American Minute with Bill Federer
John Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress" - "The monster was hideous to behold...scales...wings like a dragon, feet like a bear...out of his belly came fire & smoke"
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What would it be like to be imprisoned for 12 years just for preaching the Gospel without a license from the government?
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This was the fate of
John Bunyan,
author of the world renown book
Pilgrim's Progress.
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John Bunyan
was born in Bedford, England, in 1628, nearly a century before the Europe's Age of Enlightenment.
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He worked as a poor, unskilled tinker by trade.
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In 1644, at the age of 16,
Bunyan
joined the
Puritan Parliamentary Army
and fought under
Oliver Cromwell
during the
English Civil War.
After three years, having escaped death several times,
Bunyan
returned to his cottage in Elstow, where he learned from his father the trade of a tinker and got married.
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In 1657, at age 29,
Bunyan
became a
Baptist minister.
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When Puritan leader
Oliver Cromwell
died in 1558, it led to royalists restoring the
monarchy
in 1660, with
King Charles II.
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This began a new wave of persecution of non-conformists.
Puritans, Separatists, Baptists,
and
other dissenters
were
spied
upon,
censored,
and
arrested
for holding illegal religious meetings or for preaching politically incorrect views.
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In 1662,
Parliament
passed the
Act of Uniformity,
which required all preachers to
believe exactly what the government told them to believe
in order to be ordained by an Anglican bishop, It required them to use the revised Book of Common Prayer.
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In 1664,
Parliament
passed the
Act of Conventicles,
which made it illegal five or more people to have a religious meeting apart from the Church of England.
In 1665,
Parliament
passed the
Five Mile Act
where a
dissenting preacher
was not allowed to come within five miles of any town.
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Currently, many
socialist,
communist,
and
Islamic sharia
regions around the world have
laws discriminating against Christians who spread Biblical views,
as in areas of the Middle East, Iran, North Korea, Europe, Africa, South America, Turkey, China, and now Hong Kong.
In the United States, this has manifested in leftist driven courts, as well as state and federal government bureaucracies.
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Advocates of LGBTQ values exhibit aggressive intolerance toward those holding Biblical views, as evidenced in cases regarding cake bakers, photographers, and, in August of 2014, when Houston's first openly lesbian mayor subpoenaed the sermons of the city's pastors who opposed a LGBTQ ordinance.
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The U.S. Department of Justice, (
WND.com,
August 31, 2017), issued a subpoena to force a Baptist pastor in Culpeper, Virginia, to disclose under oath his views on
sharia Islam.
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Culpeper,
Virginia,
discriminated against Baptists
under its
colonial Anglican government
prior to the Revolutionary War, as James Madison wrote to William Bradford, January 24, 1774:
"There are at this time in the adjacent
Culpeper County
not less than 5 or 6 well meaning
men in jail for publishing their religious sentiments
which in the main are very orthodox."
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In 17th century England,
John Bunyan
was
arrested
for having an
unauthorized religious meeting
and for
preaching without government permission.
Bunyan
wrote in
A Relation of My Imprisonment:
"Upon the 12th of ... November 1660 ...
the justice ... issued out his warrant to take me
... as if we that were to meet together ... to do some fearful business, to the destruction of the country;
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... when alas! the constable, when he came in, found us only with our Bibles in our hands, ready to speak and hear the word of God ...
So I was taken and forced to depart
... But before I went away, I spake some few words of counsel and encouragement to the people, declaring to them ... that they would not be discouraged, for it was a mercy to suffer upon so good account ...
We suffer as Christians ... better be the persecuted, than the persecutors."
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Bunyan
was imprisoned from 1660 to 1672, and again, from 1675 to 1676.
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During his imprisonment,
John Bunyan
supported his family by making shoelaces.
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It was during this time that he began writing
The Pilgrim's Progress,
eventually published in 1678.
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John Bunyan
died August 31, 1688.
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At the time of his death, the world was experiencing momentous events:
- England's William and Mary were leading the Glorious Revolution;
- William Penn was founding Pennsylvania; and
- Ottoman Muslim Turks were laying siege to Vienna.
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Pilgrim's Progress
is an allegory where a pilgrim traveler, named
Christian,
flees from the
City of Destruction.
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He is directed by
Evangelist
to follow the straight and narrow path toward the
Celestial City of Zion.
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Along the way, he overcomes
temptations, depressions, deceptions,
and
persecutions.
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The friends and dangers that
Christian
meets along the way inspired many subsequent stories and novels, such as:
- Mark Twain's Innocents Abroad or the New Pilgrim's Progress (1869);
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- Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist (1838) is subtitled "The Parish Boy's Progress";
- Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Celestial Railroad (1846);
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- C.S. Lewis' Pilgrim's Regress (1933);
- Sir Walter Scott's The Heart of Midlothian (1818);
- Louisa May Alcott's Little Women (1868); and
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- L. Frank Baum's Wizard of Oz (1900).
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John Bunyan's
The Pilgrim's Progress
was translated into over 200 languages and, after the Bible, was the
world's best-seller
for hundreds of years.
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Considered
one of the most significant works of English literature,
it was found in nearly every colonial New England home, along with the Bible and
Fox's Book of Martyrs.
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Ben Franklin
wrote in his
Autobiography:
"From a child I was fond of reading, and all the little money that came into my hands was ever laid out in books.
Pleased with
The Pilgrim's Progress,
my first collection was of
John Bunyan's
works in separate little volumes ..."
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Franklin
continued:
"My old favorite author,
Bunyan's
Pilgrim's Progress
... has been translated into most of the languages of Europe, and suppose it has been more generally read than any other book, except perhaps the Bible."
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President Grover Cleveland
had memorized
The Pilgrim's Progress
as a youth, commenting:
"I have always felt that my training as a minister's son has been more valuable to me as a strengthening influence than any other incident in life."
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President Theodore Roosevelt
stated while laying the cornerstone of the office building of the House of Representatives, April 14, 1906:
"In
Bunyan's
Pilgrim's Progress
you may recall the description of the man with the muck-rake,
the man who could look no way but downward, with the muck-rake in his hand, who was offered a celestial crown for his muck-rake,
but who would neither look up nor regard the crown he was offered, but continued to rake to himself the filth of the floor."
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President Franklin D. Roosevelt
wrote January 19, 1936:
"When Theodore Roosevelt died, the Secretary of his class at Harvard, in sending classmates a notice of his passing, added this quotation from
Pilgrim's Progress:
'My sword I give to him that shall succeed me in my pilgrimage, and my courage and skill to him that can get it.
My marks and scars I carry with me, to be a witness for me that I have fought His battles who now will be my rewarder.'"
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President Bill Clinton
remarked at the Retirement of General Colin Powell in Arlington, Virginia, September 30, 1993:
"General Powell, I am reminded of the words of another young valiant warrior, spoken when, like you, he was finishing one journey and beginning a second.
... John Bunyan
wrote in
Pilgrim's Progress
of the warrior valiant at the end of his life, as he prepared to present himself to the Almighty,
'My sword I give to him that shall succeed me in my pilgrimage and my courage and skill to him that can get them. My marks and scars I carry with me to be a witness for me, to Him who shall be my rewarder.'"
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President Ronald Reagan
greeted Australia's Prime Minister, June 30, 1981:
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"Robert Louis Stevenson
wrote, 'We are all travelers in what
John Bunyan
calls the wilderness of this world.
And the best that we find in our travels is an honest friend - they keep us worthy of ourselves."
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John Bunyan's
The Pilgrim's Progress
began:
"As I walked through the wilderness of this world, I lighted on a certain place where was a den, and I laid me down in that place to sleep: and, as I slept, I dreamed a dream.
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I dreamed, and behold, I saw a man clothed with rags, standing in a certain place, with his face from his own house, a book in his hand, and a great burden upon his back.
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... I looked, and saw him open the book, and read therein; and, as he read, he wept, and trembled;
and, not being able longer to contain, he brake out with a lamentable cry, saying, What shall I do?"
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Leaving the
City of Destruction, Christian
was chased by
Obstinate
and
Pliable,
who tried to get him to turn back.
Determined to keep going, he was mired in doubts crossing the
Slough of Despond,
but was rescued by a man named
Help.
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Christian
was easily led astray by
Mr. Worldly Wiseman,
and then tried to obey
Mr. Legality.
Almost crushed by
Mt. Sinai,
he was rebuked by
Evangelist
who put him back on the
King's Highway
of grace.
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At the door of the
Wicket Gate,
Christian was shot at by the arrows from
Beelzebub.
Just in time,
Goodwill
reached out and yanked him through the doorway.
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Continuing along in
The Pilgrim's Progress,
John Bunyan
wrote:
"Christian ran thus till he came at a place somewhat ascending, and upon that place stood a cross ...
So I saw in my dream, that just as
Christian
came up with the cross, his burden loosed from off his shoulders, and fell from off his back."
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Traveling further in
The Pilgrim's Progress,
John Bunyan
wrote:
"Then said
Christian,
You make me afraid, but whither shall I fly to be safe?...
To go back is nothing but death; to go forward is fear of death, and life-everlasting beyond it. I will yet go forward ...
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... Frighted with
the sight of the lions
...
Christian
said to himself again,
These beasts range in the night for their prey; and if they should meet with me in the dark ... how should I escape being by them torn in pieces? ...
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... He lift up his eyes, and behold there was a very stately palace before him ... He entered into a very narrow passage ... he espied two lions in the way ...
The
porter
at the
lodge
... perceiving that
Christian
made a halt as if he would go back, cried unto him, saying,
Is thy strength so small? Fear not the lions, for they are chained, and are placed there for trial of faith where it is, and for discovery of those that had none. Keep in the midst of the path, and no hurt shall come unto thee ...
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He went on, trembling for fear of the lions, but taking good heed to the directions of the porter; he heard them roar, but they did him no harm ..."
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John Bunya
n continued, that after leaving the
Palace Beautiful,
clothed in the
Armor of God, Christian
had to go alone through the
Valley of the Shadow of Death,
where he recited Psalm 23:
"Yea, though I walk through the
Valley of the Shadow of Death,
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me."
Christian
traveled further:
"But now, in this
Valley of Humiliation,
poor
Christian
was hard put to it ... a foul fiend coming over the field to meet him; his name is
Apollyon.
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Then did
Christian
begin to be afraid, and to cast in his mind whether to go back or to stand his ground.
But he considered again that
he had no armor for his back;
and therefore thought that to turn the back to him might give him the greater advantage with ease to pierce him with his darts.
Therefore
he resolved to venture and stand his ground ..."
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Bunyan
added:
"The monster was hideous to behold; he was clothed with scales ... wings like a dragon, feet like a bear, and out of his belly came fire and smoke ...
Apollyon
straddled quite over the whole breadth of the way, and said ... prepare thyself to die; for I swear by my infernal den, that thou shalt go no further; here will I spill thy soul.
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... And with that he threw a flaming dart at his breast; but
Christian
had a shield in his hand, with which he caught it ...
Apollyon
as fast made at him, throwing darts as thick as hail; by the which, notwithstanding all that
Christian
could do to avoid it,
Apollyon
wounded him in his head, his hand, and foot ..."
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Bunyan
concluded:
"This sore combat lasted for above half a day, even till
Christian
was almost quite spent; for you must know that
Christian,
by reason of his wounds, must needs grow weaker and weaker ...
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...
Christian's
sword flew out of his hand. Then said
Apollyon,
I am sure of thee now.
And with that he had almost pressed him to death, so that
Christian
began to despair of life;
but as God would have it, while
Apollyon
was fetching of his last blow, thereby to make a full end of this good man,
Christian
nimbly stretched out his hand for his sword, and caught it, saying,
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... Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy; when I fall I shall arise; and with that gave him a deadly thrust, which made him give back ...
And with that
Apollyon
spread forth his dragon's wings, and sped him away, that
Christian
for a season saw him no more ...
A more unequal match can hardly be, --
Christian
must fight an angel; but you see,
The valiant man by handling
Sword and Shield,
Doth make him, though a
Dragon,
quit the field."
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Soon after,
Christian
met a friend named
Faithful,
and the two of them traveled to
Vanity Fair
where they were almost enticed by pleasures, but
Faithful
confronted the sin of the town and was martyred.
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Christian
escaped, and met another traveler,
Hopeful.
The straight and narrow path was rocky, so they took a parallel softer path, which gradually got them lost.
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They were trapped by
Giant Despair,
who chained them in
Doubting Castle
and told them to commit suicide.
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Depressed in the dungeon, they began to sing praise songs. Suddenly, they remembered they had the
Key of Promise
which unlocks every door.
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They escaped, but almost fell asleep crossing the
Enchanted Land,
and were almost led astray by
Flatter
and
Lucre.
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Seeing
Immanuel's Land
in the distance, they saw someone walking toward them in the opposite direction.
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It was
Atheist
who told them that there was no Heaven and God, and to turn back.
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Thankfully, they had been previously warned by
Shepherds,
so they continued on.
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They saw a man named
Ignorance
get into
a ferryboat named
Vain Hope
, trusting in his good works instead of God's grace.
The ferryman took him across, but he ended up on a byway to
Hell.
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John Bunyan
concluded his epic with
Christian
and
Hopeful
finally crossing the
River of Death
to be gloriously welcomed into the
Celestial City of Zion:
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"Now while they were thus drawing towards the gate, behold a company of the heavenly host came out to meet them ...
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... These are the men that have loved our Lord when they were in the world, and that have left all for his holy name ... that they may go in and look their Redeemer in the face with joy.
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... Then the heavenly host gave a great shout, saying, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb."
... Oh, by what tongue or pen can their glorious joy be expressed! ...
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... Now I saw in my dream that these two men went in at the gate: and lo, as they entered, they were transfigured, and they had raiment put on that shone like gold.
There was also that met them with harps and crowns ...
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... Then I heard in my dream that all the bells in the city rang again for joy, and that it was said unto them, Enter ye into the joy of your Lord.
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... I also heard the men themselves, that they sang with a loud voice, saying, Blessing and honor, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever."
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Schedule Bill Federer for informative interviews & captivating PowerPoint presentations: 314-502-8924
wjfederer@gmail.com
American Minute is a registered trademark of William J. Federer. Permission is granted to forward, reprint, or duplicate, with acknowledgment.
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