important written messages of Martin Luther King, Jr. – some of them complete – from a speech contest he won at age 14 to his very last speech. To those readers interested in knowing more about this remarkable figure, here’s what they will be able to find: •
First sermon as minister of Dexter Av. Baptist Church, in Atlanta
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The most decisive, albeit improvised, speech of his life at the start of the Montgomery Bus Boycott movement
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Speech on Mahatma Gandhi
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Prison journals and telegrams sent to President Kennedy during the Albany movement, in the summer of 1962
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Birmingham’s Prison Letter directed to eight clergymen from various religious groups – clergymen who had criticized the rallies and the “extremism” of King’s actions
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“I Have A Dream” speech at the March on Washington
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a unique content (cont.) •
Mourning address to the murder of four black girls during Sunday School, at the 16th Street Church in Birmingham, and to the murder of President Kennedy
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1964 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, at the Oslo University Conference
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Several remarks connected to the events in Selma, Alabama and the Chicago Campaign.
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Appeals against the Vietnam War
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Poor People’s Campaign and the March on Memphis
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Last speech at the temple of Bishop Charles J. Mason in Memphis, a day prior to King’s death.
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The bus boycott in Montgomery (where there was an anti-boycott law at the time!) lasted thirteen weeks, throughout which the city’s black inhabitants walked everywhere, oftentimes being intimidated, persecuted and arrested for not using public transportation. Planning and improvising an ingenious system of alternative transportation, those who adhered to the boycott endured the revolt until they had won: at the end of 1956, the US Supreme Court declared the bus segregation laws as unconstitutional. King soon became known as a young and brave African-American with his leadership actions within the movement. Montgomery contributed with a new tool for the African-American revolution, a social instrument of non-violent resistance. The movement unveiled to the world a person who the whites would have to listen to and respect, even if grudgingly. Someone who the blacks admired, who had left the “paralyzing passivity and numbing complacency,” emerged with a new sense of dignity and destiny. The young and brave African-American from Montgomery acquired a new determination to attain freedom and human dignity, despite the grievous cost.
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Fo l l ow i n g t h e M o n t g o m e r y movement is the Sit-in movement of the 1960’s, a galvanizing rally of black students that spread throughout southern schools and townships of the US, consisting of occupying cafeterias and other public places, and which gave America a brilliant example of disciplined, non-violent action worthy of opposing the segregation system of that time. Throughout more than 400 pages, the book describes meticulously the most remarkable events in the process of the African-American fight for civil rights under Rev. King’s selfless leadership, based on true, original texts and content. There’s the narration of the Birmingham and Chicago campaigns, of the Washington and Selma mar-
ches, of his involvement with Malcolm X and the Black Power movement, of his talks with American heads of state – Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon; several episodes of his numerous times in prison; accounts of his family life, which was crucial for his motivation. Even the full length of his ultimate speech in Memphis, the day before his murder, is included in this work. “Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the Promised Land!”
a remarkable work As Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Archive Director, Clayborne Carson is an expert in terms of the gigantic amount of documents that comprise his collection. Naturally, Carson was invited by King’s heirs to compile the reverend’s invaluable legacy of letters, messages and journals into a book, including recordings and pictures from his sermons and public speeches. Thousands of documents and records have been read, heard and viewed, and later stringed in a chronologic, historical and factually coherent narrative in the first person, thus adding to this “autobiography” a very unique identification of a very unique world figure. More than an MLK autobiography, this work is a long and well-established unraveling of the historical events in the racial liberation achieved by black Americans.
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philosoph y
escape from reason Francis A . S chae f f er E d i to r a V i da N o va
b y Dan i e l G omes
The second entry in Francis Schaeffer’s famed “Trilogy,” Escape From Reason examines man’s historical pursuit of knowledge and truth in the areas of philosophy, theology, sciences and arts. It’s a short, yet compact work that remains up-to-date in the 21st century ever since it was first published in 1968. Starting from the philosophical views of Thomas Aquinas, renowned theologian and apologist Francis A. Schaeffer scans the centuries of philosophical developments that have led to today’s relativism and flight from objectivity. He is critical of Thomism’s distinction between grace and nature, which separates heavenly and spiritual things (like the “soul”) from the earthly and material ones (like the “body”). Schaeffer also blames Thomism’s perception of self-sufficient human intellect – where reason stands apart from the faith – for unwittingly birthing a natural theology completely independent from divine revelation, which would subsequently develop
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into full-fledged humanism (although he acknowledges that Thomas Aquinas believed that human reason and divine revelation were perpetually bound to agree upon each other). As the autonomous natural theology brought about a renewed interest in Neo-Platonism during the Renaissance, a new movement within Christianity sought to bring back unity between the realms of nature and grace: the Protestant Reformation. Schaeffer states that the Reformed Churches’ theology, as spearheaded by Calvin’s Institutes, brought about the unifying knowledge that natural theology has yearned for since Thomas Aquinas. Schaeffer
goes on to explain how the Reformed theology has succeeded in its ordeal of providing unifying (albeit incomplete) knowledge, as it presents a personal and infinite God as autonomous instead of a finite man, and binds grace and nature in the reality of man – a creature made in the image of God yet corrupted by the original sin of the Fall – with Christ being sovereign over all man, and therefore, over both grace and nature themselves. From then on Schaeffer proceeds to examine the downward spiral of natural theology apart from divine revelation: the Enlightenment philosophy of Kant, Rousseau and others exhausted rationalism, claims the author, and Hegelianism was the dying breath of natural theology’s search for unifying knowledge. Kierkegaard’s existentialism, drowning in the despair brought about by the loss of hope in a solely rational knowledge that can unify the verifiable with the unverifiable, gives up on rationality altogether, according to Schaeffer, and relegates truth and purpose to the individual’s subjectivity. This eventually boils down to the modern man in Schaeffer’s view: a man who no longer aspires to have unifying knowledge – even if incomplete – and whose dilemma is no
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longer between grace and nature, but between the rational and the non-rational. Schaeffer concludes that there is today an enormous philosophical chasm between the Church and modern man and that the Church ought to recognize exactly that in order to better understand the modern man himself, though he alerts for signs of the modern duality creeping into the unifying theology of the body of Christ. Don’t let the size of the book fool you; Escape From Reason is nothing short of thought-provoking, and it proves to be one of those few works that, in the words of Sir Francis Bacon, are meant “to be chewed and digested.” Such a detailed study of the development of Western epistemology throughout history is to be cherished by every reader who wants to obtain a solid grasp on the foundations of modern philosophy.
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SCHAEFFER’S PREDICTIONS HOLD TRUE? Perhaps the book’s greatest stroke of Schaeffer’s genius is not what the author states about the past, but what he predicts to be the future. In Escape From Reason, Schaeffer warns us about the “philosophy of definitions” – what he claims to be an anti-philosophic approach to philosophical questions by means of linguistic analysis. Nothing could be more evident today, as the existentialist view and Derrida’s deconstruction of language work together to shape the meaning of language according to the demands of today. In essence, certain words and terms are being given new definitions that squash the old, long-standing notions surrounding those words. For example, “marriage” no longer stands for “a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman”; instead, it can be defined as a “socially or ritually recognized union between spouses that establishes rights and obligations between those spouses” (Wikipedia), where gender and term of union are no longer defined. Cultural and moral relativism is now the dominant position in philosophy and anthropological studies, and it is determined to do away with the absolutes of bygone eras – including the absolutes of the Christian faith, without which there would be no “adequate basis for law,” (p. 90) according to Schaeffer. Therefore it is paramount that believers embrace and protect the values of the Scriptures in a secular age that prizes subjectivity over all else.
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jes u s
t h e wa r r a n t o f au t h e n t i c i t y b y Pau l o S é r g i o G omes
In the book Jesus, Who Is He?, the famous author of the Left Behind series Tim LaHaye shares a deep reflection on the impact that not only Jesus’ life and death, but especially His resurrection, have had on all those who believe. Christ’s execution may well be considered a tragic, illegal miscarriage of justice, but when we include the resurrection, the message of the cross becomes glorious victory. Jesus’ resurrection is what gives power to the cross and proves Christianity’s reliability. As Napoleon put it, “you must die on a cross and rise on the third day” to found a religion. Jesus resurrected physically, not just in spirit. A specter does not walk, talk and eat like Jesus did with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, thus inquiring them: “Why are you troubled? (…) See my hands and feet, that it is I myself; handle, and see: for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as you see me to have.” (DRA) You could say that the tr ue Christian believes in Christ’s death 28 ISSUE #8
for our sins, in the entombing of his body in a sepulcher, and in his bodily resurrection. Thus no one who refuses to believe in Christ’s resurrection can be saved. The resurrection fulfilled His prophecies, as well as those of the Old Testament prophets, being the core message of the first century church and comforting the followers of Jesus in the following centuries, resulting in the adoption of Christianity as the predominant religion of the Roman Empire, in the 4th century. It was the essential doctrine of Protestant reformers, becoming crucial in the message that Biblical-based churches preach today. A renowned rationalist, Dr. Charles Guignebert, professor of History of Christianity at Sorbonne who ut-
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of those who believe, as well as the terly rejected Christ’s resurrection and promise of Christ’s second coming, His miracles in the New Testament, are evidence of that. That’s eventually reckoned that thewhy those churches that re would be no Christianity discuss the resurrection on if belief in the resurrection had not been established. To rise from Easter Day and then forget It was through that belief the dead is about it the rest of the year that the faith in Jesus and in what gives are only preaching half of His mission became the key the Gospel. authenticity element of a new religion Thus each convert is a to everythat went on to take over the “new creature in Christ,” thing else. world. and receives Christ as his The Christian faith is Lord and Savior, believing in the resurrection and based on doctrines that experiencing “the power of de pend in the physical the resurrection” that enables him to resurrection of Jesus. Salvation by live a full Christian life. faith, justification and resurrection
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f iction
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the open utopia b y Da n i e l G o m e s
Utopia, the literature classic that immortalized its author’s name and shaped an entire subgenre of fiction, has been made fully available and free to read at theopenutopia.org, a website dedicated to honor the legacy of Thomas More’s opus magnum. son that led to his execution as well Sir Thomas More was an exas his canonization, as the Catholic ceptionally accomplished man in Church revere Thomas More as a his lifetime: he enjoyed a successful saint for his martyr’s death career as a lawyer and a in defense of the Church’s statesman, which culminaunity. ted in his appointment to "Pride thinks Ye t n o n e o f t h e s e the position of Lord High its own feats can match his Chancellor of England happiness g round-braking satire in 1529. He was also a Utopia. First published in Catholic philosopher and shines the Renaissance humanist acbrighter by 1516, the fictional work quainted with some of the comparing has gone on to form the backbone of utopian and brightest minds of his time, it to the dystopian literature and including fellow humanist misfortunes to inspire economic and Erasmus of Rotterdam. of other political ideologies such as Moreover, More’s faith in persons." socialism and communism. the Catholic doctrine led Heavily based on Plato’s him to battle the English Republic and the emergent Reformation and subsehumanist ideals of More’s time, quently reject the King’s supremacy Utopia depicts an idyllic nation and over the church – an act of high trea-
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society which all other nations and societies should aspire to imitate, and its content remains the subject of much discussion more than five-hundred years after its publication. Utopia is written as the transcription of a conversation involving Thomas More, his friend Peter Gilles, and a fictional character, Raphael Hythloday. It is this last character, portrayed as a Portuguese explorer and philosopher who sailed with Amerigo Vespucci, who does most of the talking in the book; Hythloday is the one who tells More and his friend about the sublime island of Utopia, where he claims to have spent five years in the gracious company of its natives. He goes on to describe Utopia with rigorous detail, from its geography and economy to the inner workings of its society and religion. Throughout his tale, Hythloday offers
an extremely positive image of the island nation, praising the Utopians’ emphasis on the common good and public domain over personal property, their commitment to learning and to the virtues of Nature. While confounded by some aspects of Utopian culture and policy, Hythloday realizes there is much wisdom at work in these same aspects. For example, Hythloday did not understand at first why the nation hired an excessive amount of mercenaries, as that would seem strange and ineffective in the Old World’s wars. This decision made perfect sense to him, however, once the Utopians told him how they had no need for gold and silver – the two things mercenaries kill and die for – though they had plenty of both, and how they would rather pay foreign free companies handsomely to fight
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for Utopia than sacrifice their own people in the battlefront; not to mention that, by doing this, Utopians guaranteed that their enemies could not hire these mercenaries for the same effect. A deeper understanding on how Utopians saw bloodshed in general helps Hythloday (and in turn, the reader) realize this was in fact the best course of action for the Utopian people. It is the wise ways of Utopia that often lead Hythloday to contrast the island nation, which he remarks as “the only commonwealth that truly deserves that name,” with the petty kingdoms of Europe and their oppressive laws, warmongering culture and prideful nature. He concludes there is much that these kingdoms can learn from Utopia’s example, but also that it’s not his place to bring about such improvements. More’s role in the conversation largely dominated by Hythloday is that of a mere listener with remarkable etiquette; even in his conclusion to the fictional conversation, More remained quite reserved on his final thoughts, vaguely stating that he would like to see more of Utopia in England despite not agreeing with some of their policies and customs. This, however,
should come as no surprise; More was an adamant Catholic and counter-reformer, so he would probably refuse to accept the Utopian principle of female priesthood or the nation’s views regarding divorce. What should come as a surprise, though, is that More, being the devout Catholic he was, would envision these things as part of a true and perfect commonwealth. The matter of Utopia’s interpretation is indeed a tricky one, with the satire being so complex and believable, and yet bearing so many hints of ridicule, that its exact meaning and purpose become inscrutable. Whether More was being cynical in his work is, nevertheless, beside the point; Utopia and its concepts have been pivotal in shaping the political spectrum of the world and in raising awareness to the principles of common good and civic responsibility. While Thomas More may have never expected to see an earthly Utopia in his lifetime, the reality still seeks to emulate the fiction; it is up to us to honor More’s legacy and strive to bring to fruition what only seemed like a hopeful dream in the sixteenth century – and it starts by reading this marvelous work.
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