Reading list for December, 2024

 

Today is the final day of December and the time has come for the list of books I've read this month. Unlike in most months, I was able to post onto the blog a little bit about each book read. Clicking on the titles listed will, of course take you to the individual blog post.

There are only six books listed; I was certain that I'd have more, but that was not to be. A few days ago, I had created different images with the book covers - one image showing eight books, another showing seven just in case. Sadly, I was unable to finish End of the World and Hard-boiled Wonderland in time to make this month's list.That book will be the first in 2025. That's just as well. I'll be doing an additional blog post on the book.

Here is the list of books I read in December, 2024.

The City and Its Uncertain Walls  by Haruki Murakami
Crime and Punishment   by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Kafka on the Shore   by Haruki Murakami
Armageddon: What the Bible Really Says about the End   by Bart Ehrman
The Stranger   by Albert Camus
The Plague   by Albert Camus

Armageddon: What the Bible Really Says about the End by Bart D. Ehrman

In his book, Armageddon: What the Bible Really Says about the End , professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina, Bart D. Ehrman puts foward the notion that the New Testament book of Revelation (aka The Book of the Apocalypse) has been misunderstood and misinterpreted in modern times. This misinterpretation has been going on, basically since the early 19th Century. Ehrman describes the book's writer, known as John of Patmos, as a misguided Christian who did not understand the teachings of Jesus Christ as proclaimed in the Gospels.

Not only is the book of Revelation not a prophesy of future events as maintained by many Evangelicals, (and certainly no "rapture") but the vengeful nature of the events - not to mention the glorification of materialism and violent retribution - is in no way Christ-like. Ehrman examines how the Christ of Revelation differs from the Christ of the Gospels. A God of love and mercy versus a God who is cruel and unmerciful.

Ehrman's arguments are compelling. After reading this book, I cannot believe that the Book of Revelation belongs in the Biblical canon.