I am thinking about switching my major to the study of religions, but the more I look into theology the more I sense that it’s for religious people planning on working through the church. I am non-religious and want to study religions, their histories, their effect on societies and cultures, etc…
I’m thinking that might just be religious studies as opposed to theology. Does anyone have any insight to this? Has anyone majored in religious studies and/or theology and know the difference?

Religious studies is broader in scope than theological studies.

Engaging and educational book that illuminates the Psalms

I am getting to know the Psalms. I have been reading the Psalms for about ten years, which isn’t long as it goes. Afterall, the Psalms have been around a long time and I am just getting to them. As an effort to know and understand them, and to learn to have them as a part of my life, I have so far turned to three books. This is the third of the books I have read on the Psalms, and maybe it is just me, but the most helpful. In fact, now I will go back to the others. This book has a capacity to inspire with pleasure a growing sense of ease with the Psalms. For afterall, they are relevant to living.

Where I bought this book is important to the review. I did not buy it on Amazon.com, probably because I didn’t know about it. So Amazon.com remains a good source for the work. I discovered the book at a monastery bookstore, where it was with some other titles about Psalms. In a way, it came advised as a book to read and encouraged as a title to own.

The book takes about 55 Psalms and discusses each one of them. There is the Psalm, then the commentary. Some chapters end with a quotation from the Bible, which are also discussed in a commentary manner. In each section, for the Psalms are divided into types, there is an introduction. For Wisdom Psalms the author John F. Craghan introduces the type: “Wisdom psalms emphasize the doctrine of retribution; that is, they attempt to offer a theological explanation of success and failure, reward and punishment.” I find that clear writing, and for a believer a believable statement that helps matters. This is a book that helps the believer to realize God is in our lives in surprising ways. He can speak to our humanity.

For the price, $6.95 the cover of mine says, you can’t go wrong. This is a book for reading in chunks. I found reading a half hour and taking a ten minute break, then going back to the book the better way to absorb what the writer has to say. I mean, here is Psalm 1, which the writer says “…is really the introduction to the entire Book of Psalms.” It begins, “Happy those who do not follow/the counsel of the wicked…” There are words to live by, and you can see that the book makes one enthusiastic for the beauty and even religious meaning of these ancient Hebrew hymns.

I want to give you another example of a Psalm chosen by the book. Psalm 32 begins, “Happy the sinner whose fault is removed/whose sin is forgiven.” This is one of the penitential Psalms. I like how the writer thinks that the Psalms lead to the good life. I think this is an implied meaning of the book. Of that Psalm 32, the commentary says, “The psalmist states that for the good life nothing quite matches the experience of forgiveness.”

Want to know God, or something of the Almighty. Certainly for the Christian the Psalms are a path to living. Of Psalm 39 titled “The Vanity of Life” the commentary by the writer goes: “”This psalm is ultimately a study on the theology of security, a meditation on the irony of human existence in relation to the Existing One.” I am interested in such things, so of course I would find this a helpful look at reading a psalm. By the way, he categorizes this psalm as one of lament. The psalms help with human lament, and they are a deep source of getting to know oneself, and ones relation in the world. There is also the knowledge that others have had, for hundreds and hundreds of years, a kinship of similar experience and emotion. There is something deep in this itself.

There is another book like this one, or more accurately, that this book is like. The author of “Psalms for All Seasons” gives thanks to the author of it, and says that he patterned his book by it. The book is “Praying the Psalms” by Brueggemann. I have read this book, and it is wonderful. So the two books together give a reader a good chance at learning about and living with the psalms.

This title by associate professor John F. Craghan is a mere 170 pages, not including his pages on suggested reading. In itself, a worthy thing to get to have. Like Brueggemann, Craghan says: “Brueggemann has suggested that certain types of psalms fit these different stages (of our lives).” So this book, too, in so well done a way, contributes to an understanding and liking of the psalms. There is something holy about being brought closer to sacred writing. There is something deeply spiritual in this book about the psalms that brings them to better reach for meaning in our lives. I recommend this book to anyone interested in expanding both, and who just enjoys the psalms and wants to know more about appreciating them.

–Peter Menkin, Obl Cam OSB

Peter Menkin
http://www.articlesbase.com/religion-articles/book-review-psalms-for-all-seasons-by-john-f-craghan-574872.html

There are so many translations available today that it can be quite confusing? Which are the best ones? Are some inaccurate? Is “older” always better?” Or maybe “newer” is preferred!

I’ve tried to summarize twenty-one of the most popular ones below. (There are many others out there.) I’ve also included some editorial comments from time to time that may point out strengths and weaknesses. I hope this is a help to you. God bless you as you study His Word!

1. Amplified Bible (AMP)

The Amplified Bible was the first Bible project of The Lockman Foundation. It attempts to take both word meaning and context into account in order to accurately translate the original text from one language into another. The Amplified Bible does this through the use of explanatory alternate readings and amplifications to assist the reader in understanding what Scripture really says. Multiple English word equivalents to each key Hebrew and Greek word clarify and amplify meanings that may otherwise have been concealed by the traditional translation method.

2. American Standard Version (ASV)

Published in 1901, the American Standard Version was produced as a revision to the King James Version.

3. Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Uncompromising simplicity marked the American Bible Society’s translation of the Contemporary English Version Bible that was first published in 1995. The text is easily read by grade schoolers, second language readers, and those who prefer the more contemporized form. The CEV is not a paraphrase. It is an accurate and faithful translation of the original manuscripts.

4. Darby Translation (DARBY)

First published in 1890 by John Nelson Darby, an Anglo-Irish Bible teacher associated with the early years of the Plymouth Brethren. Darby also published translations of the Bible in French and German.

5. English Standard Version (ESV)

The English Standard Version stands in the classic mainstream of English Bible translations over the past half-millennium. In that stream, faithfulness to the text and vigorous pursuit of accuracy were combined with simplicity, beauty, and dignity of expression. Our goal has been to carry forward this legacy for a new century.

To this end each word and phrase in the ESV has been carefully weighed against the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, to ensure the fullest accuracy and clarity and to avoid under-translating or overlooking any nuance of the original text. The words and phrases themselves grow out of the Tyndale-King James legacy, and most recently out of the RSV, with the 1971 RSV text providing the starting point for our work.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Even though many conservative scholars have found inaccuracies in the orginal RSV, those problems were corrected in the ESV translation. It is one of the best modern translations available today.]

6. Good News Translation (GNT)

The Good News Translation, formerly called the Good News Bible or Today’s English Version was first published as a full Bible in 1976 by the American Bible Society as a “common language” Bible. It is a clear and simple modern translation that is faithful to the original Hebrew, Koine Greek and Aramaic texts. The GNT is a highly-trusted version.

7. Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

The Bible is God’s inspired word, inerrant in the original manuscripts. It is the only means of knowing God’s plan of salvation and His will for our lives. It is the only hope and answer for a rebellious, searching world. Bible translation, both a science and an art, is a bridge that brings God’s word from the ancient world to the world today.

8. King James Version (KJV)

In 1604, King James I of England authorized that a new translation of the Bible into English be started. It was finished in 1611, just 85 years after the first translation of the New Testament into English appeared (Tyndale, 1526). The Authorized Version, or King James Version, quickly became the standard for English-speaking Protestants.

9. 21st Century King James Version (KJ21)

The 21st Century King James Version of the Holy Bible (KJ21®) is an updating of the 1611 King James Version (KJV). It is not a new translation, but a careful updating to eliminate obsolete words by reference to the most complete and definitive modern American dictionary, the Webster’s New International Dictionary, Second Edition, unabridged. Spelling, punctuation, and capitalization have also been updated.

What has been historically known as Biblical English has been retained in this updating. It is readily distinguished from the colloquial language of commerce and the media used in contemporary Bible translations.

All language relating to gender and theology in the King James Version remains unchanged from the original.

10. The Message (MSG)

Why was The Message written? The best answer to that question comes from Eugene Peterson himself: “While I was teaching a class on Galatians, I began to realize that the adults in my class weren’t feeling the vitality and directness that I sensed as I read and studied the New Testament in its original Greek. Writing straight from the original text, I began to attempt to bring into English the rhythms and idioms of the original language. I knew that the early readers of the New Testament were captured and engaged by these writings and I wanted my congregation to be impacted in the same way. I hoped to bring the New Testament to life for two different types of people: those who hadn’t read the Bible because it seemed too distant and irrelevant and those who had read the Bible so much that it had become ‘old hat.’”

11. New American Standard Bible (NASB)

While preserving the literal accuracy of the 1901 ASV, the New American Stand Bible has sought to render grammar and terminology in contemporary English. Special attention has been given to the rendering of verb tenses to give the English reader a rendering as close as possible to the sense of the original Greek and Hebrew texts. This translation has earned the reputation of being the most accurate English Bible translation.

12. The NET Bible (NET)

The NET Bible is a completely new translation of the Bible with 60,932 translators’ notes! It was completed by more than 25 scholars – experts in the original biblical languages – who worked directly from the best currently available Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts.

13. New Century Version (NCV)

This translation of God’s Word was made from the original Hebrew and Greek languages. The translation team was composed of the World Bible Translation Center and fifty additional, highly qualified and experienced Bible scholars and translators. Some had translation experience on the New International Version, the New American Standard, and the New King James Versions. The third edition of the United Bible Societies’ Greek text, the latest edition of Biblia Hebraica and the Septuagint were among texts used.

14. New International Version (NIV)

The New International Version is a translation made by more than one hundred scholars working from the best available Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts. It was conceived in 1965 when, after several years of study by committees from the Christian Reformed Church and the National Association of Evangelicals, a trans-denominational and international group of scholars met at Palos Heights, Illinois, and agreed on the need for a new translation in contemporary English.

15. New International Reader’s Version (NIrV)

The New International Reader’s Version is a new Bible version based on the New International Version (NIV). The NIV is easy to understand and very clear. More people read the NIV than any other English Bible. We made the NIrV even easier to read and understand. We used the words of the NIV when we could. Sometimes we used shorter words. We explained words that might be hard to understand. We made the sentences shorter.

We did some other things to make the NIrV a helpful Bible version for you. For example, sometimes a Bible verse quotes from another place in the Bible. When that happens, we put the other Bible book’s name, chapter and verse right there. We separated each chapter into shorter sections. We gave a title to almost every chapter. Sometimes we even gave a title to the shorter sections. That will help you understand what each chapter or section is all about.

16. New Jerusalem Bible (NJB)

The New Jerusalem Bible is a 1985 revision of the older Jerusalem Bible (JB). The JB was translated from the original languages, but it developed out of a popular French translation done in Jerusalem, which is why it was called the Jerusalem Bible. The NJB, like the JB before it, is known for its literary qualities. While the JB tended to more meaning-based (or functional equivalent), the NJB has moved toward more of a word-based (or formal equivalent) translation.

17. New King James Version (NKJV)

Commissioned in 1975 by Thomas Nelson Publishers, 130 respected Bible scholars, church leaders, and lay Christians worked for seven years to create a completely new, modern translation of Scripture, yet one that would retain the purity and stylistic beauty of the original King James Version. With unyielding faithfulness to the original Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic texts, the translatiors applies the most recent research in archaelology, linguistics, and textual studies.

18. New Living Translation (NLT)

The goal of any Bible translation is to convey the meaning of the ancient Hebrew and Greek texts as accurately as possible to the modern reader. The New Living Translation is based on the most recent scholarship in the theory of translation. The challenge for the translators was to create a text that would make the same impact in the life of modern readers that the original text had for the original readers. In the New Living Translation, this is accomplished by translating entire thoughts (rather than just words) into natural, everyday English. The end result is a translation that is easy to read and understand and that accurately communicates the meaning of the original text.

19. New Revised Standard Version (NSRV)

The NRSV translation has been rightly labeled “An Ecumenical Edition,” that has been widely used by both Protestant and Catholic worshippers since 1990.

20. Revised Standard Version (RSV)

Published in 1952, the Revised Standard Version of the Bible is an authorized revision of the American Standard Version. It seeks to preserve all that is best in the English Bible as it has been known and used through the years. It is intended for use in public and private worship, not merely for reading and instruction. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Many conservative scholars have found inaccuracies in the translation work in the RSV.]

21. Today’s New International Version (TNIV)

The Today’s New International Version is a thoroughly accurate, fully trustworthy Bible text built on the rich heritage of the New International Version (NIV). In fact, this contemporary language version incorporates the continuing work of the Committee on Bible Translation (CBT), the translators of the NIV, since the NIV’s last update in 1984.

In translating the NIV, the CBT held to certain goals: that it be an Accurate, Beautiful, Clear, and Dignified translation suitable for public and private reading, teaching, preaching, memorizing, and liturgical use. The translators were united in their commitment to the authority and infallibility of the Bible as God’s Word in written form. They agreed that faithful communication of the meaning of the original writers demands frequent modifications in sentence structure (resulting in a “thought-for-thought” translation) and constant regard for the contextual meanings of words.

Glenn Christianson

There are so many translations available today that it can be quite confusing? Which are the best ones? Are some inaccurate? Is “older” always better?” Or maybe “newer” is preferred!

I’ve tried to summarize twenty-one of the most popular ones below. (There are many others out there.) I’ve also included some editorial comments from time to time that may point out strengths and weaknesses. I hope this is a help to you. God bless you as you study His Word!

1. Amplified Bible (AMP)

The Amplified Bible was the first Bible project of The Lockman Foundation. It attempts to take both word meaning and context into account in order to accurately translate the original text from one language into another. The Amplified Bible does this through the use of explanatory alternate readings and amplifications to assist the reader in understanding what Scripture really says. Multiple English word equivalents to each key Hebrew and Greek word clarify and amplify meanings that may otherwise have been concealed by the traditional translation method.

2. American Standard Version (ASV)

Published in 1901, the American Standard Version was produced as a revision to the King James Version.

3. Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Uncompromising simplicity marked the American Bible Society’s translation of the Contemporary English Version Bible that was first published in 1995. The text is easily read by grade schoolers, second language readers, and those who prefer the more contemporized form. The CEV is not a paraphrase. It is an accurate and faithful translation of the original manuscripts.

4. Darby Translation (DARBY)

First published in 1890 by John Nelson Darby, an Anglo-Irish Bible teacher associated with the early years of the Plymouth Brethren. Darby also published translations of the Bible in French and German.

5. English Standard Version (ESV)

The English Standard Version stands in the classic mainstream of English Bible translations over the past half-millennium. In that stream, faithfulness to the text and vigorous pursuit of accuracy were combined with simplicity, beauty, and dignity of expression. Our goal has been to carry forward this legacy for a new century.

To this end each word and phrase in the ESV has been carefully weighed against the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, to ensure the fullest accuracy and clarity and to avoid under-translating or overlooking any nuance of the original text. The words and phrases themselves grow out of the Tyndale-King James legacy, and most recently out of the RSV, with the 1971 RSV text providing the starting point for our work.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Even though many conservative scholars have found inaccuracies in the orginal RSV, those problems were corrected in the ESV translation. It is one of the best modern translations available today.]

6. Good News Translation (GNT)

The Good News Translation, formerly called the Good News Bible or Today’s English Version was first published as a full Bible in 1976 by the American Bible Society as a “common language” Bible. It is a clear and simple modern translation that is faithful to the original Hebrew, Koine Greek and Aramaic texts. The GNT is a highly-trusted version.

7. Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

The Bible is God’s inspired word, inerrant in the original manuscripts. It is the only means of knowing God’s plan of salvation and His will for our lives. It is the only hope and answer for a rebellious, searching world. Bible translation, both a science and an art, is a bridge that brings God’s word from the ancient world to the world today.

8. King James Version (KJV)

In 1604, King James I of England authorized that a new translation of the Bible into English be started. It was finished in 1611, just 85 years after the first translation of the New Testament into English appeared (Tyndale, 1526). The Authorized Version, or King James Version, quickly became the standard for English-speaking Protestants.

9. 21st Century King James Version (KJ21)

The 21st Century King James Version of the Holy Bible (KJ21®) is an updating of the 1611 King James Version (KJV). It is not a new translation, but a careful updating to eliminate obsolete words by reference to the most complete and definitive modern American dictionary, the Webster’s New International Dictionary, Second Edition, unabridged. Spelling, punctuation, and capitalization have also been updated.

What has been historically known as Biblical English has been retained in this updating. It is readily distinguished from the colloquial language of commerce and the media used in contemporary Bible translations.

All language relating to gender and theology in the King James Version remains unchanged from the original.

10. The Message (MSG)

Why was The Message written? The best answer to that question comes from Eugene Peterson himself: “While I was teaching a class on Galatians, I began to realize that the adults in my class weren’t feeling the vitality and directness that I sensed as I read and studied the New Testament in its original Greek. Writing straight from the original text, I began to attempt to bring into English the rhythms and idioms of the original language. I knew that the early readers of the New Testament were captured and engaged by these writings and I wanted my congregation to be impacted in the same way. I hoped to bring the New Testament to life for two different types of people: those who hadn’t read the Bible because it seemed too distant and irrelevant and those who had read the Bible so much that it had become ‘old hat.’”

11. New American Standard Bible (NASB)

While preserving the literal accuracy of the 1901 ASV, the New American Stand Bible has sought to render grammar and terminology in contemporary English. Special attention has been given to the rendering of verb tenses to give the English reader a rendering as close as possible to the sense of the original Greek and Hebrew texts. This translation has earned the reputation of being the most accurate English Bible translation.

12. The NET Bible (NET)

The NET Bible is a completely new translation of the Bible with 60,932 translators’ notes! It was completed by more than 25 scholars – experts in the original biblical languages – who worked directly from the best currently available Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts.

13. New Century Version (NCV)

This translation of God’s Word was made from the original Hebrew and Greek languages. The translation team was composed of the World Bible Translation Center and fifty additional, highly qualified and experienced Bible scholars and translators. Some had translation experience on the New International Version, the New American Standard, and the New King James Versions. The third edition of the United Bible Societies’ Greek text, the latest edition of Biblia Hebraica and the Septuagint were among texts used.

14. New International Version (NIV)

The New International Version is a translation made by more than one hundred scholars working from the best available Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts. It was conceived in 1965 when, after several years of study by committees from the Christian Reformed Church and the National Association of Evangelicals, a trans-denominational and international group of scholars met at Palos Heights, Illinois, and agreed on the need for a new translation in contemporary English.

15. New International Reader’s Version (NIrV)

The New International Reader’s Version is a new Bible version based on the New International Version (NIV). The NIV is easy to understand and very clear. More people read the NIV than any other English Bible. We made the NIrV even easier to read and understand. We used the words of the NIV when we could. Sometimes we used shorter words. We explained words that might be hard to understand. We made the sentences shorter.

We did some other things to make the NIrV a helpful Bible version for you. For example, sometimes a Bible verse quotes from another place in the Bible. When that happens, we put the other Bible book’s name, chapter and verse right there. We separated each chapter into shorter sections. We gave a title to almost every chapter. Sometimes we even gave a title to the shorter sections. That will help you understand what each chapter or section is all about.

16. New Jerusalem Bible (NJB)

The New Jerusalem Bible is a 1985 revision of the older Jerusalem Bible (JB). The JB was translated from the original languages, but it developed out of a popular French translation done in Jerusalem, which is why it was called the Jerusalem Bible. The NJB, like the JB before it, is known for its literary qualities. While the JB tended to more meaning-based (or functional equivalent), the NJB has moved toward more of a word-based (or formal equivalent) translation.

17. New King James Version (NKJV)

Commissioned in 1975 by Thomas Nelson Publishers, 130 respected Bible scholars, church leaders, and lay Christians worked for seven years to create a completely new, modern translation of Scripture, yet one that would retain the purity and stylistic beauty of the original King James Version. With unyielding faithfulness to the original Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic texts, the translatiors applies the most recent research in archaelology, linguistics, and textual studies.

18. New Living Translation (NLT)

The goal of any Bible translation is to convey the meaning of the ancient Hebrew and Greek texts as accurately as possible to the modern reader. The New Living Translation is based on the most recent scholarship in the theory of translation. The challenge for the translators was to create a text that would make the same impact in the life of modern readers that the original text had for the original readers. In the New Living Translation, this is accomplished by translating entire thoughts (rather than just words) into natural, everyday English. The end result is a translation that is easy to read and understand and that accurately communicates the meaning of the original text.

19. New Revised Standard Version (NSRV)

The NRSV translation has been rightly labeled “An Ecumenical Edition,” that has been widely used by both Protestant and Catholic worshippers since 1990.

20. Revised Standard Version (RSV)

Published in 1952, the Revised Standard Version of the Bible is an authorized revision of the American Standard Version. It seeks to preserve all that is best in the English Bible as it has been known and used through the years. It is intended for use in public and private worship, not merely for reading and instruction. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Many conservative scholars have found inaccuracies in the translation work in the RSV.]

21. Today’s New International Version (TNIV)

The Today’s New International Version is a thoroughly accurate, fully trustworthy Bible text built on the rich heritage of the New International Version (NIV). In fact, this contemporary language version incorporates the continuing work of the Committee on Bible Translation (CBT), the translators of the NIV, since the NIV’s last update in 1984.

In translating the NIV, the CBT held to certain goals: that it be an Accurate, Beautiful, Clear, and Dignified translation suitable for public and private reading, teaching, preaching, memorizing, and liturgical use. The translators were united in their commitment to the authority and infallibility of the Bible as God’s Word in written form. They agreed that faithful communication of the meaning of the original writers demands frequent modifications in sentence structure (resulting in a “thought-for-thought” translation) and constant regard for the contextual meanings of words.

Glenn Christianson

I am thinking about switching my major to the study of religions, but the more I look into theology the more I sense that it’s for religious people planning on working through the church. I am non-religious and want to study religions, their histories, their effect on societies and cultures, etc…
I’m thinking that might just be religious studies as opposed to theology. Does anyone have any insight to this? Has anyone majored in religious studies and/or theology and know the difference?

Religious studies is broader in scope than theological studies.

There are so many translations available today that it can be quite confusing? Which are the best ones? Are some inaccurate? Is “older” always better?” Or maybe “newer” is preferred!

I’ve tried to summarize twenty-one of the most popular ones below. (There are many others out there.) I’ve also included some editorial comments from time to time that may point out strengths and weaknesses. I hope this is a help to you. God bless you as you study His Word!

1. Amplified Bible (AMP)

The Amplified Bible was the first Bible project of The Lockman Foundation. It attempts to take both word meaning and context into account in order to accurately translate the original text from one language into another. The Amplified Bible does this through the use of explanatory alternate readings and amplifications to assist the reader in understanding what Scripture really says. Multiple English word equivalents to each key Hebrew and Greek word clarify and amplify meanings that may otherwise have been concealed by the traditional translation method.

2. American Standard Version (ASV)

Published in 1901, the American Standard Version was produced as a revision to the King James Version.

3. Contemporary English Version (CEV)

Uncompromising simplicity marked the American Bible Society’s translation of the Contemporary English Version Bible that was first published in 1995. The text is easily read by grade schoolers, second language readers, and those who prefer the more contemporized form. The CEV is not a paraphrase. It is an accurate and faithful translation of the original manuscripts.

4. Darby Translation (DARBY)

First published in 1890 by John Nelson Darby, an Anglo-Irish Bible teacher associated with the early years of the Plymouth Brethren. Darby also published translations of the Bible in French and German.

5. English Standard Version (ESV)

The English Standard Version stands in the classic mainstream of English Bible translations over the past half-millennium. In that stream, faithfulness to the text and vigorous pursuit of accuracy were combined with simplicity, beauty, and dignity of expression. Our goal has been to carry forward this legacy for a new century.

To this end each word and phrase in the ESV has been carefully weighed against the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, to ensure the fullest accuracy and clarity and to avoid under-translating or overlooking any nuance of the original text. The words and phrases themselves grow out of the Tyndale-King James legacy, and most recently out of the RSV, with the 1971 RSV text providing the starting point for our work.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Even though many conservative scholars have found inaccuracies in the orginal RSV, those problems were corrected in the ESV translation. It is one of the best modern translations available today.]

6. Good News Translation (GNT)

The Good News Translation, formerly called the Good News Bible or Today’s English Version was first published as a full Bible in 1976 by the American Bible Society as a “common language” Bible. It is a clear and simple modern translation that is faithful to the original Hebrew, Koine Greek and Aramaic texts. The GNT is a highly-trusted version.

7. Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

The Bible is God’s inspired word, inerrant in the original manuscripts. It is the only means of knowing God’s plan of salvation and His will for our lives. It is the only hope and answer for a rebellious, searching world. Bible translation, both a science and an art, is a bridge that brings God’s word from the ancient world to the world today.

8. King James Version (KJV)

In 1604, King James I of England authorized that a new translation of the Bible into English be started. It was finished in 1611, just 85 years after the first translation of the New Testament into English appeared (Tyndale, 1526). The Authorized Version, or King James Version, quickly became the standard for English-speaking Protestants.

9. 21st Century King James Version (KJ21)

The 21st Century King James Version of the Holy Bible (KJ21®) is an updating of the 1611 King James Version (KJV). It is not a new translation, but a careful updating to eliminate obsolete words by reference to the most complete and definitive modern American dictionary, the Webster’s New International Dictionary, Second Edition, unabridged. Spelling, punctuation, and capitalization have also been updated.

What has been historically known as Biblical English has been retained in this updating. It is readily distinguished from the colloquial language of commerce and the media used in contemporary Bible translations.

All language relating to gender and theology in the King James Version remains unchanged from the original.

10. The Message (MSG)

Why was The Message written? The best answer to that question comes from Eugene Peterson himself: “While I was teaching a class on Galatians, I began to realize that the adults in my class weren’t feeling the vitality and directness that I sensed as I read and studied the New Testament in its original Greek. Writing straight from the original text, I began to attempt to bring into English the rhythms and idioms of the original language. I knew that the early readers of the New Testament were captured and engaged by these writings and I wanted my congregation to be impacted in the same way. I hoped to bring the New Testament to life for two different types of people: those who hadn’t read the Bible because it seemed too distant and irrelevant and those who had read the Bible so much that it had become ‘old hat.’”

11. New American Standard Bible (NASB)

While preserving the literal accuracy of the 1901 ASV, the New American Stand Bible has sought to render grammar and terminology in contemporary English. Special attention has been given to the rendering of verb tenses to give the English reader a rendering as close as possible to the sense of the original Greek and Hebrew texts. This translation has earned the reputation of being the most accurate English Bible translation.

12. The NET Bible (NET)

The NET Bible is a completely new translation of the Bible with 60,932 translators’ notes! It was completed by more than 25 scholars – experts in the original biblical languages – who worked directly from the best currently available Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts.

13. New Century Version (NCV)

This translation of God’s Word was made from the original Hebrew and Greek languages. The translation team was composed of the World Bible Translation Center and fifty additional, highly qualified and experienced Bible scholars and translators. Some had translation experience on the New International Version, the New American Standard, and the New King James Versions. The third edition of the United Bible Societies’ Greek text, the latest edition of Biblia Hebraica and the Septuagint were among texts used.

14. New International Version (NIV)

The New International Version is a translation made by more than one hundred scholars working from the best available Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts. It was conceived in 1965 when, after several years of study by committees from the Christian Reformed Church and the National Association of Evangelicals, a trans-denominational and international group of scholars met at Palos Heights, Illinois, and agreed on the need for a new translation in contemporary English.

15. New International Reader’s Version (NIrV)

The New International Reader’s Version is a new Bible version based on the New International Version (NIV). The NIV is easy to understand and very clear. More people read the NIV than any other English Bible. We made the NIrV even easier to read and understand. We used the words of the NIV when we could. Sometimes we used shorter words. We explained words that might be hard to understand. We made the sentences shorter.

We did some other things to make the NIrV a helpful Bible version for you. For example, sometimes a Bible verse quotes from another place in the Bible. When that happens, we put the other Bible book’s name, chapter and verse right there. We separated each chapter into shorter sections. We gave a title to almost every chapter. Sometimes we even gave a title to the shorter sections. That will help you understand what each chapter or section is all about.

16. New Jerusalem Bible (NJB)

The New Jerusalem Bible is a 1985 revision of the older Jerusalem Bible (JB). The JB was translated from the original languages, but it developed out of a popular French translation done in Jerusalem, which is why it was called the Jerusalem Bible. The NJB, like the JB before it, is known for its literary qualities. While the JB tended to more meaning-based (or functional equivalent), the NJB has moved toward more of a word-based (or formal equivalent) translation.

17. New King James Version (NKJV)

Commissioned in 1975 by Thomas Nelson Publishers, 130 respected Bible scholars, church leaders, and lay Christians worked for seven years to create a completely new, modern translation of Scripture, yet one that would retain the purity and stylistic beauty of the original King James Version. With unyielding faithfulness to the original Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic texts, the translatiors applies the most recent research in archaelology, linguistics, and textual studies.

18. New Living Translation (NLT)

The goal of any Bible translation is to convey the meaning of the ancient Hebrew and Greek texts as accurately as possible to the modern reader. The New Living Translation is based on the most recent scholarship in the theory of translation. The challenge for the translators was to create a text that would make the same impact in the life of modern readers that the original text had for the original readers. In the New Living Translation, this is accomplished by translating entire thoughts (rather than just words) into natural, everyday English. The end result is a translation that is easy to read and understand and that accurately communicates the meaning of the original text.

19. New Revised Standard Version (NSRV)

The NRSV translation has been rightly labeled “An Ecumenical Edition,” that has been widely used by both Protestant and Catholic worshippers since 1990.

20. Revised Standard Version (RSV)

Published in 1952, the Revised Standard Version of the Bible is an authorized revision of the American Standard Version. It seeks to preserve all that is best in the English Bible as it has been known and used through the years. It is intended for use in public and private worship, not merely for reading and instruction. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Many conservative scholars have found inaccuracies in the translation work in the RSV.]

21. Today’s New International Version (TNIV)

The Today’s New International Version is a thoroughly accurate, fully trustworthy Bible text built on the rich heritage of the New International Version (NIV). In fact, this contemporary language version incorporates the continuing work of the Committee on Bible Translation (CBT), the translators of the NIV, since the NIV’s last update in 1984.

In translating the NIV, the CBT held to certain goals: that it be an Accurate, Beautiful, Clear, and Dignified translation suitable for public and private reading, teaching, preaching, memorizing, and liturgical use. The translators were united in their commitment to the authority and infallibility of the Bible as God’s Word in written form. They agreed that faithful communication of the meaning of the original writers demands frequent modifications in sentence structure (resulting in a “thought-for-thought” translation) and constant regard for the contextual meanings of words.

Glenn Christianson

Vedic Numerology – Lesson 7

When the celestial science of the Heavens ( Astrology ) blends with the
science of Numbers , we have the fascinating Vedic Numerology. While
Pythagorus initiated Numerology in the West, Astrology was initiated by
eighteen Seers from India. They were the seer-poets who composed the
Vedas, scriptures which were never written and which were cognised in
higher states of Consciousness, from Cosmic Consciousness and above.

Seven – ruled by the Moon’s Descending Node or the South Node, Ketu

The two mathematical points where the orbits of the Moon and the Sun
intersect are called Ascending Node ( North Node ) & Descending Node
( South Node), Rahu & Ketu.( The orbits of the Sun & the Moon differ by 8
degrees ). They are shadowy planets and not actual planets . They are
important determinants of behaviour. In Vedic Astrology great importance
is attached to the Nodal Axis which becomes the pivot of the horoscope.
In Mythology ( which is allegorical and symbolic ), Rahu & Ketu are
characterised as demons as both these shadowy planets are natural
malefics. Rahu resembles Saturn & Ketu,Mars.

Effects of Fadic Number Seven

If the Sevenian is YOU!

( Fadic Number is the number got after adding all the digits comprising your
date of birth ).

Your Numerological Number is 7 and your Life Controller is
Ketu. This is the number of those born on the 7 16 and the
25th of every month. They are very friendly with the Lunari-
ans – that is people born on the 2 11 20 29. They are very
independent prominent and with great individuality. As
they are restless they love travel and change. They love
travel particularly in foreign countries.

They are not lucky in financial matters. But women born un-
der this number are always anxious about their own future
and always find out nice matrimonial alliances. They are
rich in ideas which will find their way to fulfillment. Th-
eir thoughts are noble. They gain a lot of knowledge about
the sea and try to establish business ties with foreign co-
untries.

About Religion their ideas are different. They try to found
new innovative and creative religions. They always dream
wonderful dreams. They love occult sciences. They are alwa-
ys intuitive. To gain the fructifiction of their objectives
they should use 7 16 and 25.

Their lucky days are Sunday and Monday. If these days coin-
cide with 1 2 4 10 11 13 19 20 22 28 29 31 these days beco-

Your Lucky Month July
Your Lucky Dates 7 16 & 25
Your Lucky Colour White
Your Lucky Stone Cat’s eye
Your Lucky Day Monday

Sir Joshua Reynolds Charles Dickens & Oscar Wilde were bo-
rn like you under this number and it will not be sur-
prising if anyone identifies similar characteristics in you

More quality information about Astro-Numerology and a free Astro-
Numerological Report can be had from

http://www.astrologiavedica.com/html/numerology.htm

Personality Oveview
——————-

Controller of Life – Moon’s Descending Node

You are ruled by the Moon’s Descending Node ,Ketu. In the
psychic sciences the number seven represents the Divine.
People born under this number are always inspired and actu-
ated by high ideals. They are always engaged in noble and
creative activities.

You are a mystic by nature always tuned to the spiritual
world. You are endowed with personal magnetism and people
are influenced easily by you.

You will shine in the noble professions ( Medicine, Law,
Philosophy, Astrology & Theology ) as your main objective
is the alleviation of human suffering.

You are ready to sacrifice your life for attaining the Pro-
mised Land of your chosen ideology. You push forth to your
aim irrespective of the opinions of the world. You are only
happy when your objective is realised.

Your main drawback is that you are too innocent and straig-
ht-forward which has its drawbacks particularly in busine-
ss and politics.

Your noble outlook on life will definitely earn you progre-
ss in the field of Ethics and Morality. You may not be that
prosperous in the material or the worldly sphere.

You are too emotional and writhe at the slightest adversity
Perseverance and patience should be incorporated.

In Vedic Astrology the South Node is the significator of Liberation.
Along with Jupiter and Saturn , Ketu play a promiment part in the
native attaining to Self-Actualisation. The South Node in the twelfth
house is preferable from the perspective of Nirvana. Ketu rules over
three constellations of the Sidereal Zodiac, Beta Arietis( Aswathi),
Regulus ( Makha ) & Lamda Scorpii ( Moola ).

More quality information about Vedic Astrology & an Astrological
Analysis can be had from http://www.astrologiavedica.com/html/vedichoroscope.htm

An Analytical Review
——————–

The zodiac sign representing this number is Scorpio.
( Do not confuse this with the birth sign in Astrology )
Scorpio is the sign of the Mystic the Investigator.Psychic
sciences attract them in no uncertain measure. They are al-
ways attracted to the mysteries of Nature.

Scorpians show tremendous resilience. They have the ability
to bounce back after being at the receiving end. Their det-
ermination and tenacity make them winners in the long run.

You do not care for the opinions of others and go ahead wi-
th your peculiar outlook on life. As you are stubborn and
show a bulldog spirit you are likely to have a lot of enem-
ies. You will be subjected to struggle, strife and sufferi-
ng as this constellation is fiery in nature and shows all
the qualities of the lord of war Mars.

Scorpio is ruled by Mars. In classical Astrology Ketu rese-
mbles Mars and hence this constellation is martian in natu-
re. As you are a Martian all the fighting qualities of Mars
will be predominant in you. Determination, bulldog spirit
leadership, generalship, willpower, resilience – these are
the real Martian qualities. Patience perseverance indiff-
erence – all these qualities will be lacking in you.

Anger is another passion which will grip you at times.

Negative Aspect
—————

Ketu is a planet which brings salvation through sorrow. In
other words he makes you bear the cross. Enmity from one’s own
kith and kin and sorrow are the net results.

Mantra
——

Palasa Pushpa Sankasham
Tharakakara Masthakam
Roudram Roudragunopetham
Tham Ketum Pranamamyaham

This sloka if recited 108 times daily can ward off the afflictions
arising from Ketu. This is the moola sloka of Ketu.

The South Node rules Cat’s Eye. Wearing a ring embedded with Cat’s Eye
on a Shukla Paksha Tuesday can destroy the afflictions arising from Ketu
Dasa ( the planetary period of the South Node ). Shukla Paksha is the bright
fortnight, 15 days period after the New Moon.

More information about Planetary Gemology & a FREE Gem Prescription
Report can be had from http://www.astrologiavedica.com/html/planetarygemology.htm

In Transcendental Philosophy the Number Seven is considered very sacred.
The seventh state of Consciousness in Transcendental Meditation is the
Unified state of Cosmic Consciousness or Unity Consciousness.
The Beatitudes are Seven. The Seven Octaves of Music , the seven colors
of the spectrum, the seven major planets, the seven days of the week – all
these bear ample testimony to the significance attached to the number
seven. In the Supramental Dialectic, Universal Being is sevenfold – viz,
the Sevenfold Chord of Being being Life, Mind, Matter, Supermind, Being,
Knowledge and Bliss.

Seven sciences constitute Dialectics – Ontology, Epistemology, Axiology,
Aesthetics, Ethics, Logic and Politics. The seven liberal arts – Rhetoric,
Music, Astronomy, Grammar, Logic, Arithmetic and Geometry – and
the seven cardinal virtues – Justice, Temperance, Fortitude, Prudence,
Knowledge, Wisdom & Understanding – adorn classical Philosophy.
The seven reprehensible actions of Aristotlean Ethics – Lust, greed,
Jealousy, anger, sloth, covetousness & attachment- have been classified
by Dante as the Seven Deadly sins. The seventh principle in Transcendental
Philosophy is Absolute Being ( Sat ) which is the source of all existence.

The seven states of Consciousness are called in Yoga as Sapta
Bhoomika.

More information about Transcendental Philosophy & Yoga can be had from http://www.astrologiavedica.com/html/yogamain.htm

In the next article we will deal with the Eightians – those who are ruled by
the planet of boundless time or Eternity, Saturn.

Article by G Kumar, Astrologer, writer & programmer of www.eastrovedica.com. Recently he was awarded a Certificate by the Planetary Gemologists Association Global ( www.p-g-a.org ) as a Planetary Gem Advisor. He has 25 years psychic research experience in the esoteric arts. To subscribe to his free informative Ezine, the Z Files mailto:info@eastrovedica.com?subject=SubscribeZF. His Astro blog is up at http://www.zodiacastrology.blogspot.com & his Philosophy blog is http://transcendentalphilosophy.blogspot.com Mobile 091 9388556053

G Kumar
http://www.articlesbase.com/education-articles/vedic-numerology-vii-62448.html

“Father Paul, you cannot possibly be telling me that an Episcopal priest has been taken in by fundamentalist theology?” Terese incredulously asked the new Assistant to the Rector at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Orlando who also served at the noon mass every Wednesday.

Father Paul Hendricks was a passionate evangelist on a mission to convert every Jew he encountered to become a Christian. Terese had kept her silence for the first six months she had been listening to his Wednesday noon sermons but finally broke her silence after the rest of the parishioners had departed.

Paul sighed and shook his head, “Look, Mrs. Hunter, I read your Op/Ed in the newspaper about Israel Palestine and we both agree we want peace, we just go about it differently.”

“Father, let me say that the fastest growing cult in the U.S.A. is the cult of Christian Zionism. Approximately 25 million USA Christians believe as you do and I am most depressed to see that the simple answers of fundamentalism has reached its tentacles into the Thinking Man’s Church!

“You just preached for thirteen minutes on Genesis 12:3, “I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse: and in you all the families of the world are blessed,” as if God meant blessings to be political power and military might. Father, surely you understand that the ancient Israelites who held that they were chosen as if they were somehow special from others, as if God esteemed them above others, is just basic primitive nationalism!

“Come on Father, looking down on one’s enemies to foster one’s own tribal interest and praying to God to smite one’s enemies is what the ancients did. Isn’t it about time we moved beyond that limited thinking?”

Father Paul clenched his fists and held them behind his back as he suppressed a simmering rage. He stood nine inches above Terese’s upturned head, and with a slick smile and condescending tone told her, “Mrs. Hunter, you are very misled. The text is understood to mean a blessing to Abraham’s lineage.”

Terese cut in, “Agreed! And Genesis 12:3 was promised even before Ishmael, the father of the Arab nation and Isaac, the Jew were born! And what about the very first mention of Israel? Jacob was renamed Israel for having wrestled and struggled with God. That is how I understand Israel; everyone who struggles and wrestles with God is Israel too. Israel means more than a geographical location Father Paul.”

“Mrs. Hunter, the modern state of Israel is the fulfillment of the prophetic scriptures and Gods covenant with Israel is eternal, exclusive and will not be abrogated. I refer you to Genesis 12:1-7, 15:4-7, 17:1-8, Leviticus 26:44-45 and Deuteronomy 7:7:8.”

“And Father, I refer you to Matthew 5:43-45 which not only critiques Genesis 12:3, it blows it apart, for Christ commanded, “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them that despitefully use you, that you maybe children of your Father.”

The two had reached Paul’s SUV and he wondered if he could make a swift escape. Terese had positioned herself at the drivers door and if he were to open it swiftly, she could be easily moved aside. Father Paul entertained the thought for more than a moment but remained mute and still as the tiny woman exploded with a torrent of words.

“Look, blind allegiance to the Israeli government has allowed them to become a big bully and isn’t God always on the side of the oppressed? My sense is that you Zionists see the political state of Israel as a replacement for Christ at the center of the Christian faith and that certainly is not Christianity!

“How do you take literally Genesis 12:3 to mean blessings equal land and political power yet ignore Gods promise in Genesis 21:17-20 to “make a great nation out of Ishmael’s descendents” and that “God was with the boy.” Yet your way of thinking allows the growing apartheid wall to continue and supports occupation and oppression of people that God also made promises to.”

“Mrs. Hunter, why don’t you make an appointment and we can discuss this further? I really have to go.”

“Okay I can take a hint but let me leave you with this; when religion and politics are in bed together, everybody gets screwed! The Israeli government is using you Zionists as apologists in support of their agenda of illegal occupation and settlements in the West bank, Golan and Gaza on literal biblical grounds taken out of context!

“Your blind allegiance to every act of Israel as being orchestrated by God and therefore should be condoned, supported and even praised makes me want to puke! And I wonder about the true motives of Christians who actually relish the idea of Armageddon and love to speculate on who gets ‘left behind.’ Christ was very clear that there will be much wailing and gnashing of teeth by those who were so sure they were in, but they get left out. God has always been on the side of the oppressed and your uncritical endorsement and justification for Israel’s racist and apartheid policies is an abomination.”

The stunned and silent priest watched in relief as Terese turned and flipped her braid and walked away.

Eileen Fleming
http://www.articlesbase.com/religion-articles/a-confrontational-conversation-79805.html

On the fourth day of Sabeel’s 6th International Conference: The Forgotten Faithful, who are the Palestinian Christians, Dr. Khalil Nakhleh received one of the loudest and most prolonged thunders of applause from over 330 International ecumenical Christians for his passionate disertation.

Dr. Nakhleh spoke to us in Ramallah and he is a Palestinian socio-economic anthropologist and Team Leader of Mu’assasat, which is devoted to strengthening human rights and good governance in the Occupied Territories. He is also a prolific writer and his latest work is “In Search of Palestinian Identity: A Personal Odyssey.”

“You are here because you believe injustice has been done and you want to do something. This is not a struggle between religions, it is a struggle to expose the colonial settler movement, namely Zionism which has been ethnically cleansing the indigenous population by coercive, illegal and military means. The native population has been re-grouped as disperse refugees, displaced people on our land, we are 2nd class citizens who have endured under prolonged military and economic occupation for the last 40 years.

“This is not a religious struggle, it is a struggle against the structure that allows and condones occupation and oppression of others. This is a struggle against an insatiable ethnic cleansing to achieve a Jewish presence in Palestine. The struggle is against the colonial-settler movement-Zionism-which for nearly a century has combined military, economic, legal, psychological and environmental means to disperse and displace Palestinians from their land.

“It is a grave and threatening challenge we face and I propose a People’s Strategy-not merely to end the occupation but work against the very structure of the ideology of ethnic cleansing and transfer of non-Jews. The forceful transfer of the native population into groups of dispersed refugees outside of their land is our Internal struggle.

“Palestinians have been relegated to a status of 2nd class citizens, they are unwelcome foreignors in their home land: the Palestinian communities in Israel, the West Bank of the Jordan River, East Jerusalem and Gaza.

“There also is the External struggle we must fight-specifically in the USA but not only there. We urge you to coalesce with like minded Jews, secularists and people of all faiths in your countries to spear head the movement to dismantle occupation appetites.

“This is a struggle against the structures that allows and condones the occupation and suppression of any other: a structure whose basis is a system of apartheid and an ideology of exclusion: a structure that is nurtured by an insatiable ideology and practice of ethnic cleansing and population transfer, in order to achieve “Jewish purity” in the land of Palestine.

“What is needed is a united platform with the clear and unambiguous position to dismantle Israeli occupation. The International community has been usurped by the US under threat of sanctions. I propose a “coalition of the committed” that would discard the two state solution which has become inane, redundant, unrealizable, and totally undermined by internationally sanctioned Israeli apartheid policies.

“I propose that the two-state solution be rejected because it is unjust, unresponsive to peoples need for freedom, independent living and their right to unfettered development, and because it legitimizes historical and the ongoing of stealing of the lands of the indigenous Palestinian communities.

“All people should struggle to transform the land where all the people can live free and equal with all rights. Let the people decide what to call this domain. When we achieve this we will have also liberated our minds. The problem is colonization, the problem began in 1914 with Balfour and exacerbated in 1948.”

“When we liberate the mind and the land, we will know the essence of liberation theology!”-Khalil Nakhleh, Palestinian socio-economic anthropologist, Team Leader of Mu’assasat, which is devoted to sterngtheing human rights and good governance in the Occupied Territories, prolific writer, latest work In Search of Palestinian Identity: A Personal Odyssey.

There is one piece of property that has been gerrymandered by concrete walls and electrified fences and it already extends over 200 miles with 99% of The Wall on legally owned Palestinian property.

There are 480 Palestinian communities in the West Bank and each has one or more checkpoints. The indigenous people of the land must also get permits to exit which can be denied at any time without any reason by 21 year old soldiers.

There is one piece of property that Palestinian Christians and Muslims and Jews all can share. The only way to peace and security is through justice and mercy.

When International Law and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is honored, the walls in mens minds will fall.

The walls in mens minds must fall, before the walls men build with their hands ever can.

Eileen Fleming
http://www.articlesbase.com/religion-articles/walls-will-fall-when-minds-are-liberated-72047.html

The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Judgment Day, or Day of the Lord in Christian theology, is the final and eternal judgement by God of all nations.[1] It will take place after the resurrection of the dead and the Second Coming (Revelation 20:12–15). This belief has inspired numerous artistic depictions. There is little agreement among Christian denominations in Christian eschatology as to what happens after death and before the Last Judgment.

The doctrine and iconographic depiction of the “Last Judgment” are drawn from many passages from the apocalyptic sections of the Bible. It appears most directly in The Sheep and the Goats section of the Gospel of Matthew where the judgment is entirely based on help given or refused to “the least of these”:[citation needed]
When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and He will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at His right hand, “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.” … “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”
Then He will say to those at His left hand, “You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.” … “Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.” And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. (Matthew 25:31-36, 40-43, 45-46 NRSV)
The doctrine is further supported by passages in Daniel, Isaiah and the Revelation of Saint John the Divine..Click Here to read the rest of the story

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