3 out of 4 stars
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For a lot of people, the world's all-time best selling book, the Bible, is the most difficult book to understand. Why is this so? Is it because the Bible was written in a different time? Or is it because it was translated from Hebrew and a lot of the subtext has been lost in translation? Or is it because a lot of people accept the teachings of men who do not really understand the Bible? I've heard and read about a lot of reasons, but in The Divinely Sinful Saints, Con Trong Bui believes that one of the main reasons people find it hard to understand the Bible is that they read the scriptures literally and fail to seek their spiritual meaning. In this book, the author helps the readers understand many symbols in the Bible, especially from the book of Genesis. He also touches on several misconceptions about the Bible.
Picking up this book, I guessed that it would be about the saints and their sins or how they weren't perfect, but it wasn't what I expected. So, the book title is a bit misleading. However, I'm pleased with the overall content of the book.
The author starts off by asking the reader to imagine what it's like if the first equation used in solving a difficult math problem is wrong or if there is a mistake in the first step in the construction of a large building. The author used this example to show the importance of understanding the first book of the Bible. There were also many instances in the book where Con used similar methods to help readers to fully understand what he was saying, and this was what I liked most about the novel. I also liked that the author used the King James Version of the Bible as the reference to this book, as it is free from denominations. Con also references the different planes of existence from esoteric teachings, which are the physical, emotional, and mental planes. He states that "above all these planes of existence, we have the spiritual plane." This concept is essential to understanding the scriptures. I enjoyed how the author showed how failure to look beyond the physical plane of existence has led to racism.
Furthermore, the book is very repetitive. While I like the repetitive feature of the book, as it gives the reader a constant reference through the text, it isn't a feature that will appeal to some readers. The book is written in an unambiguous language, which is a feature I appreciate in a book that aims to provide clarity on any topic. I agreed with a lot of what the author said, and there were some things I got to fully understand after reading the book, like what it meant when the words "male" and "female" were used in the Bible. There were also a few times I didn't agree with the author, like when he talked about God, the Lord God, and the Lord as three different beings. However, Con doesn't claim to have figured out the whole Bible, but he hopes to help people get a better understanding of the Bible than they have.
I found a few grammatical errors while reading, and most of them involved the use of singular words where plural words should have been used. While the errors didn't derail my reading, the constant changes in the arrangement of the text were distracting. Initially, the references from the Bible were arranged differently from the author's words in an organized way, but as I continued reading, it became inconsistent.
Overall, I enjoyed reading The Divinely Sinful Saints. There was so much to learn from this book about the Bible. I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. I took out a star because of the editing issues in the book. I would recommend this book to those who hope to get a better understanding of the Bible, and as the author said, "the book is for those who value their spirituality and who ask, seek, and knock but are dissatisfied with the preaching they have heard."
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The Divinely Sinful Saints
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