THE THIRTEENTH DAY OF MAY IN THE YEAR OF GRACE TWO THOUSAND AND FIFTEEN A CONSUMING PASSION: Essays on Hell and Immortality BY CHRIS DATE Posted to: www.RethinkingHell.com website on May 6, 2015. In April 2014, shortly before the inaugural Rethinking Hell conference at the Lanier Theological Library, we published our first book, Rethinking Hell: Readings in Evangelical Conditionalism. A year later, we are excited to announce the upcoming publication of our second book, A Consuming Passion: Essays on Hell and Immortality in Honor of Edward W. Fudge. Wipf & Stock, who published … [Read more...]
TRIBUTE TO MY MOM
THE TENTH DAY OF MAY IN THE YEAR OF GRACE TWO THOUSAND AND FIFTEEN Sybil Belle Short Fudge Dewhirst -- or "Mother," as my five siblings and I are privileged to call her -- always was up to most any challenge. Perhaps it had something to do with her beginnings; born in 1923 to missionary parents in the interior of Africa, raised in general isolation 50 miles in the bush from "modern civilization," as a child going to sleep at night with lions roaring outside the family's house and sometimes a venomous black mamba snake inside. How does one begin to describe this woman, whose … [Read more...]
Family Notes (03/05/2015)
THE FOURTH DAY OF MARCH IN THE YEAR OF GRACE TWO THOUSAND AND FIFTEEN RADIO MINISTRY -- God willing, I will be guest on Sunday night, March 15 on a radio program broadcast from San Antonio, Texas. More details to follow. PRECIOUS TO GOD -- Psalm 116:15 says that "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints." That is surely especially true when they are martyrs dying for their faith in him, as is the case with thousands continually throughout the Middle East at the hands of the murderous self- named Islamic State. Like the martyrs in Revelation 6:9-11, these … [Read more...]
family notes (02/25/2015)
THE TWENTY-FIFTH DAY OF FEBRUARY IN THE YEAR OF GRACE TWO THOUSAND AND FIFTEEN SOLDIER ON The two words "soldier on" are a personal motto of our good brother Leroy Garrett (born 1918), and also the name of his "occasional" e-bulletin. Issue #476 went out this week; Brother Leroy intends to stop with #500 if he reaches that far. He has published a personal bulletin of teaching, encouragement, and news for 64 years under a variety of names: Bible Talk (1952-58), Restoration Review (1959-92), Last Time Around (1993-94), Once More With Love (1990-2003). and Soldier On! You … [Read more...]
A MESSAGE SIGNED WITH BLOOD
THE TWENTIETH DAY OF FEBRUARY IN THE YEAR OF GRACE TWO THOUSAND AND FIFTEEN Last Sunday, the jihadist group calling itself ISIS (The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) martyred 21 young Egyptian Christians working in Libya, one of Egypt's four next-door neighbor states. Ramez Atallah, a leader in gospel outreach worldwide, is general director of the Bible Society of Egypt. Within days of the executions, Atallah published an article in the Society's Newsletter titled "A MESSAGE SIGNED WITH BLOOD," which he addressed to fellow-Christians everywhere as "THE NATION OF THE CROSS." In the … [Read more...]
family notes 02/18/2015
THE EIGHTEENTH DAY OF FEBRUARY IN THE YEAR OF GRACE TWO THOUSAND AND FIFTEEN LINK 'JOURNEY TOWARD JESUS' Shortly before our new website was "turned on," we featured a free on-line book of letters by Bruce Edwards and myself titled A Journey Toward Jesus, with a link to the still-active old website. Several gracEmail subscribers told us the link did not work and they wanted to read the book. So for the convenience of all you who enjoy gospel truth made plain in real life, you can read A Journey Toward Jesus here. IT'S FULLER IN JUNE The second Rethinking Hell conference … [Read more...]
ANNOUNCING OUR NEW WEBSITE
The original website for EdwardFudge.com was built with love and care by son Jeremy Fudge, and it has served long and well. Despite 15 years of my considerable tinkering, it still retains much of its original beauty and charm. But fashions change, as do methods and software, and the time came for a major update. The new website is beautiful, simple, and intuitive. There are tips along the way, drop-downs, search-engines, and the latest tools. The website is new, easy to use and full of interesting and helpful resources. What's there not to love? Check it out for yourself at the same … [Read more...]
Family Notes
THE ELEVENTH DAY OF FEBRUARY IN THE YEAR OF GRACE TWO THOUSAND AND FIFTEEN CHRIST AS SIN-OFFERING A good many years ago I discovered that I was not really preaching Christ. I was preaching only the conditions of salvation, just as though . . . the Lord’s visit to this earth [was] to set forth certain acts as conditions of justification. I was overlooking the importance of the cross upon which he bore our sins. I was not recognizing Jesus as our High Priest who offered himself for the sins of the world. I considered the cross as a means to an end, the end being the endowment of … [Read more...]
afterlife discussion has nine lives
A recent gracEmail titled "Boy Who Told Fibs About Heaven" told of 16-year-old Alex Malarkey's announcement that his book, The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven (co-written with dad, Kevin), was untrue. Alex never went to heaven, he now says, but rather as a six-year-old made up the whole story to get attention. The gracEmail noted three major elements in Alex's story that contradict biblical teaching--always a clear warning for discerning readers. The gracEmail generated double the usual number of responses, including one from Mark Albrecht of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Mark is a delightful … [Read more...]
Boy who told fibs about heaven
Titled The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven, this 2010 bestseller from Tyndale by Alex Malarkey and his father Kevin Malarkey has sold more than a million copies. And why not, we ask, for a book that purports to tell the story of six-year-old Alex, who sustained head injuries in a vehicular collision that left him comatose for two months and paralyzed permanently. While in the coma, said Alex, speaking through his father, he died but eventually came back. Alex' adventures while dead include a trip to heaven escorted by angels, topped off by a visit with Jesus himself. This month (January … [Read more...]