Rewriting the Bible? In his controversial and quite opinionated book entitled “A Moral Reckoning,” Daniel Jonah Goldhagen suggests that it wasn't just the Roman Catholic Church that added fire to the flames of anti-Semitism during Hitler's Holocaust, but the New Testament itself! According to Goldhagen:

“...the New Testament's libelous and hate-inducing passages about Jews must go...”

“In addition, the church must recognize that anti-Semitism has been inseparable from its authoritarian and imperialistic pretensions and must...embrace religious pluralism to make clear that salvation does not come through the church alone...”

“The need, Goldhagen contends, is for Christians to rewrite the New Testament, to expunge anti-Semitism from it...”

Have segments of the Church ever been guilty of anti-Semitic attitudes and activity? History affirms that they have. But does the Bible, and in particular the New Testament, teach anti-Semitism? Definitely not! Such attitudes have arisen because of the misinterpretation of the Bible.

Under the guise of rectifying a terrible wrong, there are voices arising, demanding that we “rewrite the New Testament” to accommodate their sensitivities. The suggestion that the inspired Word of God can be rewritten to embrace whatever view is currently in vogue, sets a precedent for the coming Religion of the Antichrist! Quotes taken from book review in the LA Times by John K. Roth

“The government and the media for the past nine months have been calling this a 'war against terror.' So have we here. But terror is not the enemy. It is what the enemy wants to achieve. So we're making a change in the interest of clarity and honesty. The enemies in this war are radical Islamics who argue that all non-believers in their faith must be killed. They are called Islamics. Let us be clear. This is not a war against Muslims or Islam...It is a war against Islamists and all who support them, and if ever there was a time for clarity, it is now.” Lou Dobbs—CNN's Moneyline

The New York Times reported...that Iraq has ordered large amounts of atropine, a drug that can be used to counter the effects of nerve gas. The Times, quoting senior Bush administration officials, said “the orders were placed mainly with suppliers in Turkey and that the United States is pressing Turkey to stop the sales.”

“'If the Iraqis were going to use nerve agents, they would want to take steps to protect their own soldiers, if not their population,' an official told the Times.”

A society built on instant gratification is what we have in America today, reports one newspaper analyst. Pursuing instant gratification is a tricky, dangerous business. And, of course, it never works. It has two other liabilities. The first is that it is very costly. If you want something, it pays to wait awhile, pray awhile, think it through. If you must have it now, you'll pay through the nose.

Instant gratification is also very boring. One of the most fulfilling emotions of life is anticipation. If there is no time, no years, months, or days between desire and fulfillment, then we will die of boredom—which is the worst way to go.

Christian thinking that forgets our eternal hope can easily give way to despair. Our age has produced much discouragement because it tells Christians to think more than they should about this world. About the Christian, the Bible says:

“For our citizenship is in heaven; from where also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil. 3:20).

Thinking too much about the things of the earth will produce despair, for all human relationships are loaded with ambiguities, unanswered questions, disappointments and frustrations. Because the universe is finite, there is no final fulfillment within the historical process. For fulfillment, we must look beyond the fading bubbles of time into the reality of eternity.

From the booklet Getting Out From Under Depression by Dave Breese. Please write or call for your copy. Suggested contribution: $3.00.