Bethany College Books

While the book was not written with continuity and clarity, I absolutely agree with the focus of his point. Churchianity and vain religion is a disgust in the sight of God. Oftentimes program based church structure lends towards that. A cell group based church has potential for the Holy and Mighty Spirit of God to be unleashed. There are dangers in that, but it is worth it regardless.

. . . An absolute must read for anyone who cares about Christ's church and its growth and health.

This book explores the core values absolutely necessary for re-formation of the body of Christ in this day and age. A simplified "how to" book that is easily fit to your situation and location.

What Christianity was always meant to be but hardly ever gets to... and why!

Simple, profound, insightful and deep cutting... it will either have you pounding your desk with agreement or running scared. Not for the faint-hearted, nor for those without a true love for the church.

WARNING: if you try to impliment these ideas in your church it will likely result in your crucifixion... or at least excommunication.

"if you follow me you will be treated as I am treated"

Excellent history, including early history of Milligan College (Tennessee), Lynchburg College (Virginia) and Mountain Mission School (Grundy, Virginia). Lacks an index, which makes it difficult. The Hopwoods were pious, Godly people who loved their students.

I purchased this book at the request of an employer who finds this book a very helpful resource.

This is a great book to learn about other religion and cultures, especially if you are an evangilist, pastor, minister, or just a lay person. I found the information in this book to be helpful, insightful, enlighten and easy to read and understand until it becomes unexcuseable why the children of darkness is wiser then the children of light. I found other religion in this book that I have never even heard of.

As a Buddhist, I read only the section on Buddhism and my rating reflects only this part of the book.

I was heartened that the author didn't make any of the grotesque factual errors that I often see in evangelical Christian coverage of Buddhism. However, the account was terribly superficial and the author demonstrated no true comprehension of Buddhist beliefs. It seems to me, as an evangelical tool, this chapter failed. I found that the tactics recommended for proselytizing to Buddhists were laughable and couldn't imagine them succeeding with a practicing Buddhist.

I would encourage anyone wanting a more sophisticated presentation of Buddhism from a Christian perspective to read some of the offerings of Brother David Steindl-Rast, Father Heinrich Dumoulin, or Thomas Merton.

This book is a true relavation regarding the intolerance of Christianity, constantly reminding the reader of Jesus Christ being the one true savior. Once the reader has the common sense to overlook the bias of the authors it is really very funny i.e. Suggestions for Evangelism to Taosts, Approching Jewish People with the Gospel and the Evangelistic Do's and Dont's With Muslims. If you want to convert the world to Christianity this is a perfect start, it reads like an 18th century missionary primer.

I got this book as a gift from my sister because she knew I am interested in studying world religions. It's too bad she only looked at the cover and didn't bother to read it a little before buying it. This book is NOT an informative book on world religions. It's an Evengelical intolerant guidebook for witch hunters.

Being a Wiccan, I was very offended by what the author wrote about the Wiccan religion. Not only is his "information" incorrect, but the entire book is biased against all religions except Christianity. One of the things he writes about the Wiccan religion is that "It promises power, mystery, self-gratification, and rebellion against Christianity" and this statement is completely false.

This author is all about telling why Christianity is the "right" religion and that all others are wrong. Included in each chapter is a guide to converting people of each religion. I personally find this idea sick and twisted, and it should not be in a book about world religions.

Well, I can honestly say that I was warned about this book. But that was in a good way. My verdict? Right and wrong. One reviewer said that this might not be for adrenaline addicts, and is correct. But I didn't give a rip about the people! This didn't have me after certain chapters wiping my brow saying, "GEEZ!" or "Holy cow!" or even "Man alive, that was one heck of a twist!" Unfortunately it was more like, "Hmm, interesting. Yep." It seemed like a lot of things fit too perfectly.

But we take Father Grif who gets a late night phone call and discovers a dead body. Now Griffin Reed tells this in the first person. Famous person found dead in a chapel. Relatives, some that cared, some that hated him. The nagging sister of Father Griffin. Delffs does this, but not where I cared. The funny thing was that I got to the end, and was still kind of like, "Whoop-tee-doo. I still don't care!" Why? It just was, and there was nothing that struck me as outstanding about this. The best thing about this was I got it at the right price. Hey, you win a few, lose a few, but some like this just break even. And it probably won't convince me to read "The Judas Tree" too soon either, even though I have it too.

While D.J. Delffs presents an interesting story, he has a long way to go in terms of description and dialogue. Supposedly set in rural Tennessee, I doubt you'd find one resident (even professor) who refers to coffee as "java." Instead of looking he "scans", he "spars" with fog. To compare Delffs with Jan Karon is stretching the limits of fiction. The voices of Karon's characters are distinctly North Carolinian, by contrasts Delffs creations might as well be nomads. Too bad - it had promise, but the dialogue is too painful to read.

Okay, so this story takes time to unfold, time to draw us into the scenery of rural Tennessee...And your point is what exactly?

"The Martyr's Chapel" might not be for the adrenaline-addicts; it is, however, a story for mystery lovers. Those who enjoy a sense of place and a well-woven plot will appreciate the time spent in the world of Father Griffin Reed.

Father Grif is a likeable and sympathetic protagonist, a widower, a minister, thrown into a macabre scene of murder. A famous writer is dead, and the list of suspects grows along with the story. Soon, despite Grif's brooding and melancholic nature, he finds himself putting together the pieces of the victim's life--and putting his own life back together as well.

If you're looking for fast-paced action and violence, you've come to the wrong place. If you're ready for something a little slower, a little deeper, with even a hint or two of romance, this is a book you'll enjoy. It ends nicely, but with plenty of hooks to drag you to the sequel "The Judas Tree."

In my opinion, The Martyrs Chapel is the best piece of writing of Mr. Delffs I have had the pleasure of reading to date. Having read some of his earlier work, I can attest to the sincerity of D.J.'s writing and the continued improvement of his story telling prowess. The characters were impecable and the dialog of the college professors and townsfolk alike was quite authentic. Easily, I would say this story belongs in any mystery lovers collection. The best news of all is that the second book slated for release before the end of summer and I can look forward to another great story as soon as it hits the bookstore shelves.

This novel combines excellent writing --especially sensory descriptions and Southern dialogue-- with enjoyable characters in an intriguing mystery. This writer obviously knows how to tell an entertaining story with authentic Southern details. Delffs' writing here surpasses Jan Karon's in my book --The Martyr's Chapel combines the best of her charming, small-town humor and community but adds a page-turning plot. (Karon's books move much too slowly for my taste.) I loved the twist at the end here, and I can't wait until the sequel, The Judas Tree, arrives this summer.

I've spoken to many people like Bob Larsson and I always come away with a bitter taste in my mouth. Although claiming to be a Christian, he fails to outwardly show the character of Christ.

People like this spend all of their lives trying to show other religions to be false and forget whats important - your attitude to others.

There are many "cult" websites and books attemtping to "expose" religions as false. However, despite attempts to reason with the owners/authors, they continue to misrepresent beliefs, as many have noted in their reviews.

Although yes, I disagree with what may be considered by most to be "orthodox Christianity" and also Mormonism, Islam, JWs, Catholocism etc etc, I would never go out using "scare tactics" and misrepresenting what someone believes. The worst "scare tactic" of all is the actual use of the word "cult". It incites religious hatred.

What frustrates me even more is when people read Larsson's book and say that this book is "absolutely brilliant!" or "excellant job by Larsson!" Why do you say this about someone who is such a bad ambassador of Christianity?

A few rules should be ...

1. Fully read through religious texts etc.
2. Discuss at length with the believers themselves.
3. Check what you have produced thoroughly to make sure you have not misrepresented beliefs. It only gets people angry.
4. If someone answers your questions, do not put the questions down in a list of "irrefutable questions". I have seen this down many times.
5. Be fair and be positive! Mention the good points of other beliefs/relgions aswell as just the negative points.

I reccomend this book. It's much fairer.(...)

I picked up this book as a reference tool at the Library just to look through. I was appalled and shocked at what I found. I have a bachelor's degree in Sociology, and after examining this book, I find it hard to believe that it wasn't categorized in the "Christian" section of my library. First of all it is unfair to examine "cults" from a Christian perspective and give un-tampered information. For each of the groups examined in this book, the author gives a paragraph or two entitled "Errors" about each group, and each time gives a scriptural reference. To give "errors" in logic would be fine but not errors based on your own personal religion. Second, while not listing beliefs like Buddhism or Islam as cults per se he still gives errors for them. There are logical errors for ALL beliefs including Christianity, but he again points out errors based on his own religion and fails to looks at his own religion for errors. Lastly some of the so called "cults" he looks at aren't even cults to begin with! Martial Arts and Yoga are in no way cults, they are activities; and while many Martial Artists are Buddhist, it has nothing to do with the religion. That would be like saying that people who play Football are all in a cult.
In Conclusion: It is people like Bob Larson, who believe that anything that isn't blatantly Christian is against Christianity, that create the problems that many people have with any religion. He is, in a sense, creating a cult. Just like many true cults that at their core are based on Christianity, Buddhism, and other religions, he is branching off from his Christian beliefs and trying to make people believe that if you take Karate, listen to rock music (as he has written about in another book), or not say "bless you" when someone sneezes that you are sinning and will go to hell. I am no Christian and do not claim to be, but the bible does say, "Judge not lest ye be judged." This book is not fact based, they are opinion based. This book can be dangerous if you are trying to learn the facts about the groups in this book.

This is allegedly a treatise on "cults" and a delineation of their "errors."

Don't be fooled: When Larson says "cult," he means "every religion that isn't his particular brand of evangelical Protestantism." (In fact, some of his "cults" are not even religions!)

When he says "errors," he means "beliefs with which he disagrees, or practices of which he disapproves."

And as if that weren't bad enough, he makes comments about some of these groups which are at least pointlessly insulting if not downright libelous (comparing Unitarian Universalism to schizophrenia, trotting out the tired old defamation of Pagans as devil-worshipers, et cetera).

In short: If you're in absolute agreement with Bob Larson, you'll probably feel vindicated. If not...read M.T. Singer's "Cults In Our Midst" instead.

This author is absolute ignorance personified. If you are a "christain" don't waste your time reading this book. If you think this is a "christain" perspective you are SO WRONG! This guy puts yoga and the KKK in the same category. What an absolute moron! Why would anyone in their right mind think this is a christain book? Let me tell you folks, anyone who spends his life's work on a book about hatred of everyone who is from another culture is just REALLY STUPID!!! This book has absolutely nothing to do with Jesus or REAL CHRISTIANITY. Jesus was a great man, and I believe, the son of God. But I don't try to belittle anyone who is a thinking person with an actual brain. God created EVERYTHING, except IGNORANCE. If you want a Christain perspective? Read the Bible! Don't throw your money away on this garbage. Even if it is only $1.28. That is too much!

I begin my review from the premise that the absolute best answer for any question is thorough research.

That said, I am unaware of how much research Larson has engaged in while preparing this book. Across the board, he obviously has more understanding of a greater number of cults and religious beliefs than I, simply by virtue of the fact that he names and discusses religious groups which I have never heard of.

I am a devout Christian, and teach in my church. I picked this book up (or, more accurately, permanently borrowed from a friend--Hi Johann!) as a tool for reference while I was doing a short study on our church's doctrine compared to religious cults. The book proved to be useful for a quick reference, and for creating a short framework upon which to launch further study. However, the book is little more.

Since the book boasts of "Over 100 Cults Examined," and is only 499 pages long (including preface, TOC, and index), it is obvious that the average length for any given cult is less than 5 pages. If one is interested in knowing more about a particular cult, or a group of particular ones, this will not be the most thorough source you can find.

Lastly, while I am a Christian, I must admit that Larson ascribes "cult" status to many groups that are not so readily observed as such. For example, he includes Nostradamus, Yoga, Martial Arts, and even UFO's. While I do not ascribe to the teachings of any of the above, classification of them as "cults" may be problematic for various reasons. I'll leave that comment at that.

In order to find over 100 cults, Larson includes some groups whose classification of "cult" may be dubious, even if the teachings are ones we might consider cultic in nature. Example: I am entirely unconvinced that there is a general cult of believers in UFO's, even though I do not believe in UFO's and in fact consider the belief in UFO's to be (at least potentially) somewhat atheistic.

Here's the skinny: if you want a book that will give you some quick reference to a bunch of scattered and various books, then this is a good one to have on your shelf. For a couple of bucks you can't really lose, right? On the other hand, if you're looking for any depth in your research into any one or more cults, you should probably look elsewhere.

As I began with, the best tool for understanding is real research--something a bit more than a 2-7 page rundown.

I appreciated Mr. Thirumalai's book. It was well written. It is not a dry theological treatise, but a thought provoking essay. It is written for the lay person, yet would be stimulating for the scholar.
He wedded practical and profound insights together like a gifted writer. I was impressed with his use of biblical passages and hermeneutical explanations. I personally did a lot of highlighting as I read the book.
Chapter after chapter the religion of Hinduism is explained in a wise and compassionate manner. Whether the subject is Karma, exorcism, rituals, salvation, or the daily life of Hindus, the author unfolds the mystery of the religion, yet does so with a heart for the Gospel.
I highly recommend this book as a thorough covering of the issues needed to get a handle on basic Hinduism. I applaud Mr. Thirumalai for this endeavor.

This book has a promising title, but is very disappointing. The author applies poor missiology(missions philosophy) to the Hindu person. The discussion of Hinduism is unhelpful and often innacurate.

If you want to share the Gospel with a Hindu friend this is not a book to waste your time with. A more helpful piece of writing is H.Richard's little article "Some pointers for personal evangelism among educated Hindus." printed in Evangelical Missions Quarterly Mar. 1994.