Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts

Monday, October 20, 2008

In the Steps of the Master ~ Sunrise over the Sea of Galilee

In preparation for our trip I've been dipping into HV Morton's classic "In the Steps of the Master", originally written in 1934. So much has changed in Palestine / Israel since then, but his elegant turn of phrase is such a delight I felt compelled to share with you some of his observations. As I journal our travels for this blog, I will try to add some of HV Morton's words to my own.

Here he describes the sun rising over the Sea of Galilee ( a description you are very unlikely to read from my pen, since early mornings and I enjoy but a nodding acquaintance).

Rising at the exquisite hour of four a.m., when the world is hushed and cool, I went up to the roof of the hotel to watch the sun rise over the Lake of Galilee.

At this time Tiberias is covered with a shroud of silence and greyness. An Arab, who picked himself from the dust where he had spent the night, stole off into the morning stillness like a ghost.

There was one star still burning in the sky. Beyond the flat roofs of the intervening houses the Sea of Galilee was lying cold and grey like an old mirror, unruffled by any wind of dawn. On the opposite bank the savage Gergesene hills halted at the water's edge like crouching beasts. Behind those hills a faint pink glow filled the sky, growing every second more powerful; it wodened and spread, quenching the last star and giving, even before the sun rose, the thinnest shadows to palm trees and houses.

Men and animals knew that a new day had come. Cocks crowed in a chorus that was echoed from hill to hill. Arabs, their heads still shrouded in their robes, for they sleep fully dressed, led camels and donkeys to water. Sparrows set up an excited chirping, and swifts filled the air with their bright screaming.

Then suddenly the sun leapt over the hills of Gergesa - and everything was changed! It was warm. The lake was blue. I could see the snow shining on Hermon to the north. The bells of the Greek convent set up a deep ringing. There was a smell of cooking from somewhere. And the muezzin came out on the minaret of the mosque and called the faithful to prayer. So a new day came to Tiberias.

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Is the New Testament History?

Can we take what we read in the New Testament as a true account of events?

Did Jesus really exist? Or is the Jesus we read about in the New Testament a figment of the imagination?

What do non-Christian writers of the 1st century have to say about Jesus?

Were the New Testament writers eyewitnesses?

Have the original writings been doctored over the years - or can we still trust their accuracy?

Paul Barnett (Bishop of North Sydney 1990-2001) answers these and other questions in his very readable book, "Is the New Testament History?".

However, if you'd like to hear Paul in person he'll be speaking on this very subject this Sunday afternoon, 21st September, at St Mark's Darling Point (5.30pm - 6.30pm), as part of our 2008 Spring School.

He's a superb teacher and communicator, responsible for my own exciting introduction to Israel as a member of his 1995 Biblelands tour, and I'm looking forward to hearing what he has to say this Sunday, confident that it will be a really helpful background for our trip.

Boak has several copies of "Is the New Testament History?" if you'd like to borrow one, or you can purchase your own this Sunday at the Spring School.


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