A Twisted Crown of Thorns ®

The easiest way to become a leader these days is to simply begin every sentence with “God told me”. Sure enough before the sun sets you will have people slaughtering sheep and goats at your feet – that is if you are not vegetarian. So, what other tricks can one have in their bag to keep the magic going? How do cults end up deceiving many people and even Christians? An old good book published in 1980 by James W. Sire [Scripture Twisting: 20 Ways the Cults Misread the Bible] has really helped me know how to spot a charlatan. Yup, even on Christian television. Have you noticed how many cult leaders claim to have had a new revelation or new esoteric experience?

Two separate but related strains in the esoteric tradition concern us. The first is the notion  that the Bible – and many other religious and non religious texts – contain a secret hidden, inner meaning that can only be spiritually discerned, what [is] called the esoteric translation. The second is the practice not only of divining the hidden meaning of already existing texts but of receiving new revelation, special communication from the Other Side which tells us new information about reality and even about Jesus  supplementing biblical authority.

Esoteric interpretation assumes that the Bible does not mean what it says on the surface. …Read More!