Mutterings of a Madman 4: Letters to My Family on the Foundations of Christianity and Other Letters of Interest

The author continues to annoy his family by bombarding them with another series of letters resulting in the current book in the Muttering of a Madman series. This one is subtitled, The Foundations of Christianity: From Judaism to Christianity and Other Letters of Interest. Under Part 1, Foundations of Christianity, the author explores the transition from Judaism to Christianity. Specifically, he is interested in how a small Jewish sect headed by an illiterate preacher from Galilee was transformed into the largest religion in the world. He does this through an exploration of Early Judaism beginning in 2100 BC when God told Abraham to leave the city of Ur and He, God, would make a great nation for Abraham and his descendants in the land of Canaan. He continues his overview of Early Judaism by describing the history of Judaism through the arrival of Alexander, the Hellenization of the Mediterranean, the arrival of the Romans, and the mixing of the Greek, Roman, and Jewish cultures. He then covers the Old Testament, the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Historical Jesus, Paul's Mission, and Jewish and Christian persecution. In the final four chapters, the author discusses the Doctrine of the Trinity, the conversion of Constantine, the Council of Nicaea, and ends by describing the New Testament and several issues surrounding its development. Under Part 2, War, the author reviews the nine hour battle at Benghazi in which Ambassador Chris Stevens was killed. He does this through an hour by hour analysis of the battle action in order to determine if anything could have been done in a timely fashion to save the four people killed in the attack on the CIA compound. He next examines the Rise of ISIS and highlights the three major US mistakes leading to the power vacuum in IRAQ that ISIS so eagerly filled. Under Part 3, Politics, Teaching, and Retirement, the author begins by exploring the relationship between religion and the founding fathers through the incident in which Kim Davis, the County Clerk in Rowan County, Ky., would not fulfill her public duties based upon her religious beliefs. He continues his exploration of politics by examining the Tea Party, the Law Enforcement Community, the Confederate Battle Flag controversy, and what caused the decline of the Republican Party. He ends this part of the book by exploring the finances of retirement and teaching in our schools. Under Part 4, Death and Meaning, the author explores what it means as we face death in a letter to his family entitled Jimmy Carter, my Grandfather, and Me. In this letter he discusses what it means to have led a meaningful life such that at the end "we have painted on the canvas of our life that it was better that we were here."

About the Author :
J.T. Oney served more than forty years with DoD in various military, intelligence, and security organizations. He retired in 2000 and taught for eleven years at a small college in Northern Virginia. He is now retired, living in Mayking, Ky., and is an Adjunct Professor at Southeast Kentucky Community College.