Strephon Kaplan-Williams Books

Of course he did, you say, if you are a Christian. Why, the very foundation of Christianity is a belief in God reinforced by the Old Testament and the New Testament. Yet, when we look closely at the texts that are most likely the direct thought of the historical Jesus we find that nowhere does Jesus define God though he uses many synonyms for God. 



Names For God


Just to list the main ones: God, Lord, Master, Father, Abba, Spirit, Hallowed Name, Kingdom, Owner, Landlord, Pearl, Rain, Treasure, Heaven, Fish, Rock, Seed, Bread, widow's mite. Perhaps there are some more words not listed here. Can you think of any?

Now we look at all the words that Christians use for God: God, Lord, Lord God, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Messiah, Savior, Son of God, Heaven, Grace of God, Holy Spirit, Trinity, Jesus Christ Our Lord, Heaven. There may be more. Can you think of any other terms for God the Christians use? The Christians are more elevated and narrow in their concepts, aren't they?

What are the main contrasts between the two lists? The most obvious one is that, though Jesus was described and recorded as a man on earth he is after his death described as God. Is this not blasphemy? It would be considered so in the Jewish tradition of the time which even had a prohibition against saying out-loud or in your mind the actual name of God. The Jews wrote substitute letters for God. This is what YHWH represents with the vowels missing. We can see how blasphemous it was to a Jew to be a Christian Jew. Not only were the Christians naming God in their discourses, shouting out His Name, they were also calling their executed teacher God.  



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What Are The Possible Attributes Of God




Did The Historical Jesus Ever Use The Term God?




Christians Seem To Stay Projected Out Into A God Image And Never Therefore Realize God In Themselves




Jesus and God




The Story Of The Spirit Animal




There appears to be much interest in Mary Magdalene, especially concerning what kind of person she was. Karen King, a professor of religious studies at a leading university makes her case for Mary Magdalene not being a prostitute. Her surmise is that this was a way of denigrating Mary Magdalene's image in the fourth century by the male dominated Christian Church of that day.

But there is a confusion of Mary's in the New Testament. We do have a Mary Magdalene, a sinner. We have Mary, the sister of Martha, who sat at Jesus' feet and listens to him teach. Martha complains about doing all the practical work. Jesus says here in this passage that Mary has made the better choice because it is the things of the spirit that are the most important.
Then there is the unnamed sinner who washes Jesus' feet with expensive oil and weeps as she does so. Jesus says she is more real because she is a sinner repenting and showing more love to him than is his host, Simon the Pharisee, because Simon does not do these feeling things with Jesus.

So which Mary is the prostitute and repentant sinner? read more...