Books that I've been reading, but not revueing...

While I have not been taking reading, taking notes, and writing about it, I have been reading some interesting books in July.

First, I have been reading two books on contemplative or centering prayer as well as attempting to practice it! Both of these books are by Trappist monks and provide interesting history, insight, and instruction in silent prayer (another name for it). I have been reading Centering Prayer: Renewing an Ancient Christian Prayer Form by Basil Pennington and Contemplative Prayer by Thomas Merton. I am purposely reading both of them slowly (sometimes a few pages; sometimes a chapter) before praying. Often, they provide a valuable insight that I need for that time as I approach God in prayer.


Second, I have been re-reading Eugene Lowry's books on narrative preaching, The Homiletical Plot, Expanded Edition: The Sermon as Narrative Art Form and How to Preach a Parable: Designs for Narrative Sermons (Abingdon Preacher's Library Series). Yes, I have already revued these books here, but now, using texts from my daily quite time, I am working on writing my own narrative sermons based upon my imperfect use of his method. It has been both fun and trying. Hopefully, I will have an opportunity to preach them in the near future!

Evagrius Ponticus and Cognitive Science by George Tsakiridis

Evagrius Ponticus and Cognitive Science: A Look at Moral Evil and the Thoughts

George Tsakiridis

Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2010

124 pages

Who might this book interest? While the author desires to address a broad audience of devout believers with doubts about the Christian life, this work is most applicable to psychologists and spiritual directors as well as those interested in a specialized study of Evagrius Ponticus’, a fourth century Patristic Father, work in relation to current cognitive science.

My Rating: 8 out of 10

Quick Summary: Dr. George Tsakiridis wrote this work as his doctoral dissertation at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.  He is currently an Assistant Professor of Religion at South Dakota State University and a faculty member of the Christ School of Theology at the Institute of Lutheran Theology.  His work is a creative assemblage of the Patristic spirituality of Evagrius Ponticus and cognitive science with a hint of Ricoeurian philosophy for additional seasoning.  For the most part, it reads in a fairly simple, straightforward way, especially for having been a dissertation.

An Unquiet Mind by Kay Redfield Jamison

An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness

Kay Redfield Jamison

New York: Vintage Books, 1996

224 pages

Who might this book interest? This book provides an “insiders” experience of manic-depressive or bipolar illness.  Anyone who struggles with this illness, or has a friend or family member that struggles with it, may benefit from reading this book. The added benefit to this book is that Dr. Jamison not only struggles with the illness but is a clinical psychologist and university professor which give it an added depth that is often lacking in these types of personal accounts.

My Rating: 7 out of 10

Quick Summary: Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison earned her Ph.D in Clinical Psychology from UCLA, served as a professor there, and is currently a Professor of Psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.  In addition, she has struggled with manic-depressive or bipolar (although she does not like the term “bipolar”) illness for many years.

Jesus of Nazareth - Part 2 by Pope Benedict XVI

Jesus of Nazareth: Part 2.

Holy Week: From the Entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurrection

Joseph Ratzinger, Pope Benedict XVI

San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2011

362 pages

Who might this book interest? There are many different audiences that this work may interest. First, I believe that this book should be of interest to anyone who wants to know more about Jesus of Nazareth. Second, any Christian that desires to deepen their devotion to Jesus Christ. Lastly, this work will interest academics, specifically with a focus to Jesus scholarship and hermeneutical method. This work provides a seminal hermeneutic method that incorporates both scholarship and devotion. For all who read this work, Pope Benedict provides an account of Jesus Christ that goes far beyond his unquestionable scholarship to a personal encounter with Jesus Christ.

My Rating: 9 out of 10

Quick Summary: It seems to me that there is always a dilemma when a pope writes a book. In the circles from which I find myself, books written by popes simply cannot be considered scholarly, yet many popes were scholars before they ever became pope. I never would have known the scholarly and deeply Christian philosophy of Karol Wojtyla had he not become Pope John Paul II. In the same way, I do not know if I would have ever read Joseph Ratzinger had he not become Pope Benedict XVI. Both were academics and university professors long before they became pope.

Real Faith by D. Eric Williams

Real Faith: Studies in the Epistle of James

D. Eric Williams

Lewiston, ID: D. Eric Williams, 2009

166 pages

My Rating: 7 out of 10

Who might this book interest? I think that Williams’ book would be of interest to pastors who are preaching in or through the Epistle of James. In addition, the length of the chapters would make it a useful daily devotional.

Quick Summary: Pastor and Bible teacher, D. Eric Williams, provides us with a theological exposition of the Epistle of James in his work, Real Faith. Williams completed his bachelor degree from University of the State of New York and master’s from the Southern California Graduate School of Theology and has pastored for over 20 years in the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference (4Cs). He states, “My ministry is focused on Christ centered expository Bible teaching that is covenantal in nature." This work on James is fruit of his approach.

Radical by David Platt

Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream

David Platt

Colorado Springs: Multnomah Books, 2011

230 pages

My Rating: 10 out of 10 – this may never happen again!!!

Quick Summary: I read a lot of books! I enjoy reading and reviewing them. Some books are quickly read and forgotten. I find myself asking why they were published and why I wasted my time. Others provide useful information. I learn “how to” do something. Some books are intellectually stimulating. But then a book comes along that truly challenges my faith. Radical is just such a book. It is life transforming!

Dr. David Platt has earned multiple graduate degrees including his Ph.D from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, and pastors The Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, Alabama. This book records his journey, along with his wife and faith family, into biblical Christianity. In our day, so many are toning down the implications of the Gospel, but in the midst of it, Platt is calling for a radical commitment to Jesus Christ and living biblical Christianity.

How to Preach a Parable by Eugene L. Lowry

How to Preach a Parable: Designs for Narrative Sermons

Eugene L. Lowry

Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1989

173 pages

My Rating: 8 out of 10

Quick Summary: This short, helpful book provides many insights from a seasoned scholar and preacher into Narrative Preaching. In my previous reviews (The Homiletical Plot; Living with the Lectionary), I mentioned that Dr. Eugene Lowry is an ordained United Methodist minister and retired professor of preaching. Having taught at Saint Paul School of Theology in Kansas City for over thirty years, his vita includes many scholarly books and articles on preaching, as well as various honors and lectureships.

In introducing his work, Lowry acknowledges two concerns: preachers tend to “shy away from” parables and believe that normal preachers cannot preach narrative sermons. The exact opposite of these is actually true (13). Section one covers the steps to narrative sermon formation such as: listening to the text, determining the focus of the text, finding the sermons “turn,” and deciding the sermon’s basic aim. He summarizes by saying, “Three major moments, then, or three major preparation tasks are fundamental to a sermon: focus, turn, and aim” (35). I guess that “fire” could be the final one? He also introduces the four basic sermon forms: running the story, delaying the story, suspending the story, and alternating the story.

Love Wins by Rob Bell

Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived
Rob Bell
New York: HarperOne, 2011
202 pages

Review: Usually, I do not succumb to the pressure of reviewing new, flash-in-the-pan books. I figure that in a year I’ll be able to buy the book for a buck in a bargain bookstore somewhere. Also, a year seems to allow enough time for the smoke to clear and a better perspective gained. Well, I caved! Probably, in a year from now, I will be looking in a bargain bookstore, see Love Wins for a dollar, curse at myself for paying full price, pick it up, flip to the contents and controversy, and think, “Oh, yeah, I remember this book… it’s by that guy, Rob Bell, who used to be an evangelical but became a universalist…although he denies it... I can’t believe I paid full price for this book a year ago.” That’s usually how it goes…

Living with the Lectionary by Eugene L. Lowry

Living with the Lectionary: Preaching through the Revised Common Lectionary

Eugene L. Lowry

Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1992

92 pages

My Rating: 7 out of 10

Quick Summary: This short book provides many helpful suggestions from a seasoned scholar and preacher in utilizing the Revised Common Lectionary. In my previous review (The Homiletical Plot), I mentioned that Dr. Eugene Lowry is an ordained United Methodist minister and retired professor of preaching. Having taught at Saint Paul School of Theology in Kansas City for over thirty years, his vita includes many scholarly books and articles on preaching, as well as various honors and lectureships. This book was published in 1992; the same year as the Revised Common Lectionary debuted.

The Homiletical Plot by Eugene Lowry

The Homiletical Plot: the Sermon as Narrative Art Form (Expanded Edition)

Eugene Lowry
Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2001

138 Pages

My Rating: 8 out of 10

Quick Summary: Dr. Eugene Lowry is an ordained United Methodist minister and retired professor of preaching. Having taught at Saint Paul School of Theology in Kansas City for over thirty years, his vita includes many scholarly books and articles on preaching, as well as various honors and lectureships.

      When I was first forced to read The Homiletical Plot for a narrative preaching course in seminary, I strenuously resisted it. I hated it. Already having pastored for several years, I believed that the only valid type of preaching was expository preaching, book by book. Now, some years after that time, my own view of preaching has broadened, and while I still believe in expository preaching, I no longer believe expository preaching to be the ONLY valid evangelical method of preaching (my apologies to Dr. Killian). I finally developed an “itch” for expanding my preaching in new directions.