In the blog post from the end of the summer I lamented the passage of summer, how times seems to speed past, and how I get a bit frustrated with my life during this season.  I don’t know about you, but I hunger for more time apart to focus on my relationship with God, I long for great union with Christ.  Like the new Bill Hybels book I reviewed, The Whisper of God, I want to be open to discerning what the Spirit is saying, “and have the guts to respond” as he puts it.  I noted that great new book by Mark Buchanan–a great writer if you haven’t read any of his stuff–called Spiritual Rhythm: Being with Jesus Every Season of Your Soul.  It is very nice how he highlights different “seasons” (figuratively speaking) although nearer the end, he offers some standard insights, nicely communicated, about spiritual disciplines that can sustain one through any and all seasons.  So please see that early September blog if you didn’t.

I promised, then, a list of other new books on contemplative practices, recent resources that might serve as companions for your journey.  Here, then, are a few; not exhaustive, not all we stock.  Please free free to call or use the “inquire” page at the website if you have any question about these, or other similar titles.  We really do value conversations with our friends and fans and look forward to serving you further—perhaps with some other resources for the journey.  We hope you might even find these lists worthy of passing along, sharing with others.  So often we hear that customers appreciate reading short reviews and learning what books are interesting and worthy these days.  Thanks.

Mystically Wired: Exploring New Realms in Prayer  Ken Wilson (Nelson) $17.99  I list this one first because I’ve been wanting to say more about it other than my brief announcement when we first got it in a few months back.  Wilson is an amazing guy, a deep and thoughtful writer, rooted in broad evangelicalism of a charismatic sort; he is a pastor of the Vineyard Church in Ann Arbor.  Yet, he is no stereotypical Pentecostal; he has written bracingly about the need to resist the Christian right, has powerfully critiqued establishment religion as we know it (see his splendid, provocative, and very well done Jesus Brand Spirituality: He Wants His Religion Back)  In this handsome new hardback, Wilson spends some considerable time using his considerable interests in the sciences to describe what happens to the brain when people pray.  Neurological research during religious practices, worship, meditation and the like has long been done by mainstream and secular clinicians.  I don’t know, though, of any books so robustly Christian and so energetic about understanding the details of how to enter a state of prayerfulness by understanding the human “wiring” of the brain.  This is such a fascinating work that we have to commend it.  But it isn’t just me—Phyllis Tickle says (get this) “Hands down, this is the best book on prayer that I have ever read.”  Folks, even if dear Phyllis is wrong by a long-shot, you may know she is one of the most widely Christian leaders alive.  My friend York Moore—a passionate speaker and leader on evangelism—says “I was routinely blown away by the intuitive genius of Ken’s view and application of prayer.  Page after page, thinking I knew what was next, I was surprised with fresh insight and unique perspectives on connecting with God.”  Others have raved—folks as different as Todd Hunter, Scot McKnight, Brian McLaren.  Please do check it out.  I’m going to read it again, more slowly this time.

You may recall that we gave a good review to a stellar book more generally about neurology and Christian living, a fine book written by a psychiatrist (and trusted friend) Dr. Curt Thompson called Anatomy of a Soul, which deserves another shout-out in this context.  A bit more broad, written with more attention to the details of brain science, with applications beyond prayer, the two books make nice companions. These are great, great books if you like the phrase “hearts and minds.”  Wilson helps us understand that that is just what God intended all along.

Ancient Paths: Discover Christian Formation the Benedictine Way  David Robinson (Paraclete) $16.99  Yes, I know there are a hundred recent books drawing on Benedict. And I know I’ve promoted the beautifully simple recent work (The Good Life and The Good Neighbor both also published by Paraclete) by Robert Benson, by saying they were the best, clear, lovely, simple way into Benedictine spirituality.  Well, this is level two—not exactly for true beginners, but it is the best serious introduction I’ve yet read.  Man, this Presbyterian guy knows his stuff.  The chapter on the ways in which the young monk from 5th century Nursia changed the world is worth the whole price of the volume, and it is exciting stuff.  Faith well lived, deeply and in community, really does transform ideas and behaviors and can impact culture and history.

 For anyone interested in this classic path for growing a Christian community–and this is central, for spiritual formation is not done alone!—Ancient Paths is a tremendous guide.  It is well written, practical, interesting, and not the least sentimental or breathy or “touchy feely.”  This is sensible, solid stuff, life-changing insights that are down-to-Earth (quite literally; you know Benedict’s dictum about working and praying!)  Robinson has spent over 20 years visiting a Benedictine monastery, and, as a Protestant pastor, has some special gifts to be able to share his experiences with those not particularly fluent in the monastic traditions.  The is a fabulous 12-week study guide, too, making it ideal for small groups, spiritual friendship meetings, or to study with others.  There are application points along the way, too, designed to help ordinary folks take small steps towards incorporating these sturdy practices into their daily discipleship. It is ideal for congregational use, too, or for anyone interested not only about Benedictine approaches, but for anyone wanting to grow in faith and Christian living.  Dennis Okholm, of Azusa Pacific University, who wrote the also-fantastic (and cleverly titled) Monk Habits for Everyday People says, “Eminently practical applications for any person interested in being re-molded into the image of God.” Very nicely done.

Pilgrimage of a Soul: Contemplative Spirituality for the Active Life  Phileena Heuertz (Likewise/IVP) $15.00  Earlier this summer I got to do a small workshop on the Biblical basis for and the spirituality that helps fund, a life-long commitment to social justice.  Some of the books that relate faith formation and justice work are near classics (like, say, The Active Life by Parker Palmer, drawing on the deeper < i>Contemplation in a World of Action, by Thomas Merton.)  One of my favorites, for its fun and practical style, is the gem by Tony Campolo and Mary Darling called The God of Intimacy & Action.  This new one by Phileena Heuertz stands in the tradition of those books that struggle to bring together the “journey inward and journey outward” and it, too, may someday be considered a watershed and seminal offering.

 Some of this raw and poignant meditation is a memoir, telling of her spiritual journey, her call to serve the poor, and a great section on her 33-day pilgrimage down the El Camino de Santiago. (There are a lot of books on this ancient Christian practice these days, by the way—we have probably 8 or so here in the shop, including the very useful The Way is Made By Walking by Canadian Mennonite pastor Arthur Boers, and the very recent volume in the “Ancient Practices” series, one called The Sacred Journey by Charles Foster )  Besides Heuertz’ work with the amazing Word Made Flesh (her husband’s book about that extraordinary global work is called Simple Spirituality: Learning to See God in a Broken World) she has dug deeply into the important authors and directors in the contemplative tradition. Her work in global missions and “downward mobility” to serve is guided by her inner life of deep spirituality.  As one with ecumenical interests who has learned much from Catholic mystics, I am just floored (and so happy) that a solid evangelical publisher like IVP has an author so fluent in the writings of not only Henri Nouwen, but John Mains, Thomas Keating, Macrina Wiederkehr, Cynthia Bourgeault, Tilden Edwards, and obviously the important work of Ronald Rolheiser.  From the important feminist theology of Carol Lakey Hess to the liberation themes of Jon Sobrino, to the self-awareness gleaned by books from the likes of David Benner,  Heuertz has worked the literary field and picked the best fruits to bring to the table of this fine book.  There is also poetry, moving charcoal sketches drawn by an artist friend, and great and honest reflections on how to keep God’s sustaining presence alive in your life.   With endorsements from Franciscan Richard Rohr to Baptist Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, you should know that this book is being seen as a true gift, an amazing story, a reliable guidebook for the contemplative activist.

Whole Life Transformation: Becoming the Change Your Church Needs  Keith Meyer (IVP) $20.00  This is the kind of book that many, many should find helpful.  It is anecdotal as he shares his story of near burn-out, and as he shows how he slowly found himself needing to enter counseling, embrace the 12-step sort of recovery movement, and weave all of this into his daily work as an evangelical pastor.  While the back cover says “transforming the church by transforming the pastor” I believe this book has wider application for anyone hungering for a saner pace of life, a deeper awareness of how our driven and competitive spirits can be dysfunctional (even when it is done as “church work”) and is eager to learn how to rearrange one’s habits.  This is a book of honesty and straight-talk, and will appeal to those who know they are hurting, know the church is often broken, and want to truly become transformed by Christ to be like Christ.  His friend and mentor Dallas Willard has written a good forward, and in many ways, this is a case study of what can do to heal an exhausted pastor, renew an earnest leader, and transform a community—bit by bit—as spiritual transformation became the heart of the ethos of the congregation.  Do you long for God to redeem and reform your character?  Your family?  Your daily habits?  Do you think that your own local church could benefit if some folks truly learned to name our sins and allow Christ to heal us?  This is an easy-to-read book that will stimulate some good thinking and may be an avenue for the very transformation you or your church is seeking.  More programs and bigger budgets are not the answer.  Meyer came to learn that, nearly the hard way.  Read his story and rejoice.

Embracing the Call to Spiritual Depth: Gifts for Contemplative Living  Tilden Edwards (Paulist Press) $16.95  Most folks who read deeply in the contemplative literature of the later part of the 20th century know of this pioneer in the reawakening of spirituality.  Edwards founded the ecumenical Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation and his early books, written as a young, African-American Episcopal priest,  are considered nearly classic.  It has been a while, I think, since he has graced us with new insights, and this pondering reflection is standard meditative stuff.  Some might think it less Christ-centered than it could be, and some may not appreciate the ways in which he integrates psychology, depth awareness, and Eastern insights, with gospel foundations to offer up a gentle and mature catholic spirituality.  Still, for those serious in studying this vast field, this new book is surely important.

The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See  Richard Rohr (Crossroad) $19.95  I mentioned earlier the desire to relate inner spirituality and outward activism, that we need to (to put it differently) mesh politics and prayer.  From Practicing the Presence of God to finding God in the ordinary (oh how I love those splendid chapters in my favorite book on prayer, Richard Foster’s fine Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home) we can move to social activism that is enhanced and underscored and part and parcel of a truly spiritual life. Of course it is not pantheism to suggest that God shows up everywhere, that the creation is alive in pointing us to the Divine, and that Christ is truly in and around us. Anyone setting out to “change the world” that does not do so for God’s glory and in Christ’s ways will be doomed to burnout and trouble.  I noted, in my comments above about the great new book by Phileena Heuertz, that it seems that Richard Rohr has influenced her a bit.  You may know his very popular and important book on just these things, Everything Belongs: The Gift of Contemplative Prayer which, true to Rohr’s love of St. Francis, shows how prayer and service and action relate.  I liked that book a lot and while not brand new, is a fairly recent contribution to the field of experiential spirituality being lived out with “radical grace” in the contemporary world.  Fr. Rohr helps direct a Center about these very things, The Center for Action & Contemplation, which is one interesting place; it might stretch some conservative evangelicals, I’d guess, but it is worth visiting.

I say all this to get to a mention of Rohr’s newest, a (nearly interfaith) invitation to reflect on how mystics experience life and see God in all things.  I hesitate, though, and I hesitate about hesitating.  Some friends who I respect absolutely love this book.  A few others that I trust remind me that it is, at the end of the day, an approach that seems to disregard essential truths of Christian theology; it is romantic, nearly goofy in its exegesis at times, a bit too tied to psychological lingo (resisting the ego and such) and fails
to offer a robust spirituality based on Christ’s redemptive power over sin.  Well, if one has a rather meager or vague or overly-psychological view of sin, then one’s view of redemption is going to get gushy and less than substantial.  Where authors like Eugene Peterson or Dallas Willard come to mind as those who insist on a Biblically-informed sort of meaty spirituality, The Naked Now seems to bring other insights to the table, and has the subsequent strengths and weaknesses of a liberal Catholic, nearly non-orthodox orientation. I am not saying dear Father Rohr is un-Biblical (that will be for you to decide, fair reader.)  There is nothing wrong, on the face of it, to cite non-Christian sources for wisdom.  I do suggest that this book is not evidently rooted in standard Christian understandings of conversion or sanctification or particularly consistent with an historic view of the work of Christ.  Of course, Rohr–as the vibrant Bible teacher he is–cites the Bible a lot and includes tons of Scripture reflection.  Does that make it fruitful for those seeking a responsible, authentic, mystical experience of the true God?  I’m less sure of this than some of his other books, but it is nothing new, really.  For one who wants a good example of this exact mystical tradition–with its strengths and weaknesses—give this a try.  Let us know what you think.

Explorations in Spirituality: History, Theology, and Social Practice  Philip F. Sheldrake (Paulist Press) $22.95  Well, I’ve raised the hackles of some friends, I suppose, by offering a small bit of critique to brother Rohr, an author I generally like, and a leader I respect.  Others surely think I’ve not hit him hard enough, and there will be websites glowing that Hearts & Minds has embraced paganism.  So be it.  Most of our customers and friends appreciate our attempt to be balanced, to share concerns in friendly ways, and to point you towards important books (where we, or you, agree with all of them or not.)  But this does open a can of worms, doesn’t it?  What do we mean by spirituality?  How has that over-used phrase entered into our vocabulary so, when the grand traditions are so unknown.  We stock books of medieval mystics and Greek and Russian spiritual masters, and yet they don’t sell much.  So we need to know a bit more about this whole field. 

Mr. Sheldrake,educated at Oxford, and professor at University of Durham, is renowned for his historical overviews of spiritual formation.  (Indeed, he has been the president of the International Society for the Study of Christian Spirituality, and has served as editor for the New Westminster Dictionary of Christian Spirituality.) His small volume in the Blackwell “Brief History” series (A Brief History of Spirituality) is excellent.  While someone like Richard Foster (with his compilations of primary source stuff like Devotional Classics and Spiritual Classics) is an evangelist for the inner life, a cheerleader and teacher and pastor, helping others gain appreciation and access to a lived life with Christ, it seems that Sheldrake is the preeminent historian of the field.  He may be one of the best to walk us through the ages, explaining the currents and movements and figures and traditions. 

So, his Explorations in Spirituality really is a grand and magnificent overview of recent thinking, gathering together various essays and articles and surveys of what has been going on in this field for the last few decades.  While not an overview of all of church history**, it is an exploration of what is being published, how spirituality courses interact with theology and history, and ways the contemporary understandings of place (cities and buildings, even) have come to influence how we think about God’s presence in ordinary life.  This is not for everyone, but to hear a serious scholar weigh in with a meaty collection, this could be very useful for some.  Interesting!

**for two very good overviews, both written within the last few years and relatively recent, see the spectacular, gorgeous, and well-written Brazos Introduction to Christian Spirituality edited by Evan Howard (Brazos; $34.95) or the great, ecumenical, collection of primary source writings, God Seekers: Twenty Centuries of Christian Spiritualities edited by Richard Schmidt (Eerdmans; $22.00)

Life in the Spirit: Spiritual Formation in Theological Perspective  Jeffrey Greenman & George Kalantzis (IVP) $25.00  For a semi-scholarly treatment of the field of spirituality, and how theological themes do or don’t interact with recent concerns in spiritual direction, this is the best resource we’ve yet seen.  I cannot say enough about how thrilling it is to see a mature and open-minded and yet firmly evangelical theology interacting with things that are so common within those retreat centers and renewal ministries that are talking about spiritual disciplines and the inner journey. (There are chapters, for instance, like Bruce Hindmarsh comparing Catholic and evangelical devotional practices,  Kelly Kapic on holiness in John Owen that is very interesting and apropos, a good piece by Dallas Willard, and chapters on centering prayer, hymns, and Chris Hall on “lectio devina”—what is really going on, there, and how might serious theological voices help?)

My, my, this collection of essays is rich, and I wish every pastor and formation leader would have it on his or her desk.  And I wish every theologian (or those interested in reading the systematic doctrine stuff) would read these pieces, showing how historic doctrinal concerns can shape and mold those who are seeking for deeper relationship with God and living life out of deeply formative spiritual encounters.  Kudos to those at Wheaton College who put together the gathering that provided these stimulating essays, and kudos to IVP for daring to publish them.  Will theologians truly care about spirituality?  Will practitioners and directors of the contemplative life truly care about theology?  Will ordinary Christian readers care about either?  Well, except for our brave and eccentric readers here at BookNotes and a few other oddball places, the answer may not be rousingly affirmative.  Still, we celebrate this book, seriously recommend it, hope that some of the chapters (at least) are copied and studied and cited and used. Three cheers for Life in the Spirit.  No, make that six cheers—three from buyers of theology books, three from buyers of devotional works.  Six cheers for Greenman and Kalantzis, ecumenical thinkers helping us make sure our prayer stations and pilgrimages and labyrinths and meditation centers and journaling exercises and liturgical experiments and our readings of the likes of the books we’ve mentioned above, are all well grounded, well rooted, and Biblically faithful.

Here is a link to show you the table of contents, and some recommendations of the book, from folks more serious than I.  If you are struck, as we are, of it’s significance, do come back and order it below.  We have a discount, and hope you find it helpful.  Thanks. 

Last month in the “review column”  I offered a list of books about the Bible, some relatively recent, true favorites of ours that have proven to be helpful, especially for those who need (and who doesn’t?) a reminder of the central unfolding narrative of the Biblical story.  Some see the “acts” of this drama to be creation-fall-redemption-consummation, although we need not use those phrases to learn to live into the Scriptures as the “true story of the whole world” as Leslie Newbigin put it years ago.  So do jump back to that list and share the news with others.  There are exciting, readable, fun, and helpful resources to help us “get” the vision of Christ’s Kingdom a-coming, as anticipated and foretold, described and explained, in Holy Scripture.  I love telling about these aids to Bible understanding, and hope you do to.

So, we are happy to pick up where we left off. Here are some other basic books that have caught my fancy of late.  Most are recent and I thought you should know about them.  Keep in mind that this is not a comprehensive list and hardly scratches the surface of the titles we have in the shop.  Use our “inquiry” tab to ask us questions or to check prices if you’d like.  Or call.  We’re always eager to chat, especially about Biblical research.

A Passion for God’s Story: Discovering Your Place in God’s Strategic Plan Phil Greenslade (Paternoster) $19.99  The new cover of this fairly serious British import has a child walking through some artsy photo of what I suppose is a Middle Eastern desert.  Weird.  The book, though, could have easily been listed with those last month and certainly deserves to be recommended—it explores the overarching strategy of God, explaining the underlying structure of the Bible.  It helps us (as it promises on the back) to “recognize the significance of your life by seeing your personal story as part of God’s story.”  With endorsements from the likes of Christopher J.H. Wright, Vinoth Ramachandra, and Greg Haslam, you can tell this is starting to wade in the deeper end of the evangelical gene pool.  These are very sharp folks (engaged in cutting edge, wholistic ministry) affirming this call to seeing the way in which the Biblical narrative fits together.  Slewyn Hughes says “Nothing, I believe, galvanizes the human spirit more than an understanding of the big story that God is writing.  Greenslade’s exposition of this theme is one of the finest I have ever read.” 

Fixing Abraham: How Taming Our Bible Heroes Blinds Us To The Wild Ways of God  Chris Tiegreen (SaltRiver) $14.99  As you may know, younger evangelicals ain’t what they used to be, and this call for a raw and honest study of the weird humanity of our Bible characters is, well, either troubling or refreshing, depending on how you see such things. I’d go with refreshing. This is clever and conversational, a bit sarcastic, and a good critique of how we, well, uh, wouldn’t really want the kinds of people who populate the Bible in our parish or ministry team.  Isaiah going naked for three years?  Paul turning everybody of?  Ruth throwing herself at some guy’s feet in the middle of the night?  What a hoot this is, imagining how we might grapple with the real people of the real text.  Good for him. Who said Bible study has to be boring or safe?

Genesis from Scratch: The Old Testament for Beginners  Donald L. Griggs & W. Eugene March (W/JK) $12.95  Perhaps you know Grigg’s popular volumes The Bible From Scratch: Old Testament for Beginners and The Bible From Scratch: The New Testament for Beginners.  This is modeled after those popular paperbacks, written by a legendary educator know in mainline denominatikonal circles, especially.  With endorsements from the likes of Princeton Bible scholar and educator (respectively), Patrick Miller and Freda Gardner, this is obviously the sort of thing that is solid, useful, and fully suited for teachers wanting to study, or lead a study.  Griggs, by the way, has expert help, here, from Eugene March from Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary.  Half the book is a 7-session participants study, half is a leaders guide.

Mark’s Gospel From Scratch: The New Testament for Beginners  Donald L. Griggs & Charles D. Myers, Jr. (W/JK) $12.95  Again, as I said above, you should know Grigg’s popular volumes The Bible From Scratch volumes on Old & New Testament which have been popular in mainline circles for years.  This new series is
modeled after those popular paperbacks, written by the legendary Griggs.  The Genesis one (above) is the first in the new series, and now this—on Mark.  Yay.  I am very, very excited about this as Grigg’s co-author is one of my own favorite Bible teachers, C. “Buzz” Myers, a Presbyterian minister who teaches in the religion department at Gettysburg College.  And man, does he teach well.  He’s very well loved by folks who have heard him and he has been generous in speaking and teaching throughout our South Central PA region.  Buzz was involved as a recording secretary noting all the changes being made for the evolving NRSV years ago, so he is very aware of Greek details and textual nuances.   Half the book
is a six-week participants study, half is a leaders guide.

Genesis for Everyone part one and part two John Goldingay (W/JK) $14.95 each  You may know how we recommend the “everyone” series of New Testament commentaries by N.T. Wright.  About the same handy size as the old Barclay series, or the Tyndale ones, they are perfect for quick reading, helpful insight about both the immediate text and the way it is placed in the broader story.  There was some debate about who might do a similar Old Testament “for everyone” series that would be winsome, brief, informed, and helpful.  Thank God that W/JK chose a wonderful Bible guy, the prolific, insightful, and well-read Brit, J.G.  These are going to be released pretty quickly—he’s quite the faithful author and is the man for the job.  Start collecting your series now, and make sure your church librarian knows about them for those needing this level of reliable, interesting work.

From Stones to Living Word: Letting the Bible Live Again  Debbie Blue (Brazos) $16.99  Blue is the Minnesota pastor of one of these really unusual, edgy, faith communities that may be called emergent (although I don’t know if they call themselves that, but with a name like House of Mercy, who knows what they’re called.) She wrote a few years ago a spectacular collection of essays called Sensual Orthodoxy that was published at an indie publishing venture, so perhaps wasn’t as well known as it should have been.(We have it, though!)  She sounds a bit like Anne Lamott when you hear her—maybe a bit more intense—and she is a good, if quirky, preacher.  This collection of sermons/essays seems at first to be about how to get the Scriptures to “live again” in our post-modern midst, but her strategy is age-old.  She tells the darn stories in all their bloody complexity and lets it go at that.  Sally Morgenthaler writes of it, this: “Debbie Blue’s soulful reconstitution of the Christ narrative is nothing short of divine alchemy. Absolutely brilliant.”  If you want renewed wonder, new, robust curiosity about these Godly/human texts, this will help you come to new appreciation (which seems a tame word) of the Bible.  Mark Scandrette says she is “smart and earthy.”  Oh yeah.  And, I think, faithful–creatively so– to the texts. 

God as Author: A Biblical Approach to Narrative  Gene C. Fant, Jr. (B&H Publishing) $19.99  Well, we talk about how the Bible is a grand Story, and these days even theology is construed  narratively.  As you might guess, I think this is mostly a good thing. Professor Fant is a teacher of English and this provocative book could be put with literary studies as easily as Biblical studies.  Essentially, he says that the Christian gospel permeates all other stories, the stories of our lives under God’s sun, even as he insists this is because of God’s self-revelation (as disclosed in the Bible.)  As Michael Travers (Professor of English at Southeastern Baptist) says, “This is an important book—accessible and thought provoking.”

Worldview guru and mystery novelist J. Mark Betrand writes, “If you want to know what our knowledge of a story reveals about God and what our knowledge of God tells us about story, God as Author is the place to start.  Keenly focused yet wonderfully digressive, Gene Fant’s book will be an invaluable companion for artists and theologians alike.”  James Sire says there are “beautifully written gems on every page.”  This kind of stuff is rare, and I applaud Broadman for releasing it.  I think it will help you be a better reader, more appreciative of good books,  attuned to living your own story, and, happily, will help you understand your Bible better.

Free for All: Rediscovering the Bible in Community  Tim Conder & Daniel Rhodes (Baker) $16.99  This is one of the books in the emersion line that are billed as “Emergent Village resources for communities of faith.”  It is a spectacular book, rich, thoughtful, demanding, messy, and maybe one of the most important ones they have done.  This is not yet another call for hipster and inclusive churches or ancient-future liturgies, but a serious and radical invitation to be communities of discourse gathered around the complex and life-giving Holy Bible.  Community,  Bible-reading.  A free-for-all?  Holy-moley, this could get crazy, couldn’t it, if we have utter commitments to one another and profound submission to the authority of the living Word, but are invited to be honest about our disagreements and struggles living in to and out of this strange new world of the Bible.  This, though, isn’t about brawling.  Here are a few important voices who can describe it better than I can:

This is as clear and thought provoking a statement as I have seen yet of a theology of Scripture for emergence Christianity.  Phyllis Tickle

A wonderful exercise in biblical hermeneutics…Weaving in popular culture, well-informed Christian theological insights, and excitement for the Bible as uniquely revelatory, Condor and Rhodes lead us into a fresh new encounter with Scripture.  Will Willimon

And this, from a person whose radical insights about the Bible I trust deeply, and who is living it out it vibrant and admirable ways, Brian Walsh (co-author of Colossians Remixed and those moving fictionalized Biblical narratives in Beyond Homelessness)

There is, in this book, good news for those of us who are passionate about Scripture, deeply committed to community, and longing to experience the power of both with candor and openness in the midst of our pain, confusions, and disappointments.

40 Questions About Interpreting the Bible  Robert Plummer
& Benjamin L. Merkle (Kregel) $17.99 It seems to me that many of 
those who are regular church-goers and even active in a Bible study may
never have really studied just how to read the Bible well. They just do
it (or, more likely, don’t.)  This is an excellent, honest primer on how
to interpret the Bible faithfully, offering fine and fair answers to
very, very important questions. These questions move beyond the obvious
pointers towards a lively and faithfully conservative hermeneutic.   It
is quite clear and truly interesting. The authors happen to be Southern
Baptist, but their strongest blurb on the back is from Kevin Vanhoozer,
one of the best names in this biz (from Wheaton College.)  I enjoyed it a
lot—very nicely done.

Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics: Foundations and Principles of Evangelical Biblical Interpretation  Graeme Goldsworthy (IVP) $29.00  Okay, we are getting more academic, here, but this splendid Bible scholar from Australia is a gentleman all should know.  Three older books about the Bible and the Kingdom of God are available in one paperback, affectionately known as the “Goldsworthy triology.”  He has done stuff on IVP, on Eerdmans, on Paternoster.  This recent hardback has gotten rave, rave, reviews from the likes of Tremper Longman, Asbury’s Joel Green, Kevin Vanhoozer.  “Erudite and seasoned reflections” one scholar called these and even though they are about hermeneutical practice, there is lovely pastoral concern for the people of God as we read, interpret, and seek to live by God’s Word written.

Bible Babel: Making Sense of the Most Talked About Books of All Time  Kristin Swenson (HarperOne) $24.99  I hesitate listing this next to brilliant and reliable scholars like Goldsworthy, or faithful and honest strugglers like Condor or Blue.  Yet, here goes: it is a readable introduction to the Bible for those who are perhaps not familiar with its views or are unaware of these theological quandaries.  Robert Alter says it is a “breath of fresh air” and Stephen Prothero calls it “a book on the Bible for the rest of us.”  Well, I think the ones listed above are “for the rest of us” but you get what he means, believers or otherwise.  This is a call to Biblical literacy, aware of how the Bible shows up in popular culture (like that scene of raining frogs that perplexed fans of Magnolia or those ubiquitous fish symbols.)  Funny and feisty, informed by critical scholarship, this is an interesting intro for skeptics or seekers who need an honest, liberal take on “the biggest story ever sold.” 

Making Sense of Bible Difficulties: Clear and Concise Answers from Genesis to Revelation Norman Geisler & Thomas Howe (Baker) $13.99   Those who are exposed to undergrad introductions of the Bible, often
taught by unbelieving profs who are parroting out-dated critical
scholarship from a generation or more ago, sometimes start falling for
the credibility of the case against Scripture.  This is the sort of book
they should read before they dismiss the historic case for the
reliability of Scripture.  There are bigger and better books, I suppose,
but for my hard-earned cash, this is one solid resource that would
assure anyone that there can be great confidence in the orthodox view and that there are intellectually plausible ways to resolve some of the evident oddities of Scripture.  This is written in a “problem/solution” format, offering dozens of questions or problems—this text contradicts that one, this manuscript seems flawed, these dates seem out of sync, etc., etc.  This is an abridged and revised version of an older title, The Big Book of Bible Difficulties.

Words of Life: Scripture as the Living and Active Word of God Timothy Ward (IVP) $22.00 I’ve mentioned Kevin Vanhoozer.  I was truly struck by his remarks, “I have been on the lookout for a compelling and contemporary treatment of the nature and authority of Scripture for years.  I ask of every promising new title, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall I look for another?’ Ward’s book may be the one.  Words of Life rightly roots its thinking about Scripture in the doctrine of God, and that means trinitarian theology. His central insight: God’s word is something that God does…highly recommended.”  This is meaty stuff by a Team Vicar in England and has published an even meatier volume on Oxford.  Sterling reviews by the likes of Donald Macleod (Free Church of Scotland), J.I. Packer and Paul Helm (both from Regent) and Julia Harrdyman from Eden Baptist in Cambridge.  Heavy stuff, judicious, and shaped itself by the Scriptures themselves.  

Collected Writings on Scripture D.A. Carson (Crossway) $27.99  I have taken issue
withsome of Dr. Carson’s blunt dismissal of postmodern thinking and what I considered to be rather unkind polemics at times.  I suppose that is his style, and suppose he is just a fairly straight-forward writer. Some might suggest that his writing isn’t, uh, warm (but then again, most serious scholarship isn’t.)  Yet, he is one of the important Biblical scholars of our time, and his many books have found to be very, very helpful for many a young evangelical scholar.  He is a serious and weighty academic, and it is a great gift to have such a very handsome collection of some of his miscellaneous pieces on the authority and interpretation of Scripture.  I’ve long wanted to read some of these journal articles, essays, and book reviews, and am thrilled to promote this important volume which brings together these pieces in one place.  The usual serious suspects grace the back dust jacket—Michael Horton, Ligon Duncan, John Woodbridge.   Westminster Seminary’s Academic Dean, Carl Trueman sums it up well,

Scholarly, reverent, carefully argued, and generously footnoted, these pieces all make important contributions to current debates; and taken as a whole, they admirably expose the problems of the revisionism offered by certain voices within the church while pointing readers to a better way.

The day this came I turned to his thorough, critical engagement with Pete Enns important book Inspiration and Incarnation which helped give important insight to why he was so maligned in some circles.  And, I read with great interest his fine critique of N.T. Wright’s little book The Last Word. This is high caliber stuff and it is highly recommended.  If you know conservative evangelical scholarship, you know the caliber of his work.  If you are still reading this, but don’t find yourself familiar with this intellectual tradition, I’d invite you to check it out as an example of the level of discourse happening in places like Trinity, Deerfield, where Carson works.  His PhD, by the way, is from Cambridge, and he has authored over 50 books and is a recent co-founder of the “Gospel Coalition.”

Practice Resurrection: A Conversation on Growing Up in Christ Eugene Peterson (Eerdmans) $24.00  Did I save the best for last?  Perhaps so.  After all our evaluations of what the Bible is, how it comes to us and how it works, after our reflections on its grand flow and overall point, of how to read it and make sense of it and how to struggle with it, finally—yes—it comes down to reading it.  And one of our finest, pastoral, warm and thoughtful guides to careful reading is Eugene Peterson.  This is the fifth in his majestic series of “conversations” on spiritual theology.  It is a study of Ephesians.  I think my favorite may still be the very first (Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places) but it is not uncommon for other customers and friends to each have their own favorite; Eat This Book is precisely on how to read slowly and meditatively, so should be mentioned here.  Not a one has been poorly received and anybody who is interested in contemporary pastoral theology will own Peterson’s books.  Enough said.

I lesson five, “Developing the Christian Mind,” of the great, lucid, packed-with-content 6-session DVD by John Stott called The Bible & the Christian Life he notes how the apostle Paul rented a public hall to offer lectures for about 5 hours a day, six days a week, for two years.  “Not a measly one hour lecture like I am doing here for you” he says, wryly.  And I am struck hard: my, how little time I spend studying God’s Word.  How much I’ve accepted my intellectual state, such as it is, and not endeavored to seriously stretch myself.  How I’ve been seduced by the anti-intellectual ethos of our age.  How about you?

And so, here is a brief bibliography—not at all comprehensive, please note—of some mostly recent books that I think to be nearly essential for typical Bible students.  I hope you enjoy reading through it.  We would be pleased to serve you further if you have questions, and, of course, to sell some of these titles.  Thanks for your support.

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It has been a while since I’ve described books about Biblical studies.  There are so very many in that specialized field—from the mundane to the brilliant, the weird to the very helpful—that I hardly know where to begin.  I’ve been keeping a stack of recent ones here that I’ve been meaning to describe, and it seems that a few continue to cry out to be announced.  

I taught an adult education elective at our local church (First Presbyterian, York, PA) and attempted, in just a few weeks, to cover the basics of how the Scriptures came to be written, how they were chosen, how to best understand the basic plot-line of the unfolding Story, and how, then, to understand and interpret texts within the context of the redemptive Story told.

You can imagine that I used the “four chapter story” overview of creation, fall, redemption and consummation?  Or the seven acts of the drama described by N.T. Wright?  Or the “c” words that Brian McLaren introduced—creation, crisis, covenant, conversation, Christ, church, etc?  These are all very helpful ways to help folks keep in mind the big picture, a key to proper and fruitful Bible reading that simply cannot be overstated.

So, here are a few I’ve found helpful or interesting in recent months.  I’ll describe them, trying to highlight if they are complex and somewhat academic or if they are introductory or fairly basic.  As I say above, please know that this is in no way a comprehensive list of good recent books in our collection nor is it necessarily the essential top few.  I’ve listed some that are recent or helpful or important in some way, one’s that I wanted you, our readers, to consider.  Welcome to another idiosyncratic Hearts & Minds handful.  Do let us know if you have any questions (or, if you have personal favorites, list them as a “comment” to the post—not so much on facebook which isn’t permanent the way a “comment” would be.  Thanks.)

A FEW THAT ARE  SOMEWHAT INTRODUCTORY, BASIC, BUT STILL DESERVE A WOW!

This Book We Call the Bible: A Study Guide for Adults James Davison (Geneva) $10.95  Jim Davison is a pastor in Pittsburgh and this is a fine overview of how the Bible came to be, how best to understand its authority, and how to meaningful read and live it.  Designed for mainline denominational adult ed classes, it is very, very useful.  We have others on how the Scriptures were compiled, on canon formation, or the ways in which God’s book got written.  Everybody should read up on that from time to time.

The Last Word: Beyond the Bible Wars to a New Understanding of the Authority of Scripture N.T. Wright (HarperOne) $12.99  I wish I could say that few folks these days fall for the extremes approaches such as wooden unimaginative literalism (on one fundamentalist hand) and merely metaphoric, watered-down, this really isn’t God’s Word liberalism on the other.  Yet, with the popularity of deconstructing authors like Marcus Borg—whose recent novel I truly enjoyed and recommend, by the way, despite the inadequate views of the characters, and the rather squishy view in the new Brian McLaren book (another book worth studying with care) I think it is helpful to offer a resource that is robust, faithful, and yet is something other than the typical poles.  Of course the proof with Wright is in the reading of his good commentaries and scholarly texts (and his mid-range stuff, like the fantastic book called Following Jesus which I regularly recommend.)  Here, in this little one, he explains what we mean when we say the Bible is the Word of God and in what way in functions to be authoritative in our faith communities and personal lives.  Agree fully with his formulation or not, it is a courageously moderate view, and well worth considering.

Why The Bible Matters: Rediscovering Its Significance in an Age of Suspicion Mike Erre (Harvest House) $13.99  Erre wrote an okay book a while back called Jesus of Suburbia and then a good one called Why Guys Need God and an even better one called Death By Church.  He has gone beyond “hitting his stride” on this one, and has given us a master-piece, a great, great book—now my favorite introduction to the Bible.  I thought this might be mostly apologetics, insights about how to combat disbelief or to assure us of the reliability of the ancient texts.  His bibliography in the back (which is excellent) has plenty of those sorts of resources listed and categorized for beginners, moderate-level, or more advanced researchers. (Those who do ministry with skeptics might get the book just for this biblio.)

But, no, this is not what I thought, not exactly what the sub-title suggests—it is so much better! Why does the Bible matter?  It is God’s Story.  Stories show us what the world is like, and the Bible tells the truest story of all.  By borrowing generously from Mike Goheen and Craig Bartholomew (The Drama of Scripture will be described—again—below) and N.T. Wright and Leslie Newbigin and Mike Witmer and others who explore the essential narrative nature of Scripture, Erre has brought to a very popular reading level, some of the best Biblical innovations of our generation.  That is, he has read pretty widely, kept an open mind, brought together insights and teaching points from these other great scholars, and put ’em together in one heck of a readable and fun and funny book.  I’m telling you: this is the best introduction to the Bible, the best overview, the finest handbook to go along with your reading, especially if you have a bit of a youngish reading style.  Mike Erre is a hipster guy, way cool, formerly working at some missional church plant and eager to communicate well to a ne
w generation of  younger adults.  I love his stories, I love how he invites us into the Biblical story, how a Christian world-and-life view can shape who we are and how we live.  It is thorough enough to walk us through each phrase of the unfolding story, but it doesn’t get bogged down in detail.  It serves its purpose beautifully.  This is it!

The True Story of the Whole World: Finding Your Place in the Biblical Drama Craig Bartholomew & Michael Goheen (FaithAlive) $11.95  Before I discovered the lively Erre book (above) I have insisted that this is the best one-volume, brief, readable, intro to the Bible I knew of.   I love these authors and their “four chapter” overview, their telling of redemptive work of God as a worldview shaping narrative.  This significantly edited and abridged and re-designed version of The Drama of Scripture is still the best quick overview out there.  Leslie Newbigin’s fantastic little Walk Through the Bible captures the integrated nature of the one big story, but it is nearly too brief.  Walt Brueggemann’s provocative The Bible Makes Sense is a personal fav, but I’m afraid is just a little off-putting to a few that don’t always appreciate his metaphoric (and at times meteoric) rhetoric. We recommend it, but Bartholomew & Goheen are impeccable in their viewpoint and clarity.  So this is it– readable, balanced, radical, integrated, profoundly insightful, only 175 pages of nice-size type, great discussion questions, and pull quotes. For the size and profundity, it simply cannot be beat.  

God’s Shalom Project: An Engaging Look at the Bible’s Sweeping Story Bernhard Ott (GoodBooks) $7.95  This book is a translation of a splendid little work by a German Mennonite, which uses the topic of shalom as the unifying theme of the redemptive work of God.  It is clear, almost too brief, and includes a few provocative and insights, nicely explained.  Three cheers for this plainspoken, clear-headed Anabaptist approach.  But here is what makes this a fabulous resource.  At the end of every chapter he has a device where he writes a letter to a young man and woman, answering questions they allegedly wrote after reading that chapter. Ott says in the forward that he is a teacher, and loves the give and take that comes in a lively classroom, so this attempt to duplicate at least a bit of that sort of dialogical education.  He obviously cares for and respects young Monica and Peter.  I think you will find those conversation pieces, answering key questions and drawing out the implications of each era of the Biblical story.  There are good discussion questions, too, making this quick read a great little adult study.
 
DVD  John Stott on The Bible and the Christian Life: Six Sessions on the Authority, Interpretation, and Use of Scripture John Stott  (Zondervan) $19.99  These are content rich, systematic and learned lectures on the authority of the Bible, the nature of the Bible’s double authorship, principles for wise interpretation of the Bible, the problem of culture (the modern culture and the cultural setting of the Biblical texts), how the Scriptures informs the Christian mind, and how to make an impact on society.  These rich lectures, given live a few years ago at All Souls London, are very, very helpful for those who haven’t studied this important sort of material.  Stott is one of our chief influences, a man of great evangelical passion–some say he was the “Billy Graham of England” in the middle and later parts of the 20th century—who is yet reasonable, thoughtful, a bit progressive on social issues, and insists of a Biblical worldview, faithful and fair.  Highly recommended.  (Each lecture is about 50 minutes, but there are stopping places if you want to discuss together.  I know one group that did this 6 week DVD in 12 weeks and still had plenty to discuss.)

The Bible and the Land and Jesus, the Middle Eastern Storyteller Gary M. Burge (Zondervan) both $14.99  My, my, what splendid paperback handbooks, with glossy paper and great full-color photographs, in this set called “Ancient Contexts, Ancient Faith.”  This includes much more than standard introductory helps, maps, or inspiring Holy Land photography, though.  These great books truly unlock some of Burge’s keen insights about Biblical land and culture and are really useful in opening up our understanding of the original meaning of both Older and Newer Testaments.  He has spent years learning about (and critiquing) one-sided Christian Zionism, and has a deep love for both Jews and Palestinians.  These two paperbacks would appeal to those who like the nuanced, passionate and somewhat innovative insights of the likes of Old Testament professor Walter Brueggemann, or New Testament genius, Kenneth Bailey.  Very accessible, but really exciting, presented in a lovely visually appealing format.  (For a somewhat more scholarly overview of his view of how Christian Zionism misunderstands the role of land in the Bible, see his new Jesus and the Land: The New Testament Challenge to “Holy Land” Theology  [BakerAcademic; $21.99  or, for a more contemporary political and sociological plea, read the important Whose Land? Whose Promise? What Christians Are Not Being Told About Israel and the Palestinians [Pilgrim Press; $23.00.] Burge is a New Testament professor at Wheaton College.

The Invitation: A Simple Guide to the Bible Eugene Peterson (NavPress) $16.99  I don’t care what you think of the creative paraphrase The Message (although almost everybody that uses it likes much of it, even if one has quibbles about this portion or that, as I do.)  I think it should be evident that Peterson is one of the great theological writers of our time, and everyone should own a few of his important books (at least his devotional reflections on the Psalms, Long Obedience in the Same Direction and the powerful Where Your Treasure Is, for starters.) The Invitation is simply a handsome hardback collection of the introductions to each book of the Bible as they appear in The Message which are both literate and insightful.  These beautifully rendered set-ups to each and every book helps you see what will happen in that book of the Bible and how it fits in and adds to the ongoing narrative plot.  I have turned to this time and again, enjoyed and learned, have been blessed and challenged, even moved to tears.  I think this makes a great gift for nearly anyone who loves the Bible, or is learning to read the Bible for the first time, or who has made new commitments to enter into conversation with the text of the Scripture.  Nice.

God*Stories: Explorations in the Gospel of God Andrew Wilson (Cook) $14.99  Not sure what so appealed to me to pick this up—the typewriter text on the cover, the allusive title, the big claim on the back which says “the gospel is bigger than you think.”  Of course, I applaud any book that attempts to not only unlock the storied nature of the texts of Scripture, but intends to unite them, showing that they are not mere random episodes or quaint lessons or morality tales, especially if it well-written, clever, interesting, and invites u
s to sincere appropriation of the grace which is central to the gospel.  As this puts it “if we’re not careful, we can take a story about Jesus rescuing creation and reduce it to a story about ourselves.  We can turn stories into statements, and poems into punchlines. We can miss the sweeping, triumphant, heartbreaking, and glorious stories that make up the gospel of God.”  Wilson holds a degree in theology from Cambridge.  Love those Brits, who seem ahead of most American evangelicals.  Discover more online at www.GodStoriesBook.com.  Order it from us, of course.

The Bible as Improv: Seeing & Living the Script in New Ways Ron Martoia (Zondervan) $14.99  Let me make something clear: this recent talk about the Bible being a drama or Story or script, and that we engage and are shaped by it and, now, live out of it in improvisational ways, is not saying the Bible isn’t true, or that it isn’t God’s Word, or that we don’t have to obey it faithfully.  Although this “improv” approach to “the Script” in “new ways” may give some traditional thinkers the willies, rest assured.  This author is pushing us to be faithful, to live as the Spirit guides as we think through what it means to live out this stuff in real and fruitful ways.  “This book will change the way you read The Book” says Mark Batterson, lead pastor of National Community Church.   Well, maybe that sounds controversial, but I don’t think it really is.  Surely we want to “get it right,” right?  Shouldn’t we want to repent of bad readings and unhelpful approaches and crass misunderstandings?  Reading such books that push us to be open to getting it right, or closer to right, should be received as the blessing they are intended to be.  I don’t think this is that controversial, although missional guru Alan Hirsch suggests it may be: “Surely the Bible, of all books. out to stimulate serious dialogue.  If it doesn’t we should wonder whether it is being read properly. Ron provides us with a completely unconventional and deliciously controversial look into how we interpret Scripture, or rather, how we allow it to interpret us.”  I think Hirsch is correct in noting that this may be new—putting ourselves into the entire narrative sweep and regaining a big-picture view.  But it shouldn’t be seen as controversial.  Just a whole lot of fun.  For a deeper, more complex call to the same sort of project, read my comments on another similar, meaty volume called Free for All below.

God’s Big Picture: Tracing the Story Line of the Bible and Life’s Big Questions: Six Major Themes Traced Through the Bible Vaughan Roberts (IVP) $13.00 each I like the way this first one uses a movie themed overview of the grand plot of the Bible.   It looks at the theme of the Kingdom of God by studying it as patterned, perished, promised; it moves to the partial kingdom, the prophesied, the proclaimed, and the perfected Kingdom.  What a great way to teach the whole big plot in a few simple studies. The second one explores these “big question” topics, tracing how the Bible presents foundational ideas. It explores “Who Rules the World” by way of Psalm 2; “Who Am I” by way of Psalm 8 and Hebrews 2; God’s marriage (drawn mostly from Ezekiel 16 but actually is a summary of each of the “p” words in the Big Picture book), wealth and possessions (I Timothy 6:6-19); the Holy Spirit (a study of the role of the Spirit in John) and “God and the Nations” in Isaiah 66.  Both are slim, pocket paperbacks, really useful, clear summaries, and good discussion questions.

Ruth: The Story of God’s Unending Redemption Robert A. Wauzzinski (Dordt College Press) $14.00  You know of our desire to promote books about the big picture of Scripture, how to best understand the major chapters of the grand Story, our effort to help folks be faithful and fruitful with a wise and appropriate study of the whole counsel of God.  Most of the books I’ve mentioned above share the conviction that the authoritative Word is one major story, with a coherent, redemptive plot that shows God’s promise and fulfillment.  To reject any significant tension between Old and New Testaments and to reject any reductionism or sentimentalism that fails to see the way in which God’s faithfulness to creation is need of the hour.  I don’t know who tends to drop these balls more often, mainline liberals or conservative independent folks, Catholics or Orthodox.  Nearly everyone needs a refresher, I’d say, on how best to read the Bible in coherent and realistic ways that point to God’s reign coming and our role in the Story the Scripture tell.

One way to do this is to study a certain book of the Bible with a view not only of teaching that book of the Bible, but of modeling faithful and wise and fruitful engagement with the text.  I’ve reviewed this stunning new study at the blog, so won’t say much more here, except that we commend it for anyone that wants to study Ruth, and who wants to see how best to study any given book of the Bible in its place within the bigger story of God’s shalom project.  Wauzzinski knows this Bible book well—he’s taught it in synagogues and prisons, in college Bible studies and congregations large and small. He’s got a particular focus on the history of intellectual ideas, a degree in philosophical economics, and he is an ordained Presbyterian (USA) minister.  This book isn’t a serious commentary, and it isn’t a fill-in-the-blank inductive study.  It is short enough to be used as an adult elective or book group, and challenging enough that nearly anyone will learn new insights—about Ruth, about the Bible, and about how to read the Bible in a way to hear God’s Word to us anew.  Highly recommended.

We have more books about relationship, sexuality, marriage, family, parenting, baby-care, teen care, aging and elder care than you can imagine.  Some promise quick solutions if you follow their easy plan.  We sometimes roll our eyes at these, and even mock a few that are too cheesy.  Yet, folks are dying for good conversation, eager for help, in such need of common sense advice (at least) and (even better) balanced and helpful faith-based wisdom, that a little intentional time spent reading and learning nearly anything is bound to help.

Still, I like the advise in the closing to John Piper’s recent book on marriage. In explaining why his book doesn’t describe the sociological benefits of strong marriages and the pragmatic stuff, he writes,

Focusing on the pragmatic effects of marriage undermines the very power of
marriage to achieve the effects we desire.  In other words, for the sake of all
these beneficial practical effects, we should not focus on them.  This is the way
life is designed by God to work. Make him and the glory of his Son central, and you
get the practical effects thrown in.  Make the practical effects central, and you
lose both.

Here, then, are some that we regularly recommend, some of which are fairly practical, and a few that are more foundational in nature; all are well written and a delight to read.  Why read the dumb ones when you can find the richest and most useful?  This started as a list to be used in a pre-marital setting and I adapted it to suggest to a small group wanting to read something together. We think these are all quite good in their own way.  Enjoy.
 
As For Me and My House: Crafting Your Marriage to Last  Walter Wangerin (Nelson) $14.99  This is part teaching, part memoir, typically passionate Wangerin— great stories, by one of our great living authors. Stuff about forgiveness and communication and failure and goodness.  A good discussion guide in the back is beneficial for anyone, couples or small reading groups.  I suppose it doesn’t explain all that a pre-marital course should cover, but it is a wonderful, wondeful book, and a H&M favorite.  I know a pastor who gives it as a wedding gift, and tells the starry-eyed couple to read it in ten years.  I’d say read it now, and every five years for the rest of your life.
 
Intimate Mystery: Creating Strength and Beauty in Your Marriage  Dan Allander & Tremper Longman (IVP) $13.00  I really loved their bigger book based on Genesis (Intimate Allies) which uses a “case study” approach of marriage problems, and then referring back to the “original plan” in Genesis, but it maybe was a bit much for most folks. So this new one is fabulous, and much more useful since it is more slim.  It uses the framework of “leaving and cleaving” and it is wonderful to see a shrink and a Bible scholar working together like this.  There were, with the previous hardcover edition, a set of Bible study guides for each chapter, which now, in the paperback, are included in the back of the book making it a gem to have.  There is a DVD, too.  Excellent, solid, beautiful stuff.  Highly recommended.
 
The Mystery of Marriage: Meditations on the Miracle Mike Mason (Multnomah) $13.99   Contemplative, rich, thoughtful, deeply spiritual, quite lovely. I cannot say how much I was touched by this beautiful read.  Eloquent and elegant, and just a bit mystical, it may therefore not be for just everyone.  A favorite of many, though;  there is nothing like it in print!  His friend and mentor J.I. Packer writes the tender forward.  Later, get his wondrous collection of brief reflections, The Mystery of Children.
 
Sacred Marriage Gary Thomas (Zondervan) $14.99 This, too, attempts to offer more the “reason for” and “meaning of” like Mike Mason, but it not as deep or richly mystical as his.  Still, this is a wonderful look at the deeper theological and spiritual nature of marriage.  His tag line is “what if marriage wasn’t to make us happy, but make us holy.”  Whew.  Still, he’s not a heavy writer, tells nice stories, and brings this spirituality stuff into the ordinary, daily work of crafting a Godly marriage. There is a companion called Devotions for the Sacred Marriage: A Year of Weekly Devotions for Couples (Zondervan; $14.99; hardcover) too, which is a nice gift to give, or which could be used a resource during the pre-marital time. (By the way, I’d read anything Gary Thomas writes. Amongst his books on spirituality, Christ-like character formation,  even one on enjoying the pleasures of life, he has also written the excellent Sacred Parenting and Devotions for Sacred Parenting which, like the marriage ones, bring a nice blend of philosophic/spiritual stuff and practical stories.)

What Did You Expect? Redeeming the Realities of Marriage Paul Tripp (Presbyterian & Reformed) $21.99  This is brand new and just in time to offer a significant does of reality to happy couples being married this season, or an offering of great grace to those who are struggling, as we all do, East of Eden.  This is a seriously theological-informed study, yet applied in clear, pastoral wisdom to real people, with real expectations, and real hurts and sins and baggage.  Can God bring redemption to dysfunctional folk like us?  Does the Christian gospel empower us to live more joyfully, even in our aches and sorrows?  Can a Kingdom vision and a Christian worldview help us navigate a healthy and happy relationship?  Some may find Tripp’s strong views about gospel transformation off putting, but for many, it is the wondrous truth of the power of the gospel that is the only reliable foundation for a solid Christian marriage.  Highly recommended.

To Become One: After ‘I Do’ The Real Journey Begins  Chris Seay & Chad Karger (Relevant) $13.99  You may know Seay as a guru of pop culture; he’s written books on religious questions and insights found in The Matrix, The Sopranos, and, most recently, he did a nice book on Lost.  Here, his down-to-earth style, and his savvy awareness of younger adult culture, and the insight learned from being a third generation pastor (his grandfather and father were Baptist preachers) all combine in an interesting, theologically mature, insightful, a
nd very, very helpful way.  We recommend this book highly, and it seems to appeal well to those who are younger, a bit edgy, who don’t want pablum or cliches, but are eager for Biblically-rooted, practical advise that is authentic and hopeful and witty.  Very nicely done.
 
Gender and Grace: Love, Work & Parenting in a Changing World   Mary Stewart Van Leeuwn (IVP) $23.00 It may not be the first choice for marriage counseling as it is a bit rigorous, but I always recommend it, and truly hope many young folks read it and discuss it. If one doesn’t get this fundamentally right, there will be troubles…I think it is wise and thoughtful, but, admittedly, a bit heady and theological for some folks.  Every pastor should have it though, and foist it on anybody who will go for it.  As you may guess, it recommends a more egalitarian view of marriage and rejects the worldly constructs of stereotypical gender roles.  The sequel, also on IVP Academic,  which is a bit more demanding, is called My Brother’s Keeper? What the Social Sciences Do and Don’t Tell Us About Masculinity (in which, Beth and I are mentioned—ha!)  Very thoughtful.  
 
Marriage at the Crossroads: Couples in Conversation About Discipleship, Gender Roles, Decision Making and Intimacy  William & Aida Spencer and Steve & Celestia Tracy (IVP) $20.00  This is not a simple marriage guide or an easy-to-use class book; not eve a typical textbook.  It is sprawling, diverse, thoughtful, and very (very!) interesting.  These two couples differ in their assumptions: one couple describes themselves as “egalitarians” and the other as “complimentarians.” (For those not familiar with the term, it indicates a more traditionalist understanding of the complimentary role of men and women, using older views of “headship” and such which has arisen in the scholarly evangelical community in reaction to the rise of evangelical feminism.)  Each couple are vibrantly and robustly followers of Jesus, and they are each marriage counseling professionals.  So they bring their own personal marriages and their work as specialists to the table as they work their way through this extraordinary set of conversations.  It is very useful for those trying to figure out what to believe about what the Bible says and what our theological and doctrinal views might be, and it is equally practical, full of daily guidance and example of working out the details of a committed Biblical marriage.

This Momentary Marriage: A Parable of Permanence John Piper (Crossway) $17.99 I suppose regular readers might know that I do not agree with all of Piper, and yet, I really enjoy reading him, and recommend him always. He is a fiery Baptist with serious commitment to the specifics of the Bible, and he does his tough stuff with a tender heart and a hearty laugh. Of course, if we are to be Biblical people, we simply must deal with the texts (most notably in Ephesians) that talk about mutual submission, and then the ways in which men and women are called to live into the mystery–that marriage somehow signifies the breath-taking glory of Christ and His church.  I do like Piper’s passion, his thoroughness, his deep desire to place everything he writes about (in this case, marriage) in the context of the Christ-exalting, God-pleasing, worth-dying-for faith which makes much of God even as we die to self.  He is a fine pastor, here, walking folk thorough hard stuff, and reflecting deeply on the Bible and practical evangelical living.  I pity the person whose pastor offers cheap cliches of inspiration sentiment or the latest psycho-babble from the pages of a trendy journal.  In these trying times, married folk need this kind of meaty study, and I’d rather take exception to a page or two, than offer something more politically correct that is vapid.  For what it is worth, he has a bit about singleness (he’s for it) and divorce and remarriage (he’s against it.) This handsome little hardback is worth giving (or having on your nightstand) if only for the splendid subtitle which reminds us that marriage is a “parable of permanence.”  

Here is something else that is remarkable about this firm, little book.  Each chapters starts with an excerpt of the truly extraordinary insight of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s pastoral letter on marriage, known to us as a chapter in Letters and Papers From Prison.  Why not give that as a wedding gift: notes from a dying martyr…whew1  Kudos to Piper, like him or not, for wanting the supremacy of Christ to shine as we do marriage in counter-cultural ways that allow us to fully serve, love, pray and enjoy each other, and the world, for God’s sake.

Why Marriages Succeed or Fail…And How You Can Make Yours Last  John Gottman (Simon & Schuster) $15.00  This is not written from a Biblical perspective, but it emerges from what may be the most important marital research yet done.  Dr. Gottman has pioneered extraordinary methods of observing couples in action, and for 20 years has been documenting at his center/learning lab exactly how couples interact.  His tested methods show exactly what practices and traits are needed for a successful long-term relationship, and exactly what attitudes and habits create patterns that erode a happy marriage.  What he shows here is surprising (frequent arguing itself isn’t bad; financial problems aren’t the worst thing; more sex doesn’t necessarily improve a marriage.)  Gottman notices how habits of making sour faces—signs of contempt—are one of the most reliable indicators of a doomed marriage.

His breakthrough study of over 2000 married couple has lead him to make this remarkable claim that he can predict within 94% accuracy which people will stay marriage and which will divorce.  Coupled with a foundation of Biblical theology and graceful spirituality, I think this kind of secular book could be very, very helpful.

Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts: Seven Questions to Ask Before and After You Marry  Les & Leslie
Parrot (Zondervan) $19.99  Surprisingly insightful, these two authors are very sharp,
and I’d recommend anything they do (and they do a lot!)    This one is obviously most designed for pre-marital use, although I think
anybody could benefit from it.  It is a bit more psychological,
self-helpy and practical that the ones I’ve named above, so I’d recommend it be coupled with some sort
of substantial theology of marriage for a sound foundational framework.
Still, the Parrot’s pick the key topics of handling money, sexuality,
communication and such and offer very helpful insight into how to handle these matters.  It is really very fine, so engaging and useful. There are separate workbook guides
for men and women, too, that can be purchased separately. And, now,
there is a brand new DVD curriculum, too.  Very cool.

 Very, very valuable for some will be another one they did with a similiar title, Saving Your Second Marriage Before It Starts (Zondervan; $17.99) which is arranged in a similarly helpful format, designed for those going through a re-marriage.  That one, too, has workbooks for men and women to do on their own.  Again, it has a most practical flavor and although rooted clearly in the Christian faith, avoids serious Biblical questions regarding the appropriateness of remarriage.  This one offers “nine questions” to answer, geared specifically for those in this awkward sitatuion…

Drs. Les and Leslie have done some other popular marriage and family books, but one
little one that might be helpful is a small, very fun book, The Love
List (Zondervan; $14.99), which
names things couples should do once a day, once a week, once a month,
and once a year.  A lot of wisdom presented in a clever “check up” kind
of way.  Another invites men and women to “trade places” as they work through the habits of their relationship.  A very recent one documents different personality types and “love language” sorts of things.  We stock all of their work
 
Ten Great Dates Before You Say I Do  David & Claudia Arp (Zondervan) $12.99  These are fun and interactive “dates” that have a “point” or experience built in to then discuss.  What a great idea!  They wrote one years ago for married couples, now revised and entitled Ten Great Dates to Energize Your Marriage (and there is another one called Ten Great Dates for Empty Nesters) which have been so popular, they did a pre-marital one.  Fun and interesting and a good resource to have on hand, even if you don’t do (or have the couple do) all ten in a row.  Some groups have done the dates, and then gathered later to talk about how it went, what they learned, and process the conversations in the book.
 
Sheet Music: Uncovering the Secrets of Sexual Intimacy Kevin Lehman (Tyndale) $14.99  We have lots of fairly standard sexuality books—I still love the classic Eerdmans release by Lewis Smedes called Sex for Christians—which is arranged in three units: creation, fall, redemption.  I suspect that his Biblical/theological reflections are still the best. But we list this newer one by the ever-popular and creatively crazy Kevin Lehman because he is so upbeat, well known, and enjoyable to read. Excellent, even if it is pretty racy!   Clifford & Joyce Penner’s Gift of Sex (Nelson; $14.99) is often used for those who have no sexual experiences, who need clinical and instructional information. Very frank and clear.

Real Sex: The Naked Truth About Chastity Lauren Winner (Brazos) $14.99 Especially for those who are not yet or currently married, this is simply a must read; the best on the topic I know of for serious young adults.  Of course, Winner is a hip and serious writer, and her prose shines, her stories are very illuminating, and her broad vision is very solid. Did I say it was a must-read?  A, while you’re at it, get a hold of her other two, her conversion memoir, Girl Meets God and her Jewish-inspired set of spiritual practices, Mud-House Sabbath.

The Christian Lover: The Sweetness of Love and Marriage in the Letters of Believers Matthew Haykin (Reformation Trust Publishing) $15.00  I needn’t remind you how profound, deep, and eloquent old letters often are, and this handsome small hardback makes not only a very special gift and keepsake, it is a model of Christ-centered, beautiful renderings of the meaning of marriage.  A few of these are from famous folks, hymn-writers, Puritans, authors.  Most are not.  They are substantial and well worth reflecting upon (even if you aren’t a church history buff.) If you value the instincts of the past, though, this is a real gift. My, my, how folks used to think and write and live.

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A very interesting article appeared in Newsweek a couple weeks ago about the controversy that has been bubbling at Harvard University for the last few years around the topic of religion in their curriculum reform package.  Of course such a complex question cannot be adequately covered in a popular news mag, but I thought the Newsweek piece well worth reading, and want to encourage you to take a look.  It was called “Harvard’s Crisis of Faith” and you can read it here.

The topic of what college students should study, what constitutes a learned person—pointing to the bigger question of what constitutes a well-lived life—is being explored in colleges large and small.  (See, for instance, the excellent, recent, Religious Ideas for Secular Universities by the always profound and crisp writer, C. John Somerville [Eerdmans; $18.00.]) High schools, home-schoolers, private academies of all sorts are likewise asking good questions these days.  I love the play on words in Neil Postman’s excellent paperback The End of Education; that is, what is the end (as in, the point of or purpose of) education?  If one isn’t clear about that, it will spell, he shows, the end of (meaningful) education.  The debate about the role of religion in education (and, more broadly, in the debates with the new atheists–and, boy, do we have a lot of books on that) raises all this stuff.  Religious studies at Harvard is only one way into a very, very important conversation.  I hope you read the article if you haven’t yet and allow it to make you ponder.

Here is a little rumination brought on by my reading of the Newsweek piece, and a bunch of books to be aware of if this resonates with you as important. (Or, if I can be so bold, maybe a book or two to get if this doesn’t strike you as important.)  Either way, we’re glad you are a part of this virtual community around our work here at Hearts & Minds.  We hope you enjoy thinking about this with me.  Here goes.

There is a presumption in the conversation almost whenever this comes up which is clearly seen in the Steven Pinker quotes in the Newsweek Harvard/religion article, and in his long-standing, well-publicized anti-teaching-about-religion position; it is a view that is frankly implicit for most people, and, I think, in the article itself.  Namely, that there are those who are reasonable and scientific (fully free of religious values) and those that are into faith (and, well, perhaps a bit less reasonable insofar as they take their religion seriously or allow it to inform their thinking.)

 Many have been clear and helpful in exposing the fallacy of the second part of that, the insinuation that people of faith are unreasonable.  There are oodles of good books that make great arguments for the rational basis for basic Christianity, showing that there is reason for faith.  We have a huge section of that kind of work in the shop, from Ravi Zacharias to Eric Metaxas to Nancy Ortberg.  Tim Keller’s spectacular Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism (Riverhead; $16.00) comes to mind as a wonderfully written, very thoughtful, very enjoyable study.  If you haven’t picked it up yet, we really would recommend that you do.

Even more amazing is the brand new collection of excerpts of famous authors, a reader entitled Belief: Readings on the Reason for Faith edited and with an introduction by Francis Collins (HarperOne; $19.99.)  I mentioned this when it first came out a week or so ago and I can hardly say enough about it as an excellent book to read through, or to dip in to as you have need.  From ancients like Plato, Augustine or Aquinas through great thinkers like Lewis or Pascal or Alvin Plantinga and modern writers like Martin Luther King or Elie Wiesel or Tim Keller, this is a truly fabulous anthology.  You probably know of the editor, the former head of the human genome project and now the Director of the National Institute of Health for the Obama administration.  

However, the first part of that assumption (that some are simply not religious, worldviewishly neutral) is more subtle, more pervasive, and consequently more troublesome. This assumption that some are religiously neutral has been shown to be false and yet stubbornly is assumed by so many.  The Bible shows, the best philosophical minds have illustrated, and postmodern studies have developed, the key insight that nobody is value-free, philosophically innocent, religiously neutral or able to think outside of their own skin. All theories are themselves sprouts growing from some root.  Or, it might be said, at least, growing from some soil.  Or, to use the apt analogy of Dutch philosopher Herman Dooyeweerd, nobody on a barge puts their pole to push off on the bottom of the barge itself: they cast off of some firm foundation outside of the barge!

Everybody’s “firm” starting point (see Romans 1:21-25 for a blunt description of this as the
human condition) leads to a viewpoint and the (often unconscious) spectacles through which we see, which are formative in what and how we perceive and what we conclude.   It leads, in the language of Clouser, to “reductionism.”  This is nothing new–Chesterton and Lewis were elegant thinkers and eloquent writers about reducing the complexity of life down to nothing but…  Reductionism is bad enough, but it is frustrating when it is not admitted, when it is considered the natural truth of things, unbiased.  This is the huge fly in the ointment in the debate about Darwin and natural selection and intelligent design, for instance, as so many see that debate as being between those that do pure science—somehow allegedly devoid of a philosophy of science—and those that are essentially doing religion, not science. That is a huge example of the worldview bias we are talking about, this notion that some have ideologically pure vision and only religious people have presuppositions.  One good book on the philosophy of science is Science and Its Limits by Calvin College professor Del Ratzsch (IVP.)  Pretty heady stuff, but so, so important.  For a more entertaining dip into these waters, watch the Ben Stein DVD Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, the documentary about scholars in higher education who dared to question the reigning paradigm that only natural causes can explain things.  Dr. Ratzsch, by the way, is not a
part of the intelligent design movement; he wrote a book (Battle for Beginnings) on why “neither side” of the creation/evolution debate is winning…I think he’s on to something, and it is partially because he understands how deep presuppositions are shaped by faith-like commitments, that nobody is neutral, that all of life is religion.   

My friend blogger Dick Cleary has examined the Dover, PA ID trial–Scopes 2 some called it—of a few years back, just for example, offering this very critique of the ruling:  the judge and the prosecution—as much as we might intuit that they were right to expose the odd dealings of the confused Dover school board—simple had no evident understanding of the philosophy of science.  Read his provocative report here. Or, his serious piece on religion and science, here.  Cleary, himself a life-long science teacher and now college instructor in philosophy, is a master at exposing the unfounded assertions of the secularists and how they wrong-headedly say others have religious assumptions but fail to see their own equally un-testable, and therefore, pre-scientific views. 

It seems that we are all what Oxford University Press scholar Christian Smith calls “moral, believing animals” always serving, making-meaning, living as people out of the deepest recesses of our deepest convictions (or what the Bible calls idols.) The assumptions and presuppositions of the heart and mind shape and color all we do.  That is, Mr. Pinker’s naturalism is every bit a “faith like leap” as are the assumptions of the more traditionally religious (like Christians, Hindus, or Muslims, say.)  A pre-theoretical assumption is, finally, rooted in something outside itself–there are no “self-evident” truths, and all truth is shaded and construed in light of deeper heart-level presuppositions.  Nobody is not religious.

Some books (among many) that I could recommend to explore this further: Total Truth: Liberating Christianity from Its Cultural Captivity by Nancy Pearcey (Crossway; $19.99) is a magnificent and sprawling study of the ways in which the split-level assumption (that there is true truth learned through reason and there are subjective values learned through religion) has deformed faith and reason, church and society.  It is a rigorous read, but lays bare this cultural assumption in very helpful and profound ways.  I simply cannot imagine being an informed and opinionated person without being at least fluent in the arguments she makes. 

More philosophically demanding, but still written for educated lay people who are not professional philosophers, and a must for anyone serious about higher education or seeing how belief shapes the academy I fully recommend the very important The Myth of Religious
Neutrality: An Essay on the Hidden Role of Beliefs in Theories  by Roy Clouser (University of Notre Dame Press; $29.95.)  I’ve talked about this often at workshops for scholars or serious students, the Emerging Scholars Network, and other such venues.  It is a remarkably important piece of work. 

Nearly any book on worldviews names this problem, too. Think of Brian Walsh & Richard Middleton’s Transforming Vision (my favorite worldview study) or James Sire’s small  Naming the Elephant: Worldview as a Concept, for instance, or the major work he drew upon in writing it, Worldview: The History of a Concept by David Naugle, published to great acclaim by Eerdmans.  The two books I first recommend for postmodern studies, too, get at this in their own way: see the delightfully written and very interesting book by Crystal Downing, How Postmodernism Serves (My) Faith (IVP) or James K.A. Smith’s Whose Afraid of Postmodernism? (Baker) for a nice introduction to this deconstruction of meta-narratives, and all that that implies.  For theological conservatives who get the willies thinking about this, just go back to Van Til or Francis Schaeffer–they predicted this postmodern insight generations ago, naming how all of life is lived either out of God’s grace or based on an idol of some aspect of the created order made into a god.  All of these books expose this myth of religious neutrality, and show how all of life is informed by the deepest imaginations and convictions of the human heart.  Philosophers call this an a priori.  Clouser masterfully and carefully shows how the a priori starting point of a theory determines how the discipline is understood and perhaps practiced.  Of course it is more complicated that this—it is why I named James K.A. Smith’s Desiring the Kingdom: Worship, Worldview and Cultural Formation, which reflects on our worldly rituals and cultural liturgies and practices as shaping us and our worldviews, as one of the books of the year last year.  But it is still true: ideas have consequences.  Or, as arts writer and Christian philosopher Calvin Seerveld has put it: ideas grow legs.

This is readily seen, isn’t it, in our recent health care debates, just for instance: our presuppositions, our starting assumptions about the role of the state and the common good, about personal liberty and individualism and consequentially, our attitudes about whether high taxes are good or bad, will then determine whether one is a political liberal or conservative, in favor of increased government involvement in health care or not.  Obvious, right?  Everybody’s opinion on policy is really a working out of their deeper worldview-level thoughts (beliefs?) about very basic stuff. [An aside: it is interesting to me that many evangelicals who are social conservatives have this instinctual suspicion of the state, which, it seems to me, comes from a worldview of the secular Enlightenment, more influenced by John Locke or Thomas Jefferson than, say, Romans 13, that says that government is, in principle, a gift of God, and therefore a good thing.  Why evangelicals gripe about taxes for the common good is beyond me, but that’s another worldviewish conversation.  It does presume, though, a certain view of the state, a view that is often unquestioned.  And held as an item of faith. No?]  Which reminds us that every dogma or proposal, from politics to science to the beliefs about the role of religion at Harvard or your school or workplace, is rooted in religious-like convictions.  Even if those who advocate those views deny it.

Ditto in every discipline; how can an otherwise brillant thinker and genial fellow like Dr. Pinker and other secularists not see this?  Clouser even uses mathematics as an example, thinking if he can show how deep-level religious-like beliefs shape the theories in math, we can see it more easily in other areas that he explores, such as physi
cs and politics. An old friend who recently died (and is missed by many out at Kent, Ohio) Kenn Hermann wrote a very good review of this book–it is a five page PDF and it would be great for you to at least read his good remarks about it.  James Skillen did a brief but excellent summary of it here in the Citizens for Public Justice report.

 The Myth of Religious Neutrality is a very, very important book and I would think it would be on the lips of college faculty, grad students, and sharp undergrads everywhere, especially those in the sciences.  I think it is nearly professional malpractice for scholars to not understand a little about the role of faith and theories, about what Berger calls “the social construction of reality” and the ways worldviews color ideas.  Each of these books mentioned above make a similiar case, and it leads to this: Clouser is a must-read for Christian scholars!

If I might implore Christian theologians, pastors and anybody who works in education: please consider reading this kind of stuff. I hope the links and reviews inspire you to want to read more about the philosophical underpinnings of ideas.  We need to be prophets, really, detectives, with wise cultural discernment.  What we think about the deepest questions matters, and the “below the service” worldviews that we breath like air effect us.    Teachers, at least, should at least read C.S. Lewis’ Abolition of Man on this, or the simple Oxford University Press paperback by historian, George Marsden called The Outrageous Idea of Christian Scholarship.  You may know the story of the title of that book: the New York Times called the notion that the eminent scholar practices a Christian philosophy of history “outrageous” so his Oxford editors invited him to explain himself.  It was from the title of that book for professors and scholars that Donald Opitz and Derek Melleby got their title, for their book for high school students making the college transition, or for any undergrads, The Outrageous Idea of Academic Faithfulness (Brazos Press.) To be such an outrageous, young Christian scholar may lead to some derision; at Harvard, apparently, some don’t even want to study religion, let alone take it’s claims seriously.  This book can help.

In this perspective, secularism can be as much of a dogma, and is always rooted in some faith story, as is evangelical faith or Orthodox Judaism.  The Newsweek article hints that Pinker and others who stubbornly extol the sole use of Reason for determining truth verge on being (rationalist) “fundamentalists.”  Yet, it seems that the author is of two minds about this.  It seems like the extreme and vocal secularity of Pinker is what makes him, in the author’s view, a fundy.  I think I want to say we are all fundamentalists, after all (some are just more honest and civil about it.)  We’ve all got fundamentals that are deeply held, and we live and die by them. (Or maybe you are aghast at the thought, which, then, for you, serves as your fundamental non-negotiable creed, eh?)   For some of us it is certain Biblical dogma, others of us describe this as an unfolding journey, for some it is an ideology like Darwinism or Marxism.  Everybody believes, and in that sense, all are religious.

Knowing this helps us navigate justly the pluralism of the public square, not just the Ivy League squabbles about religion at Harvard. As the quite excellent and moving last book by the late Robert Webber asks, Who Gets to Narrate the World?(IVP.)  Or, as the new Eerdmans collection by the aforementioned Peter Berger puts it, the world is desperate for a third alternative, and a way to adjudicate peacefully, the claims made “between relativism and fundamentalism.” It is called Between Relativism and Fundamentalism: Religious Resources for a Middle Position (Eedmans; $17.00.)  The sooner we understand the “myth of religious neutrality” the sooner we can move towards the “cosmopolitan public square” called for by Os Guinness’ very important The Case for
Civility (HarperOne.)  From Harvard Yard to your backyard, this stuff plays itself out in culture wars, political tensions, and increasing hostilities.  We dare not try to cover up religion, or yield the day to those who want to marginalize people of faith while they privilege their own empiricism or positivism.  But, as Guinness sweetly shows, we dare not, as people of faith, fight back with any desire to “re-take” our country or insist or a Christian imperialism.  We resist a secular “naked” public square, but do not counter with a sectarian one.  We should be for pluralism: freedom of and from religion, and a social structure that permits a fair and robust debate about it all.  We are a believing race, people whose deepest convictions are contested, even in the sciences.  Bring on the conversation and civil debate.  At Harvard and in your hometown, your church, your college, your blog.

Religious Ideas for Secular Universities C. John Somerville  regularly $18.00  NOW $14.40
The End of Education Neil Postman regularly $15.00  NOW $12.00
The Reason for God  Tim Keller  regularly $16.00  NOW $12.80
Belief: Readings on the Reason for Faith Francis Collins regularly $19.99  NOW $17.99
Science and Its Limits Del Ratzsch  regularly $16.00  NOW 12.80
Battle for Beginnings Del Ratzsch  regularly $20.00  NOW $18.00
DVD Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed  regularly $26.99  NOW $21.60
Total Truth Nancy Pearcey  regularly $19.99  NOW $17.99
Myth of Religious Neutrality Roy Clouser  regularly $28.00  NOW $22.40
Transforming Vision Richard Middleton & Brian Walsh  regularly $16.00  NOW $12.80
Naming the Elephant James Sire  regularly $16.00  NOW $12.80
Worldview:The History of a Concept David Naugle  regularly $30.00  NOW $24.00
How Postmodernism Serves (My) Faith Crystal Downing  regularly $19.00  NOW $15.20
Whose Afraid of Postmodernism?  James K.A. Smith  regularly $17.99  NOW $14.39
Desiring the Kingdom  James K.A. Smith  regularly $21.99  $17.59
Abolition of Man C.S. Lewis  regularly $11.99  NOW $9.59
Outrageous Idea of Christian Scholarship George Marsden  regularly $19.99  NOW $17.99
Outrageous Idea of Academic Faithfulness Don Opitz & Derrick Melleby $13.99  NOW $11.19
Who Gets to Narrate the World? Robert Webber  regularly $15.00  NOW $12.00
Between Fundamentalism and Relativism  Peter Berger regularly $17.00  NOW $13.60
The Case for Civility Os Guinness  regularly $23.95  19.16

God in Dispute: “Conversations” Among Great Christian Thinkers Roger
Olson (Baker Academic) $24.99 Yes, this is a hoot of a book, creative and maybe
a bit crazy, offering imagined conversations between historic figures. And, yes,
it is exceptionally rigorous as an educational text. In other words, while he
constructed these complex and serious pretend conversations, he ain’t makin’
this stuff up! It is a creative overview of the history of Christian thought,
from the Early Church through the 21^st Century. In each chapter he
pairs two or more conversation partners and offers scripts as they debate the
issues they were most known for.(Think, perhaps, of the work of Peter Kreeft, on
theological steroids.) Olson is a prolific church historian and theologian and
is well qualified to “get into the minds” of these thinkers, representing them
fairly. There are 29 long conversations, so there is plenty of detail and it
covers acres of ground. He does not playfully pair folks from widely different
eras (no, we don’t have Polycarp talking with Barth) but reasonably plausible
debates: Augustine and Pelagius; Bucer interviewing a host of Reformation era
leaders (nicely including Grebel and Servetus alongside the usual suspects of
Calvin, Luther, and the boys.) There is a bit of humor here on occasion such as
when he sets up one chapter as “Medieval Scholastic Philosopher-Theologian
Thomas Aquinas and Tree-Hugger Francis of Assisi Enthuse on How to Know God.”
Some are very pressing, such as the one called “Theologians Liberal
Rauschenbusch and Conservative Machen Argue About True Christianity, the Bible,
Evolution and Doctrine” or one on liberation theology joining Rosemary Ruethuer,
James Cone & Gustavo Gutiérrez. The last, on emergent/post-modern theology
is too brief, and no names are listed, presumably so as not to appear to be
putting words in the mouths of real, working scholars.

Okay, this is perfect for any geeky theology nerds, or, to be honest, anybody
willing to work through some of the greatest debates with the greatest minds of
Western history. Hold on, dig in, have fun. This is a theology text that
deserves some kind of award! I wonder who he’ll invite up to the stage to
receive it, and what words he’d put in their mouths? Accepting this award on
behalf of the author will be John Chrysostom, John Calvin, and Dietrich
Bonhoeffer. Whewie!

THE WHAT? AWARD: YES, THE BEST FESTSCHRIFT OF THE YEAR

The Fabric of Faithfulness: Weaving Together Belief &
Behavior
Steven Garber
(IVP, 2007) $16.00

In the mid 1990s I had this long, wonderful, interesting conversation–late,
late into the night—with my friend Steve Garber. He was working on his Ph.D.
in education, trying to learn through research, vast reading, great
conversations with leading mentors and educators, and tons of first hand
interviews with not-so-young-adults—what caused Christian faith to take hold
in meaningful, long-lasting, and integrated ways. I was happy to regale him with
stories of my own college years, and into my journey with the Coalition for
Christian Outreach (CCO) doing campus ministry. Steve and I had many mutual
friends, some common interests, and shared an affinity for professor of
philosophical aesthetics, Calvin Seerveld, and all-of-life-redeemed philosopher
/preacher Dr. Peter J. Steen, and the agrarian essayist and poet, Wendell Berry.
Each gave feisty and academic legs to the vision of God’s Kingdom coming in
every area of life and invited us to live life with an earthy, Christian
lifestyle. Steve told me about his early days as a college student living in
community and running a thoughtful, Christian activist newspaper and his days
learning from Francis and Edith Schaeffer in their Swiss study center, L’Abri. I
told him about my feeble activism on behalf of the United Farm Workers,
advocating for nonviolent social justice in ways inspired by Martin Luther King
and Cesar Chavez. Mostly, we pondered how in God’s great grace He has drawn us
to good authors—I think I was re-reading J.I. Packer’s Knowing God at
the time—and the good people in our lives who kept us going as we attempted to
live faithfully for Christ’s reign in our callings, careers, and vocations.

I didn’t know, or don’t recall thinking, that this interview would end up
being in a book, let alone a book that great leaders (from Stanley Hauerwas to
James Sire) would insist was one of the best books about the journey of young
adult faith into serious, integrated whole-life discipleship. After having
read Fabric of Faithfulness: Weaving Together Belief & Behavior in the
University Years,(first released in late 1996) and enjoying the many, many
stories of fellow pilgrims who told their stories to Steve, I realize that my
little late night interview wasn’t all that vital. Some of the stories, however,
are truly amazing, and some of the folks he tells of in the book are stunning in
their insight and eloquence. Still, all of us who were interviewed, nearly every
one, had some testimony of the same three things, three things that Steve has
identified through research, reading, and his excellent knack of listening so
very well, to be the things that most characterize what Eugene Peterson’s book
on the Psalms calls “a long obedience in the same direction.” Three things that
help us keep on keeping on, long after the heady and idealistic years of campus
fellowship groups and young adult commitments.

Sure, Peterson swiped the line from Neitzsche. And Garber swipes lines from
everybody from abolitionist William Wilberforce to novelist Walker Percy, from
Bono to Beavis, from third century Augustine to twentieth century Newbigin, from
Calvin (and Hobbes) to Calvin (of Geneva.) It makes for a fun and engaging read,
a contemporary and urgent book, at once learned and urgent. I mention it often
in my own book reviewing and public speaking; it has become a touchstone of
sorts, a classic.

When pondering the best non-fiction Christian books of this decade, in fact,
a few continue to impress me, haunt me, challenge me, and reassure me. Among
others I could name, I think Brian Walsh & Sylvia Keesmaat’s remarkably
faithful, postmodern Bible study, Colossians Remixed: Subverting the
Empire (IVP) and the delightful and insightful Culture-Making:
Recovering our Creative Calling by Andy Crouch (IVP) or all three of the books by Lauren Winner stand out for
me as perhaps the truly most significant of the 2000s.

Yet, in the later half of that first decade of the new century, Steve
Garber’s Fabric of Faithfulness was re-issued by InterVarsity Press,
allowing me to declare here that it is “the book of the decade.” Of
course the great new cover really helps and the shortened subtitle (showing that
its audience is most often those who have graduated from college and, perhaps
approaching mid-life like many of those interviewed in the book, were longing to
more fully understand the relationship of the Biblical themes of vocation and
the Kingdom of God.) Yes, that subtitle makes it clear that this is a book about
integrity, about living with coherence and clarity about “connecting the dots”
between our deepest worship on Sunday and our deepest struggles on Monday. Such
integration is the foundation upon which long-term, hopeful discipleship
emerges.

But, most importantly, there is, quiet significantly, a fabulously
interesting and very important new introduction and afterward.

These two new chapters, which include moving stories about William Wilberforce,
about valiant Chinese dissidents, about Steve’s’ meetings with the likes of
seeking rock star Billy Corgan or Peter Gabriel, are among Garber’s most
eloquent writings, and they set the stage for the re-launch of Fabric as
a truly adult book. It is to some extent about learning, about young people in
their yearnings for a life of coherence, and it was written when Steve was
mostly working with collegiates. Deans and administrators and educators have
used it. He does talk about rock stars and youth trends and pop culture. So,
yes, yes— it is a book even for college students. But more, especially with
the significant new book-ends of powerful forward and afterward—you have to
read them for yourselves to see what I mean—this is now more than ever for
anyone who longs for the deepest joys of discovering a sense of vocation, of
relating faith to their tasks in this sorrowful, broken world, for those who
long to make a difference, in the arts, culture, business, civic life or other
areas where a Christian worldview might most profoundly shape our thinking and
practices, allowing us to engage the societal pressures and resist the cultural
forces so well described and analyzed within these pages.

So. Book of the Decade it is, thanks to the expanded edition that appeared in
2005. I thought to celebrate it here at decade’s end I would reprint a review I
did when the book first appeared in the late ’90s. I’ve changed very little, and
trust this long review will convince you that this is a book worth having, a
book worth reading and re-reading, a book worth working on, discussing, and
sharing. See more of Steve’s writing at the Washington Institute on Vocation, Vocation, Culture.

In the middle of the remarkable new book The Fabric of
Faithfulness, Steve Garber tells the

story of a meeting with one of his
students, a student who “asked wonderful questions about important ideas.” As
one experienced in mentoring college students, Garber saw that the student
seemed not to take his intellectual search all that seriously. Our author found
himself doubting that the fellow “really understood the difference of truth and
the difference it makes.” In a move which seems uncharacteristic for the gentle
teacher, Garber issued an ultimatum: he would talk no further with this student
until he watched all of the films of Woody Allen, from Annie Hall on. It
should be a clue as to who might enjoy this book, as well as who ought to.

Laden with quotes from popular cartoons, film and rock music, The
Fabric of Faithfulness is a book which takes young people–specifically
people in their university years (what developmentalist Sharon Parks calls “the
critical years”) and their culture seriously. In fact, it is a book that takes
everything seriously, including the quest for meaning in Woody Allen movies.
(Indeed, at least one critical reader has suggested that this is a hindrance of
the book: it perhaps takes itself too seriously.) For those who want a light
read, or rather formulaic principles for spiritual success, this is not the book
for you.

At times lyrical, nearly always eloquent, occasionally written with such
wisdom it can only be called profound, The Fabric of Faithfulness
is a passionate plea for those who work in higher education to help young people
develop a coherent and meaningful worldview which issues forth in a life-long
commitment to relevant, radical discipleship. In the face of the obstacles that
latter-day modernity and the dawning postmodern milieu place before us, which
Garber helpfully explores to considerable benefit, his desire to help students
weave together beliefs and behavior is no small thing. That he apparently has
motivated some of his young friends and students to struggle towards a
thoughtful, evangelical faith which is able to stand, even amidst broken lives
and perverse culture, earns him the right to tell his story.

As the author points out in the opening pages, however, the story of this
book is significantly intertwined with the stories–successes and failures,
brave attempts and false starts, foibles and faithfulness–of the scores of
people he interviewed for the book. It is their animating presence throughout
The Fabric of Faithfulness that gives it such a real-life feel and
keeps the philosophical reflections (with visits from Richard Bernstein,
Alastair MacIntyre, George Steiner and Lesslie Newbigin) from becoming
ivory-tower speculation. Its ultimate practical application is seen in rave
advance reviews from the likes of InterVarsity Press’s resident intellectual
guru James Sire (who called it “the best book on moral education I’ve ever
encountered”) and Stanley Hauerwas, Duke University’s resident alien, who wrote,
“If there is any book I would want to give to a son or daughter going off to
college, it would be this one.”

If the playful yet deadly serious question “Why do I get up in the morning?”
is asked by Professor Garber to his college students, he asked similarly
pregnant queries of the 40- and-50-somethings he interviewed for
Fabric. His guiding passion was to determine what happened to
folks who got serious about their faith in their college years that enabled them
to endure and thrive in their desire for a life-long commitment to godly service
in their careers, loves and lifestyles. Were there discernible traits of those
whose faith journey led them through the “valley of the diapers” and across the
threshold into the beginnings of middle age with their Kingdom cares and
commitments intact? Were there certain scenarios of discipleship that provided
the context for such idealistic faith to endure and mature? How and what sorts
of habits of heart (as Garber often puts it) were formed which served to develop
character in the lives of those interviewed? Quite specifically,

Over and again, Garber discovered three traits which emerged from the
interviews. And in teacherly fashion, he reminds us of them in numerous ways
throughout the book:

As the stories were told, during the critical years between adolescence and
adulthood they [those that thrived and continued to live out their vision of a
coherent life] were people who (1) formed a worldview that could account for
truth amidst the challenge of relativism in a culture increasingly marked by
secularization and pluralization; (2) found a mentor whose life “pictured” the
possibility of living with and in that worldview; and (3) forged friendships
with folk whose common life offered a context for those convictions to be
embodied. (p. 160)

A faith understood as comprehensive and true, a mentor and a community. If
these are the essentials for building a story of healthy fidelity over the long
haul of one’s life, how might ministry plans, Christian ed programs and
discipleship strategies nurture such traits? Garber is only suggestive (since
this is not the book’s focus). But if his own ministry style is any indication,
the typical youth pastor, campus minister or college teacher could learn
volumes: read good books with students, eat lots of meals together, view films
and discuss novels, analyze the lyrics of pop songs and struggle to understand
the cultural visions being promoted through pop culture, listen to the pains and
fears of post-adolescents, talk, write letters, speak honestly, encourage deep
friendships, help folks make connections, model a concern for current events,
always and everywhere ask questions of “knowing and doing” and how to live a
whole, integrated life. (If this sounds like the rigorous whole-life approach
modeled by Francis and Edith Schaeffer and others in the L’Abri movement, it
should come as no surprise. Garber himself dropped out of college in the early
’70s and made his way to the Swiss study center for a season.)

Life-long learning and commitments to long-haul discipleship best happens,
then, in community with other like-minded folk reflecting together on real life,
and Garber’s stories offer adequate proof that there are plenty of
spirituality-hungry young adults seeking lives of moral consistency and
integrity. True to the “Generation X” and “Millennial” research, they long for
genuine and deep relationships and one wonders, at times, if these profoundly
struggling young adults are being patronized or trivialized in many church and
parachurch ministries. Even at our finest Christian colleges, some observers
wonder if students are truly challenged to unite life and learning, telos and
praxis; in a phrase, have we created authentic communities of Christian learning
or just religious shadows of secular institutions of higher education? Those who
lay awake worrying about such things–and some, I’m sure, do, including some of
those who appear in this book–would do well to reflect on Garber’s work,
digging through the footnotes and citations, as soon as possible.

Despite the media blitz about the cynicism of Gen X, Garber and his
colleagues from organizations with which he works, such as InterVarsity
Christian Fellowship, Pittsburgh’s Coalition for Christian Outreach (CCO), and
the American Studies Program of the Coalition for Christian Colleges and
Universities, can offer vibrant testimony that there are those who want more
than a cheap faith or a cheap thrill. There are those who want to deeply connect
what they believe about the world and how they live in that world. There are
young men and women who are thoughtful about their culture and long to make a
difference in their callings, vocations, life and times. Throughout this book,
Garber seems to imply that working with this strategic group is extremely
important (these are, after all, in many ways, tomorrow’s leaders and cultural
gatekeepers) and uniquely rewarding. The stories which are told here certainly
lead readers to agree.

If the invitation to engage in this sort of thoughtful mentoring of those in
the “critical years” doesn’t make many potential readers (who may not have any
connection to campus ministry) rush out and buy The Fabric of
Faithfulness, traditional church leaders ought to know this, too: this
book is an exceptionally useful guide to some of the most important moral
philosophers and social critics writing today. As such, it can serve as a
helpful introductory crash course, a way to get a taste of authors you’ve heard
of but with whom you may not be adequately familiar. Would that church leaders
knew these scholars, understood these issues, cared for ideas and people—I can
attest that Steve’s sensitivities, shaped as they are by engagement with these
deep thinkers, has allowed him to mature into a man of great impact on others.
For those that want to mentor leaders, his approach, as shown here, is simply
essential.

In a fairly brief and quite readable way, Garber interprets for us three
primary “lenses” through which contemporary cultural critics tend to view the
influence of the world on people’s worldviews and lives. With biblically-based
insight, happily, Garber looks at and through all three lenses, showing the
compelling insight of each perspective. He explains, firstly, the “history of
ideas” approach which emphasizes how intellectual presuppositions guide our
worldview formation. (As a representative of this approach, think, for instance,
of Francis Schaeffer, or, as Garber suggests, the work of Thomas Oden.) In this
view, what people believe is influenced most by the philosophies of the books
they’ve read, the movies they’ve seen, the doctrine or ideologies they’ve been
taught. As the old saying goes, “ideas have legs.”

Inevitably, however, this gives way to a deeper question, the matter of the
“ethic of character” and the complexities of the dichotomy between personal and
public lives. Think here of Stanley Hauerwas, whose work such as Vision and
Virtue and The Community of Character have influenced significantly
the discussion about moral development and character formation. Simplistically
put (and Garber does him much better), this approach asks not so much what we
claim to believe but who we are. This is profound stuff and his discussion here
on the difference between idealistic optimism and becoming people of hope are
pages which are alone worth the price of the book.

Thirdly, Garber walks us through the role of the “sociology of knowledge”
approach, that is, the thesis that “What I believe is deeply affected by my
social experience: my family, community city, society and century” (p. 34).
Peter Berger’s book The Social Construction of Reality is a standard
here–or consider his writings about the impact of “privatization” on the
possibility of developing meaning-systems. Somewhat similarly, consider, too,
the influential work of evangelical scholar Os Guinness and how he reminds us of
the pressures of modernity on the Christian mind. There is no doubt that we all,
as Garber phrases it, “bear the bruises of modern consciousness.” In a stroke of
understated genius–almost too good to be true–Garber suggests a linkage of
these three ways of understanding (and their respective emphases upon the role
of convictions, character and culture) with the three traits uncovered in his
interviews: worldview, mentor, community. A sense of truth undergirding a
worldview seems to be a trait best understood by the history of ideas
perspective. The role of the mentor is helpfully highlighted by Garber’s
ruminations on the ethic of character and the role of culture is mediated and
nuanced by the role of one’s own subculture or supportive community. Three
different lenses help us see the three traits which enable young disciples to
thrive and endure.

The Fabric of Faithfulness is a splendid resource even if one doesn’t
work with young adults or new Christians. It is well worth reading for the sheer
joy of walking through a near barrage of contemporary Christian authors (from
the prophetic social critique of Jacques Ellul to the Christian educational
theory of Craig Dykstra), wise novelists and writers (from Dostoevsky to Milan
Kundera and Walker Percy) and classic theologians (Augustine, Lewis). But the
sources are wider still; one is often surprised with an excerpt from a Mike
Royko column or a Calvin & Hobbes cartoon…

***

Early on in The Fabric of Faithfulness, Garber shares a letter
from one of his anguished young friends who has become disillusioned with the
painful difficulties of remaining Christianly steadfast and redemptively active
in current affairs while pursuing her new career and lifestyle. Her last line to
him was, “Your secrets for dealing with the brokenness are coveted by one who
has been blind-sided by the reality of the world.” Interestingly, though, it
seems that one of the convictions most dearly held by those enduring
40-somethings Garber interviewed was a sense that their faith and Christian
obedience was, in fact, in keeping with the reality of the world. Firmly rooted
in a biblical doctrine of creation (as well as fall and redemption), mentored by
leaders who embodied a principled and realistic Christian lifestyle and
surrounded by a community of caring fellow-travelers, they were
convinced–contrary to the fact/value dichotomy of modernism or the radical
relativism of postmodernism–that Jesus Christ is Lord, Lord of politics, of
history, the economy, careers, romance, culture…this is the fundamental
reality. It is this awareness (along with the community of fellow-believers)
which creates “plausibility structure.”

It is my prayer that this excellent book, rooted in Garber’s own diligent and
creative work with students and careful listening to former students, will
inspire many of us to find for ourselves such a plausibility structure, the
sense that we together can live out the implications of an integrated Christian
life. Perhaps reflecting on this book and its stories will help us not be
“blind-sided by reality” when the going gets tough but, like Sophie Scholl and
the other anti-Nazi students with which Fabric ends, “face the consequences of
their convictions, addressing not only the indifference of the university but of
Germany itself.” These youngsters stood up and paid up, sadly, with their very
lives. That is the sort of faithful Christian this book hopes to help produce.
May we in the established churches be worthy to receive the gifts, insights,
courage and questions of such young disciples. And may we hear them as they call
us who may already be beyond the “university years” to weave together our own
belief and behavior.

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Fabric of Faithfulness: Weaving Together Belief & Behavior

Steve Garber

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As I said on the blog post introducing this, I had this as a handout for a workshop done at the October 2009 Christian Legal Society conference in La Jolla, California.  What a privilege to sit with a small group of lawyers, judges, jurists and law students and talk about reading as an act of worship, obedience, relevant discipleship and dialogue with the culture.  That spells WORD and was the main framework for my remarks about why we need to read seriously.  Here, then, are some of the best suggestions I had for this small but serious group.