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Item Description...
Brimming with scripture and prayerful insight, these 40 meditations draw readers closer into the Holy Spirit's presence. Excellent for group or personal study.
Item Specifications...
ISBN 0800792971 EAN 9780800792978 UPC 000000120353
Pages 240
Dimensions: Length: 8" Width: 5.4" Height: 0.66" Weight: 0.7 lbs.
Binding Trade Paper
Release Date Oct 1, 2001
PublisherBAKER PUBLISHING GROUP #20
Availability 400 units. Availability accurate as of Mar 22, 2010 09:59.
Usually ships within one to two business days from La Vergne, TN.
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Categories
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Books > Subjects > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Christian Living > General [31520 similar products]
The Helper has a vital message for contemporary Christians--we need to be more open to receiving the fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit. With her engaging style and wide readership, Catherine Marshall could have brought enlightenment to countless readers. It's sad that what she chose to do instead was divide Christians against one another.
The heart of Marshall's message is this statement (p. 39): "Even in our own time, we can observe two groups of Christians, those who have Christ beside them, with them, and those who have the Lord Jesus in them." There is no Biblical citation for this divisive statement.
Who has the Holy Spirit? If you've studied the Christian spiritual tradition, you would probably say that Christians receive the Holy Spirit in baptism, and that prayer, worship, works of mercy, and the sacraments are ways to deepen your experience of the Holy Spirit. (According to Thomas Merton, all the graces needed for sanctification are given in baptism.) Very likely you would say that desiring a deeper relationship with God is a powerful sign that the Holy Spirit is already present in you.
However, the only sacrament mentioned in The Helper is believer's baptism. Anyone who has had this experience (I'm one) can tell you how extraordinary it is. But it is only one of many ways the Holy Spirit can come into our lives.
I see two serious problems in The Helper. First, it splits Christians apart. Marshall's book limits the Holy Spirit to a small group of people who can answer yes to seven questions on pp. 30 and 31. If you haven't been "baptized into the Holy Spirit," you don't have "personal awareness of God's love," "conviction of who Christ is," "a message of real help to others," and 13 other spiritual attributes (pp. 50 and 51). I've seen first-hand the rejections and pain caused by this kind of thinking.
Second, the book's simplistic approach ignores the richness of 2000 years of Christian tradition. If you read classic spiritual books, you'll discover that Christians throughout the ages have found God in a wide variety of ways. For example, you'll learn that adolescence is a time of intense spirituality for many people, a fact that doesn't fit into Marshall's system.
Mrs. Marshall used only one approach in her study of the Holy Spirit---reading the Bible with a notebook and colored pencils beside her. She did not consult any of the spiritual teachers who have enriched the Christian tradition with their insights.
If she had, she might have learned something extraordinarily interesting. Back in the early Church, a heresy called Gnosticism arose. Its adherents believed that the only authentic religious experience was a personal revelation from God. Reading Scripture, receiving the sacraments, performing works of mercy, attending worship--all of these were meaningless.
Not surprisingly, the early Church rejected Gnosticism, declaring that God's grace is available to everyone who participates in the life of the Church, not just a privileged few. But Gnosticism continues to reappear from time to time, and I think there are traces of that early erroneous thinking in The Helper.
If you do read The Helper, keep an open mind. It will try to convince you that you--and most of the people you know--don't have the Holy Spirit. Don't believe it.
Timeless yet Timely Jul 26, 2005
The Helper is a classic of Christian devotional and inspirational literature. It is one of those rare, "user friendly" works on the Holy Spirit and His work in today's world. With a small investment of fifteen minutes a day, the reader will find his or her life empowered and enriched. As a pastor and minister of more than twenty years at the same church, I have given away dozens of copies of this small gem...the results are always the same, people report a new sense of peace and a renewed sense of the Presence of the Holy Spirit. READ IT WHILE IT IS STILL AVAILABLE IN PRINT.
The Helper May 24, 2004
The Helper is a wonderful book. I have read several books by Catherine Marshall in the past but had not seen The Helper until recently. I was browsing in a used book store when I was blessed to see it. It is the best book I have ever read on the subject, and it has lit a new desire within me to read and study the Bible. The same day I also bought Something More, also by Catherine Marshall. It would be my recommendation to read Something More followed by The Helper. They have both greatly enriched me and helped to add joy to my life.
BE HELPED BY THE HELPER Feb 25, 2003
THIS BOOK WAS WRITTEN BY THE LATE CATHERINE MARSHALL. PLEASE TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS AWESOME BOOK. THIS BOOK HAD BEEN OUT OF PRINT FOR A WHILE AND NOW IS FINALLY AVAILABLE FOR YOUR EDIFICATION AND STRENGHTENING OF YOUR SPIRIT. I READ THIS BOOK MANY YEARS AGO AND EVEN GAVE IT TO MY NOW WIFE WHO WAS MY FIANCE AT THE TIME AND WE BOTH AGREE THAT IT IS ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS EVER WRITTEN ON THE SUBJECT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. MRS. MARSHALL WAS GIFTED IN HER WRITING ABILITIES, EXPLAINING IN DETAIL FROM THE VERY BASIC SUBJECTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT AND GETTING DEEPER AND DEEPER INTO OTHER AREAS THAT ARE CLEARLY EXPLAINED AND ALSO WITH PRACTICAL WAYS TO LET THE HOLY SPIRIT BECOME REAL IN OUR LIVES. HE IS DEFINETELY "THE HELPER" FOR EVERY BELIEVER. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK AND ANY CHRISTIAN SEEKING ANSWERS IN THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS CHRIST! BECAUSE IT IS THE HOLY SPIRIT THAT MAKES CHRIST REAL IN OUR LIVES. PLEASE DO YOURSELF A SERVICE AND GET THIS BOOK FOR YOURSELF AND ANY LOVED ONE THAT NEEDS A TOUCH OF THE LIFE OF GOD IN THEIR LIFE & THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LORD. YOU WILL NEVER REGREAT IT. AS A MATTER OF FACT CONSIDER BUYING OTHER BOOKS BY CATHERINE MARSHALL FOR FURTHER EDIFICATION AND STRENGHTENING IN YOUR SPIRITUAL LIFE. REGARDS AND BE BLESSED IN CHRIST BY THE POWER OF HIS SPIRIT "THE HELPER".
Simple, but not Superficial Oct 19, 2000
An excellent teaching on the Holy Spirit, practical, eye-opening and easy to absorb, both intellectually and spiritually. Also serves as a great devotional, utilizing the prayer and scripture passages after each chapter.
