Books

[Leah71]

.

 

[food4thought]

What do Christians think of books other than the Bible and books their church leader write/recommends? Should such book even be published? Should such books be destroyed? Why even read such books?

I think books of all kinds should be allowed, even those I totally disagree with. But I wish writers would do a better job of separating fact from opinion, philosophy, theory, and belief.

In the New Testament (Acts), there is an example of people who came to Christ burning a bunch of books on magic, but note that they did this spontaneously and VOLUNTARILLY (I.E., not under orders from God or the Apostles)

This is NOT a call for debate. I will NOT respond to any posts on this thread. This is for Christians ONLY to respond.. Any thing else is a forum rules violation.

Hope this helps.

 

[Jeffwhosoever]

Are you referring to books on religion, or all books? If all books, how else would education work? I've never met a Christian who thought books were somehow objectionable.

 

[~Anastasia~]

I own literally walls and walls full of books of many kinds. Some fiction, some non-fiction on many subjects - music, history, art, reference, gardening, crafts, languages, psychology, sciences, and DIY books, as well as classic literature. My Christian and religion collection includes a few dozen Bible translations, commentaries, reference works, and religious books on life and beliefs - some I agree with and some I don't.

As to why read them - to learn about all kinds of subjects and viewpoints, and because I enjoy it.

Do you seriously mean to ask if anyone thinks all books they don't agree with shouldn't exist? I certainly hope that never happens. Who gets to decide which books are approved? Btw, I don't look for church leaders' suggestions on which books are ok and which ones aren't.

Anyway, that's my take on it.

 

[ebia]

What do Christians think of books other than the Bible and books their church leader write/recommends?

They range from excellent to complete rubbish.

Should such book even be published?

Some books wouldn't be missed.

 

[Soul2Soul]

What do Christians think of books other than the Bible and books their church leader write/recommends? Should such book even be published? Should such books be destroyed? Why even read such books?

This is NOT a call for debate. I will NOT respond to any posts on this thread. This is for Christians ONLY to respond.. Any thing else is a forum rules violation.

IMO every book that has been written has a place in society - whatever they represent. When I was doing my exams there were times when I thought why were books on Physics ever published and yes I hoped they would all be destroyed .... of course I went on to fail so miserably in my Physics exam!

I like reading books on many subjects ... written by atheists, scientists, politicians, musicians etc .... to get an idea of people's views, beliefs, lives etc.

To me variety is the spice of life .... and I like different flavours of food for thought

 

[bling]

They should all be burned, they give us more trouble than help. The underground church in China is growing both in number and spiritually faster than anywhere right now and they are lucky to have a complete Bible.

 

[Leah71]

.

 

[2PhiloVoid]

What do Christians think of books other than the Bible and books their church leader write/recommends? Should such book even be published? Should such books be destroyed? Why even read such books?

This is NOT a call for debate. I will NOT respond to any posts on this thread. This is for Christians ONLY to respond.. Any thing else is a forum rules violation.

Leah,

Sure, lots of books should be printed on many subjects. I have about 1,000 books on many different subjects, while the Bible is my 'main' book, of course.

It never hurts to learn, right?

Peace

 

[paul1149]

If I'm not wrong, the original question reflects a very restrictive Bible-only point of view. For instance, Smith Wigglesworth only read the Bible in his entire life. That's not to say he advocated that though. He was a plumber before he was called and didn't have the opportunity or the need to do a lot of reading. But there are some who will not read anything but the Word. I went through a season of that myself. It was ok for a while, but at some point it got to be man-made religion.

I view books as an extension of fellowship, which we are explicitly called to. Books are more structured than sitting around talking over coffee, and they generally reflect a more focused effort on the part of the writer (and often the reader) than when someone talks contemporaneously, like comparing poetry to prose. But essentially both are a form of communication, and while either can be overdone, there's nothing inherently wrong with them, and correctly used both can be very beneficial.

 

[Leah71]

..

 

[Unix]

The problem over time is that it demands quite a lot of time to browse book offers and select the right books, and that all this eventually becomes too expensive. There is also the risk that You despite Your efforts buy something unnecessary or pay too much for postage or do some kind of mistake and that You keep buying but not reading. I know it's easier in the States, but over here it's very hard to get rid of excess books. It's also very hard to get rid of books in Bible Study software (by selling), both because bundled books can't be split up and because there's no real, functioning and popular marketplace for that. Advertising own books for sale (unless You authored them) is not allowed on any Bible Study software discussion forums.

Currently I don't make any decisions to purchase more books than the orders I've placed so far. My best friend is against the expense (she doesn't want me to say that I'm poor since I've allowed myself expenses such as books and an ergonomic keyboard (www.trulyergonomic.com)) and focus on books, and I've also been thinking myself that perhaps I will never utilize or read many of my books if I would have kept on buying.

Those who are interested in History and older books, may want to read the thread: Future way of accurately utilizing old books in a high-quality and time-saving manner.

IMO, sometimes it's right to pay up for books - You do get quality for Your money sometimes - if You want to know examples I can tell You if You are ready to hear about expensive books. You may PM me or leave a Visitor Message if my PM box is full. And at other times older, cheap books are definitely the right choice.

I have somewhat many books. Good coverage of Christianity including many academic volumes and Church History including "Gnosticism" (well not "good coverage" of the latter, but it's an area which is good to mention), but not so good regarding other areas. I have a few old translations of Philosophy books, a couple of Ancient History of Europe books, and that's about it.

Books, Prayer and Discussions are among the most edifying things to participate in, besides reading the Bible. I'm very focused on the Bible but also a couple of extra-Biblical sources.

What You do with all this, is what matters.

 

[paul1149]

Leah, I think your questioning is good. It's how we, all of us, learn. I had the further thought that the psalmist asserted that "the heavens declare the glory of God, and the earth is filled with His wonder". Solomon tells us as well that God's wisdom can be found in nature. So why then wouldn't we be free to study God's handiwork and learn from it? It's not the special revelation of the Bible, but it's not wrong, and in its place it can be beneficial. By learning we can better serve ourselves and others. This is the godly basis for science.

Some Christians have embraced a legalism that doesn't allow such things. In Colossians 2 Paul warns against the meaningless futility of legalism:

If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations—“Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings?

These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.​

And in 2Cor 3 he affirms the even more foundational truth, "the letter kills, but the spirit gives life."

Finally, in Galatians 5.1 he declares, "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery."

This is the wonderful freedom and rest we have in Christ. Some don't understand this and have embraced "self-made religion", not even knowing it, but that is not the Christian norm. There is a Muslim group in Nigeria, Boko Haram ("books are unclean") that goes around imposing their views by burning students alive in their dorms.

That is not the way of our loving Christ, who values you as His precious one so much that He embraced untold suffering in order to set you free and enable you to be with Him forever, both now and in paradise.

 

[~Anastasia~]

If I'm not wrong, the original question reflects a very restrictive Bible-only point of view. For instance, Smith Wigglesworth only read the Bible in his entire life. That's not to say he advocated that though. He was a plumber before he was called and didn't have the opportunity or the need to do a lot of reading. But there are some who will not read anything but the Word. I went through a season of that myself. It was ok for a while, but at some point it got to be man-made religion.

It's funny, I did the opposite for a while (not intentionally). But soon after my conversion, I was still very excited about it all, and found a seller on eBay who offered a great variety of Christian books. I didn't realize it at the time, but they were pretty much all Christian classics, older works, and that's probably why he was able to sell them so cheaply. Most were paperbacks and the original price on them was less than $1. He sold even cheaper, and combined shipping as well. So I could buy a large box full of small paperbacks for $20, and I ordered from him more than once.

But I got so wrapped up in devouring them, I neglected the Bible itself. After a while, the Holy Spirit made me aware that I was reading what men said ABOUT God rather than what GOD said, so for a time after that I avoided all Christian books, commentaries, and so on, and focused on the Bible.

Fortunately all of those early books were good ones anyway and soon my approach became more balanced.

 

[paul1149]

It is funny how that works. I've done the same thing myself. At some point though, Holy Spirit will call us to "come apart to a desert place" to listen directly to the Master, through both the Logos and Rhema word. We need to get our "sea legs", and as you say, Kylissa, balance is the thing. Blessings.

 

[dcalling]

Books are just books, we should be:

1. Able to read them freely.
2. Able to burn them freely.

I love to read fun books, especially books about history and books about science/discovery. I used to love fictions but I lost all interest in them for some reason (except sifi movies)

 

[Unix]

Leah71, regarding Your opening line - I have bought some books upon recommendations by pastors and scholars, but not by attending a Church - instead I find academic people online.
Can't say I really care for any books my Churches try to promote, sell or even the ones they give away, I refuse to take them. One example is Catechisms (for example Roman-Catholic), I have none of those. I have one order $6 for some old Reformed Catechism(s?) but I have to check with the Church whether they actually recommend me and expect me to read them, before the order ships, I have some time - they are digitizing the book(s?) right now. I would definitely not feel sorry if I don't take them.
I don't even read or buy the Bible version my Churches recommend:

What do Christians think of books other than the Bible and books their church leader write/recommends?

Some of them shouldn't:

Should such book even be published?

Yes:

Should such books be destroyed?

 

[~Anastasia~]

By the way, if anyone is looking for good Christian classics to read and doesn't want to spend money or have to build more bookshelves, you might want to check out

Christian Classics Ethereal Library online.

I am not sure that everything there is good, but everything I've seen has been, and they have probably hundreds of books you can read for free online.

 

[Unix]

It's not free as an internet connection is not free. I'm not paying anything for internet. Over here it's mandatory to also pay a TV-license if You have an internet connection but no computer, or a computer but no internet connection, or both, or a TV or a smartphone. I don't have a smartphone. I hide my computers if the inspector comes at the door:

and they have probably hundreds of books you can read for free online.

 

[~Anastasia~]

It's not free as an internet connection is not free. I'm not paying anything for internet. Over here it's mandatory to also pay a TV-license if You have an internet connection but no computer, or a computer but no internet connection, or both, or a TV or a smartphone. I don't have a smartphone. I hide my computers if the inspector comes at the door:

My apologies ... but I assumed that anyone who was on the forums had internet access.