The statement struck me as unintentionally funny: The Revised Edition of God's Eternal Word is now available.
Someone's idea of a joke? Intrigued, I hit the link and discovered that Fred Coulter has competition in the one-man Bible translation field. What Fred has done for the tiny CBCG sect, some Aussie bloke called Clarence Priebbenow has done for the fundamentalist fringe of Australian Lutheranism.
But, unlike Fred, Clarrie makes his translation available as a free MS Word download. Actually, it's not too bad, all considered, though I doubt it'll ever become known outside the tiny circle of the AELC, a truly COGish Lutheran body which split some time ago from the Lutheran Church of Australia and has now just split down the middle itself over an obscure dogma.
Unfortunately some AELC pastors and their congregations chose not to submit to the public doctrine of the church and are consequently no longer members of our synod. In fact because they have departed from the Confessions of the Lutheran Church, we believe that they are actually no longer Lutheran...These folk are not permitted to receive communion in the congregations of our synod, nor are they to be accepted as sponsors for Baptism, whilst they knowingly and willingly condone this erroneous doctrine error and practice in spite of frequent Scriptural admonition. It is our duty to warn you of this sectarian group operating under the guise of being authentic Lutheran churches and pastors. They are in fact neither. As the Holy Spirit says through the Apostle Paul, “… they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge (Rom. 10:2). [AELC February newsletter]
Aw shucks, and I thought this kind of love and forbearing was the exclusive specialty of the WCG and its splinters. Somehow it's gratifying to see somebody else slugging it out... why should we have all the fun?
Regardless, I'd recommend "Pastor" Priebbenow's not-so Eternal Word over the Fred Bible. Not that it's much of a recommendation, as there probably isn't a translation in existence that I wouldn't recommend over Fred's, but with the gratis status, who can complain? And just think how impressive those ABC or Living University students' essays could be if they chucked in a gratuitous reference to the authoritative-sounding "Priebbenow translation" among the hardy favorites of Moffatt and Goodspeed!
6 comments:
Wait a minute. I thought the NET was the ultimate translation to end all translations - what with the new discoveries and all . . .
Oh well, can't please everyone, I suppose, and we know that some people know more than God as it is.
"You shall know them by their doctrines" Mt. 7:16, Reviled Slandered Perversion (RSP)
Bill Hohmann
"Unfortunately some AELC pastors and their congregations chose not to submit to the public doctrine of the church and are consequently no longer members of our synod...."
Well, I guess then they who left are a bunch of Smart AELCs.....
You won't get much response on this topic, as it isn't gossip, slander or ridicule. If you want to maintain the level of response you were getting, you must revert to accusing Mr. Armstrong of incest.
Don't you just love doing anything to be popular?
I truly don't believe there is a god, at least not one that bears any resemblance to any religion based on being a "Son of Abraham".
But, if god does exist, I think he/she/it/gaia would be more like Patrick McGoohan's "The Prisoner" and would not be "pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered", i.e. not quantifiable in any way.
How could an actual eternal being have a coda that we could understand in any meaningful way? It's like trying to understand the purpose of the Universe.
Gavin, you have made my day: The Revised Edition of God's Eternal Word. Too funny, and all the more because, as you say, it isn't meant to be.
Kathleen (I can never remember the darn password, so I have to use the anonymous radio button).
Post a Comment