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BOOK REVIEW, PHYSICS OF HEAVEN, PART 7

by Karl Kemp  
6/07/2020 / Book Reviews


12. CHAPTER 13, "KEYS TO TAKING YOUR QUANTUM LEAP," BY DAVID VAN KOEVERING (pages 133-144). ("This chapter is excerpted from an article by David Van Koevering titled "Keys to Taking Your Quantum Leap.") I don't doubt that Van Koevering is intelligent and sincere, but, again, I don't see that he offers us anything we need to improve Christianity. I'll give an example of a verse that he seriously and obviously misinterpreted and a serious, obvious scientific error here, and briefly comment on another of his paragraphs, but I won't deal with a lot that he says in this chapter that I cannot agree with. Some of it is more science fiction. 

"First Corinthians 1:28 says, '...God (has) chosen...things which are not (the invisible) to bring to naught things which are (the visible).' [Apparently Van Koevering took his abbreviated translation from the KJV.] This Scripture makes sense only when you understand it at the atomic and subatomic level. Everything is made up of atoms, which are frequencies of energy. [I don't know about this, but everyone agrees that atoms are made up of protons, neutrons, and electrons and that protons and neutrons are made up of quarks.] These frequencies of energy are the voice of Jesus causing all things to be! [This sentence has to be considered pure speculation!] Atoms are made up of subatomic particles, and subatomic particles are made up of superstrings [I don't know much about superstring theory, but it is theoretical.], tiny donut-shaped packets of energy that spin at a specific frequency - or sing in a pitch. 

None of this is real in this dimension because they exist only in a state of possibilities until someone observes them. Then, at that observation, the potential becomes a thing - a particle or wave. [I don't believe many scientists would agree with this.] ...." Anyway, I quoted this to make the primary point that Van Kouvering totally misinterpreted this verse. I doubt that you could find any Bible commentator in the world to agree with how he interpreted 1 Cor. 1:28. WHEN YOU READ THIS VERSE IN ITS CONTEXT, WHICH WE MUST ALWAYS DO, THE CORRECT INTERPRETATION IS OBVIOUS: I'll quote 1 Corinthians 1:26-29 (KJV) (1 Cor. 1:18-25, 30-31 are relevant here too):   

For ye see your calling, brethren, that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called [The apostle Paul is speaking of being called by God unto salvation [cf. 1 Cor. 1:24]: (27) But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things that are mighty; (28) And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: (29) That no flesh should glory in his presence." Pride, with unbelief, is the root of sin. We all need to humble ourselves before God, to repent, and to submit to His new-covenant plan of salvation. God doesn't call people because they are worthy to be chosen. He calls people who will humble themselves before Him and who want to be transformed by His grace. We are saved by grace through faith based on God's plan of salvation that centers in the Sacrifice of His Son. Can you imagine the people of Paul's day understanding 1 Cor. 1:28 the way Van Koevering explains it?   

We need to discuss what Van Koevering says under the subheading "Light Is Slowing Down" (pages 136-137). This statement is clearly wrong! There is no real basis for this statement, as I'll demonstrate, and I doubt that you can find any scientists in our day who believe it. I'll quote part of what he says here: "... When man fell, the speed of light slowed down. ... It is believed that the speed of light is 186,000 miles per second. Physicist Barry Setterfield and mathematicians Trevor Norman and Alan Montgomery have measured light and proven that the speed of light is slowing down. [This is wrong as I'll demonstrate, and, as I mentioned, I doubt that you can find any scientists in our day who believe this. I'm surprised that Van Koevering said these things in 2012. He says on page 139 that he is "a scientist and inventor."] 

This means that light may have been ten to thirty percent faster in the time of Christ; twice as fast in the days of Solomon; and four times as fast in the days of Abraham. 

It would also imply that the velocity of light could have been more than ten million times faster prior to 3,000 B.C. This possibility would also alter our concepts of time and the age of the universe. The universe might actually be less than 10,000 years old! That sounds like a quantum leap to me!" 

Van Koevering continues with this theme for several more paragraphs, but I won't quote any more. I'll quote some of what Dr. Hugh Ross said in his 1994 book, Creation and Time, that totally refutes everything that Van Koevering said about the speed of light slowing down. Ross believes the scientific evidence is overwhelming for an old universe and he believes in the infallibility of the Bible. Some Christians will insist on a young universe and earth based on their interpretation of the Bible, but they cannot honestly use the argument that light has slowed down to help support their belief in a young universe and earth.      

I'll quote from Ross' chapter 9, "Scientific Evidences for the Universe's Age" (pages 99-102), under the subheading, "Challenge 3: Light may have traveled faster a few thousand years ago" (pages 97-99). (Chapter 10 of Creation and Time is titled, "Is There Scientific Evidence for a Young Universe.") "Reply: The work of two Australian [young-earth] creationists [By the way, Ross agrees that God created everything that exists, including His creating man; life did not evolve on the earth and humans did not evolve from animals or anything else.] has been widely publicized among proponents of a young universe. [As I mentioned Ross published this book in 1994.] Barry Setterfield and Trevor Norman teamed up to propose that the reason the universe appears old is that light used to travel much faster than it does today. [Ross has an endnote: "Norman, Trevor and Setterfield, Barry, 'The Atomic Constants, Light and Time,' Stanford Research Institute International, Technical Report (August 1987). This report was published without the permission of SRI International."] Given decay in light's velocity [if it were true, but it isn't], the present value of the velocity of light would yield an inaccurate measure of the size and age of the universe. 

The basis for this claim is a misinterpretation of data from speed of light measurements made over many years. What the data actually show is the increasing refinement of measurements not a change in velocity.      

The first calculation of the speed of light was attempted in 1675 by Olaus Romer, a Danish astronomer. His figure was about 3 percent higher than the modern measurements show. But the uncertainty of his measurement exceeded 3 percent. Recently, three American physicists reworked Romer's calculations. They found that if Romer had had more precise data for one part of his calculation, his speed-of-light figure would have agreed with the modern measurement to within 0.5 percent. [Ross has a footnote: "Goldstein, S.J.; Trasco, J.D.; and Ogburn III, T.J., 'On the Velocity of Light Three Centuries Ago,' Astronomical Journal 78 (1973), pages 122-125."] 

Apparently the article describing this research was misunderstood by the Australians. They took the 1675 speed of light decreasing by 0.5 percent since 1675. [Ross has two footnotes: "Fackerell, Edward D., 'The Age of the Astronomical Universe,' Ex Nihilo Technical Journal. Vol 1 (1984), pages 90-91." And, "Norman and Setterfield, page 11."] Actually, more than fifty measurements of the velocity of light have been made since Romer's, and when the uncertainties for each of the measurements are taken into account, the velocity shows itself constant through the more than 300 years since ground-based measurements began. 

Using other types of measurements, the speed of light proves constant over many more years. Studies on a particular spectral line of hydrogen from nearby galaxies shows its constancy over the last 18 million years. New measurements on that spectral line in very distant galaxies extend that confirmation to 14 billion years. [I'll skip his two footnotes here.] 

Let me add a practical consideration. The existence of life in the universe requires the constancy of the speed of light. A significant change in the velocity of light would so radically disturb such things as the luminosities of the stars and the relative abundances of the elements as to ruin the possibility for life anywhere, anytime in the universe. Since the c in Einstein's equation, E=mc2, stands for the speed of light, a change in that figure would necessarily mean changes in the m (matter) or E (energy) or both, an alteration contradicted by abundant observations. ...."   

I'll just quote one more paragraph from Van Koevering. "Here is a quantum leap for someone: If you know something coming from your future, let's say a vision, a revelation, desire, or even a  creative idea, that information has to move faster than the speed of light to reach you" (page 137). He says quite a bit more along this line in this chapter. He totally loses me here. Since God is above time, He knows the future and He doesn't have to reveal things to us faster than the speed of light.

 

13. CHAPTER 15, "THE CLARION CALL," BY BENI JOHNSON (pages 163-169). Most of what Beni Johnson says in this chapter is not directly relevant to the primary topic of my Review/paper, but I'll quote part of what she said about the "sound" on the Day of Pentecost under the subheading "A Sound Like a Wind" (pages 164-166). I believe she substantially confuses the issue by saying that the "sound like a wind" produced the results that took place on the Day of Pentecost. Keep in mind that this book puts a strong emphasis on "sound." 

She said, "Look what a sound of heaven could do, first fruits [which in the fullest sense would include the tongues of fire, the all-important pouring out and receiving the Holy Spirit, including the speaking with tongues/languages] and harvest [harvest of souls into the kingdom of the Lord Jesus; into the glory of new-covenant salvation]. The church started that day; many were filled with the Holy Spirit and fire, and as far as we know, it was the first of the harvest of souls" (page 165). 

I agree that "the church started that day." For the first time since the fall of mankind in Adam and Eve, believers could be born again and through the power of the indwelling Life-Giving, Righteous, Holy Spirit believers could begin to walk with the victory over all sin and demons. THIS IS SUPER-IMPORTANT! But it isn't true that "sound from heaven" produced these super-significant results. The sound came first (Acts 2:2). God used this sound to announce the all-important promised coming of the Spirit, which, based on the all-important atoning death and resurrection of the Lamb of God, opened the door for us to receive the Spirit. (It is significant that there is correlation between the Spirit and wind. See John 3:8; for one thing, the nouns "wind" and "Spirit" were both translated from the Greek noun pneuma in John 3:8.)  

The sound announced and attended the coming of the outpoured Spirit, but that is very different than the sound causing or producing the things that followed, especially the coming of the Spirit. Again, Johnson said, "Look what a sound from heaven could do."  

So too, the sound did not produce the tongues of fire or the speaking with tongues/languages. The tongues of fire pictured the cleansing/purifying dimension for recipients of new-covenant salvation by the Spirit, and the speaking with tongues/languages attended the reception of the new-covenant Spirit. It was often prophesied that the new-covenant Spirit would enable new-covenant believers to be righteous and holy by grace through faith (cf., e.g., Isa. 32:15-17; Jer. 31:31-34, especially verse 33; Rom. 8:1-17; Gal. 5:16-26).

 

14. SOME EXCERPTS THAT DEAL WITH THE NEW AGE MOVEMENT/OCCULT WORLD. (Taken from Occult Invasion: The Subtle Seduction of the World and Church by Dave Hunt (Harvest House Publishers, 1998), 647 pages. (I received permission to quote extensively from this book by Mark Vander Ark at The Berean Call.) 

I'll quote the first two paragraphs from chapter 3, "What is the Occult" (page 39). "The word occult comes from the Latin occultus, which means 'concealed' or 'hidden.' It involves mystic knowledge and magic powers received from the spirit world and dispensed for the benefit of devotees or directed destructively at enemies by those who have been initiated into its secrets. The masters of occult power are known as medicine men (or women), witch doctors, witches, psychics, priests, sorcerers, astrologers, gurus, yogis, shamans, mediums, seers, or healers.  

Some of those involved with occult powers attribute them in [to] a variety of deities, others to a 'Force' inherent within the universe with a 'dark' and 'light' side which humans can tap into. Still others claim they are simply using a normal power of the mind which can be cultivated in a special state of consciousness. There are also those who attribute occult powers to the God of the Bible."

I'll quote most of what Hunt says on pages 116-118 under the heading "New Thought - Forerunner of the New Age Movement." "Christian Science is part of the New Thought movement that developed during the last half of the nineteenth century. Phineas P. Quimby (1802-1866), whose 'studies in mesmerism (early hypnotism), Spiritism and kindred phenomena...laid the basis for a new structure in the world of thought [Horatio W. Dresser, ed., The Quimby Manuscripts (Citadel, 1980), p. 9.]...was regarded as the founder of the [New Thought] movement.' [Charles S. Braden, Spirits in Rebellion: The Rise and Development of New Thought (SMU Press, 1966), p. 20.] New Thought's basic teaching is (like Hinduism) that everything is in the mind. We create our own world of good or evil, of health or sickness, of prosperity or want by our thoughts. The practice of hypnosis, which Quimby pioneered in America, seemed to demonstrate this. Mary Baker Eddy was one of the early patients to be 'healed' and her new interpretation of the Bible was actually based upon Quimby's teachings - a fact which she refused to admit. 

[[Two quick testimonies: Back when I was working as an engineer in the space field (in the 60s), I was sent to an interesting cryogenic, thermodynamic conference at Oklahoma State University. Another engineer from our department was sent there too. He was a Christian Scientist. We had a very interesting discussion. He would tell me what a verse meant from the Christian Science point of view, and I could typically show him that the surrounding verses demonstrate that he was misinterpreting that verse. His simple, confident answer surprised me: Their book, "Key to the Scriptures" by Mary Baker Eddy tells what verses are true, and he showed me that their book proved that the verses I referred to were not true. That's one way to misinterpret the Bible. 

Also, I got involved with self-hypnosis looking for some answers and help as a young man a few years before I became a Christian at the age of 26. I took a class led by a professional hypnotist that I met in a psychology class (as I said, I was looking for answers that I knew I needed), I read quite a few books on hypnotism, and I spent many hours practicing their techniques. The end result was that I never received any benefits from self-hypnosis. I thank God that it didn't do much for me. But looking back after becoming a born-again Christian, I believe I opened doors for demons that strongly worked against my becoming a Christian and against my trying to live a fully victorious life as a young Christian. For one thing, it took me five years to become a born-again Christian after being solidly confronted with the gospel and wanting to be a true Christian. I was blind to the simple truth.]] 

New Thought was the forerunner of today's New Age, which has popularized the same delusion under new labels. New Thought was forced out of mainstream Christianity and became the basis for a number of cults, which include (in addition to Christian Science) Unity School of Christianity and the Church of Religious Science (Science of Mind). Like Unity founders Myrtle and Charles Fillmore, Ernest Holmes patterned his Science of Mind on the same attractive delusion: 'Man, by thinking, can bring into his experience whatever he desires....' [Ernest Holmes, The Science of Mind (textbook), p. 30.] In a proud prophecy that has come to pass, Holmes declared, 'We have launched a Movement which, in the next 100 years will be the great new religious impulsion of modern times...[destined] to envelop the world....' [James Reid, Ernest Holmes: The First Religious Scientist (Science of Mind Publication, Los Angeles), p. 14.] 

... This 'spiritual philosophy for the New Age' offers a 'specific method by which anyone...may relate consciously to the Creative Life Force ['God'] of the universe...for the purpose of achieving whatever constructive objective is desired.... Health, abundance, security, love, peace, and happiness are...within the immediate grasp of all who apply...principles...which the Science of Mind explains.' [From the brochure 'What is the Science of Mind?'] Having reduced God to a Universal Principle that can be utilized according to scientific laws, the creature has become the Creator!" This isn't the sovereign God of the universe and the God who gave us the Bible, the God who answers prayer and must be glorified, the God who will judge at the end of this age. This is man trying to run the show by tapping into power and energy that is built into the universe and works according to occult laws. That's a gigantic, totally unacceptable difference.  

Then under the subheading "Norman Vincent Peale and Robert Schuller," Hunt said: "Norman Vincent Peale, a 33-degree Mason, and his chief disciple, Robert Schuller, kept New Thought alive within mainline Christianity - so that its tenets are even widely embraced among evangelicals today. Schuller calls Peale 'the man who has impacted and influenced my thinking and my theology and my life more than any other living person....' ["The Plus Factor," published excerpts from a Peale talk on Schuller's 'Hour of Power,' copyright 1986 by Robert Schuller, p. 3.] Peale borrowed from Fillmore [mentioned above] the phrase 'Positive Thinking' (that made Peale famous) [Braden, Spirits, p. 390.] and credited Holmes with making him into a positive thinker. [Reid, Ernest Holmes, p. 14.] 

Charles S. Braden's definitive work on New Thought identifies Norman Vincent Peale as the one man 'through whose ministry essentially New Thought ideas and techniques have been made known most widely in America.' [Braden, Spirits, p. 186.] Peale continually spoke of the universe as 'mental,' of God as 'energy,' and of 'prayer' as the scientific technique for releasing God-energy according to definite 'laws.' The following statements reveal Peale's basic Science of Mind Teaching:      

'The world you live in is mental and not physical. Change your thought and you change everything. [Ibid., p. 387.] Your unconscious mind...[has a] power that turns wishes into realities when the wishes are strong enough. [Norman Vincent Peale, Positive Imaging, (Fawcett Press, 1982), p. 77.] Who is God? Some theological being...? God is energy. As you breathe God in, as you visualize His energy, you will be reenergized! [Norman Vincent Peale, Plus: The Magazine of Positive Thinking, Vol. 37, no. 4 (Part II), May 1986, p. 23.] Prayer Power is a manifestation of energy. Just as there exist scientific techniques for the release of atomic energy, so are there scientific procedures for the release of spiritual energy through the mechanism of prayer.... New and fresh spiritual techniques are being constantly discovered...experiment with prayer power. [Norman Vincent Peale, The Power of Positive Thinking (Fawcett Crest, 1983), pp. 52-53.] Prayer is a procedure by which spiritual power flows from God...releases forces and energies...and brings many other outstanding results. As in any skill or science one must learn step by step the formula for opening the circuit and receiving this power. Any method through which you can stimulate the power of God to flow into your mind are legitimate...[any] scientific use of prayer [Norman Vincent Peale, The Power of Positive Thinking, New Condensed Edition (Center for Positive Thinking, 1987), p. 17. ]." 

I'll quote the five paragraphs under the heading "Entering a Forbidden Realm" (pages 50-51). One would not expect occultism to gain a foothold in the Christian church, since the Bible forbids it in both the Old and New Testaments. Nevertheless, the church has been enticed as well as the world. Much that is now practiced in evangelical circles is the old shamanism (a universally adopted word for witchcraft and other occult practices) under new names. [I'm thankful I can say that, based on what I have observed, many evangelical churches have avoided the occultism (and New Age Movement) that Hunt is dealing with in this book.] 

Anthropologist Michael Harner, himself a practicing shaman, is one of the world's leading authorities on shamanism. A number of the basic elements which he says have been at the heart of shamanism worldwide for thousands of years are widespread within the church: visualization [which includes the occult technique of bringing things to pass by concentrated visualization of the things coming to pass and coming into contact with demons who are impersonating Jesus, Mary, ascended masters of the universe, those who have died, those who came here on UFO's, etc.; you can see them, learn from them. and interact with them in various ways], hypnosis, psychological counseling [that uses occult techniques], [occult] Positive Thinking, [occult] Positive Confession, and Eastern meditation techniques. [Harner, Shaman, p. 136.] To what extent these involve the occult, and why, will be dealt with in the following pages. Multitudes of those who call themselves Christians are involved in the occult, many of them unwittingly. 

 ... The Bible lists divination (tarot cards, Ouija boards, crystal balls, pendulums, etc.), observing times (astrology), enchantment (hypnosis), witchcraft, charming (another form of hypnosis), consulting with 'familiar spirits' (mediumship, séances, channeling), and wizardry or necromancy (communicating with the dead). The Bible forbids each of these occult practices. 

The fact that some people are seemingly healed through occult powers or become successful through occult practices does not prove that the purpose behind them is to bless mankind. [That's for sure!] There must be some bait on the hook or no one would bite. Even if the intent is evil [and the devil's intent is always evil and against God and man; he would like to take all mankind to hell with him and his angels] one would expect some apparent good as a means of enticement. Mankind would hardly be drawn to something that was clearly and totally harmful. 

In one's enthusiasm for embracing mysterious phenomena, one dare not ignore the question of ultimate purpose [the source of the things that come to pass]. We will attempt to face this vital concern carefully and honestly."  

Some Excerpts Dealing with the Consistent Messages Received from the Occult World (pages 161-163). 

"...Australia's New Age News notes the 'remarkable agreement, even unanimity, among the various channeled entities.' That fact is emphasized repeatedly by Jon Klimo in his definitive book on this subject. The major theme, as Klimo points out, is our alleged oneness with God [but clearly not the God of creation and the Bible], our ignorance of this oneness, the necessity to realize this oneness through 'enlightenment,' and our return to earth through reincarnation many times in this long evolutionary process of attaining our true or higher self. [Klimo, Channeling, 150-151.] ... 

It was shattering for atheist Helen Shueman when she began hearing a voice saying, 'This is a course in miracles; take it down!' As well as teaching medical psychology at Columbia University, Shueman was Assistant Head of the Psychology Department at Presbyterian Hospital in New York. Far from diagnosing her as suffering from delusion, her equally atheistic colleagues told her to follow the instructions. When the dictation finally ended, the 'Course' ran to an astonishing 1100 pages and has been acclaimed for its brilliant insights by psychologists and theologians [many "theologians" have very little respect for the Bible; we have to be very careful who we listen to] alike. [Oprah Winfrey has pushed "A Course in Miracles."] 

The voice dictating A Course in Miracles claimed to be Jesus Christ Himself, intent upon correcting errors in the Bible that have offended unbelievers because of their 'narrow-mindedness.' The Course explains that 'forgiveness' is simply recognizing that sin does not exist and therefore there is nothing to forgive. The Course is popular with those who want to call themselves Christians while rejecting sound biblical doctrine. It has been taught at Robert Schuller's Crystal Cathedral. 

The dictating 'Jesus' contradicted nearly everything the Bible says about Him. That fact is admitted by Kenneth Wapnick, the head of the foundation that publishes the Course. ["A Matter of Course: Conversation with Kenneth Wapnick," in SPC Journal, vol. 7, no. 1, 1987, pp. 7-19.] Not surprisingly, what this 'Jesus' said was in perfect agreement with the messages being communicated by a wide variety of entities through thousands of 'channels' around the world. Yet Shueman was ignorant of the phenomenon of 'channeling' until it suddenly happened to her. 

When insurance supervisor Jach Pursel tried Eastern meditation at the prompting of his wife, he thought he kept falling asleep. She found herself, however, talking with the strangely accented 'Lazaris' when Jach was in this state. 'Lazaris" ' themes echo A Course in Miracles, Seth (recorded in numerous books over a 24-year period through Jane Roberts), 'Ramtha,' and many other channeled entities. All is One and part of God but unaware of that great fact and on a journey of enlightenment to realize who we really are. [Klimo, Channeling, p. 48.] 

The 'higher Self' of Meredith Lady Young, a New Hampshire publisher, channeled through her Agatha: A Journey to the Stars. Once again the message was positive thinking, evolutionary advancement to perfection, the oneness of all, that 'God' is an energy, and that man is God: 'We [channeling spirits] are multidimensional beings from another more spiritually evolved plane. Our aim is one of positive reinforcement to further man's development ... The human race must recognize its deeply buried bond with Universal Energy or no significant spiritual growth is possible.' [Meredith Lady Young, Agatha: A Journey to the Stars (Stillpoint Publishing, 1984), p. 31.]."   

 

Further Excerpts Dealing with the Same Topic (pages 236-238). 

... Showing the influence of Eastern mysticism, a recent poll revealed that 71 percent of Americans, 64 percent of those who claim to be 'born-again,' and 40 percent of self-described evangelicals do not believe in absolute truth. [What we mean by "absolute truth" needs to be carefully defined.] 

That denial of God's truth is promoted in all communications from entities claiming to be spirits of the dead, Ascended Masters, space brothers, 'Jesus,' or whoever is the most appealing to the particular recipient. Judith Skutch, the publisher of A Course in Miracles, attests to the fact that 'the same perennial philosophy or ancient wisdom' is expressed consistently through 'different voices.' [Jon Klima, Channeling (Jeremy P. Tarcher, 1987), p. 149, quoted from Klimo's interview with Skutch.] ... 

It can hardly be coincidence that 'Ramtha,' who channels through J.Z. Knight, preaches the same...gospel from the East. Those who have rejected the Bible as 'myth' turn right around and swallow the wildest tales - and there is none wilder than Ramtha's. 

Having allegedly lived in mythical Atlantis 35,000 years ago and having 'ascended into the Seventh Heaven, where he and God became one...[Ramtha] is now part of an "unseen brotherhood" of superbeings, who love us and hear our prayers' ["The world according to Ram," Utne, p. 80.] The top business leaders of the world accepted Napoleon Hill's [author of Think and Grow Rich and other very popular supernatural books] story of a Temple of Wisdom run by a school of Masters on the astral plane, so why not Ramtha's delusion as well? Indeed, Ramtha's followers include some of America's brightest and most highly educated. 

Ramtha's teachings even influenced 'managers and executives of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) whose decision-making and judgments have the greatest impact on the agency....' Ramtha's influence came through a stress management course for FAA executives over a period of years at a cost of 1.4 million dollars to taxpayers. The bizarre training, which resulted in lawsuits against the FAA, was given by a California psychologist who is reportedly a follower of Ramtha and has even conversed with him. ["The Guru and the FAA," in Newsweek, March 6, 1995, p. 52; see also Ruth Larson, "Unethical conduct found in FAA probe," in Washington Times, March 29, 1995, pp. A1, A18.] The amoral nature of the training and its relation to the rejection of sin and absolute truth reflects Ramtha's blatantly anti-Christian teachings, which echo to a large extent A Course in Miracles and have been summarized as follows: 

'God is neither good nor bad. ... He is entirely without morals and non-judgmental. There are no divine decrees. Is-ness is his only business [and many wonder if He "is"]. Hell and Satan are the "vile inventions" of Christianity, a product of "your insidious Book [the Bible]," which Ramtha advises his listeners not to read.

There is no such thing as evil. Nothing you can do, not even murder, is wrong.... I AM..."does not even have the ability to judge you." There is no forgiveness of sins because there are no sins to forgive.

Every vile and wretched thing you do "broadens your understanding." If you want to do any one thing, regardless of what it is, it would not be wise to go against that feeling....

"Everyone...whether he is starving, or crippled...has chosen his experience for the purpose of gaining from it...." Why condemn the Holocaust? Every murdered Jew chose to be killed, and Hitler was merely undergoing a learning experience.' ["World According to Ram," Utne, p. 80.] 

That seemingly sane and well-educated people by the tens of thousands have become followers of Ramtha (and of other entities who speak the same lies through various channels make the Heaven's Gate suicide cult member seem rational by comparison. ....”

One Last Excerpt; It Shows the Gigantic Difference Between Western and Eastern Meditation (page 232).

"It is essential to understand the vastly different meanings given to the word 'meditation' in the West and in the East. [But it is changing in the West.] Meditation in the West has always been synonymous with contemplation, or thinking deeply about something. Christian meditation involves seeking deeper insights into God's Word (Psalm 1:2), pondering God Himself (Psalm 63:6), reflecting upon God's works (Psalm 77:12), and considering what our responsibility is and what our response should be (1 Timothy 4:15). 

In contrast, Eastern meditation...involves ceasing to think, and emptying the mind. It is a prelude to possession. Through repeating over and over a word or phrase (a mantra) or focusing on a candle or upon one's breathing, the mind goes blank and one enters an altered state of consciousness. ...." 

 

This is the end of this Book Review/Paper. May the will of God be fully accomplished and His people be edified! In Jesus' name!

http://www.karlkempteachingministries.com Karl Kemp worked as an engineer in the space field throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964. He received an MA in Biblical Studies in 1972. He has been a Bible teacher for 45 years. See the website for more info on his books, papers, etc.

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