Dr. Robert Haldane Jr.

Puzzle Pieces

Posted: 07/01/2008

This is a picture of the person Jesus from birth to death.  Where information gaps call for imagination and intuition these are included only when they fit the known whole and make the whole life-story reasonable and complete.  Not only do the pieces of the puzzle fit, but no "leftovers" spoil the picture, though they (with scholastic evidence) altar some chronology.  This should be a bed-side book, for frequent reading.

The story, clear and concise

Posted: 05/16/2008

How much do you know about the details of Jesus’ life and teachings? Do you wish there were an easier way to learn about him than studying the Bible (Matthew, Mark, Luke, & John)? There is! A “de-CREED” STORY is the story of his life, boy to man, finding what was his most important message. Told in a detailed but concise story to which all readers will be able to relate, it is about a good Jewish boy growing up. This is a story about the life of a person believed by Christians to be divine, by Moslems to be a prophet, by Jews to be an important religious teacher, and by others to be a great social reformer.Ever wish you could decide for yourself what to believe about Jesus? This book will help. It neither requires nor prohibits the theology or Creed you choose to add.

Thy Will Be Done on Earth

Posted: 05/15/2008

I am asked why a traditional Christian, with a generally orthodox Trinitarian theolgy would want to read this story of a human Jesus behind the post-resurrection, spiritual Christ who has accomplished the atonement and redemption of all who believe in him.  The answer is: To discover the one who shows us the Father, the requirements of the Kingdom, and who is, at least hopefully, one we can emulate!  We have no hope of becoming like the Divine Christ who walks on water.  We can, like those struggling twelve and many others hope to be more like the Jesus who walked and taught  from Galilee to the Holy City.  My hope is that all who read this account of the human Prophet Rabbi behind the Christian theology (Pauline experience) of post-matyrdom Jesus Christ (an experience variously shared to this day by serious seekers) will be enhanced  with the human possibilities and hope of bringing  the Messianic Age, The Kingdom come, God's Will being done on earth, that his earthly ministry requires of us. Emmanuel, God with us, on earth is beyond my attainment.  Being like Jesus, the Prophet Rabbi, is a goal I can reach for. Of a Divine Christ I can know what He can do for me. Of the Jesus who teaches me what God requires, I need to know what I can do for Him. That is why I love to share the story of Jesus, boy to man, when here with us on earth.

a short, easy read

Posted: 04/01/2008

lf any potential readers of my "de-CREED" STORY wonder how an author "justifies" writing such a Story of the Life of Jesus; if any would require a scholastic reason, academic vindication for method or content, or rational historical acceptance of the historical-metaphorical presentation of truth-by-story, I highly recommend reading at least the first few chapters (l could not quit there) of "JESUS, Uncovering the Life, Teachings, and Relevance of a Religious Revolutionary" by Marcus J. Borg.  (Harper One). While the two authors and their works were completely independent of one another, I am bold to suggest that the works belong together. What Borg has written about, Haldane has written as a Story. Both allow for the reader, having encountered the story as presented, to add whatever theological concepts required by faith-orientation. Don't need scholastic or academic permission to enjoy  "The Rest of the Story of Jesus"? Good! It's a short, easy read. Enjoy

The Story

Posted: 03/29/2008

What I have written is a story.  It is not an academic, or scientific, or historic research paper.  Nor is it a scholarly attempt to present either proof or probable cause to win converts to a new concept regarding the life of Jesus.  It is simply the story of his life as I have come comfortably to understand it. What I know of all that has been written about him seems to be pieces which “report” bits of his life and sayings, here and there, to support a particular theological or Creedal point of view.  The spectrum through which he has been seen may distort the already partial picture of the person behind the creed. I try to tell the story of the person from birth to the end without the percieved “missing years” and with the whole life that he obviously must have lived. After meeting the person behind it all, I presume each reader will add to the “religious, but de-creed, story that makes the person central,” his or her own theological interpretations.           This Jesus was a reformer, not only in matters of religious practice, but in social justice, and I think it is a good thing to see him growing, becoming before all the Ecclesiastical dressing the Church put – and continues to put- on him.