Dec30

A Cursory glance at the influence of Babylonian Mythos on Christianity

by BlackXanthus on December 30th, 2011 at 6:03 pm
Posted In: Phil-Osophy

I have been reading a book on Babylonian and Assyrian Myths and Ledgends, and they have sparked some interesting theological links. I thought that it would be best to make some small posts as I went through the book, so that I didn’t forget the ideas.

When Abraham left the city of Ur and struct out on his own there is much of that culture that may have come with him from the native religion of Babylonia. Nannar was the chief God of Ur, a moon God, who’s names are given as “the lord and prince of the gods, supreme in heaven, the Father of All”. A very similar list of names to those attributed eventually to Yahweh.
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Dec18

Mary’s Strange Family – Sermon

by BlackXanthus on December 18th, 2011 at 3:31 pm
Posted In: Sermon

Readings:

2 Samuel 7.1-11,16
Psalm 89.14, 19-26
Romans 16.25-27
Luke 1.26.38

Sermon- Mary’s Family

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Dec07

Origen’s origens of Angels.

by BlackXanthus on December 7th, 2011 at 6:18 pm
Posted In: Phil-Osophy

I have been reading J. N. D Kelly’s Early Christian Doctrines (Fith Edition), and have come accross a rather interesting piece that comes from the writing of Origen, as he explains the mystical beginnings of the world.

Before the ages they were all pure intelligences, whether demons or souls or angels. One of them, the Devil, since he possessed free will, chose to resist God, and God rejected him. All the other powers fell away with him, becoming demons, angels and archangels according as their misdeeds were more, or less, or still less, heinous. Each obtained a lot proportionate to his sin. There remained the souls; these had not sinned so grievously as to become demons or so venially as to become angels. God therefore made the present world, binding the soul to the body as punishment… Plainly He chastises each to suit his sin, making one a demon, another a soul, another an archangel.’

p 181. Kelly, J. N. D. Early Christian Doctrines (Fifth Edition) Continuum, London, 2008.
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Nov21

Final Year Essays

by BlackXanthus on November 21st, 2011 at 6:00 pm
Posted In: God Notes, Phil-Osophy

I have said for a long while that I would upload my final year essays. Many of them might be of use to some people. They are Christian in basis, but the topics are varied. There are essays that cover scriptural studies of the Antichrist, through to ethical studies of the place of the Bible in Ethics, and of course the ethics of homosexuality. There is an interfaith essay on the current state of the Pagan-Christian dialogue, and what future hope there is for this dialogue to improve, if any, as well as a look at the place of Baptism in the Christian faith, and through a study of the 4th century liturgy where our symbols have come from. Finally, there is the dissertation that surprised many. The one that looks at culture, and asks if theology can truly be taken from it with any legitimacy. The Dissertation asks this question with direct reference to the book Small Gods by Terry Pratchett, and gives examples of how theology might interact with the theology that is currently being explored in popular culture.

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Nov21

Sermons

by BlackXanthus on November 21st, 2011 at 4:40 pm
Posted In: Sermon

Okay, so perhaps I should have uploaded these individual, but I haven’t. Mostly because this blog has begun to fall a little out of use since the invention of Google+. That and the entire getting used to being a Deacon. I should also note that I’ve not spell-checked them, as I’m dyslexic, it’s much easier to read them with the spelling mistakes in them. I should also say that there are two that are missing from here, my famous “Kermit the Frog” sermon, because that one was done from notes as it was a Family Service, so there is no full-text for that, and the “Boom Ooh Yatta-ta-ta”, which, again, does not have a full-text for it. I will try to get those done with a full-text and post them. I should try to get these written up as I do them.

August 21, 2011 A Sermon on Sacrifice

October2, 2011 A Sermon on the Tenants of the Vineyard

November, 6 2011 A Sermon on the Day of the Lord (The End of the World is Nigh!)

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