Gnostic Empire Strikes Back by Peter Jones - A Review

Peter Jones claims in The Gnostic Empire Strikes Back: An Old Heresy for the New Age that the seemingly divergent modern phenomena/movements are really related. They are related to each other and all have common themes found in one of the first heresies to attack the church from within: gnosticism. The seemingly divergent modern phenomena include: 1. skewing of gender roles (militant feminism, homosexuality, etc), 2. increase of new age religion (eastern religions, mysticism, yoga, goddess worship, all in one, you are god, spirituality), 3. environmentalism (nature worship, deification of mother nature and natural selection, militant environmentalism), and 4. political correctness (tolerance of all religions/viewpoints except orthodox Christianity). Written in 1992, I am amazed at many of the insights that have proven themselves to be even more true over the last 16 years.

The book reads like a call to arms. Jones uses urgent, apocalyptic, the sky-is-falling language that can, I found, at times make the book difficult to get through. However, that language is consistent with his thesis: "[T]he New Age has a coherent agenda, orchestrated from a diabolical center, moving and reproducing ineluctably, like algae in a lake." (p. 97). He cites example after example of how these seemingly disconnected New Age/gnostic positions have begun quietly and subversively to enter the church. He writes to Christians who claim to believe that the Bible is God's true word, to Christians who view Jesus as Creator God who came physically to earth to die for the sins of His people and who rose from the dead. He writes to alert them that this orthodox position is being attacked from within, from multiple disparate groups that when analyzed with an eye to history (understanding long-'dead' gnosticism), we realize are remarkably related.

This 112-page book is well-documented with about 200 reference footnotes in six chapters. This book will serve well those who believe in the basic tenets that unite conservative "Christendom," both evangelical and catholic. It will alert those who may have been unaware of just how large and influence the New-Age-culture has had even on their own thinking to the danger.

Jones uses the example of frogs who don't jump out of a pot if it is heated slowly to a boil. For those who were unaware of the heating water, this may be the impetus needed to make them jump out and be alert, guarding their heart and doctrine from this threat. This has certainly been the book's effect on me; I have an increased awareness of just how pervasive this new gnosticism has become. However, The Gnostic Empire Strikes Back: An Old Heresy for the New Age is certainly not an exhaustive treatment of the subject, nor is it designed to persuade those who have already bought into the lies of the New-Age movement to see the error of their ways. It may very well do this, but the tone of the book will probably turn adherents off to Jones, making them unable to hear his words. Nevertheless, for Christians living in the United States, I echo the recommendations from the back cover: "I recommend this work" - RC Sproul. "These findings throw a flood of light on a dark subject" -Jay Adams. "Jones demonstrates in a thorough and engaging way that the New Age is not new at all...the church desperately needs to hear Professor Jones's call for a clearer comprehension of truth."

It's eerie to watch what Peter Jones was talking about prove just how mainstream it has become as evidenced in this excerpt from Oprah. So much of what Jones talks about is demonstrated right here. It is for this reason I recommend that Christians read this short book:

Keywords: gnosticism,new_age,review

Nine Inch Nails Helping Me Concentrate While Reading Even the Bible: Ghosts I-IV

Without a word on the entire 4-disc album, Ghosts I-IV is an excellent instrumental album, ranging in feel from gentle and smooth and hard and grating. Unlike much in the ambient, industrial, instrumental genre, you won't find yourself annoyed by the predictable and repetitive. Rather, the more you listen, the more you will enjoy it. Each piece has a photo as the album art which was the The quality of the music and the recording is superb, best discerned by enclosing yourself in some high-quality headphones. At the price, you will be hard-pressed to find a better musical value. I would never describe myself as a Nine Inch Nails fan, not in the least, but I have found hours of enjoyment in these cds while reading. I find that my reading retention and length of concentration is increased while listening to instrumental (wordless) music. Apart from classical and a few standout ambient releases (the genre is mostly junk floating in a sea of even more repetitive junk with a few excellent pieces here and there. So this is a very nice, enjoyable, and unexpected find from a guy (Trent Reznor) who I never would have thought to have gone to to help me concentrate while reading the Bible and other books. For five bucks for almost two hours of music, you'd have a hard time passing this up. Still not sure? You can download the first of 4 cds for free at ghosts.nin.com.

Review: Keeping the Heart by John Flavel

Puritan John Flavel (1630-1691) in Keeping the Heart (originally titled: A Saint Indeed or The Great Work of a Christian Opened and Pressed) has proven to be a steady and timely friend to me over the last year. This book has been a near constant companion during that time and I have made my way through it a number of times. I suppose that I am familiar enough with the book now to write a review so that others may be encouraged to spend time with this heart-shepherding work as well; however, I in no way do I feel that I have mastered its contents or the practice of them. I am convinced though that this book will prove to me to be a lifelong companion whose true worth I could only underestimate.

Using Proverbs 4:23 (“Keep your heart with all vigilance for from it flow the springs of life.”), Flavel creates a treatise designed for all professing Christians. The aim is that the contents of the heart be laid bare, so that sin which is present is seen as sin and dealt with as a believer should and that the heart be guided to be pure in its devotion and affection for God. He does this, not with law, but by constantly pointing the believer to God's grace as the grounds and means for his sanctification. Flavel is not content to merely convey information, rather, with each point he carefully takes aim at your very soul and deftly fires shot after gospel-saturated, God-glorifying shot. Make sure you read this book slowly and prayerfully, allowing each purifying blow to have its full affect on your heart.

The treatise is basically broken down into four sections:

1. “What keeping the heart presupposes” (Six statements describing what is basic in keeping the heart).

2. “Why keeping the heart is a great business” (Six statements and their exposition explaining why the life of a Christian should be described as a life of “keeping their heart”)

3. “Special seasons for keeping the heart” (104 specific pieces of advice particularly tailored for 12 seasons of life in which special diligence is necessary to guard the heart)

4. “Uses” of means in keeping the heart (Examples and guidelines on using information, exhortation, direction, and consolation in the keeping of the heart).

Keeping the Heart is a work that is difficult to navigate without seeing the “big picture” of what Flavel is setting out to do. I therefore recommend you acquire a copy that includes the “Outline” by Maureen Bradley (The Soli Deo Gloria edition includes this). Each of the statements, seasons, or uses alluded to in describing the structure of the work has many subpoints underneath it. I would recommend in your reading that you decide to either read one statement/season/use at a time (roughly 10 pages a piece, although they vary dramatically), or to use it devotionally in much smaller chunks by reading one subpoint at a time. After your first time through the work, you will then be able to quickly navigate to the heart-shepherding help that is particular to your struggle or circumstance.

You will be well-served to read Keeping the Heart, working through the 17^th century language (Flavel is not nearly as difficult as many other Puritans and the Soli Deo Gloria edition has helpfully modernized spelling, formatting, and grammar) and work diligently to guard your heart with the help of this proven guide.

Keywords: flavel,review