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Arete Again - Tobin Wilson

I picked up the manuscript of my friend's first book unsure of what would I find inside the pages. I was hoping that after bugging him to let me read it I would find something worthwhile to say about it in a review. I did.

In Arete Again - missional adventures in theology and life Tobin Wilson cahllenges the reader through personal story, a social theology of the trinity and Aristotle's concept of virtue, to a deeper level of living as followers of Jesus Christ and embracing the grace that is our through him.

The concept of Arete comes to us from Aristotle, it is the idea of excellence or virtue in ife. As Tobin explains in the book, our virtue, our character matters to God, becasue we as God's image bearers in the world and therefore we are to be a reflection of God's virtue, character. Contrasting virtue and vice Tobin helps us see more clearly what it means to live a virtue filled life of grace, recognizing that the virtues are not works righteousness but rather they are formed in our lives becasue of the gift of grace that God has granted us.

At times the brutal honesty and carefully written personal narrative in the book left me wiping away tears from my face as I felt the raw emotion of the story flowing  from the page. It is this narrtive thread that holds the whole book together. Once  started reading the book I couldn't put it down because I wanted to hear the next how God was at work in the next story.

The theological elementof the book picks up on Moltmann's social trinitarianism and the idea of 'perichoresis.' If this last sentence scares you, don't worry, Tobin does an excellent job of explaining these terms for the non-theologian and I believe makes the theological complexity accessible to all readers. 

There is something in this book for everyone. I plan on buying a case when they are available and giving them away. I haven't done that with a book since I read Eugene Peterson's Eat This Book. I'm not ready to put Tobin up there with Peterson but I do feel strongly about getting this book into people's hands.

By way of full disclosure: Tobin and I have been friends since we first met in 1991, we have travelled to Africa together, he and his wife, Dawn, introduced my wife and I to one another and he officiated at our wedding. In one of the stories in the book he speaks of driving home from a party, that party was at my home. I wrestled with how much of my response to the book was personal as oppoed to critical and concluded that there is no reason the stories told should have moved me as they did unless they had been exceedingly well articulated.

Image: Passion to Pentecost by Linda McCray

Finding the Groove: Composing a Jazz-Shaped Faith - A review

Syncopation, improvisation and call and response, the core elements of Jazz. 

I loved this book, from beginning to end I resonated with all Galinas was saying. We need a syncopated faith, one that can hear God speaking on the off-beat. A faith that can read and see between the lines of Scripture to understand how God is at work in the world today.

We need an improvisational faith, one that can respond to the rhythm and sounds of God's action in the world today. But it is still a faith that plays within the bounds of the song that is being played, it is not a new song, it is not off key, it is simply being played in a new way. We really need to the church to learn to improvise within the bounds of the song we have been given.

We need a faith that understands call and response, we are called to live in community. We are called by God to hear and respond to the sounds and songs within our community. As the horn listens to the bass, and the piano, and the sax, and the drums, so we must listen to one another to make the music of the kingdom.

This is not a deep theological treatise, it is a quick but enjoyable read. I found it more affirming than challenging and more refreshing than educational. This is one of those books I need to read once in a while to be affirmed that I'm not crazy, or at least if I am, I can know that I'm in good company!

Just War As Christian Discipleship: Review

Daniel Bell does a terrific job of articulating just war theory from the perspective of Christian discipleship. This is a book that every Christian who serves or has served in the military should read as it takes the issues of war and places them firmly in the realm of Christian discipleship rather leaving then in the hands of the state and a call to patriotism.

Even after reading this book I am still convinced that active pacifism is the most biblical response to violence, however for those Christians who disagree with me I would hope they follow Bell's thought in this book. However you need to be aware, as Bell notes,

Just War (Christan Discipleship) is a difficult discipline. It is a demanding tradition to embody. It asks a great of those who would be a just war people. After all, fighting a war justly may be more costly in terms of both material resources and lives (friend and foe, combatant and non-combatant) and may take longer to conclude that some ways of fighting unjustly. Indeed just war may require that one accept surrender and military defeat, if a war cannot be waged or won justly. It is not east to be a just warrior or a just war people.

There is no sugarcoating or pro-USA bias in this book, it is an honest look at the issues surrounding just war. I wish I had this book while serving a church in Northern Virginia that had a very high percentage of military and ex-military in the congregation. I'd probably have bought dozens of copies to share with them.

Heresy: A History of Defending the Truth - Review

Several years ago I used the word "Heresy" as part of a statement I was making on the floor of our presbytery. You could hear the audible intake of breath from my fellow presbyters at the utterance of this word. Within moments I was confronted in the hall, thanked by some and told by others that this wasn't a word that we used in presbytery. I still maintain that the distinction between heresy and orthodoxy are important and that the discussion of what is heretical and what is not is an important conversation for the church. Yet for many the concept seems old, outdated, relegated to the confines of the first few centuries of the church and the church history classes we took in seminary. In Alister McGrath's latest work, Heresy: A History of Defending the Truth, we have an important book that brings a fresh perspective to the conversation on heresy.

This is a book that, I believe, should be widely read by church leaders, seminarians and any one else interested in the conversation about right belief. It could be used in a small group or Sunday School class and while it's not light reading it can be read without much prior knowledge of the issues it raises. Breaking the book down into four parts, 'What is heresy?' 'The Roots of heresy,' 'The Classic Heresies of Christianity' and 'The enduring impact of heresy' the author takes us on a journey that both engages our heads and hearts in the conversation.

In the introduction McGrath asks, "So what is heresy?" and provides an answer that he will unpack for us throughout the remainder of the book, "Heresy is best seen as a form of Christian belief that, more by accident than design, ultimately ends up subverting, destabilizing, or even destroying the Christian faith." In the first part of the book McGrath makes it clear that, "Heresy appears to be Christian, yet it is actually the enemy of faith that sows the seed of faith's destruction."

As we move into part two McGrath dives into much greater detail about the essence and origins of heresy. While acknowledging that there was diversity within the early church McGrath is careful to point out that it was not as if, "the New Testament offers an unbridled multiplicity of visions of the Christian faith." There are, he argues a core set of ideas that are consistent with what it means to be Christian.

Acknowledging that heresy arises within the church McGrath is careful to explain that while it is ultimately a failed attempt at orthodoxy the intentions behind heresy are often honorable and apologetic in nature.

As he moves into part three of the book, he examines both some of the early Christian heresies and then some of the later heresies explaining the context in which they arose within the church, and how those behind them saw them as an apologetic tool. For example the Christological heresy of Arius was partly an attempt to square the person of Jesus with the philosophical worldview of his day, a view that saw God as being "totally transcendent and immutable." Which raised the question of how God could then become incarnate as a creature and be "subject to pain, fear, grief and weariness. This is simply inconsistent with the notion of an immuntable God." Thus for Arius, Jesus had to be something less than God. This idea was also apologetic in nature as he believed the doctrine of the incarnation was alienating people from believing in Christianity.

In the final section of the book McGrath devotes a chapter to examining the 'cultural and intellectual motivations for heresy.' As well as a chapter that looks at the relationship between power and heresy particularly during the middle-ages when the church was one of the most powerful institutions on the planet. Of particular interest in this final section was the chapter devoted to the Islamic view of Christianity and how understanding the heresies prevelant in the middle-east at the time the Qur'an was written allows us agree with Muslims that the particular version of Christianity that is being criticized would also be criticized by orthodox Christians.

Where does this leave us? In a time when heresy seems to be popular, perhaps even encouraged, McGrath asks us to pause and think again about the importance of orthodoxy in relation to the preservation of the faith. All the heresies of the past will resurface from time to time, they will never go away, so the church must be on guard for heresy is, "an intellectually defective vision of the Christian faith, having its origins within the church." (p.83)  Heresy still matters.

Bob Dylan, "Christmas in the Heart"

I've listened to this album several times now and each time I've enjoyed it more than the previous time. Dylan takes us on a journey through popular Christmas songs and Christian classics.

He starts that journey with "Here Comes Santa Claus" and ends the album with "O Little Town of Bethlehem" and the final words, "Where meek souls will receive Him still, the dear Christ enters in." With a final "Amen" added for good measure. From pop culture to the heart of what it means to be a Christian. One word, "terrific!"

I have no doubt that Dylan was keenly aware of the song order on this album as he weaves in and out of popular culture and Christian classics, no song on the album is more fun than "Must Be Santa." Yet it is the carols that drew me in as Dylan's faith shines through in the feeling he puts into them.

This may not be the easy listening Christmas album that everyone will be playing this year but this is a great album for fans of Bob Dylan or for those who like to hear a slightly different take on the old carols. Buy the album, its a complete set of songs that should be listened to together.

"Have a little faith" by Mitch Albom - a review

Mitch Albom has written a new book, "Have a Little Faith." While this title will be released next month I was mailed a readers copy in order to blog about it ahead of the release.

Once I started reading it I didn't want to put it down. I wanted, needed, to keep reading to discover the story that was waiting for me on the next page. By the end of the book I found myself so emotionally engaged that I was close to tears.

In this true story Mitch is asked by his childhood Rabbi to give the eulogy at his funeral. This marks the beginning of an eight year adventure in which Mitch reconnects with the Rabbi, reconnects with his own faith and meets Henry Covington a drug dealer from New York who becomes a pastor serving the homeless in a run down church, in a run down neighborhood of Detroit. As Albom travels between his home town of Detroit and his visits with his Rabbi in New Jersey he majestically weaves together his interaction with these two men into an intricate web that demonstrates a deep faith in God, great hope in the present and for the future, and a love for all people.

Albom is a terrific story teller and that's exactly what this book is a great true story. Perhaps it would be more accurate to say it is several true stories, it's Albom's story, it's the Rabbi's story, it's Henry's story, and it is also the story of several other people whose stories will impact your life as Albom provides an emotional connection with each of the people you meet in the book. By the end of the book you might find that it has become your story too.

Albom is not a religious scholar and makes no attempt to address the differences between Judaism and Christianity or any other religion. The one thought he seems to put forward is that we should love God and love people, this is all good and well until you try to understand what is meant by 'God.' I think we all know what is meant by 'love' and by 'people' but what do we mean by God? If there is a downside to the book this it. Readers need be aware that there are significant differences between the major religions of the world on questions of ultimate importance and to ignore or downplay those differences is to do a disservice to all of them.

At the end of the day I felt this was more a book on hope than on faith. It's a book that causes you to stop and ask yourself what really matters in this life. It's a book that I'd highly recommend to others and I'm delighted to have been given a sneak peek into what should become a New York Times bestseller.

Review: A Lover's Quarrel With the Evangelical Church

As part of my agreement with "The Ooze: Viral Bloggers" I have agreed to post reviews of books they send me to read. One of those books was 'A Lover's Quarrel With The Evangelical Church' by Warren Cole Smith.

I was intrigued by the title of this book but thoroughly disappointed with the content.

What can I say about a book that bashes screens and technology in worship and praises the hymnal. The very idea that a hymnal is something that “has historically been considered vital to church life” (p.110) is just absurd. For most of church history there has been no hymnal, a hymnody, but not a hymnal. Indeed the hymnal that caused people to look down at words on a page rather than lift high their heads in praise is a product of technology, the print medium. A technology that receives no critique the way other more modern communication mediums do.

Smith argues that God’s preferred medium is words (p.179) but he makes no distinction between the spoken word and the written word, it is almost as if the two are synonymous but they aren’t. Again a glaring gap in the book.

Attacks on Bill Hybels, Rick Warren, Billy Graham and others proliferate the book and just provided further frustration for me as I was hoping to find something redemptive in this book, some solution to the problems mentioned, yet nothing substantive was offered, only the feeling of condemnation. I think the only substantive solutions offered where hymnals and having every church preach Edwards "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" in an non-emotional manner. There was a rallying cry to return to a certain theological framework, which appeared to be a Calvinism as defined by the Synod of Dort.

This is one book I was glad to be done reading and not one I would recommend to others.

Review: Finding An Unseen God

A story of a life changed through the call of Christ, a gentle apologetic for the Christian faith from both the evidential and relational approach.

As Alicia Britt Chole tries to write a spiritual memoir she does so beautifully, she has a story to tell, a journey from atheism to faith in Christ. A journey that involves frequent moves, family struggles and significant Christian friendships that lead to her conversion. On this level the book works, it's no Girl Meets God or Traveling Mercies but its good and a story worth reading.

The book falters as it tries to cover the story in a non-linear manner with chapters alternating between various time periods in Chole's life. This manner of writing worked for about the first third of the book but then faltered as the chapters stop alternating between her story but started to shift between story and apologetics making it feel jumpy and disjointed.

If you want to read the book you'll probably enjoy the story but you may want to read the chapters as numbered as opposed to as printed.

Review - "The Furious Longing of God"

Brennan Manning is a writer whose words flow poetically from his pen. In this latest work Brennan reminds  us of the length, breadth, depth and height of the love of God and God's deep [furious] passion to love us. If we get nothing else in this life Manning says we have to get that we are loved unconditionally by God. We cannot and do not deserve that love, and yet we are loved and this is the good news we all need to hear.

Having read a number of Manning's other works, "Ragamuffin Gospel," "Ruthless Trust," and "The Importance of Being Foolish," I didn't find much in here that was new. That being said it was restated in an extremely helpful and accessible way.

If you are in need of being reminded how much God loves you then this is a must read book. It is easily digested, doesn't take long to read and is guaranteed to refresh your life and relationship with God. As a pastor I know this will be one of those books that I end up giving away again and again and again.

May we all end up embracing Abba's love for us in the way Manning articulates it in this book.

"Who Stole My Church" - A review

Gordon McDonald, who turns seventy this year has written a great book with the full title of,Who Stole My Church?: What to Do When the Church You Love Tries to Enter the 21st Century.

This book follows the conversations in a fictional church in which Gordon and his wife Gail represent the only "real" people in the story. Forming a "Discovery Group" these church members address some of the issues facing a church as it tries to move into the contemporary world in which we live today.

I'm not sure who else could have written this book. Gordon, as a respected pastor, and slightly older gentlemen, is in a wonderful position to be able to address the concerns of an older generation in a way in which a younger person would be unable to. The characters in the story are well written and don't serve simply as straw figures for Gordon to make his point. Indeed Gordon deals thoughtfully and carefully with the full range of personalities that can be found in the church including one who decides to leave.

The underlying approach in the book comes from Everett Rogers work Diffusion of Innovations in  which Rogers explains how new ideas are adopted by any given community.

 The book emphasizes the importance of open and honest communication between peers and between the generations. Exploring the topic of music in the church you learn that there have been four points in history (maybe more) where battles over church music took place. Isaac Watts, "the Father of English Hymnody," is the first controversial young hymn writer who breaks with tradition in this book. I don't suppose to many of us think of his hymns as rebellious contemporary songs, but in his day, "Joy to the World," When I Survey The Wondrous Cross," "Jesus Shall Reign Where'er The Sun," "O God Our Help in Ages Past" and many other of his works were a far cry from the Psalms only worship of the English church in his day. People were known to refuse to sing these new hymns and some even walked out of worship when they were sung!

Yes, Isaac Watts was the Chris Tomlin, Robin Mark or Matt Redman of his day!

I'll let you read the book to discover the other controversial figures in church muisc. This book is worth reading just for the discussion between the generations on music.

Written from the perspective of a fairly conservative, evangelical, congregational church this book nonetheless has much to offer all in thinking about what it means to be a church that carries out its ministry in the world of today.

_____________________

While not a stated purpose of the book I left feeling that the most important thing a church can do is come to a real understanding of its tradition. Most congregations have long held traditions but rarely do people stop and ask what the original purpose of something was (the real reason it came to be) and whether it still serves that purpose or if that particular need even exists anymore.

The church cannot live in the past, it cannot live in the future, it can only live today.

My Top Five Reads From 2008

                               

              

A review: Just Courage by Gary Haugen

I have just finished reading Gary Haugen's new book, Just Courage. It is a short book (132 pages) and a quick read. It is also a profound little book that, if you allow it, will challenge your faith to the core.

Haugen reminds us that, "Healthy churches equip all members to share their faith and to love needy people." And then goes on to say, "Likewise, the work of justice is no less fundamental in Christ's call to discipleship and therefore no less fundamental for every Christian."

Confronting us with the choice between being safe and being brave this book challenges us to follow the path of the brave, the path of courage in confronting the injustices in our world. Drawing from his background as the founder of International Justice Mission he shares real life stories of families being rescued from slavery and young girls from sex-traffickers by followers of Jesus who have chosen courage and obedience over safety.

If we claim to be followers of Jesus Christ, Haugen contends, then we have to follow him wherever he goes and certainly justice for the poor and maligned is a big part of that puzzle.

This book is well worth the read.

Five Temptations

I really enjoyed reading Patrick Lencioni's book The Five Temptations of the a CEO. All of his books are a fairly quick read making salient points that everyone in a leadership position could learn from.

So what are the five temptations of a CEO? They are the same as the five temptations of every pastor I've ever met!

1. Choosing status over results
2. Choosing popularity over accountability
3. Choosing certainty over clarity
4. Choosing harmony over productive conflict
5. Choosing invulnerability over trust

Perhaps I could expand on each of these but if you want to know more read the book. In truth the essence of each temptation is, I believe, fairly obvious. May God give us the strength we need to be better leaders in the church.

A Geography of Time

I just finished a fascinating book, "A Geography of Time." In this book Robert Levine tasks you on a journey exploring something we take for granted... time. But what Levine reveals is that it is not so much time, as it is our perception of time that we take for granted.

Looking through the lens of both how other contemporary cultures and historical cultures perceived time he forces us to stop and reflect on our own cultural perceptions, as he notes, "there is nothing like studying other cultures to inspire questions about one's own."

Why did people historically set up duels for sunrise? We may perceive it as a romantic notion of chivalry, the truth is that sunrise was one of the few times of day that you could actually schedule a meeting with any degree of accuracy prior to "clock time" or time "of the clock" (o'clock).

Did you know that...

It was just after the first mechanical clocks began marking the hours that the word "speed" (originally spelled "spede") first appeared in the English language. Not until the late seventeenth century did the word "punctual," which formerly described a person who was a stickler for details of conduct, come to describe someone who arrived exactly at the appointed time. Only a century after that did the word "punctuality" first appear in the English language as it is used today.

A culture's perception of time is often the greatest frustration for a traveler from another culture, Levine cites numerous examples from his own experience.

Fun fact: in the 1880's there were approximately 50 different time zones in the United States.

After reading this book I'm left wondering what it would be like to not be ruled by the watch. I'm also struck that the phrase "time is money" ties a value to time that it perhaps doesn't warrant. Could it also be stated that "time is relationships." Can we actually waste time? Or do we actually use all our time, even it is as down time?

A thought provoking book well worth reading.

My Life on the Run: Review

I've just added Bart Yasso's new book "My Life on the Run" to my list of favorite books on running. This book grabbed and held my attention from cover to cover.

Whether you are a seasoned runner or an aspiring beginner this book is well worth the read. I found myself being  catapulted from moments of deep contemplation to gut level laughter within the course of a few sentences. Through this collection of stories Yasso takes us through the highs and lows of his life and the great joy of running (and biking). He offers salient advice for those who want to run better without making it sound like a "how to" section. Whether  you are a runner or simply a reader, I would encourage you to pick up this book of inspiration and enjoy it.

The Great Awakening: Review

I really enjoyed Jim Wallis' new book, "The Great Awakening." It's very different from "God's Politics" which always felt like an attack on the religious right, this book is much more balanced and argues "for" rather than "against" certain positions.

In "The Great Awakening" Wallis offers an important voice for the evangelical who struggles to relate to either the religious right or liberal left. The view he offers is a global view, one that says the church is bigger than any nation and that we need to take that seriously.

As Wallis notes,

Here's an insight that is fundamental, and yet profoundly obvious: we are to be Christians first and citizens of our country second - not the other way around. As obvious as that is, the notion would revolutionize faith and politics in America if the church would ever grasp its primary international identity. American churches may be the only places on earth where national flags are displayed in many sanctuaries - American flags on one side and Christian "flags" on the other. In the United Kingdom, even with its state church, there are no flags in the sanctuaries. Why should our views on political subjects be determined by what is expected from us according to sociology - race, class, and nation - rather than our theology? Shouldn't our identity as kingdom people and  members of the global community of the church come first? In too many American churches, sociology consistently trumps theology. To turn that around would transform American religion - and politics.

No, you're not likely to agree with everything Wallis has to say, but hopefully he will challenge you to think and perhaps even rethink your position on a variety of topics.

Eighteen Miles on Treadmill with U2

The air temperature was twenty degrees and the wind chill was three, it was the day for my long run, eighteen miles on the schedule. The thought of running outside in this weather was more than I could stand, but the thought of eighteen on the treadmill was surely drive me to the edge of sanity (many of my friends already question my sanity).

It was off to the treadmill. The good news was that I had a new DVD to watch, it was a U2 concert DVD that came as part of the special edition boxed set of the remastered Joshua Tree album. It was absolutely fabulous! Singing along to the U2 tunes from the mid-80's made me feel like I was in my late teens again and the time flew by. Before I knew it I had covered my eighteen miles none the worse for wear, invigorated for all that life has to offer me. I wasn't sure if the cost of the boxed set would be worth it, but I would highly recommend it to any fan of U2.

Of course, no matter how much I enjoy U2, I pray for good weather whenever my schedule calls me to  go long.

Coe and Ovett, a trip down memory lane

I've just finished reading "The Perfect Distance - Ovett and Coe: The Record Breaking Rivalry." It was journey down memory lane, as I read not only of their rivalry but also of Jeff Capes, Fatima Whitbread, Steve Cram, Dave Moorcroft, Daley Thompson and all the great British athletes of the early to mid 1980's. I remember watching the great duels of the 1980 Olympics in Moscow over 800 and 1500 metres. The amazement we felt when Ovett stole the 800 from Coe and people thought he would double up on the 1500 only to lose it to Coe.

Then came the 1984 Olympics in LA when Mary Decker and Zola Budd clashed in the 3,000 metres, Decker going to the ground and Budd,after being spiked, struggling to finish the race. But the great race was again the 1500 in which Coe would become the first person ever to successfully defend his gold over the 1500.

If you like great sports rivalries then this a book for you to read.

I had the privilege of seeing both Coe and Ovett run at Mary Peter's Track in Belfast. Indeed the international events at this track allowed me to see some of the world's greatest run. I've watched John Walker, Zola Budd, Tessa Sanderson, Jeff Capes, Fatima Whitbread and others all compete in person. It really is a delight to see the worlds best compete in person.

Books I Read in 2007, My Top 5

It was hard to come up with five books, there are others that could easily have the list, but these five probably had the greatest impact on my thinking this past year.

1. Rethinking Christ and Culture, Craig A. Carter
2. Too Small to Ignore, Wess Stafford
3. The Perfect Mile, Neal Bascomb
4. Free of Charge, Miroslav Volf
5. The Dangerous Act of Worship, Mark Labberton

What are your favorite reads from the last year?

Books I Read in 2007, My Top 5

It was hard to come up with five books, there are others that could easily have the list, but these five probably had the greatest impact on my thinking this past year.

1. Rethinking Christ and Culture, Craig A. Carter
2. Too Small to Ignore, Wess Stafford
3. The Perfect Mile, Neal Bascomb
4. Free of Charge, Miroslav Volf
5. The Dangerous Act of Worship, Mark Labberton

What are your favorite reads from the last year?