Original and worthy addition to the growing library on eschatology.
Refreshingly well-read and open-minded exploration of the Book of Revelation.
Debut author Collene, a pastor, presents the results of his own personal struggle with the New Testament’s most mysterious book. He acknowledges that modern authors have provided many works on eschatology but defends his own work as a fresh approach, which it indeed is. Unlike other works in this genre, Collene avoids copying and restating dispensationalist theories about the End Times and instead gives weight to the sacred text itself, reading it as God’s revelation to creation. Noting that, “The Revelation is a book of sevens,” due to the prominence of that number in the book, he concludes through his own study that “seven keys,” as he terms them, can be found to help the reader understand the book’s message. These seven keys—basic facts about Revelation—are remarkable for their simplicity and serve to refocus the reader of Revelation from wild theories that pervade much of eschatological study back to the message of the prophecy. The keys include such assertions as, “Jesus is the focus of The Revelation,” “God’s people are His audience,” “heaven, the spiritual dimension, is the perspective of The Revelation,” etc. Collene spends the great bulk of his work fleshing out these seven keys and finding ways they can help the reader of Revelation understand the prophetic message within its pages. Collene’s motive seems to be to refocus Christian views of Revelation. “Traditionally,” he notes, “the study of eschatology has suffered from two opposite attitudes: neglect and overemphasis.” As an alternative, he proposes that the church continue to focus on its main mission of spreading the Gospel. He concludes that the Revelation should be a source of hope and even an end-goal for the church as it goes about its work in the world.
Original and worthy addition to the growing library on eschatology.Pub Date: Oct. 7, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5127-5703-3
Page Count: 326
Publisher: Westbow Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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