Posts about books that I’ve read.
The author acknowledges that he “is a believer and, further, a Christian theologian.” He seems to dismiss deconstructionism (vii), and takes Scripture seriously but critically; he uses the Apocrypha, and includes the Gospel of Peter as an appendix. There are no big surprises here, but his bottom line is (implicitly) that, yeah, it happened. By … [Read more…]
And that’s what this is — less than 200 pages, covering from A.D. 33 to the present. Not profound, and without any big surprises for me, but straightforward and with little bias. A couple of tidbits: Ephesus’s Artemis/Diana cult became a Mary cult (31). The Christian as wayfarer originated with Augustine (44). And there’s this … [Read more…]
This is an excellent and succinct work of apologetics — an updated version (with the son) of a classic (by the father). Some specific points: Chapter 11 re fulfilled prophecies was very good and new to me. Here’s an intriguing question (7): “If God did become man, what would be the best way for him … [Read more…]
Disappointing, but I did write down a couple of his ideas to try out: (a) simply recite the Lord’s Prayer; and (b) recite simple prayers of a few words (for example, the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner”). Other suggestions include no thoughts at all, or focusing only … [Read more…]
I really enjoyed this book, one reason being the large amount of Greek from Acts quoted in it. The series apparently — as the name of the project suggests — focuses heavily on theological issues, but it is not too abstruse. The author — who I believe he was raised Lutheran but converted to Eastern … [Read more…]
Just these notes on the latter: The author is a fan of Paul; he’s critical of Luke’s reliability and Timothy’s performance as a leader. I read just the beginning and end because I thought that these are the parts of Paul’s life that are not really covered in Scripture. He sees Paul’s family as originally … [Read more…]
I enjoyed this book: As you’d expect from the title, there’s nothing profound, but there’s still plenty of good material, and the format of the “Idiot’s Guide” series is very reader-friendly. The author seems sound enough; the only off-note is his obsession with not offending women by the use of masculine pronouns. (The author is … [Read more…]
This terrific book covers a number of important issues, including the evidence of God from the nonrandomness of the universe; near-death experiences; and faith and health. The author is a skeptic/atheist turned believer, a former Reagan administration official (arms control), and Harvard Ph.D., then working at the American Enterprise Institute, Ethics and Public Policy Center, … [Read more…]
The author is the ABC News physician and journalist (like Luke!). This is a very ambitious book, and generally quite good, marred only by a little political correctness and quickness to criticize religious conservatives and the rich (but I shouldn’t overstate that: on the big questions, he comes down the right way, believing in God, … [Read more…]
“Not bad,” I wrote in my notebook after reading this book. It’s not brilliant, but straightforward, well-organized, and generally believable. As you’d guess from the title, there’s lots on prayer and meditation and their importance. He advises, for one thing, just to be quiet and clear your mind. I especially liked his discussion of how … [Read more…]