Amazon Book Reviews 1

The Orthodox Church: New Edition
by Timothy WareEdition: Paperback
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An honest presentation of Orthodox history and beliefs, February 3, 2009

I echo the sentiment of many readers that this must be the best intro to Eastern Orthodoxy to date - its history and beliefs - in an honest, even-handed and concise one-volume work, striking a delicate balance between depth and breadth for people new to this fascinating branch of Christianity. While this book makes for insightful and enjoyable reading, one cannot help but feel the pain for what the Body of Christ had to be dragged through over fine points of doctrines and nuances in terminology(eg monophysitism, the filioque clause, etc )and personal viewpoints (Possessors vs Non-possessors). When the contention for political power and control entered the mix, it became an even sorrier mess. Ironically, the Eastern Christians received a relatively more humane treatment from the Islamic powers that be during the Turkish rule than brothers of their own kind when they disagreed. Alexander Solzenitsyn must take the cake for his poignant remark that 'the line between good and evil runs right through the middle of each of us,...that deep within even the best of men, there is still a small corner of evil.' Still Kallistos Ware offers a glimmer of hope when he points to promising signs of reconciliation in recent dialogues with the non-Chalcedonian brothers, the Catholic Church and the Anglicans. This is the sort of movement that the world longs to see - a visible, concrete manifestation of Christian charity among Christ's followers. Reading this book is itself a good start in reclaiming our common heritage, owning both the good and bad chapters of our common history and embracing a faith that allows for a rich diversity of faith languages and expressions and recognising that at the foot of the cross, we are all sinners in need of grace.

Divine Embrace, The: Recovering the Passionate Spiritual Life (Ancient-Future)
by Robert E. WebberEdition: Paperback
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Not the best of Webber but a good summary of his thoughts on Christian spirituality, February 1, 2009

Like many other reviewers here, I am a Webber fan too! He is our hero in so many ways and a safe guide as we wade through the waters of post-modernism with its many seductions and threats. Webber has in so many of his other works shown us how to live out the Christian faith in an era that bears much semblance to the pre-Constantian period where many other faiths are giving the Christian story a run for its money! This last book in his ancient-future series serves more as a broad overview of his understanding of the Christian story vis-a-vis the various distortions that have crept in through the ages. The Church has had to battle the heresies of platonism that splits matter from spirit in favor of the latter, medieval obsession with one's forensic status before God with its accompanying guilt and legalism, intellectualism and Romanticism which are opposite outcrops of the Enlightenment split between the intellect and experience, and modern day spiritual narcissism and private interiority. Webber lays out these distortions with candor and poignant critique and invites us to recover what the ancient Patristic Church has maintained as the first order understanding of the Christian story, which is one of recapitulation - the salvage and reconciliation of the fallen world to God through the redemptive works of Jesus the Christ by the power of his Spirit. By pointing us to the core of the Christian story, he then lays out the ways in which Christians can make this story their own through the core practices of baptism,repentance and cultivation of Christian virtues, daily disciplines such as work, study and prayer as well as worship and immersion in the life of the church. This pretty much sums up the scope of Webber's legacy in writing and teaching and serves as a good refresher and one-volume consolidation of his lifelong reflections on Christian spirituality. As such, it is a good resource that points us to the various aspects of his thoughts which one can pursue in a more focused way in his other books, such as 'ancient-future evangelism', 'ancient-future time', or 'the younger evangelicals' that go more into the innards. As always, Webber is articulate and methodical, giving us neat schematics that help us follow his thoughts. The references in his footnotes to some ancient sources are very helpful too. He brings out to us treasures of the church, ancient and new!

The Giving Gift
by Thomas Allan SmailEdition: Paperback
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An Excellent and Accessible Theological Treatise on the Holy Spirit, January 26, 2009

Few books pack in as much meaty theological reflections on the Holy Spirit as does Tom Smail's 'The Giving Gift' in such a concise and readable fashion. He is an important voice within the Charismatic movement that seeks to root her understanding of the Spirit within the larger ecumenical thought. A student of Barth, he exemplifies the skill of thinking fresh thoughts that are at the same time continuous and in dialogue with the ecumenical creeds and its development. It is therefore not surprising that though an evangelical, he begins his book with Mary as the exemplar - of one who receives the gift of the Son through the Spirit and how through that reception, the work of the Spirit in the giving of life, fellowship and worship is seen in her. What follows is the exposition of the Person of the Spirit in relation to the Father and the Son. He calls the Spirit 'the Person without a face' and the way to properly honor the Spirit is not to exalt him as an independent Personality and focus of worship but as the Person whose distinct character is to put the Spotlight on the Father and the Son, as the NT bears witness to the Spirit's work in evoking our confessions of 'Abba, Father' and 'Jesus as Lord!' Then in four solid chapters, he discusses how the Father is the Source of both the Spirit and the Son and how the Spirit and the Son in turn offer themselves, together with us, to the Father - expanding on Irenaeus's Trinitarian image of the the two arms that extend from the Father, embracing the world. The outcome is a fresh proposal that moves beyond the 'filioque' impasse and addresses the excesses that have often accompanied the unbalanced emphases in the Eastern and the Western Church historically. What I enjoy most about the book is the model it provides in the construction of a mature and vibrant theology of the Spirit in the context of the Trinitarian relationships. We find Smail not only offering critical engagement with important thinkers such as Augsustine, Irenaeus, Gregory of Nyssa, James Dunn, Michael Ramsey and Heribert Muhlen, he also confesses to areas in his earlier book 'Reflected Glory' where it was deficient and in need of revision. Also, he does not come across as an arm-chair theologian cloistered in the ivory tower but one who works out his theology from the trenches of the Charismatic movement, with which he is personally and critically engaged. Read this together with his 'Forgotten Father' and be challenged to reclaim our knowledge of the often neglected and misunderstood Third Person of the Trinity.
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Come to the Table: Revisioning the Lord's Supper
by John Mark HicksEdition: Paperback
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A fresh rethinking of the Lord's Supper as Communion, January 19, 2009

My church (Church of Christ) went through a two-month long series of sermons using this book as a guide and framework and what came out of it was a reconfiguration of the Supper as a time of fellowship around the table. We have come to appreciate the richness of the Lord's Supper which though a simple meal encapsulates the multi-dimensions and depths of the gospel story. Set in the context of the church's liturgy, the time of Communion takes on a different character each Sunday as a different event of the Christ's story is read and reflected on. John Mark Hicks rightly points us to the focus of the meal as Communion, which is the divine creative intent as well as the eschatological goal of the redemption story. Beginning from the creation narrative through the sacrifices in Israel, the table-fellowships of Jesus, the discussion of the Lord's Supper in Paul's letters and the development of the table in church history, Hicks gives us a grand overview of how the Lord's Supper stands within the rich tradition of God's people, ancient and new, as a central practice that anticipates the perfect communion at the marriage supper of the Lamb. He contends as his central thesis that the 'altar' perspective that has shaped much of Western practice of the Lord's Supper which has tended towards private, penitential introspection should not have overshadowed the 'table' character of the Lord's Supper, which encourages oneness, interaction, hospitality, giving and sharing around a meal. To put it in geometric terms, the vertical orientation of the Lord's Supper should be balanced by the horizontal. Hicks makes the good point that while the cross is the ground for the Lord's Supper, it is the Resurrection that is the focal celebration. We sup at the table not so much to mourn at the foot of the cross, decrying how our sins have brought him there but to celebrate the victory of the Resurrection, as Christ tramples death under his feet! This is not to exclude the place of laments and confession (which should be there as we draw near as a people to the Holy and Sovereign God) but to really see the Lord's Supper as the culmination of worship and the declaration and experience of God's victory in Christ Jesus. I regard this book as an important milestone in the checkered history of the Restoration movement that has traditionally placed much emphasis on the frequency (weekly observance) of the Lord's Supper but has not delved much into its theological meanings or its transformative power. Brother John Mark has given us an invaluable gift with his lucid writing that combines theological depth with helpful practical inputs. Read this judicious book and be welcome to the table of mercy and grace!
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Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church
by N. T. WrightEdition: Hardcover
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
A Brilliant Distillation of Wright's Insights into Christian Eschatology, December 2, 2008

I bought this book as a companion in my observance of Advent this year as it revisits the issue of Christian hope. It has been Wright's passionate call for the church to recover a biblically robust eschatology which the Western Church has generally reduced to either an escapist view of heaven or an evolutionary paradigm of human progress. This book is a distillation of his brilliant and massive research of the resurrection of Jesus and how that is connected to God's work in renewing the cosmos. Ironically I first came across this idea from the Jehovah's witnesses who pointed to me the beatitude 'Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth' - that God was not in the business of destroying the world but renewing it. However, Wright is the leading evangelical scholar that reaffirms this idea without the heretical accretions and has connected the dots with his thorough examination of the Resurrection of Jesus from all angles historical and theological and how the resurrection, much more than simply proving that there's life after death (for which the early Jews needed no such evidence), was in fact the inaugural act of God's new creation. And far from redescribing death as a mere transition to the after-life, it is God's defeat of death, which has been the chief weapon of evil that mars God's good earth. This is the overarching thesis of the book, which sets out to examine what early Christians really meant when they said 'Jesus was raised from the dead'. I especially enjoyed the section 'The Surprising Character of Christian Hope' where he discusses what he calls the 'seven mutations' early Christians brought to bear on the dominant Jewish concept of the resurrection in light of the Christ events. This analysis is Wright's unique contribution to the contemporary studies on the Resurrection of Christ - which alone is worth the price of the book! From this premise he goes on to draw out the implications for the theology, worship and mission of the church. Wright names justice, beauty and evangelism as three expressions of the church's tasks that arise out of her Easter hope. It serves as a great starting point for further reflections and shaping of the church's witness and outreach to the world with a creation-affirming gospel. However, where Wrights takes on the corollary subjects in chapter 11 such as the Catholic doctrine of Purgatory and the concept of hell, I find his treatments less satisfying. For example, his understanding that hell consists of the destiny of those who 'refuse all whisperings of the good news, all glimmers of the true light, all signposts to the love of God' and will continue to exist as ex-humans. This in reality pretty much still leaves unanswered the real question of hell (or heaven) for a vast majority of ordinary decent folks who may not have answered the call of the gospel of Jesus but are neither great saints nor crooks. Perhaps, this is an area that the bible gives less information than we wish to know but Wright's explanation of hell being the resultant state of people who persist in being less than human does not quite advance the traditional answer very much. Also, as a matter of style, I tend to get a little impatient with Wright's habit of punctuating his sentences with parenthetical phrases, disclaimers, and qualifications which tend to disrupt the flow of his writing. It could be the side effects of transcribing lectures into a book. I wish at times, he could pack in more substantive paragraphs instead, especially in developing more fully his arguments for the more obscure bits such as how 'initial justification by faith' is squared with 'final justification by the whole life lived' which continues to baffle even many of his sympathetic readers. But, this is only a picadillo I regard in his otherwise eloquent 'wrightings' which other readers might in fact adore. On the whole, it is a great book - a book I believe that will bring to birth many more books as other gifted writers get to build on, expand, fine-tune, and flesh out the paradigmatic shift/recovery in Christian eschatology so elegantly proposed by this brilliant bible scholar.
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Freedom of Simplicity: Finding Harmony in a Complex World
by Richard J. FosterEdition: Paperback
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Simply Excellent!, August 23, 2008

I must say Richard Foster's Freedom of Simplicity ranks among the most helpful and spiritually formative books in my personal life. It is so well-written that there's not a wasted line in it and it's cogently presented, biblically grounded and immensely workable! No, it's not a book about how to save the world economically, or even about winning the world to Christ, or making heroic sacrifices. Rather, it's about what the Danish prophet Kierkegaard calls 'the purity of heart' - the simple intention in seeking the Kingdom of God. In it is freedom, joy and fruitfulness which Jesus speaks of when one chooses God for his master, over and above all others, not least the spirit of mammon. I especially love his chapter on the Divine Centre which Thomas Kelly has taught us about. Oh what a life it is to slip into that oasis, that wellspring that nourishes our lives amidst the frantic pace and noise that so easily pushes us over! Foster is an excellent writer who demonstrates how writing can be such an art. It is informative but not stuffy, revolutionary but not naive - he exercises great poise and deliberation even when discussing the intricate balance one needs to strike in living simply. He invites us to see how the life of simplicity is such a joy, that even the seemingly arduous discipline of 'praying unceasingly' can be a game we could delightfully enter into. I find myself informed, uplifted and challenged on nearly every page. It is a very well-rounded book that draws deeply from the rich resource of ancient spiritual tradition (which is vintage Foster!) as well as from scriptures and offers practical strategies for both novices and the experienced how simplicity can be embodied both individually and corporately in our world today. If the modern church were to embrace just a fraction of its counsels, she will be a great beacon of hope to a world bent on destroying itself with its militant consumerism and be a credible witness to the in-breaking Kingdom of God which is one of justice and compassion.
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What Saint Paul Really Said: Was Paul of Tarsus the Real Founder of Christianity?
by N. T. WrightEdition: Paperback
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
A Great Summary of Wright's View of Paul and the Gospel., August 21, 2008

Tom Wright is at the forefront of Pauline scholarship as well as studies on Jesus. His historical instincts, engagement with primary sources and 'big picture' exegesis have led him to a fresh reading of Paul in the historical context of the Graeco-Roman-Jewish world of the 1st century. The outcome is a breathtaking view of the Gospel as understood and preached by Paul to a world dominated by the Roman imperial cult, pagan idolatry, Greek wisdoms and Jewish Messianic hopes. It is in such a world, Wright argues, where Paul does his business and his writings can best be understood against this background. This means that the popular, truncated notion of the gospel as a timeless system of salvation that will 'save our souls' and 'get us to heaven after we die' would have to be jettisoned in favour of the gospel that announces God's reign that has been inaugurated here on earth in the person of Jesus the Messiah. This means that the gospel has a much larger scope (indeed cosmic) than the private relationship one has with God or the eternal destiny of the individual souls. Rather, it speaks of God's faithfulness to the world he has made and how through the covenant relationships with his people, he will set the world aright - culminating in the new heavens and the new earth. This way of reading Paul would require a paradigm shift for Christians who have got used to reading the NT through the 'works righteousness vs salvation by grace' debates that have coloured our reading of Paul since Augustine. Hence, the evident unsettling of some readers. Wright's proposal, while we do not have to agree with every fine point of his exegesis , has the huge edge over the traditional reading for taking the historical setting far more seriously and in so doing invites us to hear Paul afresh as he announces the good news in all its ramifications. I've found this book to be a great primer to Wright's other more extensive treatments of Paul in many of his other works, including 'Climax of the Covenant', 'Paul in Fresh Perspective' and 'Paul for Everyone' commentaries. I recommend it to anyone who is open to letting his reading of Paul be challenged by one of the most respected NT scholars of our day.
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Reversed Thunder: The Revelation of John and the Praying Imagination
by Eugene H. PetersonEdition: Paperback
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A book that strikes like thunder bolt!, August 8, 2008

This is the book that got me hooked on Eugene Peterson's prolific works. Back in my younger days, wrapped in all the scholastic debates (or more accurately 'confusion') about the genre of Revelation, cryptic imageries and numbers, theories about the Beast and the Millenium, crystal-balling the times!, this book rescues me from all of that and puts me in a completely different country where one begins to make sense of this highly misunderstood book of the bible. It is more like a drama, a powerful liturgy and hope-filled imagination enacted by and for those with eyes to see - beyond the present turmoil and horror and tragedy the world finds itself inextricably stuck in. Every chapter presents Peterson's masterful reflection on God's last authoritative speech on a different theme - scripture, church, worship, witness, evil, judgement, heaven and more. 'Oh death, be not proud!... One short sleep past, we wake eternally, And death shall be no more; death, thou shalt die. ' says John Donne. This book is a thunder bolt that speaks back to a broken, tumultous world: evil and death do not have the last word, God does! Reversed Thunder remains one of the most scholarly and edifying commentaries on what John saw on the island of Patmos - that should make us all fall flat on our faces as though dead. Maran atha!