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 enlarge | Author: Richard, Abanes
Publisher: Bethany House
Category: Book
List Price: $11.99
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Avg. Customer Rating:  18 reviews
Sales Rank: 50631
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 190
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 8 x 5.4 x 0.6
ISBN: 0764206648
Dewey Decimal Number: 204.4
EAN: 9780764206641
ASIN: 0764206648
Publication Date: July 1, 2008
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| Customer Reviews:
 Taking on Tolle August 19, 2008
11 out of 41 found this review helpful
{{I meant to give it 4 stars and I can't seem to edit the star portion of my review}}
While in Barnes and Noble yesterday I saw this book and figured I'd buy it and read it. Abanes is known for work in counter-cult apologetics and New Age spirituality, a fairly decent choice for authoring a response to Tolle's A New Earth (ANE). I should admit from the outset that I have not read Tolle's bestselling book. Honestly, I have no desire to read that kind of anti-intellectual, self-refuting, philosophically and religiously uninteresting, garbage in the "New Age" sections of major book stores. I've talked to enough of these people at earth day festivals to warrant my disgust. Last guy I spoke with talked with me for 3 hours about crop circles and how the WWW was the antichrist! (Seriously, he traced a star of David and showed how 3 w's fit around it, said that the Hebrew numeric value given to 'w' is '6', and thus we have 6-6-6. He didn't even flinch when I pointed out that that number is actually 666 (i.e., six hundred and sixty-six, not three 6's). His goal was to get mankind off the internet and out of their earth destroying cars. When I pointed out that he pulled his crop circle pictures of the web he said that I was trying to refute him by pointing out his hypocrisy. Yeah, 3 hours of this. Anyway, you get the point why I have little tolerance for this group.)
But in case any Tolleac claims I can't judge Tolle's book without reading it I have three points in response: (i) I have heard enough of Tolle on Oprah, other shows, and the internet to get the basics of his shtick; (2) to say that I haven't read the book is to introduce distinctions into the world, something Tolle says is illusionary; and (iii) (a) who cares if I haven't read his book? It's not like I'm violating any ethical principles (which don't exist according to Tolle) by only reading his critics, (b) it sounds like you're thinking, something Tolle staunchly forbids, and (c) you can't believe that I haven't read his book since Tolle claims that "every belief is an obstacle" (ANE, p. 189). (P.S. if (c) is taken out of context, now you know how Christians feel about Tolle's, ahem, "exegesis" of Holy Scripture.
I also notice many Tolleacs complaining about how big a meany Abanes was in this book. Well, not only did I not notice it (in fact, I'm inclined to believe he was too *nice*! ;-), let's say it's true. Well, if Abanes's reading of Tolle is correct, this nastiness stems from Abanes's "pain-body." According to Tolle (according to Abanes), one isn't morally responsible for what his "pain-body" does. So to chastise *Abanes* and treat him as responsible for authoring meanness is to divert from Tolle.
Okay, so Tolle had some kind of a freak-out session when he was about to commit suicide and then came up with the doctrines in his book. Sounds like a stable individual to follow. Be that as it may, his book is a number on best seller and many of my Christian brothers and sisters are bound to run into an ANE fan. Though imperfect in many ways, this book should be enough for you to rebut ANE nonsense...though letting a Tolleac rant long enough should be sufficient to do the job for you.
Abanes's book consists of an introduction, five chapters, and two appendices.
In the intro Abanes introduces you, briefly, to Tolle and discusses his recent popularity. Abanses points out that with ANE we get nothing new. It's simply re-heated New Age rhetoric. We are all divine, there are no distinctions, there is no "we" actually, just a conscious source that is all reality. Call it "God" or "The Life" or "The Universal" or any other new age name. Abanes points out that Tolle rips off Christianity to appeal to Westerners.
In chapter one Abanes demonstrates Tolle's self-refuting claims that beliefs are obstacles (is that belief an obstacle?), that all religions lead to the same end, that to claim you are right is intolerant (is that right?), and that to claim that you have the truth is evidence of your enslavement to illusion. Fortunately for Tolle he can claim that he is right because he says he knows he is and any one who disagrees with him is unenlightened. Talk about unfalsifiable. Tolle also despises "thinking" ( as traditionally defined) as a major source of our problems, "feelings" are the source of our verification of what is true and right. Of course this kind of subjective garbage can be matched by claiming that you don't "feel" that Tolle is right. How would he show that you were wrong? What could he appeal to?
In chapter two Abanes demonstrates Tolle's monism and pantheistic religion (though he claims he's not offering a religion...whatever). "God" is just a handle for "the consciousness that pervades everything." Realizing this is your sole purpose on earth. It is what we should do. Of course how Tolle accounts for teleology or normativity is beyond me. Abanes doesn't get into that too much, though. And on that point I should mention that I think Abanes is too easy on Tolle in many areas. Applying some philosophical analysis to Tolle's quoted statements could really tie him up in knots. Abanes is right to point out, and Tolle agrees, that in Tolle's monism, which is really just a mixture of eastern religions mixed with American exegesis and understanding of eastern religions texts and thought (which I dub "Weasternism," and is the most self-refuting of all of the eastern (type) religions) destroys notions of good and evil. Of course this is disastrous, as should be self-evident. Abanes in my opinion should have discussed and made use of the Creator/creature (far more than he did, which seemed implicit) distinction and Romans 1 in this chapter, but didn't.
In chapter three Abanes quotes various examples of Tolle's "exegesis" of the Bible and demonstrates his utterly horrible use of Scripture. Tolle just rips quotes out of their grammatical and social contexts, always ignoring the Jewish context of the Bible, which plays a large role in the exegesis of Scripture.
In chapter four Abanes discusses Tolle's view of Jesus, which is, not surprisingly, just re-heated "Christ consciousness" new age mumbo jumbo. Thus, Tolle distorts the person and work of Jesus, a familiar feature of all heretical views of Jesus. Tolle denies the bodily resurrection of Jesus and his continued existence of the God-man. Obviously this destroys our faith (since Paul said if Jesus is not raised from the dead your faith is in vain) and the intercessionary priestly work of Jesus on behalf of his people. So any claim on Tolle's part that his view is consistent with Christianity is simply deceptive. (Abanes doesn't bring up the latter theological point, which he should have for a more devastating rebuttal.)
In chapter five Abanses discusses Tolle's view of suffering (illusionary and the cause of our being trapped in illusion) which ignores the Bible's theology of the cross (cf. Luther on this) rather than Tolle's theology of glory (Tolle has an overealized eschatology, in fact, we just need to realize that we are in the new heavens and new earth now, since to claim that we are not is to use the language of distinction and demonstrate he is still trapped in illusion and unenlightened), sin (which is to "miss the point of human existence), evil (which is illusion, and so is good), and salvation (which is enlightenment). When discussion Tolle's deception regarding Jesus' death on the cross Abanes, in my opinion, should have located it in the Old Testament notion of The Day of Atonement (DoA). Jesus' death presupposes, for its intelligibility, the Old Testament concept of DoA. The notion of the high priest offering a sacrifice for the sins of the covenant community. If you remove Jesus' death from this presupposition it makes no sense, if you do not, you can't agree with Tolle.
In Appendix 1 Abanes briefly mentions Tolle's "enlightenment experience" claiming that it has features of NDEs or FDEs, in the second one he just offers a numbered list of his responses to Tolle's errors for quick reference.
Abanes should have spent more time discussing the Christian worldview and offering better exegesis of many passages since I doubt many Tolleacs will easily grant all of Abanes's interpretations of Scripture (many which are either asserted, footnoted with more simplistic exegetical commentary, and two were out of context (his use of 2 Tim. 4:2 and 2 Tim. 2:15 on p. 20), says I) but at least his view is intelligible as compared to Tolle's wild, esoteric readings of the text.
Also, since Tolle simply asserts that his reading is correct because he just feels it is and to disagree with him is to show you're unenlightened. This is the kind of guy that needs to be cornered in a *public* debate, where he will inevitably stutter and stammer in trying to explain his interpretation of Scripture. As long as he controls the floor he'll simply play his word games and his devotees will swoon over his guruness. I can see him simply dismissing Abanes's book with the wave of a hand (indeed, look at what the Tolleacs here have done) and his disciples will nod their heads. But get him in a debate, specifically in a cross-exam session, his dishonest and unscholarly position will be hard to deny. But perhaps Abanes meant this book more for *Christians* than to convince Tolleacs. In that case persuading Tolleacs was not his goal. Indeed, can a *consistent* Tolleac even *be* persuaded (as traditionally defined) of anything? In fact, do they have any *business* reading Abanes's book? Indeed, can't Abanes just claim, like Tolle, that those who disagree with him are not ready to hear his message and are unenlightened as to Abanes's truth?
 Sound biblical insight August 17, 2008
2 out of 26 found this review helpful
Mr. Abanes reminds the christian how imperative it is to know the Word. Protection from the false voices in the world today comes only by understanding what the Word truely states. Mr. Abanes reminds us not to reason with false teaching, but rather challenge it with truth.
 Eckhart Tolle's New Earth an Old Deception July 24, 2008
9 out of 41 found this review helpful
God bless Richard Abanes for taking Tolle to task. In March, Oprah held an online class that included 500,000 people based on Eckhart Tolle's best seller "A New Earth: Awakening Your Life's Purpose". Hardly harmless, his book reached #1 on Amazon, was the fastest selling pick on Barnes and Noble and set a "record shipment in a 4-week span." All proof that what Oprah endorses, sells. That is why this new age theory of his has been embraced. In all fairness, his new earth is the same one other new age thinkers have been talking about since the mid 1800's. The only difference is the colorful wording Tolle uses. I pray Abane's book reaches as many as Oprah's on-line course. It is a vital light dispelling the shadows of misconception Tolle used to darken "the way, the truth and the light." Abane's "A new Earth an Old Deception" should be mandatory reading in churches across America. Each of Tolle's theories are presented to which Abane answers those presumptions with the truth from the Bible. Well written to be informative and concise, this is a must read for anyone confused by or otherwise interested in Tolle's "new earth".
Enlightening! July 24, 2008
9 out of 41 found this review helpful
This book does an excellent job exposing the nonsense that is being espoused by Eckhart Tolle. It is nice when someone takes the time to stand up and point out when the emperor has no clothes. I can hear all the superstitious and pathetic Oprah fans who are hoping that this latest drivel will actually be the real answer to their problems. Sorry, this latest kook of the month has no more substance that all the other flash in the pan Oprah prophets (profits?) I appreciate Richard Abanes taking the time to weed through the baloney. His book has fulfilled a real purpose, and hopefully a few of Tolle's victims will put down their BonBon's long enough to read this revealing expose.
A Tool for Those Answering the Deceptions of the New Age July 24, 2008
7 out of 34 found this review helpful
Richard Abanes has provided Christians with an indispensable tool to navigate the fine line of truth versus deception. The book should be read, digested and incorporated into our thinking, not to argue people into the kingdom, but to be ready for a word in season. This work is foundational in understanding the true gospel when juxtaposed with counterfeits.
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