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As Good as New: A Radical Retelling of the Scriptures
 
 

As Good as New: A Radical Retelling of the Scriptures (Hardcover)

by John Clifford Henson (Author) "Despite the fact that my shelves, and yours probably, are sagging beneath the weight of all the translations of the scriptures that have appeared in..." (more)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
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Product details

  • Hardcover: 608 pages
  • Publisher: O Books (4 Dec 2003)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 1903816734
  • ISBN-13: 978-1903816738
  • Product Dimensions: 22.3 x 13.7 x 3.5 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 516,557 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Product Description

Review

"What would Christianity look like, what would Christian language sound like, if we really tried to screen out the stale, the technical, the unconsciously exclusive words and policies, and to hear for the first time what the Christian Scriptures were saying? John Henson has devoted much of his life to wrestling with this challenge, and has for many people made those scriptures speak as never before-indeed, as for the first time. Patiently and boldly, he has teased out implications, gone back to roots, linguistic and theological, and re-imagined the process in which a genuinely new language was brought to birth by those who had listened to Jesus because they knew they were in a genuinely new world. John's presentation of the Christian gospel is of extraordinary power simply because it is so close to the prose and poetry of ordinary life. Instead of being taken into a specialised religious frame of reference-as happens with the most conscientious of formal modern translations-and being given a gospel addressed to specialised concerns-as happens with even the most careful of modern "devotional" books-we have here a vehicle for thinking and worshipping that is fully earthed, recognisably about our humanity. I hope that this book will help the secret to be shared, and to spread in epidemic profusion through religious and irreligious alike." 'John Henson has the exciting capacity to awaken fresh interest in material that seems familiar. He is never dull, sometimes provocative and occasionally inspirational. I recommend his work to anyone who enjoys an unpredictable reading of Scripture.' - John Rackley, President of the Baptist Union of Great Britain. 'I found this a literally shocking read. It made me think, it made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me angry and it made me joyful. It made me feel like an early Christian hearing these texts for the first time. John Henson and the ONE Community have made the Bible accessible and alive so that a new generation may hear the news and experience it as good.' Elizabeth Stuart, Professor of Christian Theology, King Alfred's College, Winchester, and Bishop of the Open Episcopal Church. 'Nowadays we have a generation that has never read the Bible and knows nothing about Christ. This translation bridges the gap by really putting it in the language of today's street population and making it attractive to them. I wish it every blessing and success.' Derek Rawcliffe


Product Description

In reading this translation we come closer to the impact the scriptures had on the people of the time than before.

Inside This Book (Learn More)
First Sentence
Despite the fact that my shelves, and yours probably, are sagging beneath the weight of all the translations of the scriptures that have appeared in the past forty years or so, we still await a version that strikes as a genuinely contemporary version. Read the first page
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Concordance
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews

6 Reviews
5 star:
 (5)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:    (0)
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Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A new view of familiar scripture, 22 Mar 2005
By A Customer
A very interesting and challenging translation - some infelicities which grate a little ("Larry" = Lazarus etc. and some doggerel verse), but it pulls the timeless story into the present day and certainly gave a new view to me. Powerful stuff.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Beats "The Message" Hollow!, 24 Dec 2008
Lets be clear from the outset: This is not a new Bible translation. It is a paraphrase.

It contains elements which will be highly contraversial, but they really only represent a handful of verses. The rest is just straightforward Bible in Modern English.

The closest alternative is "The Message", but for me, Good as New is vastly superior. The Message falls into the trap of pretending to be a "proper" translation, which is rather dangerous in my view.

Good as New has no such pretentions and is all the better for it. It's challenging, uncomfortable and very well written. There are fewer jarring americanisms than in The Message.

Overall, this is a "must read" for any Christian wanting to get a fresh take on the scriptures. just take it with a pinch of salt in places.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Forget it's the Bible and you'll love it and find fresh inspiration, 24 Jun 2007
By Simon Phipps "webmink" (Southampton, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)      
This is a controversial book - it polarises serious readers. If you read it as a "Bible Translation" and you're of a conservative evangelical persuasion, you may well be worried by the liberties the authors take with language and with the canon of scripture. But let's take a look at what they have done:

* They have expunged all the religious mumbo-jumbo - for example, "Angels" become "God's agents" in this book.
* They have found modern equivalents for all the names of the characters - "Zechariah and Elizabeth" become "Kerry and Lisa".
* They have made the language straightforward and accessible.
* They have written a book that makes you want to read more, in the tradition of JB Phillips and the Living Bible.

If you're looking for a source for proof texts, or for a scholarly exposition of Scripture, go elsewhere. If you want to read about Jesus and his friends for the first time through the eyes of someone who's never heard of him, this is the book for you.

I keep being surprised and challenged, and I keep laughing out loud when I see things in a new way. If you've no faith in God, or a stable, mature faith, this book is a spritzer to freshen it up and let you meet God again in a new way. This is not a study Bible. It's a book to let you meet Jesus again.
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