This year is one of the most tumultuous ones, with financial crisis in the US, Europe, the Tsunami in Japan, floods in Bangkok and Philippines, political instability in the Middle-east and North Africa. The world in which Jesus was born was not unlike our time. It was a world ruled by the iron-hand of Caesar. The people suffered under heavy taxation and oppressive rule. The people of Israel cried out for a Rescuer, for their Messiah, someone to rescue them out of their bondage.
And, God gave them his Son. That is the most precious, costly and generous gift God could ever give. We should not let the familiarity of the Christmas dull us to the stupendous gift of Christmas - the gift of God's own Son.
But, notice the quiet and humble way in which the Son of God was born. God did not write the announcement of his arrival with bold lettered words sprawled across the sky. He did not get the local press to publish the news across the Roman Empire. No, instead he chose to announce his birth through a few ordinary shepherds grazing their flocks in the field. The hoteliers were so busy making money they did not take notice of his grand arrival. They did not even have a room in the inn for him. Instead he was born in a manger and made to share his bed with the animals.
Christmas is a great mystery. We cannot fully explain it. How could the God who holds the whole world in the hollow of his hands be born as a baby nursing at his mother's breast? The Lord of the Universe did not have a decent room for him to stay when he came?
This mystery invites our wonder. We need to be like Mary who pondered it deeply in her heart. God chooses to reveal his glory through a baby born in a manger wrapped in swaddling clothes.
We need to pause and ponder deeply the meaning of Christmas. We need to get away from the dazzling lights of Orchard, the glitzy world of consumerism and all the hustle and bustle of merry-making to discern the gift of God's own Son. I have made it a habit to stay away from the malls every Christmas, so i can be sufficiently quiet to discern the meaning of the 'Grand Miracle' and be bathed in God's presence.
He came humbly and quietly identifying with the lowly and somehow through his sufferings, he would be the Saviour of the world. Perhaps, in our troubled times, we long for a superhero - a Captain America or a knight in shining armor who would sweep us off our feet and destroy all our enemies. But God works in his own way..he gave us a baby born in manger, wrapped in swaddling clothes. He uses the cross as the instrument of salvation.
At the Lord's Supper, the mystery of Christ's birth and his suffering meet. The Lord of the universe came as a vulnerable baby, who would save the world by dying on the cross. Let us wonder at this mystery, which invites us to receive the gift of God's own Son. As we take the bread and drink the cup, let us open our hearts and let the life of God's Son be born in us.
Monday, December 26, 2011
amazon reviews 9
Miracles
by C. S. Lewis
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like an old wine.. it gets better with age, September 27, 2011
This review is from: Miracles (Paperback)
Miracles is one of my favourite CS Lewis' books. Started reading it in my early twenties but found a few chapters difficult. Nonetheless, it has given me a basic framework for what it means to believe in miracles and how that is integral to the Christian story, that would not have been without the Incarnation (dubbed the 'Grand Miracle'). The next decade, I found it easier and even more illuminating, as it had many electrifying passages that cured the 'dabbler of religious ideas' in me, that came subconsciously under the spell of the New Age pantheistic mood that was floating around. In this decade, where some fiery brand of atheists (naturalists in Lewis' term) made a comeback argument against belief in the supernatural, this book is ready at hand to buttress one against its angry rhetoric. Leave aside the big guns - William Lane Craig or David Bentley Hart - for the moment, this brief volume alone is sufficient to blow the rehashed Humean circular logic out of the water together with many other such sophistries. All this is to say that Lewis' works never seem to go outdated.
Having read quite a fair bit of the bible scholar NT Wright on the themes of Resurrection and the New Creation, the chapter 'miracles of the new creation' brought up several 'aha' moments and close connections between these two intellectual giants. This makes 'Miracles' such a pleasure to read ... it offers moments after moments of delightful serendipity. It is like old wine. It gets better with age and yields a special flavor as one reads and grows with it.
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The Cross of Christ
by John R. W. Stott
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one of the best evangelical reflections on the cross, August 30, 2011
This review is from: The Cross of Christ (Hardcover)
This is one of Stott's best books and it remains a gold standard for an evangelical understanding of the cross of Christ. Amidst past and current controversies among evangelicals surrounding the atonement, Stott's nuanced articulation of the christian doctrine of salvation is one of the clearest biblical expositions I've ever read on the cross and how it saves. He eschews the terminology of 'theories' and opts instead for 'metaphors' when discussing the various imageries in the NT in describing the saving work of Christ on the cross such as justification, atonement, reconciliation, adoption and redemption. Each of these metaphors when properly elucidated, as in this book, gives us a different but complementary angle to the mystery of the cross. This book brings together the paradoxes of God's love and wrath, grace and holiness, gift and demand, glory and suffering. It clarifies without squashing the mystery of the redemptive act, blowing apart some popular caricatures of the cross such as 'cosmic child abuse' or 'third-party payment to the Devil'. The book exemplifies a learned, balanced and edifying piece of theological reflections on how the death of Christ brings salvation to the world. I believe it will remain unsurpassed for many years to come.
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Jesus, the Apostles and the Early Church
by Pope Benedict XVI
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an inspirational book on the apostles of Jesus and the church, August 16, 2011
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'Tradition is not the transmission of things or words, a collection of dead
things. Tradition is the living river that links us to the origins, the living
river in which the origins are ever present, the great river that leads us to
the gates of eternity.'(pg.28) says Pope Benedict XVI. With this reflection on
what it means for the Church to be 'built on the foundation of the apostles and
the prophets' (Eph 2:20), Benedict presents to us a series of catechetical
instructions on the apostles of the church collectively and individually,
delivered to general audiences between 15 Mar 2006 and 14 Feb 2007.
I appreciate the succinct way he explains the notion of what constitutes
apostolic authority and how the church is constituted by the apostolic witness
as it is and continues to be inspired by the Holy Spirit. As such, the 'gift to
be safeguarded' is also a gift that continues to lead the church to a fuller
realization of the gospel truth and our communion in Christ.
Benedict also takes us through the individual apostles, including Paul ('the one
untimely born') and their associates (eg. Timothy and Titus), bringing out the
specific colours of each character as he meditates on the cameo
appearances/utterances of these in the gospel accounts. Take for example,
Peter. These words strike me as particularly poignant:
"And it seems to me that these conversions of Saint Peter on different
occasions, and his whole figure, are a great consolation and a great lesson for
us. We too have a great desire for God; we too want to be generous, but we too
expect God to be strong in the world and to transform the world on the spot,
according to our ideas and the needs we perceive.
God chooses a different way. God chooses the way of transformation of hearts in
suffering and in humility. And we, like Peter, must convert over and over
again. We must follow Jesus and not go before him: it is he who shows us the
way."
And about Thomas, he writes:
"At first, he did not believe that Jesus had appeared in his absence and
said, 'Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails, and place my finger in
the mark of the nails, and place my hand in his side, I will not believe.'
Basically, from these words emerges the conviction that Jesus can now be
recognized by his wounds than by his face. Thomas holds that the signs that
confirm Jesus' identity are now above all his wounds, in which he reveals to us
how much he loved us. In this the Apostle is not mistaken."
I find my heart deeply moved by comments like these because in a simple but
profound way, he unravels the truths of the gospel contained in the personal
encounters that these ordinary men and women had of the living Christ.
You will find many such gems scattered throughout the simple prose with which he
relates the stories of the apostles to the modern audience. The stories are not
stuffed with information but brief and to the point. In a way, it is like
hearing the gospel once again through the personal portraits of these early,
foundational witnesses of Christ.
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Preaching in the Spirit
by Dennis F. Kinlaw
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forming the preacher, June 17, 2011
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This is not exactly an instructional book on preaching, as in one that teaches how to craft a sermon, improve our delivery or connect with the audience but a book that focuses on the preparation of the preacher himself. For this, it fills a huge gap amidst the scores of books on homiletics. Kinlaw succeeds in giving us a book that encourages and inspires, especially those who feel somewhat daunted by the awesome task of preaching the Word of God. Kinlaw is spot-on that it is not 'by might or by power but by the Spirit of God' that one should approach the task. It is God that makes the difference, not our learning, eloquence or charisma.. therefore the invitation to be filled constantly with the Spirit is an important one and Kinlaw shows us how, with his meditation on the Trinity, personhood and stories of ordinary individuals who were set on fire by God's own Spirit to proclaim his mighty Word. A useful reminder for seasoned preachers and aspiring ones alike.
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Let's Start with Jesus: A New Way of Doing Theology
by Dennis F. Kinlaw
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Knowing God through Jesus, April 3, 2011
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Dennis Kinlaw in this book invites us to streamline our systematic theology through the lens of Christology. That is to say, if you want to get a sharper focus on God, Jesus is the place to start. I do not think by doing so, he is denigrating the traditional full-orbed approach that typically begins with the Prolegomena, the Existence of God and his attributes before dealing with Christ, Spirit, Salvation, Church and Eschatology. Nor is his approach all that fresh or unconventional. What I think Kinlaw seeks to do and does so reasonably well is to go to the heart of the Christian revelation in Jesus the Christ, who reveals the Father and in so doing illuminates the human problem ( which he identifies as 'eritheia' - self-interest) and its remedy in the cross ('agape' - God's self-giving love). The trinitarian shape of his theology is clear as is his emphasis on the intimacy with which God seeks to restore with his people. The book is quite simple to read, without much fanfare or ponderous ideas. The discussion on 'personhood' is quite lucid and the metaphors (legal, familial, nuptial) he chose for the divine-human relations are apt in bringing across the relational thrust of the redemptive motif in scripture. It makes for a good accessible read on basic Christian theology through the Christological/Trinitarian lenses but I have not found anything particularly new or exciting here by way of biblical exegesis or theological insights. In matters of theology, this is not by itself a weakness; just that it does not quite deliver what the subtitle had let me to expect. As it is written at the popular level, Kinlaw could also have livened up his essays with greater interaction with the existential issues of our time. This helps at least the average reader to make the connections between good theology and life.
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Reasonable Faith (3rd Edition): Christian Truth and Apologetics
by William Lane Craig
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an excellent resource for rational Christian apologetics, April 3, 2011
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William Lane Craig is undoubtedly one of today's foremost contenders for the Christian truth claims. Here he puts in our hands a wonderful resource Christians can use to present the Christian faith in a coherent and intelligent way. In the introduction, he makes some really good points about Christian apologetics that sets the stage right for the presentation of the gospel to the modern inquirers. For example, he believes in the ministerial (as opposed to the magisterial) use of reason for Christian apologetics. He agrees with Luther and Calvin that the primary means of conversion is the inner witness of the Holy Spirit. Reason however can serve as a handmaiden of faith by confirming the faith of believers and as a witness to honest inquirers outside the family of faith.
He first deals with the grounds for believing that God exists using the traditional five core approaches: ontological, cosmological, teleological, moral and experiential arguments. He deals with each of these in-depth, interacting with past and present figures that have used these approaches in their own ways. The cosmological argument, in the form of the Kalam argument, is Craig's strongest area not least because he is instrumental in developing and popularizing this line of reasoning in our own day. Though he is a philosopher-theologian, his explanation of the teleological arguments is surprisingly well-informed in the light of modern scientific theories concerning the Big Bang, the super string theory, inflationary theory, etc. Yet, it is the moral argument that many will find most effective in striking at the chords of most people's hearts because this comes closest to the level of our feelings and experiences.
The second half of the book follows a broadly systematic theology format in presenting the case for Christianity, dealing with the historical investigation of the Christ event, the plausibility of miracles, the identity of Christ and the Resurrection. His presentation shows a mastery of current scholarships concerning the historical Christ. Craig also goes the extra length in helping the budding Christian evangelists in using the materials presented here effectively and anticipating the possible objections and evasions commonly encountered.
Craig has done much in commending the Christian faith to the Western intelligentsia (especially in debates with his own peers - university dons and professors in tertiary institutions) and raised the level of discourse for all who are interested in an honest, rational inquiry into the existence of God and the Christian truth claims. In this book form, one gets to sit down and consider the solid case he has put forward on this vital topic. What it does for me personally, among other things, is that it blows apart the persistent 'postmodern' suggestion that people will not be persuaded by sound reasoning, what it takes in our pluralistic society for anyone to entertain the idea of changing one's mind is to tell a gripping narrative. Craig shows cogently both in his book and in his ministry that such a suggestion borders on a profound misunderstanding of the nature of Truth and, at worst, a sinister lie. He has done us all a great favour in reviving the place of rational apologetics in the Christian life and witness. Take and read!
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The Divine Milieu
by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
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Lord, teach us how to see!, March 30, 2011
This review is from: The Divine Milieu (Paperback)
"This little book does no more than recapitulate the eternal lesson of the church in the words of a man who, because he believes himself to feel deeply in tune with his own times, has sought to teach how to see God everywhere, to see him in all that is most hidden, most solid, and most ultimate in the world. These pages - put forward no more than a practical attitude - or more exactly perhaps, a way of teaching how to see." writes Teilhard de Chardin in his introduction.
I have not read enough of this eminent scientist-theologian to judge if he is a pantheist, a panentheist or a true blue monotheist at heart (though in this book alone, he explicitly distances himself from the first). But this book articulates a vision of reality through the lens of Creation-Incarnation-Resurrection-Parousia that one is hard pressed not to take his Christian orientation seriously. He writes expressly to the 'waverer' who may be shaken by the modern cosmological discoveries that the gospel of Jesus gets relegated to a narrow, archaic piece of relic that has no room for the wider universe.
Presenting the universe instead as the divine milieu, that is, the whole world as a God's creation invaded, penetrated, shot through, indwelt by the presence of God by virtue of the Incarnation of Christ, he invites us to see the world anew not as an extension of the divine (as in the 'false trails of Pantheism' pg 129-130), or an evil product to be eventually destroyed (as in 'Manichean dualism' pg 105) but as the very realm in which Christ will take up his residence and fill it with his fullness (pleroma). If so, the whole life of the Christian and of the whole Church is to be bound up with the divine movement that will bring all things under the unity of Christ. Nothing therefore falls outside the divine milieu - our active endeavour to work for good and resist evil as well as our passive diminishments by misfortunes, setbacks, sufferings and death. God can use the 'two halves of our existence' (active and passive) to bring about the fullness that he intends.
The cross stands as a central symbol of this vision where the climb to Calvary exemplifies the human endeavour and fidelity in moving towards the light of God (not swooning/slumbering under its shadow, as is sometimes misconstrued) and the surrender to God's power of resurrection.
To appropriate this vision, the virtues of purity, faith, fidelity and charity are indispensable for both the individuals and for the body of Christ.
There is a warning throughout the book against passively resigning to what is - the evil, injustice, misfortune - and mindlessly attributing that to God's will. Instead, no true Christian detachment is exercised unless one has given his maximum strength to work with God in struggling against evil. Leaving aside the mystery and origin of suffering (nowhere does he suggest evil to be a necessary part of God's plan or that God is in any way responsible for it), he makes clear that our unrelenting and sustained resistance against evil belongs intimately to God's redemptive work. The true Christian attitude never loses sight of the fact that God's grace is ultimately what works through us, furnishing us with the sustained impulse to do his will and utilizing even the 'waste matter' of our existence, namely our failures, sufferings, weaknesses for his good purpose.
Interspersed with prayers, and written in a passionate, lyrical style, this inspiring classic helps us capture a larger vision of the gospel story. Instead of narrowing down our scope to only the private 'spiritual' and 'religious' compartments, he broadens our vision of the world as one in which God acts powerfully to save, renew and indwell with his all-pervasive presence. This book gives us an integrated Christian worldview that makes sense of the seemingly disparate elements and spheres of life and give us a powerful impetus to dive deep into the full business of human life, if only to lose ourselves completely in the divine milieu.
This is thoughtful, soul-stirring and life-changing literature as the introductory quote makes clear: it's a book that teaches us to see...God in all things. As this book basically engages at the world-view level and is therefore unabashedly philosophical, I reckon that the reader must be primed by some familiarity with this level/sort of thinking to make the best of it.
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Work: A Kingdom Perspective on Labor
by Ben Witherington
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a stimulating conversation on the christian view of work, March 17, 2011
This review is from: Work: A Kingdom Perspective on Labor (Paperback)
This is one of several evangelicals' recent contributions to the theology of work from the christian perspective. Ben Witherington notes that until the last decade, there has been a dearth of theological reflections on this important aspect of the christian life. This is a glaring deficit, considering that we spend an enormous part of our life working, that the bible has a great deal to say about this subject and that work can and ought to be the main domain where the disciple of Christ is spiritually formed, fulfills his calling and brings glory to God. It is a strange omission in most works of christian theology. This is a welcome corrective to the long neglect.
Throughout the book, the author interacts candidly with the major conversational partners on the christian understanding of work and does not hold back from critiquing the thoughts of eminent writers and theologians, past and present, such as Miroslav Volf, Jurgen Moltmann, Gene Veith, Martin Luther, Augustine, David Jensen and Andy Crouch and putting forth his own case. Those familiar with Witherington's background will not be surprised by his inclination that shapes the way he thinks about work. His Wesleyan, Arminian, Pacifist leanings are conspicuous, and his tone is one of unabashed confidence in the biblical veracity of his position.
He begins with a theologically-oriented definition of work for the Christian and he puts it in the perspective of one who is lives in anticipation of the new creation. Work is for the Christian more than seeking self-fulfilment or meeting human needs or making money to survive/prosper but a participation in God's eschatological project of bringing in the new creation. Work from the Christian perspective cannot be understood apart from the cosmic renewing work of the Spirit of God.
Then he takes us through some key biblical passages on work and basically cautions us against either demonizing or divinizing work. The biblical warnings against workaholism and a promethean approach to work are as clear as they are against sloth. It is important to see work as part of but not the be-all and end-all of what it means to be human. It is to balanced with play, worship and rest.
He seeks to correct, in his view, certain distortions of the biblical understanding of work in some forms of christian thoughts such as the clergy-laity divide, the sacred-secular dichotomy, the meticulous supervision of human affairs by an all-controlling God, an aversion to works due to a faulty understanding of works-righteousness, and the theology of separate spheres and realms of duties that allow Christians to violate biblical teachings in his 'official line of duty'. In all, he argues for a more coherent, holistic view of work that allows all Christians to live out the kingdom vocation through good, honest, edifying labour.
He reminds us that Christians are 'God's workmanship created in Christ for good works' (Eph 2:10). The nature of good work, as such, is discussed. Honesty, diligence, creativity and excellence are important ingredients of what constitutes good work. But the basic commitment of the Christian is not only towards a high quality of our work but the highest kind of work that has been entrusted to us by God. That is the work of fulfilling the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. It is with this basic eternal, redemptive framework that he discusses the concepts of 'calling' and 'vocation'. Under this rubric, the place of marriage and celibacy, 'church work' and 'non-church' vocations as well as the issue of remuneration are discussed.
Within 166 pages, he covers a lot of grounds and we may complain that he could have gone deeper in some of the more controversial points he touches on and that his definitions of what constitutes 'work' or 'calling' are a little difficult to follow but as a primer, it is quite a treat. It is not a book that will satisfy you with clear-cut answers and unassailable arguments but the sort of book that will 'tease your brain into active thought', as Witherington loves to say and do. Written in a witty and stimulating way, this latest installment by a very learned and articulate writer entertains as much as it educates.
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Thank God It's Friday: Encountering the Seven Last Words from the Cross
by William H. Willimon
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the shock effect overdone, February 27, 2011
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Let me say that I have been a long-time fan of Willimon's sermons and writings (such as 'Resident Aliens', 'The Service of God', 'Pastor', 'Conversations with Barth on Preaching') but this book which I had looked forward to reading for the Holy Week was a letdown. It could be that Willimon had written some really excellent stuff in the past that my expectation from him has been unrealistically set. My disappointment stems from the uneasy feeling that he is trying too hard here to make Jesus stranger, more subversive and offensive than he really is. Alright, I take it as a given that Jesus is larger than anyone can conceive. It is true that Jesus has been tamed by centuries of domestication and remaking him in our own image...but I am not convinced by the silly portraits Willimon here made him out to be.
For example, the first sermon which zeroes in on Jesus' forgiving his enemies, calling it his 'pre-emptive forgiveness' (a phrase coined to counter the pre-emptive strikes of American military campaigns?) appears to be an exercise in caricaturing what forgiveness is. He seems to take the first of 'Jesus' last words on the cross' as the first and the last word the whole bible has to say about forgiveness. It is true that we have put too many hedges and qualifiers around the gracious act of forgiving but Willimon's taking his words to a one-dimensional extreme seems to fly in the face of the bible's own complex and nuanced conception of that divine-human transaction. It does not take into account that forgiveness proffered is not the same as forgiveness received. It breezes over the fact that God does sometimes withhold mercy (Mt6:14) and that Jesus calls the apostles to sometimes do likewise in their ministry (Jn 20:23). It does not say anything about the condition of those who would die without mercy, having crucified the Son of God all over again (Heb 10:26). There is a lavish, subversive, generous petition for mercy on the cross but it is predicated on the ground that 'they know not what they do' in the sense that Jesus meant it. Curiously, the connecting word 'for'(gar) was left out of his exegesis.
Indeed, Willimon's thesis makes no such nuances but pushes for what appears to be a no-holds-barred blanket application of divine mercy. It sounds shocking and 'shocking' has become something of a novelty lately but the message is not one that one can ulimately live with, nor does it prepare a disciple of Christ to practise forgiveness in a complex, broken world.
Now, that is the first sermon/chapter in the book. I could have skipped over this and hoped for a more balanced treatment in the others but my hope sadly went largely unmet. Somehow Willimon continues to take far too much 'poetic liberty' with the words of scripture to the point of being prosaic. Consider this:
'Death is the ultimate rip-off...In one of his parables, Jesus compared God to a thief who comes in the night while we are asleep and think we are secure, and steals everything we've got. Not the nicest image about God but a truthful one. In the end. God is going to rip off everything that we thought we had.' (page 69) We get his point about the ephemeral nature of life but one wonders if all these immodest language and confusing half-truths about Jesus comparing God to a thief that comes to rip us off are all that necessary. There's a good chance that many of such off-hand allusions are not even accurate if one takes the trouble to examine the texts closely. In this instance, Willimon appears to have conflated two different parables (Mt 24:42-44; Lk 12:20) from different places to make a point quite different from what Jesus actually says in either parable.
Over and over again, he appears far too eager to 'get at the shock of what Jesus says' (page 20) that it does not matter that Jesus actually means no such thing.
As such, the general tenor has been one that is big on 'shock value' and 'provocativeness' and little on what the final words spoken by Jesus really mean, how they breathe new life into the church and guide us in the way of the cross, he commands us to bear daily. He seems tired of the old truths and seeks to hit the audience with something 'fresh' by straining the texts.
P/S: This critical review in no way detracts from my deep admiration for Willimon's scholarship and ministry as a whole but I do so out of a frank appraisal of this particular work, in the hope that perhaps we read/hear him with the respectful critical engagement his work deserves.
by C. S. Lewis
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like an old wine.. it gets better with age, September 27, 2011
This review is from: Miracles (Paperback)
Miracles is one of my favourite CS Lewis' books. Started reading it in my early twenties but found a few chapters difficult. Nonetheless, it has given me a basic framework for what it means to believe in miracles and how that is integral to the Christian story, that would not have been without the Incarnation (dubbed the 'Grand Miracle'). The next decade, I found it easier and even more illuminating, as it had many electrifying passages that cured the 'dabbler of religious ideas' in me, that came subconsciously under the spell of the New Age pantheistic mood that was floating around. In this decade, where some fiery brand of atheists (naturalists in Lewis' term) made a comeback argument against belief in the supernatural, this book is ready at hand to buttress one against its angry rhetoric. Leave aside the big guns - William Lane Craig or David Bentley Hart - for the moment, this brief volume alone is sufficient to blow the rehashed Humean circular logic out of the water together with many other such sophistries. All this is to say that Lewis' works never seem to go outdated.
Having read quite a fair bit of the bible scholar NT Wright on the themes of Resurrection and the New Creation, the chapter 'miracles of the new creation' brought up several 'aha' moments and close connections between these two intellectual giants. This makes 'Miracles' such a pleasure to read ... it offers moments after moments of delightful serendipity. It is like old wine. It gets better with age and yields a special flavor as one reads and grows with it.
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The Cross of Christ
by John R. W. Stott
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one of the best evangelical reflections on the cross, August 30, 2011
This review is from: The Cross of Christ (Hardcover)
This is one of Stott's best books and it remains a gold standard for an evangelical understanding of the cross of Christ. Amidst past and current controversies among evangelicals surrounding the atonement, Stott's nuanced articulation of the christian doctrine of salvation is one of the clearest biblical expositions I've ever read on the cross and how it saves. He eschews the terminology of 'theories' and opts instead for 'metaphors' when discussing the various imageries in the NT in describing the saving work of Christ on the cross such as justification, atonement, reconciliation, adoption and redemption. Each of these metaphors when properly elucidated, as in this book, gives us a different but complementary angle to the mystery of the cross. This book brings together the paradoxes of God's love and wrath, grace and holiness, gift and demand, glory and suffering. It clarifies without squashing the mystery of the redemptive act, blowing apart some popular caricatures of the cross such as 'cosmic child abuse' or 'third-party payment to the Devil'. The book exemplifies a learned, balanced and edifying piece of theological reflections on how the death of Christ brings salvation to the world. I believe it will remain unsurpassed for many years to come.
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Jesus, the Apostles and the Early Church
by Pope Benedict XVI
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an inspirational book on the apostles of Jesus and the church, August 16, 2011
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This review is from: Jesus, the Apostles and the Early Church (Hardcover)
'Tradition is not the transmission of things or words, a collection of dead
things. Tradition is the living river that links us to the origins, the living
river in which the origins are ever present, the great river that leads us to
the gates of eternity.'(pg.28) says Pope Benedict XVI. With this reflection on
what it means for the Church to be 'built on the foundation of the apostles and
the prophets' (Eph 2:20), Benedict presents to us a series of catechetical
instructions on the apostles of the church collectively and individually,
delivered to general audiences between 15 Mar 2006 and 14 Feb 2007.
I appreciate the succinct way he explains the notion of what constitutes
apostolic authority and how the church is constituted by the apostolic witness
as it is and continues to be inspired by the Holy Spirit. As such, the 'gift to
be safeguarded' is also a gift that continues to lead the church to a fuller
realization of the gospel truth and our communion in Christ.
Benedict also takes us through the individual apostles, including Paul ('the one
untimely born') and their associates (eg. Timothy and Titus), bringing out the
specific colours of each character as he meditates on the cameo
appearances/utterances of these in the gospel accounts. Take for example,
Peter. These words strike me as particularly poignant:
"And it seems to me that these conversions of Saint Peter on different
occasions, and his whole figure, are a great consolation and a great lesson for
us. We too have a great desire for God; we too want to be generous, but we too
expect God to be strong in the world and to transform the world on the spot,
according to our ideas and the needs we perceive.
God chooses a different way. God chooses the way of transformation of hearts in
suffering and in humility. And we, like Peter, must convert over and over
again. We must follow Jesus and not go before him: it is he who shows us the
way."
And about Thomas, he writes:
"At first, he did not believe that Jesus had appeared in his absence and
said, 'Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails, and place my finger in
the mark of the nails, and place my hand in his side, I will not believe.'
Basically, from these words emerges the conviction that Jesus can now be
recognized by his wounds than by his face. Thomas holds that the signs that
confirm Jesus' identity are now above all his wounds, in which he reveals to us
how much he loved us. In this the Apostle is not mistaken."
I find my heart deeply moved by comments like these because in a simple but
profound way, he unravels the truths of the gospel contained in the personal
encounters that these ordinary men and women had of the living Christ.
You will find many such gems scattered throughout the simple prose with which he
relates the stories of the apostles to the modern audience. The stories are not
stuffed with information but brief and to the point. In a way, it is like
hearing the gospel once again through the personal portraits of these early,
foundational witnesses of Christ.
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Preaching in the Spirit
by Dennis F. Kinlaw
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forming the preacher, June 17, 2011
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This is not exactly an instructional book on preaching, as in one that teaches how to craft a sermon, improve our delivery or connect with the audience but a book that focuses on the preparation of the preacher himself. For this, it fills a huge gap amidst the scores of books on homiletics. Kinlaw succeeds in giving us a book that encourages and inspires, especially those who feel somewhat daunted by the awesome task of preaching the Word of God. Kinlaw is spot-on that it is not 'by might or by power but by the Spirit of God' that one should approach the task. It is God that makes the difference, not our learning, eloquence or charisma.. therefore the invitation to be filled constantly with the Spirit is an important one and Kinlaw shows us how, with his meditation on the Trinity, personhood and stories of ordinary individuals who were set on fire by God's own Spirit to proclaim his mighty Word. A useful reminder for seasoned preachers and aspiring ones alike.
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Let's Start with Jesus: A New Way of Doing Theology
by Dennis F. Kinlaw
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Knowing God through Jesus, April 3, 2011
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Dennis Kinlaw in this book invites us to streamline our systematic theology through the lens of Christology. That is to say, if you want to get a sharper focus on God, Jesus is the place to start. I do not think by doing so, he is denigrating the traditional full-orbed approach that typically begins with the Prolegomena, the Existence of God and his attributes before dealing with Christ, Spirit, Salvation, Church and Eschatology. Nor is his approach all that fresh or unconventional. What I think Kinlaw seeks to do and does so reasonably well is to go to the heart of the Christian revelation in Jesus the Christ, who reveals the Father and in so doing illuminates the human problem ( which he identifies as 'eritheia' - self-interest) and its remedy in the cross ('agape' - God's self-giving love). The trinitarian shape of his theology is clear as is his emphasis on the intimacy with which God seeks to restore with his people. The book is quite simple to read, without much fanfare or ponderous ideas. The discussion on 'personhood' is quite lucid and the metaphors (legal, familial, nuptial) he chose for the divine-human relations are apt in bringing across the relational thrust of the redemptive motif in scripture. It makes for a good accessible read on basic Christian theology through the Christological/Trinitarian lenses but I have not found anything particularly new or exciting here by way of biblical exegesis or theological insights. In matters of theology, this is not by itself a weakness; just that it does not quite deliver what the subtitle had let me to expect. As it is written at the popular level, Kinlaw could also have livened up his essays with greater interaction with the existential issues of our time. This helps at least the average reader to make the connections between good theology and life.
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Reasonable Faith (3rd Edition): Christian Truth and Apologetics
by William Lane Craig
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an excellent resource for rational Christian apologetics, April 3, 2011
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William Lane Craig is undoubtedly one of today's foremost contenders for the Christian truth claims. Here he puts in our hands a wonderful resource Christians can use to present the Christian faith in a coherent and intelligent way. In the introduction, he makes some really good points about Christian apologetics that sets the stage right for the presentation of the gospel to the modern inquirers. For example, he believes in the ministerial (as opposed to the magisterial) use of reason for Christian apologetics. He agrees with Luther and Calvin that the primary means of conversion is the inner witness of the Holy Spirit. Reason however can serve as a handmaiden of faith by confirming the faith of believers and as a witness to honest inquirers outside the family of faith.
He first deals with the grounds for believing that God exists using the traditional five core approaches: ontological, cosmological, teleological, moral and experiential arguments. He deals with each of these in-depth, interacting with past and present figures that have used these approaches in their own ways. The cosmological argument, in the form of the Kalam argument, is Craig's strongest area not least because he is instrumental in developing and popularizing this line of reasoning in our own day. Though he is a philosopher-theologian, his explanation of the teleological arguments is surprisingly well-informed in the light of modern scientific theories concerning the Big Bang, the super string theory, inflationary theory, etc. Yet, it is the moral argument that many will find most effective in striking at the chords of most people's hearts because this comes closest to the level of our feelings and experiences.
The second half of the book follows a broadly systematic theology format in presenting the case for Christianity, dealing with the historical investigation of the Christ event, the plausibility of miracles, the identity of Christ and the Resurrection. His presentation shows a mastery of current scholarships concerning the historical Christ. Craig also goes the extra length in helping the budding Christian evangelists in using the materials presented here effectively and anticipating the possible objections and evasions commonly encountered.
Craig has done much in commending the Christian faith to the Western intelligentsia (especially in debates with his own peers - university dons and professors in tertiary institutions) and raised the level of discourse for all who are interested in an honest, rational inquiry into the existence of God and the Christian truth claims. In this book form, one gets to sit down and consider the solid case he has put forward on this vital topic. What it does for me personally, among other things, is that it blows apart the persistent 'postmodern' suggestion that people will not be persuaded by sound reasoning, what it takes in our pluralistic society for anyone to entertain the idea of changing one's mind is to tell a gripping narrative. Craig shows cogently both in his book and in his ministry that such a suggestion borders on a profound misunderstanding of the nature of Truth and, at worst, a sinister lie. He has done us all a great favour in reviving the place of rational apologetics in the Christian life and witness. Take and read!
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The Divine Milieu
by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
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Lord, teach us how to see!, March 30, 2011
This review is from: The Divine Milieu (Paperback)
"This little book does no more than recapitulate the eternal lesson of the church in the words of a man who, because he believes himself to feel deeply in tune with his own times, has sought to teach how to see God everywhere, to see him in all that is most hidden, most solid, and most ultimate in the world. These pages - put forward no more than a practical attitude - or more exactly perhaps, a way of teaching how to see." writes Teilhard de Chardin in his introduction.
I have not read enough of this eminent scientist-theologian to judge if he is a pantheist, a panentheist or a true blue monotheist at heart (though in this book alone, he explicitly distances himself from the first). But this book articulates a vision of reality through the lens of Creation-Incarnation-Resurrection-Parousia that one is hard pressed not to take his Christian orientation seriously. He writes expressly to the 'waverer' who may be shaken by the modern cosmological discoveries that the gospel of Jesus gets relegated to a narrow, archaic piece of relic that has no room for the wider universe.
Presenting the universe instead as the divine milieu, that is, the whole world as a God's creation invaded, penetrated, shot through, indwelt by the presence of God by virtue of the Incarnation of Christ, he invites us to see the world anew not as an extension of the divine (as in the 'false trails of Pantheism' pg 129-130), or an evil product to be eventually destroyed (as in 'Manichean dualism' pg 105) but as the very realm in which Christ will take up his residence and fill it with his fullness (pleroma). If so, the whole life of the Christian and of the whole Church is to be bound up with the divine movement that will bring all things under the unity of Christ. Nothing therefore falls outside the divine milieu - our active endeavour to work for good and resist evil as well as our passive diminishments by misfortunes, setbacks, sufferings and death. God can use the 'two halves of our existence' (active and passive) to bring about the fullness that he intends.
The cross stands as a central symbol of this vision where the climb to Calvary exemplifies the human endeavour and fidelity in moving towards the light of God (not swooning/slumbering under its shadow, as is sometimes misconstrued) and the surrender to God's power of resurrection.
To appropriate this vision, the virtues of purity, faith, fidelity and charity are indispensable for both the individuals and for the body of Christ.
There is a warning throughout the book against passively resigning to what is - the evil, injustice, misfortune - and mindlessly attributing that to God's will. Instead, no true Christian detachment is exercised unless one has given his maximum strength to work with God in struggling against evil. Leaving aside the mystery and origin of suffering (nowhere does he suggest evil to be a necessary part of God's plan or that God is in any way responsible for it), he makes clear that our unrelenting and sustained resistance against evil belongs intimately to God's redemptive work. The true Christian attitude never loses sight of the fact that God's grace is ultimately what works through us, furnishing us with the sustained impulse to do his will and utilizing even the 'waste matter' of our existence, namely our failures, sufferings, weaknesses for his good purpose.
Interspersed with prayers, and written in a passionate, lyrical style, this inspiring classic helps us capture a larger vision of the gospel story. Instead of narrowing down our scope to only the private 'spiritual' and 'religious' compartments, he broadens our vision of the world as one in which God acts powerfully to save, renew and indwell with his all-pervasive presence. This book gives us an integrated Christian worldview that makes sense of the seemingly disparate elements and spheres of life and give us a powerful impetus to dive deep into the full business of human life, if only to lose ourselves completely in the divine milieu.
This is thoughtful, soul-stirring and life-changing literature as the introductory quote makes clear: it's a book that teaches us to see...God in all things. As this book basically engages at the world-view level and is therefore unabashedly philosophical, I reckon that the reader must be primed by some familiarity with this level/sort of thinking to make the best of it.
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Work: A Kingdom Perspective on Labor
by Ben Witherington
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a stimulating conversation on the christian view of work, March 17, 2011
This review is from: Work: A Kingdom Perspective on Labor (Paperback)
This is one of several evangelicals' recent contributions to the theology of work from the christian perspective. Ben Witherington notes that until the last decade, there has been a dearth of theological reflections on this important aspect of the christian life. This is a glaring deficit, considering that we spend an enormous part of our life working, that the bible has a great deal to say about this subject and that work can and ought to be the main domain where the disciple of Christ is spiritually formed, fulfills his calling and brings glory to God. It is a strange omission in most works of christian theology. This is a welcome corrective to the long neglect.
Throughout the book, the author interacts candidly with the major conversational partners on the christian understanding of work and does not hold back from critiquing the thoughts of eminent writers and theologians, past and present, such as Miroslav Volf, Jurgen Moltmann, Gene Veith, Martin Luther, Augustine, David Jensen and Andy Crouch and putting forth his own case. Those familiar with Witherington's background will not be surprised by his inclination that shapes the way he thinks about work. His Wesleyan, Arminian, Pacifist leanings are conspicuous, and his tone is one of unabashed confidence in the biblical veracity of his position.
He begins with a theologically-oriented definition of work for the Christian and he puts it in the perspective of one who is lives in anticipation of the new creation. Work is for the Christian more than seeking self-fulfilment or meeting human needs or making money to survive/prosper but a participation in God's eschatological project of bringing in the new creation. Work from the Christian perspective cannot be understood apart from the cosmic renewing work of the Spirit of God.
Then he takes us through some key biblical passages on work and basically cautions us against either demonizing or divinizing work. The biblical warnings against workaholism and a promethean approach to work are as clear as they are against sloth. It is important to see work as part of but not the be-all and end-all of what it means to be human. It is to balanced with play, worship and rest.
He seeks to correct, in his view, certain distortions of the biblical understanding of work in some forms of christian thoughts such as the clergy-laity divide, the sacred-secular dichotomy, the meticulous supervision of human affairs by an all-controlling God, an aversion to works due to a faulty understanding of works-righteousness, and the theology of separate spheres and realms of duties that allow Christians to violate biblical teachings in his 'official line of duty'. In all, he argues for a more coherent, holistic view of work that allows all Christians to live out the kingdom vocation through good, honest, edifying labour.
He reminds us that Christians are 'God's workmanship created in Christ for good works' (Eph 2:10). The nature of good work, as such, is discussed. Honesty, diligence, creativity and excellence are important ingredients of what constitutes good work. But the basic commitment of the Christian is not only towards a high quality of our work but the highest kind of work that has been entrusted to us by God. That is the work of fulfilling the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. It is with this basic eternal, redemptive framework that he discusses the concepts of 'calling' and 'vocation'. Under this rubric, the place of marriage and celibacy, 'church work' and 'non-church' vocations as well as the issue of remuneration are discussed.
Within 166 pages, he covers a lot of grounds and we may complain that he could have gone deeper in some of the more controversial points he touches on and that his definitions of what constitutes 'work' or 'calling' are a little difficult to follow but as a primer, it is quite a treat. It is not a book that will satisfy you with clear-cut answers and unassailable arguments but the sort of book that will 'tease your brain into active thought', as Witherington loves to say and do. Written in a witty and stimulating way, this latest installment by a very learned and articulate writer entertains as much as it educates.
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Thank God It's Friday: Encountering the Seven Last Words from the Cross
by William H. Willimon
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the shock effect overdone, February 27, 2011
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Let me say that I have been a long-time fan of Willimon's sermons and writings (such as 'Resident Aliens', 'The Service of God', 'Pastor', 'Conversations with Barth on Preaching') but this book which I had looked forward to reading for the Holy Week was a letdown. It could be that Willimon had written some really excellent stuff in the past that my expectation from him has been unrealistically set. My disappointment stems from the uneasy feeling that he is trying too hard here to make Jesus stranger, more subversive and offensive than he really is. Alright, I take it as a given that Jesus is larger than anyone can conceive. It is true that Jesus has been tamed by centuries of domestication and remaking him in our own image...but I am not convinced by the silly portraits Willimon here made him out to be.
For example, the first sermon which zeroes in on Jesus' forgiving his enemies, calling it his 'pre-emptive forgiveness' (a phrase coined to counter the pre-emptive strikes of American military campaigns?) appears to be an exercise in caricaturing what forgiveness is. He seems to take the first of 'Jesus' last words on the cross' as the first and the last word the whole bible has to say about forgiveness. It is true that we have put too many hedges and qualifiers around the gracious act of forgiving but Willimon's taking his words to a one-dimensional extreme seems to fly in the face of the bible's own complex and nuanced conception of that divine-human transaction. It does not take into account that forgiveness proffered is not the same as forgiveness received. It breezes over the fact that God does sometimes withhold mercy (Mt6:14) and that Jesus calls the apostles to sometimes do likewise in their ministry (Jn 20:23). It does not say anything about the condition of those who would die without mercy, having crucified the Son of God all over again (Heb 10:26). There is a lavish, subversive, generous petition for mercy on the cross but it is predicated on the ground that 'they know not what they do' in the sense that Jesus meant it. Curiously, the connecting word 'for'(gar) was left out of his exegesis.
Indeed, Willimon's thesis makes no such nuances but pushes for what appears to be a no-holds-barred blanket application of divine mercy. It sounds shocking and 'shocking' has become something of a novelty lately but the message is not one that one can ulimately live with, nor does it prepare a disciple of Christ to practise forgiveness in a complex, broken world.
Now, that is the first sermon/chapter in the book. I could have skipped over this and hoped for a more balanced treatment in the others but my hope sadly went largely unmet. Somehow Willimon continues to take far too much 'poetic liberty' with the words of scripture to the point of being prosaic. Consider this:
'Death is the ultimate rip-off...In one of his parables, Jesus compared God to a thief who comes in the night while we are asleep and think we are secure, and steals everything we've got. Not the nicest image about God but a truthful one. In the end. God is going to rip off everything that we thought we had.' (page 69) We get his point about the ephemeral nature of life but one wonders if all these immodest language and confusing half-truths about Jesus comparing God to a thief that comes to rip us off are all that necessary. There's a good chance that many of such off-hand allusions are not even accurate if one takes the trouble to examine the texts closely. In this instance, Willimon appears to have conflated two different parables (Mt 24:42-44; Lk 12:20) from different places to make a point quite different from what Jesus actually says in either parable.
Over and over again, he appears far too eager to 'get at the shock of what Jesus says' (page 20) that it does not matter that Jesus actually means no such thing.
As such, the general tenor has been one that is big on 'shock value' and 'provocativeness' and little on what the final words spoken by Jesus really mean, how they breathe new life into the church and guide us in the way of the cross, he commands us to bear daily. He seems tired of the old truths and seeks to hit the audience with something 'fresh' by straining the texts.
P/S: This critical review in no way detracts from my deep admiration for Willimon's scholarship and ministry as a whole but I do so out of a frank appraisal of this particular work, in the hope that perhaps we read/hear him with the respectful critical engagement his work deserves.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Sermon: 'Adiaphora - matters of indifference' (Romans 14:1-23)
Sermon at Bedok Church of Christ: 'Adiaphora - Matters of Indifference' preached on 11 Sept 2011
Today I am preaching from the NT lectionary text Romans 14:1-12 where Paul talks about 'matters of indifference'. These 'indifferent matters' are not nearly so indifferent as the name suggests, as in fact Paul spent the whole chapter - chp 14 of the letter to the Romans on it - leaving this subject at the end of a long drawn-out argument through the letter concerning the Jew-Gentile relationships in the church. I would like to introduce you to the technical term for this whole category of ethical reflection, popularized by the 16th Century Reformers - *adiaphora*. It refers to a realm/area of ethical issues that are morally and spiritually neutral in and of themselves. They are neither right nor wrong inherently, and covers a whole range of practices and behaviours where the New Testament does not give explicit command or prohibition. This includes:
what we eat or drink - Jesus categorically stated that nothing that goes in through our mouth can make a person unclean and thereby declares all food clean...
what we wear - we are not to worry about what we wear, something the pagans obsess over..
what places we visit - even pagan temples supposedly since 'idols are nothing'
what movies we watch, what music we listen to...
what days we consider sacred....what festivals we choose to celebrate....
Yet, these inherently neutral practices can be right or wrong depending on the context - it depends on the viewpoints, predispostion, intentions, and cultural associations we bring into it...
what is ok with you may not be ok with another. what is frowned upon in one culture may be perfectly normal and acceptable in another culture. So, in a community made up of people from a diversity of cultures and backgrounds, these issues can be a source of contentions.
For example, Christians over the ages continue to debate over whether drinking alcohol is ok, because of its potential for abuse... we argue over eating meat is ok as some groups are committed to vegetarianism...
some have come up with rules on how long should men keep their hair and women their skirt... some raise issues with body-piercing and tattoos..
others debate if the observance of certain festivals like Halloween, Qingming is ok?
and many feel that lines should also be drawn with regards to movies and music on the basis of its censorship ratings, etc...
there are needless to say faithful, committed christians on both sides of the cultural divides ...some have no scruples, whereas others abstain raising issues of conscience...
Paul comes face to face with this sort of adiaphora issue in the church at Rome - there are two groups dubbed the 'strong' and the 'weak' by Paul who struggle with issues of eating meat and observing sacred days.. the weak are likely the Jewish converts who have scruples with eating meat (which is bought from the market, and likely to have been contaminated by having been slaughtered not in accordance with kosher procedures, or having been offered to idols) and the observance of the Jewish feasts, especially Sabbath. Now to the Jews, these are not adiaphora but essential practices that mark them out as God's covenant people... the strong Christians on the other hand are likely the Gentile converts who do not have such cultural conditioning and feel free to eat anything and not obliged to keep the Jewish feast days... Paul apparently sides with the strong, as far as the rectitude of their position is concerned .. saying that the gospel of Christ has set us free from all cultural binds... the gospel of Christ has ushered in the new era with the dominion of Christ, and the Jewish practices which were but a mere shadow of the reality that is Christ are now obsolete. The essential Jewish essential practices have become non-essentials.
Now, the way Paul addresses this situation is instructive and i would like to share with you three principles derived from Romans 14 that can guide us in dealing with issues of adiaphora.
1. Principle of Acceptance.
'Welcome/receive/accept one another as Christ has accepted you.'
John Stott pointed out that this rule of Chist's generous acceptance of sinners is even better than the golden rule. The golden rule commands us to treat others as we would like to be treated, whereas this rule of acceptance calls us to treat others as Christ has treated them, namely to accept them. If Christ has accepted your brothers, who are you to reject or despise them? Since Christ is the Lord of us all, who are we to lord it over one another, for we are all his fellow-servants?
So, the key is that we should not impose standards on others that Christ has not imposed. We should not set up criteria of fellowship, that Christ has not set up.
To be sure, there are boundaries for acceptance into the fellowship of Christ. This is not postmodern moral relativism. It is important that we are talking about issues of adiaphora.
There are theological essentials, that all Christians are to be of one mind on. No one can in good conscience be considered a disciple of Christ if he denies that God is One and that he is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
No one can be properly called a Christian if he denies the divinity and humanity of Christ or that salvation comes through the life, death and resurrection of Christ.
There are moral absolutes that no Christians will in good faith compromise with .. Paul reiterates the Ten Commandments in Rom 13 and above all the command to love. No committed Christian will persist in the vices clearly forbidden by scriptures such as 'adultery', 'stealing', 'slander', 'debauchery', etc.
In matters of essentials, let there be unity, but in matters of adiaphora, let there be liberty. This does not mean that we simply leave our own convictions to ourselves and let each one do his own thing. By all means, talk about it with one another, have lively exchanges of views, bring in the best arguments but do so respectfully and with love... and if at the end, we remain of different views... we should simply agree to disagree.
2. Principle of Personal Accountability.
'Let each be persuaded in his own mind.'
This calls us to consider what our conscience says. Conscience is not perfect or infallible but it is the best guide that we have at any given moment for telling right from wrong. It is the inner moral compass God has placed in each of us. As believers, our conscience has been enlightened by the Spirit and the truths of the gospel. But because we are still not fully mature, our conscience may not have been fully informed or educated and we need to let it grow robust with knowledge. That is why constant learning and discussion of the gospel truths should be the lifelong quest of every Christian. As the Lord says, ' we will know the truth and the truth will set you free.' But we are never to violate our conscience, even if it is wrong. If one thinks that eating meat is wrong, even though the gospel teaches that it is ok, for him to eat is to violate his conscience. God will judge us for the way we exercise our own conscience. For whatever is not of faith is sin.
So, in one sense adiaphora refers to indifferent things, yet in another sense nothing is indifferent in the Christian life --- if one eats with thanksgiving, his eating is done to the honor of God.. whereas if one eats in doubt, then his eating even if by itself is adiaphora eats in violation of his conscience...for none of lives to himself but unto the Lord.. God who sees our heart will take all things into account and before him we are each personally accountable.
3. Principle of Love
'Make every effort to see that we do not put a stumbling block in our brother's way.. but instead do everything that leads to peace and mutual edification.'
This principle calls to consider the *effects* of our actions on others. It is not enough for one to say that my conscience is clear, it has given me the green light but in our action causes another to stumble. It is not worth causing the eternal downfall of my brother by our temporary enjoyment of food and drink! There are different values to things and we should be clear that the spiritual welfare of our brothers and sisters is of our utmost concern! The gospel has given us liberty to many things we enjoy but our liberty must be controlled by the higher principle of love.
So, in conclusion I would like us to ponder how these principles that Paul commends to the Roman church can be translated to our own days as we face issues of adiaphora that indeed make up a huge part of our daily life. As we are drawn increasingly closer to people of many cultures through the social media and mobility, these adiaphora issues are going to multiply. Again these principles when encountering issues of adiaphora:
*look upward to God's acceptance of us - do not impose standards that Christ the Lord did not.
*look inward to our own conscience - and lay it before the Lord, commit to doing what we believe in our heart of hearts to be right and pleasing to God. and continue to grow in the knowledge of God's word that can sharpen our moral discernment.
*look outward to consider the spiritual welfare of our brothers and sisters and do nothing that might cause another to stumble but everything that leads to peace and upbuilding.
Today I am preaching from the NT lectionary text Romans 14:1-12 where Paul talks about 'matters of indifference'. These 'indifferent matters' are not nearly so indifferent as the name suggests, as in fact Paul spent the whole chapter - chp 14 of the letter to the Romans on it - leaving this subject at the end of a long drawn-out argument through the letter concerning the Jew-Gentile relationships in the church. I would like to introduce you to the technical term for this whole category of ethical reflection, popularized by the 16th Century Reformers - *adiaphora*. It refers to a realm/area of ethical issues that are morally and spiritually neutral in and of themselves. They are neither right nor wrong inherently, and covers a whole range of practices and behaviours where the New Testament does not give explicit command or prohibition. This includes:
what we eat or drink - Jesus categorically stated that nothing that goes in through our mouth can make a person unclean and thereby declares all food clean...
what we wear - we are not to worry about what we wear, something the pagans obsess over..
what places we visit - even pagan temples supposedly since 'idols are nothing'
what movies we watch, what music we listen to...
what days we consider sacred....what festivals we choose to celebrate....
Yet, these inherently neutral practices can be right or wrong depending on the context - it depends on the viewpoints, predispostion, intentions, and cultural associations we bring into it...
what is ok with you may not be ok with another. what is frowned upon in one culture may be perfectly normal and acceptable in another culture. So, in a community made up of people from a diversity of cultures and backgrounds, these issues can be a source of contentions.
For example, Christians over the ages continue to debate over whether drinking alcohol is ok, because of its potential for abuse... we argue over eating meat is ok as some groups are committed to vegetarianism...
some have come up with rules on how long should men keep their hair and women their skirt... some raise issues with body-piercing and tattoos..
others debate if the observance of certain festivals like Halloween, Qingming is ok?
and many feel that lines should also be drawn with regards to movies and music on the basis of its censorship ratings, etc...
there are needless to say faithful, committed christians on both sides of the cultural divides ...some have no scruples, whereas others abstain raising issues of conscience...
Paul comes face to face with this sort of adiaphora issue in the church at Rome - there are two groups dubbed the 'strong' and the 'weak' by Paul who struggle with issues of eating meat and observing sacred days.. the weak are likely the Jewish converts who have scruples with eating meat (which is bought from the market, and likely to have been contaminated by having been slaughtered not in accordance with kosher procedures, or having been offered to idols) and the observance of the Jewish feasts, especially Sabbath. Now to the Jews, these are not adiaphora but essential practices that mark them out as God's covenant people... the strong Christians on the other hand are likely the Gentile converts who do not have such cultural conditioning and feel free to eat anything and not obliged to keep the Jewish feast days... Paul apparently sides with the strong, as far as the rectitude of their position is concerned .. saying that the gospel of Christ has set us free from all cultural binds... the gospel of Christ has ushered in the new era with the dominion of Christ, and the Jewish practices which were but a mere shadow of the reality that is Christ are now obsolete. The essential Jewish essential practices have become non-essentials.
Now, the way Paul addresses this situation is instructive and i would like to share with you three principles derived from Romans 14 that can guide us in dealing with issues of adiaphora.
1. Principle of Acceptance.
'Welcome/receive/accept one another as Christ has accepted you.'
John Stott pointed out that this rule of Chist's generous acceptance of sinners is even better than the golden rule. The golden rule commands us to treat others as we would like to be treated, whereas this rule of acceptance calls us to treat others as Christ has treated them, namely to accept them. If Christ has accepted your brothers, who are you to reject or despise them? Since Christ is the Lord of us all, who are we to lord it over one another, for we are all his fellow-servants?
So, the key is that we should not impose standards on others that Christ has not imposed. We should not set up criteria of fellowship, that Christ has not set up.
To be sure, there are boundaries for acceptance into the fellowship of Christ. This is not postmodern moral relativism. It is important that we are talking about issues of adiaphora.
There are theological essentials, that all Christians are to be of one mind on. No one can in good conscience be considered a disciple of Christ if he denies that God is One and that he is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
No one can be properly called a Christian if he denies the divinity and humanity of Christ or that salvation comes through the life, death and resurrection of Christ.
There are moral absolutes that no Christians will in good faith compromise with .. Paul reiterates the Ten Commandments in Rom 13 and above all the command to love. No committed Christian will persist in the vices clearly forbidden by scriptures such as 'adultery', 'stealing', 'slander', 'debauchery', etc.
In matters of essentials, let there be unity, but in matters of adiaphora, let there be liberty. This does not mean that we simply leave our own convictions to ourselves and let each one do his own thing. By all means, talk about it with one another, have lively exchanges of views, bring in the best arguments but do so respectfully and with love... and if at the end, we remain of different views... we should simply agree to disagree.
2. Principle of Personal Accountability.
'Let each be persuaded in his own mind.'
This calls us to consider what our conscience says. Conscience is not perfect or infallible but it is the best guide that we have at any given moment for telling right from wrong. It is the inner moral compass God has placed in each of us. As believers, our conscience has been enlightened by the Spirit and the truths of the gospel. But because we are still not fully mature, our conscience may not have been fully informed or educated and we need to let it grow robust with knowledge. That is why constant learning and discussion of the gospel truths should be the lifelong quest of every Christian. As the Lord says, ' we will know the truth and the truth will set you free.' But we are never to violate our conscience, even if it is wrong. If one thinks that eating meat is wrong, even though the gospel teaches that it is ok, for him to eat is to violate his conscience. God will judge us for the way we exercise our own conscience. For whatever is not of faith is sin.
So, in one sense adiaphora refers to indifferent things, yet in another sense nothing is indifferent in the Christian life --- if one eats with thanksgiving, his eating is done to the honor of God.. whereas if one eats in doubt, then his eating even if by itself is adiaphora eats in violation of his conscience...for none of lives to himself but unto the Lord.. God who sees our heart will take all things into account and before him we are each personally accountable.
3. Principle of Love
'Make every effort to see that we do not put a stumbling block in our brother's way.. but instead do everything that leads to peace and mutual edification.'
This principle calls to consider the *effects* of our actions on others. It is not enough for one to say that my conscience is clear, it has given me the green light but in our action causes another to stumble. It is not worth causing the eternal downfall of my brother by our temporary enjoyment of food and drink! There are different values to things and we should be clear that the spiritual welfare of our brothers and sisters is of our utmost concern! The gospel has given us liberty to many things we enjoy but our liberty must be controlled by the higher principle of love.
So, in conclusion I would like us to ponder how these principles that Paul commends to the Roman church can be translated to our own days as we face issues of adiaphora that indeed make up a huge part of our daily life. As we are drawn increasingly closer to people of many cultures through the social media and mobility, these adiaphora issues are going to multiply. Again these principles when encountering issues of adiaphora:
*look upward to God's acceptance of us - do not impose standards that Christ the Lord did not.
*look inward to our own conscience - and lay it before the Lord, commit to doing what we believe in our heart of hearts to be right and pleasing to God. and continue to grow in the knowledge of God's word that can sharpen our moral discernment.
*look outward to consider the spiritual welfare of our brothers and sisters and do nothing that might cause another to stumble but everything that leads to peace and upbuilding.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
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When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor... and Yourself
by Steve Corbett
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an informed and thoughtful approach to poverty alleviation, February 22, 2011
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This is a concise, theologically informed, ground-tested and provocative book on helping the poor, not for the faint of heart. Those who are gungho about mission and going out there to 'save the world' might have to plod patiently through this short but discomforting book without throwing our hands up halfway in despair about what exactly one can do for the poor without hurting them and ourselves. In the last decade or so, Brian Fikkert points out that there has been an explosion of 'short-term mission trips' (STMs) from churches in North America, investing tons of dollars into sending members for a two-week assignment in the developing nations. His hard-nosed critique provides a cautionary note beyond the surface hypes and reports of 'life-changing experiences' that commonly surround STM advertisements. As one who has participated in a few of such trips, I have learned much from his critique and am challenged to reflect on ways we might have unknowingly caused more harm than good in our eagerness to step in and help - that ends up encouraging dependency, deepening the sense of inferior-superior complex between the poor and the non-poor, crippling local initiatives, etc. Through all these, the advice that 'we do not do for people what they can do for themselves' serves as a poignant reminder.
I am glad that his thinking while practical and economically informed ultimately derives its roots from the biblical concept of what constitutes poverty. His working definition of poverty goes beyond the common reductionistic one that is measured primarily in terms of material resources. He proposes a relational, rather than material, understanding of poverty as one that has to do with the dislocation of one's foundational relationships with God, self, others and the rest of creation. Helping the poor thus means addressing these four foundational relationships and helping one to see oneself as God's image-bearer, a person of worth, a member of the human family and steward of creation. This strikes hard at the core aetiology of poverty, namely broken relationships. Hence, he writes:
'Poverty is rooted in broken relationships, so the solution to poverty is rooted in the power of Jesus' death and resurrection to put all things into right relationships again.' (page 77)
'Our relationship with the materially poor should be one in which we recognize that both of us are broken and that both of us need the blessing of reconciliation. Our perspective should be less about how we are going to fix the materially poor and more about how we can walk together, asking God to fix both of us.' (page 76)
He devotes the second half of the book exploring what a more theologically balanced and holistic approach to helping the poorer community looks like. The categorization of the various levels of intervention into relief, rehabilitation and development is helpful in clarifying our thinking about the problem we intend to address as well as the desired outcome. The suggestions for a more collaborative rather than paternalistic, asset-based than need-based, locally-initiated and sustained (ie. by the local church and community) than foreigner-run efforts, long-range mission work than short-term trips (though these have their place when properly contextualized) are spot-on. The practical strategies of 'business as missions' and 'micro-financing' schemes are also discussed as helpful alternatives, though these schemes are not without their pitfalls too.
One possible unintended ill-effect of reading this book, however, is of being paralyzed by over-analysis. As the whole exercise of going out of one's comfort zone to reach out to others is fraught with much inhibitions, resistance and rationalizations to begin with, this book certainly does not make it easier. That being said, this book is full of hard truths and practical wisdom one ignores at perils to himself and others.
On the whole, it provides much food for thought and some seed ideas on how to explore a more holistic way of reaching out to the poor overseas and in our own backyard. It also puts a reality check on our possibly misguided motives that often accompany our noble desires to help. Hard-nosed, intelligent and eye-opening, Fikkert's book is a huge pay-off for anyone who will persevere in the challenging task of poverty alleviation with greater discernment and much humility.
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LifeWork: A Biblical Theology for What You Do Every Day
by Darrow L. Miller
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provides a good exposition of what christian mission looks like in the marketplace, December 28, 2010
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I have found this to be a clear, substantive exposition of what Christian mission looks like in the marketplace. It seeks to correct the narrow view of mission that privileges those called to the 'full time ministry' as 'pastors' and 'missionaries'. Not denying the important place of the latter, he calls for a more holistic view of mission that encompasses the diverse vocations of every member of the church, even in the 'secular arena'. This helps every Christian to seek a transformative/redemptive perspective of his own vocation as contributing to God's comprehensive 'saving' of the cosmos, rather than seeing our jobs as simply a stepping stone for the 'real' mission work of saving souls. In this way, every Christian is sent out in the world wherever they are employed as God's agents of redemption. In this regard, Miller packs in a powerful message, supplemented with excerpts of real-life testimonies of people who exemplify this vision.
A caveat however needs to be placed though, IMHO lest the pendulum swings to the other side, such that the work of proclaiming and embodying the gospel recedes to the backburner. It is easy to fall into the subterfuge of 'working for God's kingdom in my own jobs' where in fact it becomes a facade for building the tower of Babel ie. my personal empire with a religious gloss. It can be a cop-out from stepping out of one's comfort zone and heralding the gospel to the unreached and offering its grace in costly and sacrificial ways. This of course is neither Miller's thesis nor his praxis but I am raising a concern of where his overall vision may potentially be misconstrued.
Ultimately, mission properly understood has to be rooted in the being of the church as Christ's witnesses and that ecclesial identity is in turn rooted in the being of God as one who reaches out to embrace. I am increasingly convinced by reading the NT that the church is the primary (though not the only) locus of God's redemptive activity. If the church, both local and universal, begins to recover her self-understanding as who she is meant to be, such that mission is inextricably tied to her 'being' or 'ontology', i think we have a firmer starting point for seeing our various vocations as an expression of the mission of God.
For readers looking for a missional/vocational perspective of one's lifelihood, this is a solid treatment but for those looking for a larger perspective of what Christian mission entails, I would recommend Schnabel's 'Early Christian Mission', Tom Sine's 'Mustard Seed Vs McWorld' and Simon Chan's 'Liturgical theology' to complement it.
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There Is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind
by Antony Flew
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intellectual rigor and honesty at its very best!, December 28, 2010
This review is from: There Is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind (Hardcover)
Antony Flew, a contemporary of CS Lewis and his fellow Oxfordian, has written a book akin to 'Surprised by Joy' by the famous Christian apologist albeit a little late in his life. Here is a colossal shift of mind from one that denies the existence of God to one of discovery. Yet, Flew says this is by no means a paradigm shift, as far as the modus operandus of his intellectual journey is concerned. He has simply been following the Socratic dictum as he always does 'to follow the evidence wherever it leads' and in the last two decades has undergone a slow turning of the mind to the weight of the evidence for the existence of God, defined by Aristotle as the Supreme Intelligence/Being, incorporeal, immutable, all-good, all-powerful, transcendent and omnipresent. This God incidentally shares many essential traits with the God of the Judeo-Christian tradition.
He's made clear that this is not the first time he has recanted his previous positions and his life has been characterised by quite a few revision of views, as is necessitated by a constant quest for truths wherever the evidence or argument points. While he has changed his view here on the existence of God, he has yet to be convinced that the after-life exists. He is not therefore placing a Pascalian bet with his conversion, as his critics have charged. Nor does his 'tergiversation' (apostasy from the atheist fraternity) have anything to do with the ravages of an aging mind. Quite the contrary, as would be evident to anyone who takes the trouble to read this book, the writing bears the marks of not only a lucid mind but a courageous, honest and humble disposition.
The first half of his writings (3 chp) is devoted to his atheist past and his eventual conversion to theism, or deism to be more precise - growing up in a Christian home (his father a methodist pastor), witnessing anti-Semitism in the wake of WWII, indifference to things religious, involvement with the Socratic club at Oxford with Lewis and an educational path towards philosophy under the influence of Hume, Wittgenstein, Russell - that led to a prolific writing, teaching and debating career that made him arguably the most outspoken and systematic atheist thinker of the last 100 years. The turning point came in the last two decades when he began to read and take seriously the theistic claims that were bolstered by a strong revival of Christian philosophy. The works of David Conway, Richard Swinburne, Gerard Schroeder and Roy Varghese were among the most influential in this regard, persuading him to reconsider the growing scientific and philosophical evidence for the theistic position.
The second half (7 Chp) outlines the major arguments that led to his shift. He points out that the proposition at hand belongs properly to the realm of philosophy, contra Dawkins who mistakenly thinks science per se holds the answer to this inquiry. He exposes Dawkins and his ilk as in fact very unsophisticated in their philosophical argumentation, however accomplished they are in the field of science.
The three key arguments for theism that have the greatest purchase for him were:
1. Origin of the laws of nature (the rational order/design)
2. Origin of the Universe (matter)
3. Origin of Life (autonomous agency)
The major objections or alternative explanations for the above such as the multiverse theory, spontaneous abiogenesis, Darwinian natural selection were discussed and shown to be sorely inadequate and for the most part speculative.
The introduction by Roy Varghese and the two appendixes are helpful in extending the readers' mind in considering Christian theism. Varghese basically counteracted the rhetorical waxing by the proponents of the 'new atheism' - Dennett, Harris, Dawkins which was shown to bear more heat than light, more verbal rhetoric than sound reasoning. They take aims at the abuses of organised religions than deal with the rational arguments as such. Varghese added his own take on the theistic argument such as the origins of consciousness, conceptual thought and the self, which cannot simply be waved away with the 'magic of huge numbers' and other conjuring tricks.
Flew's interview of NT Wright completes the book's thesis for the Christian truth claim. Wight shows how in 5 ways, Jesus embodies the Jewish concept and anticipation of God's return/presence in the world (as Word, Wisdom, Law, Temple and Spirit).He also shows how the twin facts of the empty tomb and resurrection appearances buttress the Christian historic claim for the bodily resurrection of Christ. Flew considers this argumentation by Wright to be 'fresh and very powerful'.
All in all, I enjoyed the book for its lucid expression and personal style. On a personal note, I find it a pity that Flew took so long to come to this point. At the risk of psychoanalysing him, I wonder if his slowness in coming to terms with divine revelation has something to do with the poor Christian examples (of bigotry, anti-semitism and the like) he met in his early formative years. Be that as it may, it shows that the best of unaided human reason and observations can only come this far -a belief in the god of the philosophers. Pascal's wager aside, I had hoped that he would find the presence of mind in his golden years to cross the bridge from an intellectual assent on the Aristotelian god to a personal faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Joseph, who has made himself known in the face of Jesus, his Son. Alas, Flew passed away earlier this year. But this book may be his best, lasting legacy that caps off an illustrious career in philosophy.
This book's appeal to me lies in the personal disclosure of Anthony Flew's colossal change of mind than as a sourcebook for theistic argumentations. For the latter, one does well to consult the works of William Lane Craig, Ravi Zacharias, JP Moreland, Alvin Plantinga, Paul Davies, Francis Collins, etc. Nonetheless, it is interesting to enter briefly into this famous atheist's personal history and pilgrimage in 'going where the evidence leads' that brought him to a seismic change of mind. As such, this gentleman is an inspiration as far as intellectual honesty is concerned in matters as important as the existence of God.
I do not write to ruffle those who are happy as atheists, nor do I find any basis for suspecting this work to be fraudulent. Taking this book at face value, it is hard to go away unmoved by the brave admission of a towering intellectual, who has lived all his life advocating the alternative proposition. Would that many like him would follow his lead and go further even than him.
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The Heavenly Good of Earthly Work
by Darrell Cosden
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a holistic view of daily work as christian mission, November 29, 2010
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I enjoy this book not least because it is one among several thoughtful contributions that have taken the scholarly works of NT Wright and Richard Middleton to the streets on the *Resurrection of Christ* and the *Creation of human beings as God's image-bearers* respectively. It strongly repudiates the escapist concept of the gospel that has our heads almost exclusively buried in another world, that is to be too heavenly minded to be of any earthly good. It exposes the bankruptcy of the truncated idea of Christian mission as one that is simply interested in getting people ready for heaven, and casting a disdainful eye on what one does in his daily life. In Corsden's view, the dichotomy between spiritual and secular arena is a false one. All of life is spiritual and missional if it is oriented towards the kingdom of God. So is the dichotomy between clergy and laity as if the work of the laity is second fiddle to the work of 'evangelistic ministry' and 'overseas mission', important as they are. No, the clergy's main task is to equip and join in with the whole church in doing the work of God. Whether we are preachers, homemakers, educators, office workers, builders,or cleaners and so on, we are out on a mission for Christ.
'We are not saved by works but our works are saved along with us' as he puts it. Our work will survive into eternity if it stands the test of God's judgement. Our work redeemed confirms us as God's image-bearers and there is no extinction of that holy, rejuvenating and life-affirming work in the new heaven and new earth! It is paradoxically bound up with the shalom of our final, eternal rest!
On another front, it is a wake-up call to the humanists who presume that we can build heaven here on earth without God. The disasters of the Enlightenment project (eg. the holocaust, atomic bomb, ecological disasters) are a sober reminder not to repeat the ancient error of building the tower of Babel. The Sabbatic nature of Christian work which leaves much living space for God's mighty work keeps our daily work from devolving into this promethean mindset.
Corsden's theology of work is not new, but a timely recovery of the missional nature of our daily work as participating in God's work in renewing and restoring the good earth he made. Hence, we find here a short, and highly readable exposition of what Christian work ought to be and how understanding it is foundational to our view of mission and calling as God's people recruited to do good works everyday (not just when we are in church!), to the praise of his glory! This book gets even better near the end where he spells out how this practical piece of theology gets to work.
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Interior Castle Explored: St. Teresa's Teaching on the Life of Deep Union With God
by Ruth Burrows
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critical appreciation of interior castle, October 26, 2010
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This is a critical appreciation of Interior Castle by this Carmelite sister. As such, it stands in its own right as a re-presentation of the practice of contemplative prayer in the Carmelite tradition. Departing from the older commentaries on the great Teresa of Avila, Burrows was unafraid to critique her writings and in the process clarify for readers the core of what she meant to convey from her contemplative experiences. This is not to disparage the great saint in any way because she was simply making best use of the literary and theological convention of her day to explicate the virtually inexplicable. As such, she wrote within the dualistic framework (spirit-body dichotomy) of her day and being too credulous of her fellow practitioners' prayer experiences, she muddled up some of the important distinctions between real mystical grace, para-psychological phenomena and her own psychic reactions to them. The discussion on the 'light on' and 'light off' phenomena is interesting, if a little dense. The upshot of her discussion is however crystal clear: the real fruit of contemplation has little/nothing to do with these psychic states and experiences (which are induced from our natural psychic resources) but transformation into the image of Christ - that is pure love.
What I appreciate about this treatment of Teresa is the interface between Burrows' own contemplative insights with those of the great saint. There is no 'idolization' of the latter which is a tendency among most other literature on her but an honest interaction between two Carmelite pray-ers. It is an another insightful book I have added to my own reading of the Christian contemplative tradition. Burrows' other piece on John of the Cross' Ascent to Mount Carmel is worth your every dollar too.
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Simply Christian: Why Christianity Makes Sense
by N. T. Wright
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a simple presentation of Christianity for our time, October 12, 2010
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'As CS Lewis' Mere Christianity is for the modern period, NT Wright's Simply Christian is for our postmodern age' would be how these two popular works of Christian apologetics would relate in my view. Recently I have been thinking how to present the faith to a highly educated thinking person who is beginning to show some interest in 'god', and so went back to reread this book. I have found it to be quite helpful in pointing to some entry points into a modern person's mind concerning the transcendent - such as the longing for a world made right. Many of us today feel that the world is in great need of 'repairing' and 'rescuing'. The world has gone awry as far as justice, beauty, and relationships are concerned. Wright paints the gospel as a rescue operation that God has launched forth through a historical nation Israel which culminates in the person of Jesus, who is Israel's Messiah and the Saviour of the world. The church is called to wake up to this good news by imbibing the word by which God's power works in and through us.We are called forth to be part of the church through the practices of baptism, worship, prayer and joint family venture as God puts the world to rights. Wright hence puts quite a bit of time into discussing the nature of the bible and its central place in the Christian community.
This way of presenting the faith has I think an advantage of connecting with the postmodern penchant for stories and how the Christian story addresses real space-time issues. However, having first read Mere Christianity, my verdict is that it does not somehow leave me with as deep a satisfaction intellectually or spiritually in comparison. I cannot quite put a finger on it yet but I guess it lacks the profundity and (greater)universal resonance of Lewis' writings which makes it the enduring classic that it is. Further, there is much more to the good news of Jesus than can be captured by the notion of a 'cosmic rescue operation'. As such, it may not connect with a lot of people for whom faith has more to do with the hard-nosed conception of truth and those that long for a less utilitarian sort of relationship, the bible calls 'communion' with God and others. I hope I am making sense here!
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The Creative Word
by Walter Brueggemann
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a canonical approach to religious education, October 10, 2010
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This is an interesting read on what the Hebrew scripture could teach us concerning biblical/theological formation. He uses the tripartite division of the old testament - Torah-Prophets-Writings (Jer 18:18)- as a basic framework for his reflection. He points out that historically this is the order by which the OT scripture was canonised and that this canonical process could shed light on the educational journey of Israel as she moves from a period of certitude (Torah) to a time of disruption by 'new truths' (Prophets) to a time of settling down with the mundane and the mystery (Writings).
This sheds light on the church's appropriation, transmission and growing with the scriptures. How to be faithful in handing down the living tradition without fossilizing it. Brueggemann thus helps us with living out the Word of God faithfully and expectantly for God's words to be spoken afresh and embraced in each generation. The final chaper 'obedience as a mode of knowledge' draws the three strands of God's ethos, pathos and logos into a common mode of discourse: dialogue. Ala Martin Buber's 'I-Thou' conception of true knowledge, Brueggeman shows from the Psalms how Israel's mode of knowing is essentially a dialogic one. Once again, this astute professor has a way of opening up the bible in a fresh and surprising way to any reader who is willing to be taken in wonder by the Word of God.
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The Last Word: Scripture and the Authority of God--Getting Beyond the Bible Wars
by N. T. Wright
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a narratival perspective in understanding scriptural authority, October 10, 2010
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'The Last Word', no doubt a rather odd title when taken in a certain way, is Premier British scholar NT Wright's contribution to getting hold of what it means to submit to the bible as *the last word* for all matters spiritual and ethical. Here, he surveys and critiques the major approaches taken by the church throughout the centuries on what that subject before offering his own - dubbed the 'five-act' hermeneutics. Wright's approach makes much of a narrative reading. He invites us to see the bible as telling a grand story from beginning to end. We can properly see where scripture is leading us to only when we find our place within that larger story. Therein, we imbibe the values and praxis of a people committed to God's/Christ's authority and God's work of renewing his creation through the cross and the power of the Spirit.
Personally, Wright's approach has enriched my reading of scripture. Rather than treating each pericope as a completely self-contained word for the day, I learn to ask what relation it has on the grand scheme of things. It has helped me see that many of the NT stories, doctrines and instructions have to do with God's already-and-not-yet kingdom. This has further concretized for me what it means to be church - not a loose collection of individuals using the bible as a DIY manual to help ourselves but a people called to participate in God's cosmic redemption.
It is a quick read for those familiar with Wright's critical realist approach discussed at length in his magnum opus 'New Testament and the People of God'. I reckon that given much postmodern reinvention of Christianity and the rise of biblical illiteracy in our day, this is a helpful tool that will help steer the ship back on course. For a follow-up read, I would recommend Ben Witherington's 'The Living Word' which will take us further along in our appreciation of what sort of book the Bible is and guide us through some practical issues people have in reading and obeying it.
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We Have Seen His Glory: A Vision of Kingdom Worship (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship Liturgical Studies Series)
by Ben Witherington
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vision of worship with an eschatological focus, September 6, 2010
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Ben Witherington with his characteristic way with words brings his expert NT knowledge to bear on the subject of worship. This is a comparatively short book compared to the many academic tomes this prolific writer has churned out. It is probably targeted at the thoughtful Christian readers who sit in the pew wondering what the bible has to say about worship, given that worship cannot simply be a habit shaped by one's church tradition or the secular culture rather than what God has said about it. Witherington has some sharp things to say about Christians caught up in the 'what's in it for me?' culture of our time because he contends that worship is about God's glory rather than ours and more of what we do in response to his worth than what we hope to get out of the transaction. On another prong, he challenges the slavish carryover of Judaic practices such as Sabbath, priesthood, sacrifices and temple into Christian worship. While he notes the continuity with the old covenant, he puts the emphasis on the discontinuity by virtue of what Christ has fulfilled through his life, death and resurrection. He therefore restores the Christ event to the center of Christian worship.
The Christ event does not simply call for a backward look into the past but forward to the heavenly worship pictured in Rev 4-5. Our worship ought to recognise the inbreaking of God's kingdom with the first Easter as well as the advanced taste of worship in the new cosmos following the final Easter. This helps situates Christian worship in the proper place within the larger salvation historical narrative.
Witherington fleshes out this eschatological focus of worship by taking us through various NT texts that deal with the various components of Christian worship - preparing to be caught up in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, preaching, singing, the Lord's Supper, the Lord's Prayer and the labors of love. In reading this book, one gets the message that much of what gets passed for worship today suffers from some serious deficits - the narcissism, the shallow theological content, the disconnect between worship and life- to name just a few. This is therefore an important contribution to educating pastors, worship planners/leaders and all the people of God participating in worship. The discussion questions appended to each chapter will be useful for small group study.
If worship is the chief end of human existence, then Witherington's call to re-examine and reform our service to God in the light of scripture is an important one. But he does more than call. He has given us this basic primer with which to start exploring what it means to truly worship in the Spirit and in truth.
My only criticism is that it could be better organised around some logical structure or familiar liturgical movements. I find myself bogged down quite easily by the disparate concerns of the selected New Testament passages (as it is the nature of the NT materials to be occasion-based). It reads at times like a cut and paste pastiche of commentary on bible texts related to worship. This leads to the unfortunate (probably unintended) glossing over of the Lord's Supper, which was strangely subsumed as a small subsection under the chapter devoted to talking about the sermon. In fact, if there is one place where eschatology should come to a sharp focus, would it not be the Eucharist? Notwithstanding this flaw, Witherington's textual expositions are as in many of his commentary writings solid and inspiring. But readers need to keep in mind the overarching theme of eschatological worship to avoid getting lost in the interesting bits.
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Pilgrim Heart: The Way of Jesus in Everyday Life
by Darryl Tippens
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a helpful retreat companion, September 5, 2010
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I find this book to be a good guide to soul care.. to be put alongside books like 'Keeping the Sabbath Holy' (Dawn) and 'Testament of Devotion'(Kelly). The gentle, conversational tone immediately puts you in the state to receive soul food, soul care and rest. Indeed, in my own frantic world of speed, tight schedule and demands, this is a welcome reminder to slow down and take ourselves a little less seriously and let God be God. For example, I took his suggestion to sometimes take the slowest lane to deliberately drive at a lower gear! Tippens suggests helpful way to prevent the rigor of discipleship and vocation from becoming anemic for the lack of space and time to receive the fresh dews of God's nourishment through the practices of spiritual reading, hospitality, forgiveness, music, art, story-telling and rest. It is still a difficult discipline for me despite the number of very good materials I've read on the subject. The balance between work and rest remains a delicate one to maintain. But Tippens has a knack of slowing you down with every page and opening up a space amidst the clutter so we can breathe deep from the eternal source of life. It is however a different kind of book than what i thought the title suggests. With the title 'the way of Jesus in everyday life' I was expecting to read about the pathos of the suffering cross and the rigor of discipleship but what I have found instead is a congenial retreat companion that every serious Christ-follower will benefit from for its timely reminder to take breaks, care for one's own heart, travel light and enjoy the journey. For the weary, struggling, hurting and beleaguered pilgrims, Tippens has written a balm full of gentle wisdom.
by Steve Corbett
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an informed and thoughtful approach to poverty alleviation, February 22, 2011
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This is a concise, theologically informed, ground-tested and provocative book on helping the poor, not for the faint of heart. Those who are gungho about mission and going out there to 'save the world' might have to plod patiently through this short but discomforting book without throwing our hands up halfway in despair about what exactly one can do for the poor without hurting them and ourselves. In the last decade or so, Brian Fikkert points out that there has been an explosion of 'short-term mission trips' (STMs) from churches in North America, investing tons of dollars into sending members for a two-week assignment in the developing nations. His hard-nosed critique provides a cautionary note beyond the surface hypes and reports of 'life-changing experiences' that commonly surround STM advertisements. As one who has participated in a few of such trips, I have learned much from his critique and am challenged to reflect on ways we might have unknowingly caused more harm than good in our eagerness to step in and help - that ends up encouraging dependency, deepening the sense of inferior-superior complex between the poor and the non-poor, crippling local initiatives, etc. Through all these, the advice that 'we do not do for people what they can do for themselves' serves as a poignant reminder.
I am glad that his thinking while practical and economically informed ultimately derives its roots from the biblical concept of what constitutes poverty. His working definition of poverty goes beyond the common reductionistic one that is measured primarily in terms of material resources. He proposes a relational, rather than material, understanding of poverty as one that has to do with the dislocation of one's foundational relationships with God, self, others and the rest of creation. Helping the poor thus means addressing these four foundational relationships and helping one to see oneself as God's image-bearer, a person of worth, a member of the human family and steward of creation. This strikes hard at the core aetiology of poverty, namely broken relationships. Hence, he writes:
'Poverty is rooted in broken relationships, so the solution to poverty is rooted in the power of Jesus' death and resurrection to put all things into right relationships again.' (page 77)
'Our relationship with the materially poor should be one in which we recognize that both of us are broken and that both of us need the blessing of reconciliation. Our perspective should be less about how we are going to fix the materially poor and more about how we can walk together, asking God to fix both of us.' (page 76)
He devotes the second half of the book exploring what a more theologically balanced and holistic approach to helping the poorer community looks like. The categorization of the various levels of intervention into relief, rehabilitation and development is helpful in clarifying our thinking about the problem we intend to address as well as the desired outcome. The suggestions for a more collaborative rather than paternalistic, asset-based than need-based, locally-initiated and sustained (ie. by the local church and community) than foreigner-run efforts, long-range mission work than short-term trips (though these have their place when properly contextualized) are spot-on. The practical strategies of 'business as missions' and 'micro-financing' schemes are also discussed as helpful alternatives, though these schemes are not without their pitfalls too.
One possible unintended ill-effect of reading this book, however, is of being paralyzed by over-analysis. As the whole exercise of going out of one's comfort zone to reach out to others is fraught with much inhibitions, resistance and rationalizations to begin with, this book certainly does not make it easier. That being said, this book is full of hard truths and practical wisdom one ignores at perils to himself and others.
On the whole, it provides much food for thought and some seed ideas on how to explore a more holistic way of reaching out to the poor overseas and in our own backyard. It also puts a reality check on our possibly misguided motives that often accompany our noble desires to help. Hard-nosed, intelligent and eye-opening, Fikkert's book is a huge pay-off for anyone who will persevere in the challenging task of poverty alleviation with greater discernment and much humility.
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LifeWork: A Biblical Theology for What You Do Every Day
by Darrow L. Miller
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provides a good exposition of what christian mission looks like in the marketplace, December 28, 2010
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I have found this to be a clear, substantive exposition of what Christian mission looks like in the marketplace. It seeks to correct the narrow view of mission that privileges those called to the 'full time ministry' as 'pastors' and 'missionaries'. Not denying the important place of the latter, he calls for a more holistic view of mission that encompasses the diverse vocations of every member of the church, even in the 'secular arena'. This helps every Christian to seek a transformative/redemptive perspective of his own vocation as contributing to God's comprehensive 'saving' of the cosmos, rather than seeing our jobs as simply a stepping stone for the 'real' mission work of saving souls. In this way, every Christian is sent out in the world wherever they are employed as God's agents of redemption. In this regard, Miller packs in a powerful message, supplemented with excerpts of real-life testimonies of people who exemplify this vision.
A caveat however needs to be placed though, IMHO lest the pendulum swings to the other side, such that the work of proclaiming and embodying the gospel recedes to the backburner. It is easy to fall into the subterfuge of 'working for God's kingdom in my own jobs' where in fact it becomes a facade for building the tower of Babel ie. my personal empire with a religious gloss. It can be a cop-out from stepping out of one's comfort zone and heralding the gospel to the unreached and offering its grace in costly and sacrificial ways. This of course is neither Miller's thesis nor his praxis but I am raising a concern of where his overall vision may potentially be misconstrued.
Ultimately, mission properly understood has to be rooted in the being of the church as Christ's witnesses and that ecclesial identity is in turn rooted in the being of God as one who reaches out to embrace. I am increasingly convinced by reading the NT that the church is the primary (though not the only) locus of God's redemptive activity. If the church, both local and universal, begins to recover her self-understanding as who she is meant to be, such that mission is inextricably tied to her 'being' or 'ontology', i think we have a firmer starting point for seeing our various vocations as an expression of the mission of God.
For readers looking for a missional/vocational perspective of one's lifelihood, this is a solid treatment but for those looking for a larger perspective of what Christian mission entails, I would recommend Schnabel's 'Early Christian Mission', Tom Sine's 'Mustard Seed Vs McWorld' and Simon Chan's 'Liturgical theology' to complement it.
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There Is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind
by Antony Flew
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intellectual rigor and honesty at its very best!, December 28, 2010
This review is from: There Is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind (Hardcover)
Antony Flew, a contemporary of CS Lewis and his fellow Oxfordian, has written a book akin to 'Surprised by Joy' by the famous Christian apologist albeit a little late in his life. Here is a colossal shift of mind from one that denies the existence of God to one of discovery. Yet, Flew says this is by no means a paradigm shift, as far as the modus operandus of his intellectual journey is concerned. He has simply been following the Socratic dictum as he always does 'to follow the evidence wherever it leads' and in the last two decades has undergone a slow turning of the mind to the weight of the evidence for the existence of God, defined by Aristotle as the Supreme Intelligence/Being, incorporeal, immutable, all-good, all-powerful, transcendent and omnipresent. This God incidentally shares many essential traits with the God of the Judeo-Christian tradition.
He's made clear that this is not the first time he has recanted his previous positions and his life has been characterised by quite a few revision of views, as is necessitated by a constant quest for truths wherever the evidence or argument points. While he has changed his view here on the existence of God, he has yet to be convinced that the after-life exists. He is not therefore placing a Pascalian bet with his conversion, as his critics have charged. Nor does his 'tergiversation' (apostasy from the atheist fraternity) have anything to do with the ravages of an aging mind. Quite the contrary, as would be evident to anyone who takes the trouble to read this book, the writing bears the marks of not only a lucid mind but a courageous, honest and humble disposition.
The first half of his writings (3 chp) is devoted to his atheist past and his eventual conversion to theism, or deism to be more precise - growing up in a Christian home (his father a methodist pastor), witnessing anti-Semitism in the wake of WWII, indifference to things religious, involvement with the Socratic club at Oxford with Lewis and an educational path towards philosophy under the influence of Hume, Wittgenstein, Russell - that led to a prolific writing, teaching and debating career that made him arguably the most outspoken and systematic atheist thinker of the last 100 years. The turning point came in the last two decades when he began to read and take seriously the theistic claims that were bolstered by a strong revival of Christian philosophy. The works of David Conway, Richard Swinburne, Gerard Schroeder and Roy Varghese were among the most influential in this regard, persuading him to reconsider the growing scientific and philosophical evidence for the theistic position.
The second half (7 Chp) outlines the major arguments that led to his shift. He points out that the proposition at hand belongs properly to the realm of philosophy, contra Dawkins who mistakenly thinks science per se holds the answer to this inquiry. He exposes Dawkins and his ilk as in fact very unsophisticated in their philosophical argumentation, however accomplished they are in the field of science.
The three key arguments for theism that have the greatest purchase for him were:
1. Origin of the laws of nature (the rational order/design)
2. Origin of the Universe (matter)
3. Origin of Life (autonomous agency)
The major objections or alternative explanations for the above such as the multiverse theory, spontaneous abiogenesis, Darwinian natural selection were discussed and shown to be sorely inadequate and for the most part speculative.
The introduction by Roy Varghese and the two appendixes are helpful in extending the readers' mind in considering Christian theism. Varghese basically counteracted the rhetorical waxing by the proponents of the 'new atheism' - Dennett, Harris, Dawkins which was shown to bear more heat than light, more verbal rhetoric than sound reasoning. They take aims at the abuses of organised religions than deal with the rational arguments as such. Varghese added his own take on the theistic argument such as the origins of consciousness, conceptual thought and the self, which cannot simply be waved away with the 'magic of huge numbers' and other conjuring tricks.
Flew's interview of NT Wright completes the book's thesis for the Christian truth claim. Wight shows how in 5 ways, Jesus embodies the Jewish concept and anticipation of God's return/presence in the world (as Word, Wisdom, Law, Temple and Spirit).He also shows how the twin facts of the empty tomb and resurrection appearances buttress the Christian historic claim for the bodily resurrection of Christ. Flew considers this argumentation by Wright to be 'fresh and very powerful'.
All in all, I enjoyed the book for its lucid expression and personal style. On a personal note, I find it a pity that Flew took so long to come to this point. At the risk of psychoanalysing him, I wonder if his slowness in coming to terms with divine revelation has something to do with the poor Christian examples (of bigotry, anti-semitism and the like) he met in his early formative years. Be that as it may, it shows that the best of unaided human reason and observations can only come this far -a belief in the god of the philosophers. Pascal's wager aside, I had hoped that he would find the presence of mind in his golden years to cross the bridge from an intellectual assent on the Aristotelian god to a personal faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Joseph, who has made himself known in the face of Jesus, his Son. Alas, Flew passed away earlier this year. But this book may be his best, lasting legacy that caps off an illustrious career in philosophy.
This book's appeal to me lies in the personal disclosure of Anthony Flew's colossal change of mind than as a sourcebook for theistic argumentations. For the latter, one does well to consult the works of William Lane Craig, Ravi Zacharias, JP Moreland, Alvin Plantinga, Paul Davies, Francis Collins, etc. Nonetheless, it is interesting to enter briefly into this famous atheist's personal history and pilgrimage in 'going where the evidence leads' that brought him to a seismic change of mind. As such, this gentleman is an inspiration as far as intellectual honesty is concerned in matters as important as the existence of God.
I do not write to ruffle those who are happy as atheists, nor do I find any basis for suspecting this work to be fraudulent. Taking this book at face value, it is hard to go away unmoved by the brave admission of a towering intellectual, who has lived all his life advocating the alternative proposition. Would that many like him would follow his lead and go further even than him.
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The Heavenly Good of Earthly Work
by Darrell Cosden
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a holistic view of daily work as christian mission, November 29, 2010
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I enjoy this book not least because it is one among several thoughtful contributions that have taken the scholarly works of NT Wright and Richard Middleton to the streets on the *Resurrection of Christ* and the *Creation of human beings as God's image-bearers* respectively. It strongly repudiates the escapist concept of the gospel that has our heads almost exclusively buried in another world, that is to be too heavenly minded to be of any earthly good. It exposes the bankruptcy of the truncated idea of Christian mission as one that is simply interested in getting people ready for heaven, and casting a disdainful eye on what one does in his daily life. In Corsden's view, the dichotomy between spiritual and secular arena is a false one. All of life is spiritual and missional if it is oriented towards the kingdom of God. So is the dichotomy between clergy and laity as if the work of the laity is second fiddle to the work of 'evangelistic ministry' and 'overseas mission', important as they are. No, the clergy's main task is to equip and join in with the whole church in doing the work of God. Whether we are preachers, homemakers, educators, office workers, builders,or cleaners and so on, we are out on a mission for Christ.
'We are not saved by works but our works are saved along with us' as he puts it. Our work will survive into eternity if it stands the test of God's judgement. Our work redeemed confirms us as God's image-bearers and there is no extinction of that holy, rejuvenating and life-affirming work in the new heaven and new earth! It is paradoxically bound up with the shalom of our final, eternal rest!
On another front, it is a wake-up call to the humanists who presume that we can build heaven here on earth without God. The disasters of the Enlightenment project (eg. the holocaust, atomic bomb, ecological disasters) are a sober reminder not to repeat the ancient error of building the tower of Babel. The Sabbatic nature of Christian work which leaves much living space for God's mighty work keeps our daily work from devolving into this promethean mindset.
Corsden's theology of work is not new, but a timely recovery of the missional nature of our daily work as participating in God's work in renewing and restoring the good earth he made. Hence, we find here a short, and highly readable exposition of what Christian work ought to be and how understanding it is foundational to our view of mission and calling as God's people recruited to do good works everyday (not just when we are in church!), to the praise of his glory! This book gets even better near the end where he spells out how this practical piece of theology gets to work.
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Interior Castle Explored: St. Teresa's Teaching on the Life of Deep Union With God
by Ruth Burrows
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critical appreciation of interior castle, October 26, 2010
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This is a critical appreciation of Interior Castle by this Carmelite sister. As such, it stands in its own right as a re-presentation of the practice of contemplative prayer in the Carmelite tradition. Departing from the older commentaries on the great Teresa of Avila, Burrows was unafraid to critique her writings and in the process clarify for readers the core of what she meant to convey from her contemplative experiences. This is not to disparage the great saint in any way because she was simply making best use of the literary and theological convention of her day to explicate the virtually inexplicable. As such, she wrote within the dualistic framework (spirit-body dichotomy) of her day and being too credulous of her fellow practitioners' prayer experiences, she muddled up some of the important distinctions between real mystical grace, para-psychological phenomena and her own psychic reactions to them. The discussion on the 'light on' and 'light off' phenomena is interesting, if a little dense. The upshot of her discussion is however crystal clear: the real fruit of contemplation has little/nothing to do with these psychic states and experiences (which are induced from our natural psychic resources) but transformation into the image of Christ - that is pure love.
What I appreciate about this treatment of Teresa is the interface between Burrows' own contemplative insights with those of the great saint. There is no 'idolization' of the latter which is a tendency among most other literature on her but an honest interaction between two Carmelite pray-ers. It is an another insightful book I have added to my own reading of the Christian contemplative tradition. Burrows' other piece on John of the Cross' Ascent to Mount Carmel is worth your every dollar too.
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Simply Christian: Why Christianity Makes Sense
by N. T. Wright
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a simple presentation of Christianity for our time, October 12, 2010
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'As CS Lewis' Mere Christianity is for the modern period, NT Wright's Simply Christian is for our postmodern age' would be how these two popular works of Christian apologetics would relate in my view. Recently I have been thinking how to present the faith to a highly educated thinking person who is beginning to show some interest in 'god', and so went back to reread this book. I have found it to be quite helpful in pointing to some entry points into a modern person's mind concerning the transcendent - such as the longing for a world made right. Many of us today feel that the world is in great need of 'repairing' and 'rescuing'. The world has gone awry as far as justice, beauty, and relationships are concerned. Wright paints the gospel as a rescue operation that God has launched forth through a historical nation Israel which culminates in the person of Jesus, who is Israel's Messiah and the Saviour of the world. The church is called to wake up to this good news by imbibing the word by which God's power works in and through us.We are called forth to be part of the church through the practices of baptism, worship, prayer and joint family venture as God puts the world to rights. Wright hence puts quite a bit of time into discussing the nature of the bible and its central place in the Christian community.
This way of presenting the faith has I think an advantage of connecting with the postmodern penchant for stories and how the Christian story addresses real space-time issues. However, having first read Mere Christianity, my verdict is that it does not somehow leave me with as deep a satisfaction intellectually or spiritually in comparison. I cannot quite put a finger on it yet but I guess it lacks the profundity and (greater)universal resonance of Lewis' writings which makes it the enduring classic that it is. Further, there is much more to the good news of Jesus than can be captured by the notion of a 'cosmic rescue operation'. As such, it may not connect with a lot of people for whom faith has more to do with the hard-nosed conception of truth and those that long for a less utilitarian sort of relationship, the bible calls 'communion' with God and others. I hope I am making sense here!
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The Creative Word
by Walter Brueggemann
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a canonical approach to religious education, October 10, 2010
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This is an interesting read on what the Hebrew scripture could teach us concerning biblical/theological formation. He uses the tripartite division of the old testament - Torah-Prophets-Writings (Jer 18:18)- as a basic framework for his reflection. He points out that historically this is the order by which the OT scripture was canonised and that this canonical process could shed light on the educational journey of Israel as she moves from a period of certitude (Torah) to a time of disruption by 'new truths' (Prophets) to a time of settling down with the mundane and the mystery (Writings).
This sheds light on the church's appropriation, transmission and growing with the scriptures. How to be faithful in handing down the living tradition without fossilizing it. Brueggemann thus helps us with living out the Word of God faithfully and expectantly for God's words to be spoken afresh and embraced in each generation. The final chaper 'obedience as a mode of knowledge' draws the three strands of God's ethos, pathos and logos into a common mode of discourse: dialogue. Ala Martin Buber's 'I-Thou' conception of true knowledge, Brueggeman shows from the Psalms how Israel's mode of knowing is essentially a dialogic one. Once again, this astute professor has a way of opening up the bible in a fresh and surprising way to any reader who is willing to be taken in wonder by the Word of God.
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The Last Word: Scripture and the Authority of God--Getting Beyond the Bible Wars
by N. T. Wright
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a narratival perspective in understanding scriptural authority, October 10, 2010
This review is from: The Last Word: Scripture and the Authority of God--Getting Beyond the Bible Wars (Paperback)
'The Last Word', no doubt a rather odd title when taken in a certain way, is Premier British scholar NT Wright's contribution to getting hold of what it means to submit to the bible as *the last word* for all matters spiritual and ethical. Here, he surveys and critiques the major approaches taken by the church throughout the centuries on what that subject before offering his own - dubbed the 'five-act' hermeneutics. Wright's approach makes much of a narrative reading. He invites us to see the bible as telling a grand story from beginning to end. We can properly see where scripture is leading us to only when we find our place within that larger story. Therein, we imbibe the values and praxis of a people committed to God's/Christ's authority and God's work of renewing his creation through the cross and the power of the Spirit.
Personally, Wright's approach has enriched my reading of scripture. Rather than treating each pericope as a completely self-contained word for the day, I learn to ask what relation it has on the grand scheme of things. It has helped me see that many of the NT stories, doctrines and instructions have to do with God's already-and-not-yet kingdom. This has further concretized for me what it means to be church - not a loose collection of individuals using the bible as a DIY manual to help ourselves but a people called to participate in God's cosmic redemption.
It is a quick read for those familiar with Wright's critical realist approach discussed at length in his magnum opus 'New Testament and the People of God'. I reckon that given much postmodern reinvention of Christianity and the rise of biblical illiteracy in our day, this is a helpful tool that will help steer the ship back on course. For a follow-up read, I would recommend Ben Witherington's 'The Living Word' which will take us further along in our appreciation of what sort of book the Bible is and guide us through some practical issues people have in reading and obeying it.
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We Have Seen His Glory: A Vision of Kingdom Worship (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship Liturgical Studies Series)
by Ben Witherington
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vision of worship with an eschatological focus, September 6, 2010
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Ben Witherington with his characteristic way with words brings his expert NT knowledge to bear on the subject of worship. This is a comparatively short book compared to the many academic tomes this prolific writer has churned out. It is probably targeted at the thoughtful Christian readers who sit in the pew wondering what the bible has to say about worship, given that worship cannot simply be a habit shaped by one's church tradition or the secular culture rather than what God has said about it. Witherington has some sharp things to say about Christians caught up in the 'what's in it for me?' culture of our time because he contends that worship is about God's glory rather than ours and more of what we do in response to his worth than what we hope to get out of the transaction. On another prong, he challenges the slavish carryover of Judaic practices such as Sabbath, priesthood, sacrifices and temple into Christian worship. While he notes the continuity with the old covenant, he puts the emphasis on the discontinuity by virtue of what Christ has fulfilled through his life, death and resurrection. He therefore restores the Christ event to the center of Christian worship.
The Christ event does not simply call for a backward look into the past but forward to the heavenly worship pictured in Rev 4-5. Our worship ought to recognise the inbreaking of God's kingdom with the first Easter as well as the advanced taste of worship in the new cosmos following the final Easter. This helps situates Christian worship in the proper place within the larger salvation historical narrative.
Witherington fleshes out this eschatological focus of worship by taking us through various NT texts that deal with the various components of Christian worship - preparing to be caught up in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, preaching, singing, the Lord's Supper, the Lord's Prayer and the labors of love. In reading this book, one gets the message that much of what gets passed for worship today suffers from some serious deficits - the narcissism, the shallow theological content, the disconnect between worship and life- to name just a few. This is therefore an important contribution to educating pastors, worship planners/leaders and all the people of God participating in worship. The discussion questions appended to each chapter will be useful for small group study.
If worship is the chief end of human existence, then Witherington's call to re-examine and reform our service to God in the light of scripture is an important one. But he does more than call. He has given us this basic primer with which to start exploring what it means to truly worship in the Spirit and in truth.
My only criticism is that it could be better organised around some logical structure or familiar liturgical movements. I find myself bogged down quite easily by the disparate concerns of the selected New Testament passages (as it is the nature of the NT materials to be occasion-based). It reads at times like a cut and paste pastiche of commentary on bible texts related to worship. This leads to the unfortunate (probably unintended) glossing over of the Lord's Supper, which was strangely subsumed as a small subsection under the chapter devoted to talking about the sermon. In fact, if there is one place where eschatology should come to a sharp focus, would it not be the Eucharist? Notwithstanding this flaw, Witherington's textual expositions are as in many of his commentary writings solid and inspiring. But readers need to keep in mind the overarching theme of eschatological worship to avoid getting lost in the interesting bits.
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Pilgrim Heart: The Way of Jesus in Everyday Life
by Darryl Tippens
Edition: Paperback
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
a helpful retreat companion, September 5, 2010
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This review is from: Pilgrim Heart: The Way of Jesus in Everyday Life (Paperback)
I find this book to be a good guide to soul care.. to be put alongside books like 'Keeping the Sabbath Holy' (Dawn) and 'Testament of Devotion'(Kelly). The gentle, conversational tone immediately puts you in the state to receive soul food, soul care and rest. Indeed, in my own frantic world of speed, tight schedule and demands, this is a welcome reminder to slow down and take ourselves a little less seriously and let God be God. For example, I took his suggestion to sometimes take the slowest lane to deliberately drive at a lower gear! Tippens suggests helpful way to prevent the rigor of discipleship and vocation from becoming anemic for the lack of space and time to receive the fresh dews of God's nourishment through the practices of spiritual reading, hospitality, forgiveness, music, art, story-telling and rest. It is still a difficult discipline for me despite the number of very good materials I've read on the subject. The balance between work and rest remains a delicate one to maintain. But Tippens has a knack of slowing you down with every page and opening up a space amidst the clutter so we can breathe deep from the eternal source of life. It is however a different kind of book than what i thought the title suggests. With the title 'the way of Jesus in everyday life' I was expecting to read about the pathos of the suffering cross and the rigor of discipleship but what I have found instead is a congenial retreat companion that every serious Christ-follower will benefit from for its timely reminder to take breaks, care for one's own heart, travel light and enjoy the journey. For the weary, struggling, hurting and beleaguered pilgrims, Tippens has written a balm full of gentle wisdom.
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