This apocryphal book of the Bible has been considered by some to be the original beginning to the Bible and is referenced in both the Book of Joshua and the Second Book of Samuel. Is not this written in the Book of Jasher?-Joshua, X. 13. Behold it is written in the Book of Jasher.-II. Samuel, I. 18

    H. CharlesThe Book of Jubilees, or, as it is sometimes called, The Little Genesis, purports to be a revelation given by God to Moses through the medium of an angel and contains a history, divided up into "jubilee periods" of 49 years, from creation to the coming of Moses. Although the actual narrative of events is only carried down to Moses's birth and early career, its author envisages the events of a later time and in particular certain events of special interest at the time he wrote, which was probably in the latter years of the 2nd century B.C. This work, though containing one or two passages of an apocalyptic character, is quite unlike the typical apocalypses. It is largely based upon the historical narratives in Genesis and Exodus, interspersed with legends and emphasizing certain legal practices (such as the strict observance of the Sabbath, circumcision, etc.). The author's main object is to inculcate a reform in the regulation of the calendar and festivals in place of the lunar calendar, which he condemns. He proposes to substitute a solar calendar consisting of 12 months and containing 364 days. The result of such a system is to make all festivals, except the Day of Atonement, fall on a Sunday--a radical idea for its day. With notes clarifying the translation, this is an important text for students of the origins of Christianity and Essene teachings.

    Gnostic writings offer striking perspectives on both early Christian and non-Christian thought. For example, some gnostic texts suggest that god should be celebrated as both mother and father, and that self-knowledge is the supreme path to the divine. Only in the past fifty years has it become clear how far the gnostic influence spread in ancient and medieval religions—and what a marvelous body of scriptures it produced. The selections gathered here, in poetic, readable translation, represent Jewish, Christian, Hermetic, Mandaean, Manichaean, Islamic, and Cathar expressions of gnostic spirituality. Their regions of origin include Egypt, the Greco-Roman world, the Middle East, Syria, Iraq, China, and France. Also included are introductions, notes, an extensive glossary, and a wealth of suggestions for further reading.

    One of the best commentaries on Exodus ever to appear in English, now in paperback!

    Also available in Spanish!

    Here Buechner explores autobiography as theology, offers exhilarating reflections on biblical passages, and leads us into the "room called Remember," that "still room within us all where the past lives on as part of the present,...where with patience, with clarity, with quietness of heart, we remember consciously to remember the lives we have lived."

    This book explores how Christianity began by tracing its earliest texts, including the Gospel of Thomas, rediscovered in Egypt in 1945.When her infant son was diagnosed with fatal pulmonary hypertension, Pagels' spiritual and intellectual quest took on a new urgency, leading her to explore historical and archaeological sources and to investigate what Jesus and his teachings meant to his followers before the invention of Christianity. The discovery of the Gospel of Thomas, along with more than 50 other early Christian texts, some unknown since antiquity, offers clues. She compares such sources as Thomas' gospel (which claims to give Jesus' secret teaching and finds its closest affinities with kabbalah) with the canon to show how Christian leaders chose to include some gospels and exclude others from the collection many call the New Testament. To stabilize the emerging church in times of persecution, church fathers constructed the canon, creed and hierarchy - and, in the process, suppressed many of its spiritual resources.Drawing on new scholarship - her own and that of an international group of scholars - that has come to light since the 1979 publication of The Gnostic Gospels, she shows that what matters about Christianity involves much more than any one set of beliefs. Traditions embodied in Judaism and Christianity can powerfully affect us in heart, mind and spirit, inspire visions of a new society based on practising justice and love, even heal and transform us.Provocative and moving, Beyond Belief, the most personal of her books to date, shows how the impulse to seek god overflows the narrow banks of a single tradition. She writes, "What I have come to love in the wealth and diversity of our religious traditions - and the communities that sustain them - is that they offer the testimony of innumerable people to spiritual discovery, encouraging us, in Jesus' words, to 'seek, and you shall find.'"CONTENTSFrom the feast of Agape to the Nicene CreedGospels in conflict: John and Thomas God's word or human words?The canon of truth and the triumph of JohnConstantine and the Catholic Church AcknowledgementsNotesIndex

    But sometimes Jesus spoke words that followers then and now have found difficult. He instructs disciples to hate members of their own families (Luke 14:26), to act as if they were slaves (Matthew 20:27), and to sell their belongings and give to the poor (Luke 18:22). He restricts his mission (Matthew 10:6); he speaks of damnation (Matthew 8:12); he calls Jews the devil's children (John 8:44).In The Difficult Words of Jesus, Amy-Jill Levine shows how these difficult teachings would have sounded to the people who first heard them, how have they been understood over time, and how we might interpret them in the context of the Gospel of love and reconciliation.Additional components for a six-week study include a DVD featuring Dr. Levine and a comprehensive Leader Guide.

    . .* there were absolutely no evidence for the existence of a historical Jesus?* for thousands of years Pagans had also followed a Son of God?* this Pagan savior was also born of a virgin on the twenty-fifth of December before three shepherds, turned water into wine at a wedding, died and was resurrected, and offered his body and blood as a Holy Communion?* these Pagan myths had been rewritten as the gospel of Jesus Christ?* the earliest Gnostic Christians knew that the Jesus story was a myth?* Christianity turned out to be a continuation of Paganism by another name?

    In this best-seller, Coffin gives a powerful record of his remarkable public life, offering his inspiring words on issues ranging from charity and justice to politics and the meaning of faith.

    His mom warned him not to play in the forest, but he didn't listen. That's how he found himself in the Nether, a bizarre world inhabited by scary creatures. In the company of a ghast, almost cheerful witch, Eeebs develops supernatural powers.Will this be enough to fight against Endernova's army, the Enderman, who want to rule over the Overworld? In order to save his friends, Eeebs must become the champion of the Nether, as the prophecy of The Chosen One tells . . .

    But, between the extremes of universal salvation and everlasting torment, there shines a third view, known as annihilationism or conditional immortality, claiming the most biblical support of all.

    However, the revised and expanded edition of Adventuring through the Bible is designed to give readers a thorough overview of the entire Bible in an easy and exciting way. This full-color resource features more than 800 pages filled with outlines, themes, and applications to help the reader grasp the message of each book of the Bible. Including charts, maps, timelines, and images, Adventuring through the Bible provides the reader with a one-stop guide for studying and understanding God’s Word.

    "A collection of 239 short devotional-style lessons exploring one verse from each chapter of the Book of Mormon"--

    John Dee and Edward Kelley. Crowley obtained these visions in Mexico in 1900m and in Algeria in 1909. The are the source of many key spiritual doctrines of Thelema, particularly concerning the theogony of the All-Father Chaos and the goddess Babalon. They give an account of the transcendence of the Ego by crossing the Abyss, and the attainment of the grade of Master of the Temple. This new edition adds previously unpublished material, including new explanatory diagrams, illustrations designed by Crowley, and the actual Algerian diary record. Unlike other available editions of The Vision and the Voice, this volume includes Crowley's extensive and illuminating commentary.This collection features several works that complement Liber 418, The Vision and the Voice, giving details of Crowley's other advanced initiations and magical workings.Liber 325, The Bartzabel Working gives ritual instructions for the evocation of the Spirit of Mars, and includes the first publication of the actual record of the group ritual evocation of this spirit conducted by Crowley in 1910.Liber 60, The Ab-ul-Diz Working, gives an account of the astral communications with an Adept named Ab-ul-Diz in 1911 that led to the writing of Crowley's Book 4 .Liber 415, The Paris Working, is the record of a series of sexmagical workings conducted in 1914, designed to restore the worship of several of the gods of pagan antiquity. It includes The Holy Hymns to the Great Gods of Heaven.This book collects the diaries of Aleister Crowley for 1909–1914 in one volume.