because it has the doctor's point of view and the NDE person's point of view.
Posted on 01/16/2015 7:31:42 AM PST by SeekAndFind
LifeWay Christian Stores has come under fire for selling a book based on a boy who claimed he visited heaven and who is now saying that the story is false.
The book, titled The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven, has been available since last year and tells the story of 6-year-old Alex Malarkey who suffered a horrific car accident in 2004. The crash paralyzed Alex and it was unlikely he'd survive after slipping into a coma. He awoke two months later and claimed that angels took him through the gates of heaven to meet Jesus.
Malarkey addressed the validity of the story in a letter titled "An Open Letter to LifeWay and Other Sellers, Buyers, and Marketers of Heaven Tourism, by the Boy Who Did Not Come Back From Heaven."
"I said I went to heaven because I thought it would get me attention. When I made the claims that I did, I had never read the Bible," he explained. "People have profited from lies, and continue to. They should read the Bible, which is enough. The Bible is the only source of truth."
He also laid out what he now believes is the clear path to salvation in the letter.
"It is only through repentance of your sins and a belief in Jesus as the Son of God, who died for your sins (even though he committed none of his own) so that you can be forgiven may you learn of Heaven outside of what is written in the Bible… not by reading a work of man," he stated.
LifeWay will take immediate action, according to Martin King, the company's director of communications.
"LifeWay was informed this week that Alex Marlarkey has retracted his testimony about visiting heaven as told in the book The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven. Therefore, we are returning to the publisher the few copies we have in our stores," said King to The Christian Post.
Malarkey's mother, Beth, addressed the matter last April in a blog, arguing that the book was not biblically sound and that it has hurt her son "tremendously." She also stressed that he has not made any money from book sales.
"Alex first tried to tell a 'pastor' how wrong the book was and how it needed stopped, Alex was told that the book was blessing people," she wrote. "I am trying to defend my son and truth," she stated. "Alex did not write the book and it is not blessing him!"
Some Southern Baptists had raised concerns about the more recent best-selling book Heaven Is for Real, which was made into a movie last year. The book and movie are based on a 4-year-old boy who had an emergency appendectomy and said he experienced heaven. Last summer, Southern Baptists adopted a resolution to "reaffirm the sufficiency of biblical revelation over subjective experiential explanations to guide one's understanding of the truth about heaven and hell."
>> Last summer, Southern Baptists adopted a resolution to “reaffirm the sufficiency of biblical revelation over subjective experiential explanations to guide one’s understanding of the truth about heaven and hell.” <<
Yup. Test #1 for Catholic “visitations,” “apparitions” and the like is does it conform to scripture. If it doesn’t, the Catholic Church presumes that it is either fakery, demonic influence, or a product of the seer’s own mind. And even if it DOES conform to scripture, such “private revelations” do not provide any obligation for anyone to believe in them. (Yes, you can be a good Catholic without any knowledge or belief in Fatima, Lourdes, or the like.) I’m glad to see that the Baptists conform to this common sense.
I have to say that anyone who plays up a child saying that he saw Angels and Heaven to the extent that this was played up — books, interviews, etc. — is asking for trouble. Kids lie. Unscrupulous parents lie and influence their kids to lie, especially when money is involved. Christians are too gullible when we hear some cute little kid say things like this.
Because, simply said, Jeff, repentance is not a ^requirement^ of and for your salvation. To quote the Lord, “There is but ONE THING needful.”
What repentance OTOH IS, is a gift from God according to His work on the Cross. We can not repent from our sins without the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. We have receive the Holy Spirit through Christ’s death and resurrection.
World-bound striving to “repent” will only bring spiritual despair as found in THE LAW. Happily, Christ paid that price for you.
Yes, in his Baptism in the Jordan by John, Christ [who was without sin] repented of YOUR sins...in your place since, you cannot, by yourself, believe in Jesus Christ as Lord.
How true!
Regards,
P.S. See my tagline.
One of the 45 goals of the commie party.
I wonder how much he and his father made from this book?
Don’t buy things there anymore.
The story is true.
because it has the doctor's point of view and the NDE person's point of view.
It looked like rfreedom4u was just making an obvious pun and meant no harm.
Signed,
Loda Bologna
Printer/Keyboard?
Penetrating Keratoplasty?
Paradise Kiss?
Penalty Kick?
Promise Keeper?
I bet you could google book sales for it. Was it ever on the NYT best sellers list? Wasn’t it also a movie?
In PW’s recap of 2010’s bestsellers, we reported that The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven sold 112,386 copies that year, its first on sale.
BTW- the kid claims he never got a dime from the book sales
Is this what they based “Heaven is real” on?
I think that was a different kid
Are we sure THAT kid isn’t lying?
HAHA.
Then were did the money go?
good question/.... his parents probably?
I’m assuming Pastor’s Kid.
Oh, thank you. Makes sense now.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.