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Tag Archive 'Celestial City'

Blameless in Abaddon by James Morrow – Save 32% Today!

Blameless in Abaddon by James Morrow

Why Buy A Blameless in Abaddon by James Morrow?
This is the sequel to Towing Jehovah, a novel that garnered a World Fantasy Award and earned its author the moniker, Christianitys Salman Rushdie. In this book, the two-mile long corpse of God (the corpus dei) has been towed to Florida, where the American Baptist Confederation has set it up as the Main Attraction at Celestial City. When Martin Candle, justice of the peace for Abaddon Township, Pennsylvania, loses his wife in a freak auto accident just after his doctor tells him he has prostate cancer, he decides its time to put the Main Attraction on trial for His actions.

Over 24 Five Star Customer Reviews On Amazon!

Author Puts God on Trial – Literally
I reviewed Morrow’s first book in this series, “Towing Jehovah,” in which God’s enormous body is found floating in the ocean. The Pope arranges a secret proper burial in an ice vault in the North Pole. I criticized Morrow for wasting numerous opportunities to more fully develop the religious conundrums he developed.

No such criticism is merited for this book. In another wild tale with a new set of characters, God ends up being sold to the Baptists, who plant him in Orlando next to Disney World. They are making tons of cash as believers show up by the hundreds of thousands to pay respects and/or be healed. Enter our hero, Martin Candle, dying of prostate cancer, who somehow manages to get God put on trial by a world court in The Hague, Netherlands, for allowing evil to predominate in our world.

Fantasy prevails as our hero gets to discuss theodicy issues (Theodicy: a vindication of God with respect to the existence of evil) with Abraham, Isaac, The Ram, Noah, Jesus, Job, Satan, Adam, Eve and others. With clever dialogue interspersed (INRI means “I’m not returning immediately”), Morrow maintains an irreverent tone throughout the book.

Opening arguments for the prosecution: …”They said God was merciful, loving, and just…The prosecution intends to show that exactly the opposite is true…we shall prove that whatever debt we may owe the Defendant for our existence, He has continually acted in a fashion that must be called criminal…”

This paves the way for Morrow to present real arguments, carefully worked out over the centuries by great religious philosophers. The defense attorney presents the equivalent opposing views. The trial is a mini-course on the subject of theodicy for those who wish to be educated on this subject and builds lots of suspense toward the climax.

This inventive yarn shows considerable theological scholarship. Warning: Fundamentalists who stick it out and finish this book may be offended by perceived “sacrilege,” and a few neurons and synapses may be singed in the “religion modules” of their brains. First rate book!

Gullivers Travels & Fantastic Voyage……!!
..make for a whopping good read! Our intrepid hero, a Justice of the Peace/ Magistrate in the Philly Suburbs, gets cancer, and his wife, a professional pet-lover, dies while avoiding a dog on a termite infested bridge. He decides he’s had enough, he wishes to take on God, 2 miles long and recently comatosely discovered, to Court, at the Hagues’ International Court of Justice. At first, this seems too large a task, until he is assisted by a strange Harvard professor who made millions writing children’s books. This same professor takes on the “Not Guilty” side, and this begins our journey through on a hallunicatory, fanatastic, trip through good and evil. Journeying through the Body and Mind of God Himself, we meet the “platonic/ideal” visions of Adam, Even, Lot’s Wife, St. Augustine, the Devil, and many others. At the trial, we witness some very serious discussions on the nature of good and evil, as some expert witnesses are brought along. This is a real mesmorizer,a book that should last a very long time! The ending may be a slight disappointment, but given the circumstances, is as fair as one could expect.

Light a Candle
I’ve now read all three books of Morrow’s trilogy and think that Blameless in Abaddon is the best of the three. Each book is quite good and contributes to the overall plot and set of ideas behind this uncanny device: namely, the dead body of God. Morrow exploits this idea with aplomb, giving us a comprehensive and thorough analysis of God’s presence in the modern world and the various issues associated with this. For believers and non-believers alike, these ideas need to be carefully surveyed.

Blameless in Abaddon seems to be the most philosophical of the three novels and does a fine job explaining theodicy and its various `solutions.’ Theodicy is a philosophical/theological concept that tries to rectify the existence of God (a given in this plotline) with the existence of evil (a given everywhere). The traditional formulation goes: since evil exists then either God is not all good or God is not all powerful. A number of theologians have tried to rectify the existence of evil as: 1) instructive for our spiritual development; 2) unavoidable in the structure of the universe; 3) due to our capacity of free will (and thus our own doing, not God’s); 4) an illusion.

While theology can sometimes seem abstract, Morrow achieves a fine balance between providing the details of these matters within the context of fiction and character development. These theological matters are of great significance and do affect how people think about God and the world. Morrow’s main character in this book, Martin Candle, is enraged with God and is trying to convict him before the entire world. In order to do so, he needs to explain why it is unforgivable that God has allowed so much evil and further provide true evidence of this evil to sway judges and jury alike.

To the list of righteous and spiritually advanced dissenters-from Job to Ivan Karamazov-we can now add Martin Candle, aka Blameless in Abaddon.

Don’t read it if you’re hypochondriac
Great novel, great writing, great cynical sense of humour. Definitely a page turner. Sort of an “Answer to Job” of the modern day with a twist. Don’t read it if you’re hypochondriac though, I mean seriously.

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Where To Buy Little Pilgrims Progress: From John Bunyans Classic (The Message) by Helen Taylor At The Lowest Price?

Little Pilgrims Progress: From John Bunyans Classic (The Message) by Helen Taylor

Why Buy A Little Pilgrims Progress: From John Bunyans Classic (The Message) by Helen Taylor?
Fifty-five years ago, Helen L. Taylor took John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress and simplified the vocabulary and concepts for young readers, while keeping the storyline intact. The result was a classic in itself, which has now sold over 600,000 copies. It’s both a simple adventure story and a profound allegory of the Christian journey through life, a delightful read with a message kids ages 6 to 12 can understand and remember. A new look and fresh illustrations for today’s children enlivens the journey to the Celestial City.

Features

  • Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
  • BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed
  • ISBN13: 9780802449245

Over 13 Five Star Customer Reviews On Amazon!

Little Pilgrim’s Progress
What a deep and awesome book! My seven year old daughter and I read this book together, and we both enjoyed it greatly. Great way to open up deeper discussions about our journey through this world on our way to see King Jesus. An inexpensive and special time for parents and children.

Great for my 6 & 10 year old
My children have enjoyed every page. They don’t want me to stop reading it!

Magnificent retelling – no loss of detail
This is what I read as a child – over and over again as I grew up. It is a magnificent version of Bunyan’s classic. In particular what I like is that Helen Taylor doesnt shorten the story as much as others do. She retains a lot of the detail and the encounters that Christian has along the way. This allows a child as they grow to learn many of the valuable lessons for the Christian life which Bunyan intended us to see.

There are many children’s versions of this which are wonderfully inllustrated – this one isnt, although it has line drawings scattered throughout. But it more than makes up for it in its content. I’ve purchased another more lavishly illustrated version of Pilgrim’s progress to show alongside this one, but actually haven’t got round to doing that yet.

What Helen Taylor has also done is to retell the story from a child’s perspective – it is Little Pilgrim’s Progress. It is in essence the same story – just downsized slightly. This makes it all the more easy to read to children.

My four year old daughter pleads for me to read to her – not content to wait until next Sunday for the next installment. She wont let me stop and sits wide eyed as I read it to her.

Why would I want a shorter version when I get to spend longer reading to my child?

Little Pilgrim’s Progress
My interest in John Bunyan’s classic Pilgrim’s Progress started when as a young girl I saw it come to life in an animated movie. As young parents we discovered Helen Taylor’s written children’s version. It quickly became a favorite of our four children as Dad read a 2-page chapter after supper each night. They clamored, “Read some more. What happens to him now?” I bought this copy for my son, dad of three, to read to his family. It is a definite keeper in our family!

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Where To Buy Pilgrims Progress in Todays English by James Thomas At The Lowest Price?

Pilgrims Progress in Todays English by James Thomas

Why Buy A Pilgrims Progress in Todays English by James Thomas?
Feel like the only person with struggles? Millions of Christians have cherished John Bunyans tale of the journey Christian and Christina made to the Celestial City. Written in the 1600s, this classic is now available in a modern-day, understandable text.

Features

  • Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices
  • Condition: NEW
  • ISBN13: 9780802465207
  • Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

Over 12 Five Star Customer Reviews On Amazon!

Pilgrims Progress in Today’s English
We ordered enough of these so each of our 4 children could have one for their own personal libraries. Copies were received in perfect condition at the appropriate time. Thank you again, I would recommend ordering from this provider.

The best Christian book I have ever read!
This is the best Christian book that i’ve ever read! And i’ve read a lot. I don’t understand how anyone could give this book less tha 5-stars. Unless you are not a Christian. This book has changed lives over the centuries, and depicts “Authentic” Christianity. If your not interested in growing deeply in Christ, than don’t buy it.

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The Pilgrims Progress from This World, To That Which Is to Come (Penguin Classics) by John Bunyan – Save 20% Today!

The Pilgrims Progress from This World, To That Which Is to Come (Penguin Classics) by John Bunyan

Why Buy A The Pilgrims Progress from This World, To That Which Is to Come (Penguin Classics) by John Bunyan?
The Pilgrims Progress tells the story of a man named Christian pursuing his pilgrimage through Vanity Fair, the Slough of Despond and the Delectable Mountains on his path towards the Celestial City and is one of the worlds most famous religious allegories. John Bunyan wrote the first part of his tract while in prison for his religious beliefs, and it remains a supreme classic of the seventeenth-century English Puritan tradition. Yet, he also created a profound folk-epic of the universal imagination, one that has had an immeasurable influence on the writing that followed it ever since.

Features

  • Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices
  • Condition: NEW
  • ISBN13: 9780140430042
  • Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

Over 26 Five Star Customer Reviews On Amazon!

A True Classic
The principles of overcoming the flesh endure from one generation to another as the message of victory in Jesus Christ continues. John Bunyan writes about the form it took in his generation. This classic in Christian and English literature describes the journey Christian takes to the celestial city–that permanent home of believers in Jesus.

In the New Testament we’re told of the war between the flesh and the spirit. Bunyan puts it into the context of his day in this classic work. This book is a genuine encouragement to followers of Jesus in any generation. Overcomers from previous generations can continue to encourage us with legacies of this nature as we tread the path in our generation they successfully made in theirs.

Pilgrims Progress–A Blessing
This audio book has been a joy. It happens to be one of my faviorte things to listen to. All my friends at college know lines from it because I talk about it constantly. The story begins with Christian going on pilgrimage in search of heaven. I would encourage all to get this book. The narrator Edward de Souza is wonderful. The applications John Bunyan makes with the Christian life are so practical and real. As a young person its principles have encouraged me as I go about life’s journey. I’m reminded of all those who went on pilgrimage, and the reason they continued or left the way. We will find the waters of life deeper or shallower according to our faith in the King of the Place (Heaven). Buy the book. I don’t think you will be disappointed. If you don’t like it, let me know I will take it.

Inspiring
This is a great classic and a must have for any Christian striving to follow Jesus Christ and His Word. Although the Old English is hard to get through at times, it is well worth the effort for the depth of wisdom contained within the pages. It is a great ecouragement and a sober warning of the trials and tribulations we expect to face on the narrow path we’re called to walk.

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