Thinking About God: The Passion of the Christ

Good Books

Perelandra, Miracles, The Weight of Glory, Mere Christianity, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Abolition of Man, The Screwtape Letters, Till We Have Faces, by C. S. Lewis
The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, The Hobbit, On Fairy Stories (esp. the last 6 pages), Mythopoeia, by J. R. R. Tolkien
The End for Which God Created the World, The Excellency of Christ, Essay on the Trinity, by Jonathan Edwards
The Pleasures of God, Spectacular Sins, When I Don't Desire God: How to Fight for Joy, by John Piper
The Cross of Christ, by John Stott
Orthodoxy, by G. K. Chesterton
Harry Potter, especially book 7
The Knowledge of the Holy, by A. W. Tozer
The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus, by Gary Habermas and Michael Licona
The Case for Christ, by Lee Strobel
The Cost of Discipleship, by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Science and Theology, by John Polkinghorne
The Reason for God, by Tim Keller
Finding God in The Lord of the Rings, by Kurt Bruner and Jim Ware
Mañana: Christian Theology from a Hispanic Perspective by Justo González
A Wrinkle in Time, and sequels, by Madeleine L'Engle
Myst: the Book of Atrus, by Rand and Robyn Miller

Quotes

“If for no other reason, people should be Christians because Christianity is such a beautiful religion.” – Josh Sales
"Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!... For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen." – Romans 11:33,36
"Would you want to go to heaven if God were not there, only His gifts?" - John Piper, Desiring God
"He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men.” – Ecclesiastes 3:11
"Though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater." - J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings
"The greater the sin, the greater the mercy: the deeper the death and the brighter the rebirth." - C. S. Lewis, Miracles
"The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." - Isaiah 11:9
"And these are but the outer fringe of his works; how faint the whisper we hear of him! Who then can understand the thunder of his power?" - Job 26:14
"The life of heaven will involve the endless, dynamic exploration of the inexhaustible riches of the divine nature." - John Polkinghorne
"I've never been a church-going man, and what I have seen on the field of battle has led me to question God's purpose. But there is indeed something spiritual in this place. And though it may forever be obscure to me, I cannot but be aware of its power." - "The Last Samurai"
"Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important." - C.S. Lewis
“The peculiar quality of “joy” (Eucatastrophe) in successful Fantasy can thus be explained as a sudden glimpse of the underlying reality of truth – The Christian joy, the Gloria, is of the same kind; but it is preeminently (infinitely, if our capacity were not finite) high and joyous. But this story is supreme; and it is true.” - J.R.R. Tolkien, On Fairy Stories
"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world." - Psalm 19:1-4
“And thou, Melkor, shalt see that no theme may be played that hath not its uttermost source in me, nor can any alter the music in my despite. For he that attempteth this shall prove but mine instrument in the devising of things more beautiful, which he himself hath not imagined.” - J.R.R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion
"'I wish it need not have happened in my time,' said Frodo. "So do I,' said Gandalf, 'and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.'" - J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings
"But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." - Isaiah 40:31
“No sacrifice which a lover would make for his beloved is too great for us to make for our enemy.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship
“Reality, in fact, is usually something you could not have guessed. That is one of the reasons I believe Christianity. It is a religion you could not have guessed…It has just that queer twist about it that real things have.” - C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
"Good morning," said Bilbo, and he meant it. The sun was shining, and the grass was very green. But Gandalf looked at him from under long, bushy eyebrows that stuck out further than the brim of his shady hat. "What do you mean," he said. "Do you wish me a good morning, or mean that it is a good morning whether I want it or not; or that you feel good this morning; or that it is a morning to be good on?" - J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit

Excerpts from Isaiah

“A voice of one calling: ‘In the desert prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it.’” – 40:3-5
“All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field…The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.” – 40:6
“Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him, and who taught him the right way? Who was it that taught him knowledge or showed him the path of understanding? Surely the nations are like a drop in the bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales.” – 40:14-15
“Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning?...He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth.” – 40:21-22
“‘To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?’ says the Holy One.” – 40:25
“He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” – 40:28-31
“Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord – with the first of them and with the last – I am he.” – 41:4
“But you, O Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham my friend. I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you.” – 41:8-9
“…so that people may see and know, may consider and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this.” – 41:20
“I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind.” – 42:6
“I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another…See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare.” – 42:8-9
“The Lord will march out…like a warrior…and will triumph over his enemies.” – 42:13
“I will turn the darkness into light…and make the rough places smooth.” – 42:16
“I have revealed and saved and proclaimed…I am God…when I act, who can reverse it?” – 43:12-13
“I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendents.” – 44:3
“Remember these things…for the Lord redeemed Jacob, he displays his glory in Israel.” – 44:21,23
“Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness grow with it; I, the Lord, have created it.” – 45:8
“My own hands stretched out the heavens; I marshaled their starry hosts.” – 45:12
“Gather together and come…see, they will come from afar…I will lift up my banner to the peoples.” – 45:20, 49:12, 49:22
“I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth…He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering…we esteemed him not…Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows…But he was pierced for our transgressions…The punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all…By oppression and judgment he was taken away…Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer…After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many.” – 49:6, 54:3-6,10-11

Lord of the Rings quotes

“The Road goes ever on and on, Down from the door where it began. Now far ahead the Road has gone, And I must follow, if I can, Pursuing it with eager feet, Until it joins some larger way, Where many paths and errands meet. And whither then? I cannot say.”
“‘I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo. ‘So do I,’ said Gandalf, ‘and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.’”
“Behind that there was something else at work, beyond any design of the Ring-maker. I can put it no plainer than by saying that Bilbo was meant to find the Ring, and not by its maker. In which case you also were meant to have it. And that may be an encouraging thought.” – Gandalf
“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door. You step into the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.” – Bilbo
“All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost. From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again shall be king.”
"I think one of his spies would – well, seem fairer and feel fouler, if you understand." - Sam
"[The Last Homely House] was 'a perfect house, whether you like food or sleep or story-telling or singing, or just sitting and thinking best, or a pleasant mixture of them all.'"
“They spoke no more of the small news of the Shire far away, nor of the dark shadows and perils that encompassed them, but of the fair things they had seen in the world together, of the Elves, of the stars, of trees, and the gentle fall of the bright year in the woods.”
“And it is not our part here to take thought only for a season, or for a few lives of men, or for a passing age of the world. We should seek a final end of this menace, even if we do not hope to make one.” – Gandalf
“Those who made them did not desire strength or dominion or hoarded wealth, but understanding, making, and healing, to preserve all things unstained.” – Elrond
“[N]othing is evil in the beginning. Even Sauron was not so.” – Elrond
"But the only measure that he knows is desire, desire for power; and so he judges all hearts. Into his heart the thought will not enter that any will refuse it, that having the Ring we may seek to destroy it. If we seek this, we shall put him out of reckoning.” – Gandalf
“The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.” - Haldir
“[I]t seemed to him that he had stepped over a bridge of time into a corner of the Elder Days, and was now walking in a world that was no more. In Rivendell there was memory of ancient things; in Lórien the ancient things still lived on in the waking world…on the land of Lórien no shadow lay.”
“In this phial is caught the light of Eärendil’s star, set amid the waters of my fountain. It will shine still brighter when night is about you. May it be a light to you in dark places, when all other lights go out." - Galadriel
“[M]y name is growing all the time, and I’ve lived a very long, long time; so my name is like a story." - Treebeard
“[Gandalf]'s hair was white as snow in the sunshine; and gleaming white was his robe; the eyes under his deep brows were bright, piercing as the rays of the sun; power was in his hand. Between wonder, joy, and fear, they found no words to say.”
“And this I also say you are our captain and our banner. The Dark Lord has Nine: But we have One, mightier than they: the White Rider.” – Aragorn
“Tall ships and tall kings three times three, What brought they from the foundered land over the flowing sea? Seven stars and seven stones and one white tree."
“Even now my heart desires to test my will upon it, to see if I could not wrench it from him and turn it where I would – to look across the wide seas of water and of time to Tirion the Fair, and perceive the unimaginable hand and mind of Fëanor at their work, while both the White Tree and the Golden were in flower!” - Gandalf
“War must be, while we defend our lives against a destroyer who would devour all; but I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend: the city of the Men of Númenor; and I would have her loved for her memory, her ancientry, her beauty, and her present wisdom.” - Faramir
“They cannot conquer forever.” – Frodo
“But I suppose it's often that way. The brave things in the old tales and songs, Mr. Frodo: adventures, as I used to call them. I used to think that they were things the wonderful folk of the stories went out and looked for, because they wanted them, because they were exciting and life was a bit dull, a kind of sport, as you might say. But that's not the way of it with the tales that really mattered, or the ones that stay in the mind. Folk seem to have been just landed in them, usually--their paths were laid that way, as you put it. But I expect they had lots of chances, like us, of turning back, only they didn't. And if they had, we shouldn't know, because they'd have been forgotten. We hear about those as just went on--and not all to a good end, mind you; at least not to what folk inside a story and not outside it call a good end. You know, coming home, and finding things all right, though not quite the same--like old Mr. Bilbo. But those aren't always the best tales to hear, though they may be the best tales to get landed in! I wonder what sort of tale we've fallen into?” - Sam
“‘What am I to do then?’ [Sam] cried again, and now he seemed plainly to know the hard answer: see it through.”
“Hope and memory shall live still in some hidden valley where the grass is green.” – Beregond
“Work of the Enemy! Such deeds he loves: friend at war with friend; loyalty divided in confusion of hearts.” – Gandalf
“[A] keen wind blew through the window, and it bore no scent, but was an air wholly fresh and clean and young, as if it had not before been breathed by any living thing and came new-made from snowy mountains high beneath a dome of stars, or from shores of silver far away washed by seas of foam.”
“And then softly, to his own surprise, there at the vain end of his long journey and his grief, moved by what thought in his heart he could not tell, Sam began to sing.”
“The Shadow that bred them can only mock, it cannot make: not real new things of its own." - Frodo
“[Sam] knew all the arguments of despair and would not listen to them. His will was set, and only death would break it.”
"[T]he Captains of the West cried aloud, for their hearts were filled with a new hope in the midst of darkness." (from "The Field of Cormallen," maybe my favorite chapter)
“O great glory and splendor! And all my wishes have come true!” – Sam
"Their hearts, wounded with sweet words, overflowed, and their joy was like swords, and they passed in thought out to regions where pain and delight flow together and tears are the very wine of blessedness."
“[The City] had passed through darkness and fire to a new day.”
“Tall as the sea-kings of old, he [Aragorn] stood above all that were near; ancient of days he seemed and yet in the flower of manhood; and wisdom sat upon his brow, and strength and healing were in his hands, and a light was about him.”
“If your hurts grieve you still and the memory of your burden is heavy, then you may pass into the West, until all your wounds and weariness are healed.” – Arwen

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Wednesday, March 18, 2009

The Passion of the Christ

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Wednesday, March 18, 2009

The Passion of the Christ

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