Category: Poetry

• The Language of Religion

  Here’s one reason why I choose to regard the language of religion as metaphorical rather than literal. If we insist that all biblical stories must be regarded as ‘true’, we invite energetic but fruitless disputes with those who insist that they be regarded as ‘untrue’. If, however, we consider these stories to be metaphorical, such […]

  calgacus83

  17th Mar 2022

  Christianity, Jesus of Nazareth, Literature, Mythology, New Testament, Old Testament, Poetry, Religion

  Bible, God, Jesus, Language, Metaphor, Religion, Stories, Water to Wine

• Genesis One – Us, Images, and Subduing

  “God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, after our likeness, so they may rule … over all the earth … and subdue it.’ Firstly, to whom is God referring when he uses the plural “us” and “our” in relation to “image” and “likeness”? The answer is to be found in the literary and […]

  calgacus83

  15th Mar 2022

  Hebrew Bible, Literature, Mythology, Old Testament, Poetry, Religion

  Canaanites, Climate Change, Earth, Genesis, God, Image of God, Other Creatures, Yahweh

• A Credo and a Plea …

  While contemplating my current series of posts on Genesis, I felt the need to remind myself, (and explain to any interested reader), where I’m coming from, and what is one key source to which I keep returning. Here’s an edited quote from the Prologue to Volume One of “The Masks of God” by Joseph Campbell. […]

  calgacus83

  13th Mar 2022

  Buddhism, Christianity, Consciousness, Literature, Music, Mythology, Philosophy, Poetry, Religion, Science

  Contemplation, Fundamentalism, Joseph Campbell, Masks of God, Mythology, Religion, Scientism, Transcendence

• Genesis One – Order over Chaos

  Let’s focus on the first three verses of Genesis 1. There is here, no absolute beginning, no sudden appearance of something from nothing. There is rather the beginning of a story, in which someone called ‘God’ already exists, as does what you and I call “the earth”, although not as we currently know it. It […]

  calgacus83

  11th Mar 2022

  Christianity, Hebrew Bible, Literature, Mythology, New Testament, Old Testament, Poetry, Religion

  Genesis, God, Jesus, Jung, Leviathan, Marduk, Mythology, Tiamat

• Genesis One – Its ‘Beginnings’

  The Book of Genesis is neither a science book, nor a history book. It’s a story book, containing some of the world’s most memorable tales. In its final form, involving the work of one or more editors, it’s a collection of traditional stories, originally shared by word of mouth, before being written down. These stories […]

  calgacus83

  8th Mar 2022

  Christianity, Hebrew Bible, Literature, Mythology, Old Testament, Poetry, Religion

  Big Bang, Creation, Genesis, Israelites, Myths, Pentateuch, Priests, Sabbath

• Genesis and Ugarit

  From 1939 onwards, the excavation of a mound on the Mediterranean coast of northern Syria, (called Ras Shamra), uncovered the ancient Canaanite city of Ugarit. Included in the finds were tablets containing texts recording the religious beliefs of its people, which show that Ugarit and Israel shared a common linguistic and literary heritage, and provide […]

  calgacus83

  5th Mar 2022

  Christianity, Hebrew Bible, Literature, Mythology, Old Testament, Poetry, Religion

  Asherah, Baal, Canaan, Israel, Myth, Psalms, Ugarit, Yahweh

• So what do I now believe in?

  As a blogger, often about ‘matters religious’, I’m prompted to ask myself, what does religion now mean for me? Its most significant meaning is no longer an institutional one. I was once the minister of a church with several hundred attenders. Having a ‘way with words’, spoken as well as written, I enjoyed the experience […]

  calgacus83

  13th Feb 2022

  Christianity, Consciousness, Literature, Music, Mythology, Philosophy, Poetry, Religion, Science

  Consciousness, Faith, Laws of Physics, Meaning, Religion, Self, Transcendence, Web of Being

• Rethinking Jesus (09) The Pharisees (ii)

  The previous post outlined the origins of the Pharisees, and suggested that they and Jesus, in many ways, ‘sang from the same hymn sheet’. It also, however, outlined reasons for the antagonism that grew between Judaism and the ‘Jesus movement’, once it began to become the ‘Christian Church’, rather than a Jewish ‘sub-group’. This increasing […]

  calgacus83

  11th Feb 2022

  Christianity, Jesus of Nazareth, Literature, New Testament, Poetry, Religion

  Jesus, Judaism, Love, Pharisees, Purity, Ritual, Social Outcasts, The Law

• Rethinking Jesus (07) Healer and Exorciser

  After his baptism and ‘time out’ in the wilderness, Jesus began his evangelistic mission. He’s said to have drawn crowds, but I think their size is over-rated. The Jewish historian Josephus tells us why Herod Antipas executed John the Baptist :  “Now many people came in crowds to John, for they were greatly moved by […]

  calgacus83

  6th Feb 2022

  Christianity, Jesus of Nazareth, Literature, Mythology, New Testament, Poetry, Religion

  Exorcism, Gospels, Healing, Jesus, John the Baptist, Josephus, Miracles, Stories

• Rethinking Jesus (05) Apocalypse Now

  If we’re to understand Jesus the Jew, in the context of first century Palestine, we have to give attention to the appearance of Apocalypses, from around 200 BCE to 200 CE. During that time, there were Jewish apocalypses, supposedly written by Enoch, Zephaniah, Ezra and Baruch etc. Apocalyptic writings were also included in the Dead […]

  calgacus83

  1st Feb 2022

  Christianity, Jesus of Nazareth, Literature, Mythology, New Testament, Poetry, Religion

  Angelic Hosts, Apocalypse, Dualism, Evil Powers, Jesus, Kingdom of God, Messiah, Son of Man