Another Gospel
LC Class | 89005628 |
Another Gospel: Cults, Alternative Religions, and the New Age Movement is a non-fiction book discussing new religious movements and the New Age movement, written by Ruth A. Tucker.[1] The book was published in 1989 by Zondervan,[2] a Christian publishing house.[3] Another edition was released by the same publisher in 2004.[1]
Author
Ruth A. Tucker is a former professor of
Title
The title "Another Gospel" is taken from
Contents
Another Gospel discusses a wide range of groups, including
Tucker writes about the
In discussion of the Unification Church, Tucker writes that the organization has used controversial recruitment tactics which subsequently resulted in college students dropping out of universities in order to join it.
Tucker notes a disparity between approaches to religious movements abroad compared to within a person's own cultural milieu.[16] "In cross-cultural evangelism overseas, missionaries are admonished not to ridicule other religious beliefs or practices… Yet, these 'cross-cultural' courtesies are often blatantly ignored when they pertain to situations within our own culture. We often ridicule or mock the unorthodox religious beliefs of people in our own communities, because cultists do not deserve respect," writes Tucker.[16]
Another Gospel delves into the difficulty in defining
According to the description of the book from the publisher, Tucker "explains how… alternative religious movements appear to meet people's needs."[1] Tucker concludes that "the increase in cult membership is a direct result of a failure on the part of the church."[18]
Reception
Charles H. Lippy, writing in Modern American Popular Religion: A Critical Assessment and Annotated Bibliography, stated that Another Gospel is written "from a decidedly conservative Christian perspective", and although Tucker "does not ridicule the groups she seeks to expose… it is clear that [she] does not see the groups she studies as legitimate religious alternatives."[19]
Gordon R. Lewis, a professor of philosophy and theology at Denver Conservative Baptist Theological Seminary, wrote for the International Bulletin of Missionary Research that the book "achieves a high degree of historical objectivity", but criticizes it for lacking "more epistemological, theological, and ethical thought about what is essential to authentic Christianity" as opposed to the alternative forms of Christianity studied in the work.[21]
A review of the book for the Journal of Christian Nursing, said that the book provides information about "what people in various cults and religious groups believe", and called the book "outstanding", and recommended it for personal libraries and church libraries. The reviewer commented: "Although designed as a reference book, it is hard to put down. I started dipping into sections that interested me, then sat down and read the whole book. In the process, I felt as if I'd taken a semester course in alternative religions."[22]
Author M. James Penton wrote positively of the book, in his book Apocalypse Delayed published by University of Toronto Press. He wrote that Tucker's chapter on Jehovah's Witnesses "is far more superior to most older books and articles produced by Catholic and Protestant critics of the Watch Tower movement."[23]
In a discussion of the prevalence of belief in reincarnation among adherents of various belief systems, Theology for the Community of God author Stanley J. Grenz recommended Tucker's book "for references to the presence of this doctrine in the New Age movement".[24]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f Description Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine, Zondervan (Publisher), 2007. Grand Rapids, Michigan, www.zondervan.com.
- OCLC 19354219
- ^ Zondervan: Our Mission & Values. The reason We're Here Archived 2010-01-25 at the Wayback Machine, zondervan.com
- OCLC 15283631
- ^ Honey, Charles (August 5, 2000). "Issues of control found in cults and mainline groups, author says". The Grand Rapids Press. Michigan. p. B5.
- OCLC 48515853
- ISBN 978-0-310-57144-5. Retrieved 13 August 2011.
- ISBN 978-0-310-25937-4.
- ISBN 978-1-59158-496-4.
- ISBN 978-0-299-22570-4.
- ISBN 978-0-310-57771-3.
- ISBN 978-0-8028-4430-9.
- ISBN 978-0-8103-7159-0.
- ^ a b Gilfand, Sharon (November 12, 1992). "Founder surprised his religion an issue". The Pantagraph. Bloomington, Illinois: Pantagraph Publishing Co. p. A5.
- ISBN 978-0-310-70381-5.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8254-2893-7.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-310-70441-6.
- ISBN 978-0-310-23217-9.
- LCCN 95-46009.
- Robert M. Bowman, Jr., Christian Research Journal, Summer 1990, page 36.
- S2CID 149174680.
- ISSN 0743-2550. Retrieved 2010-02-02.
- ISBN 978-0-8020-7973-2.
- ISBN 978-0-8028-4755-3.
External links
- Official site, publisher, Zondervan
- Profile of author, Ruth A. Tucker, InterVarsity Press.