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I’ve been slowly devouring Dawn’s first book on Isaiah 40: To Walk and Not Faint. In her chapter on verse 4, she reflects on YHWH’s highway through the desert. What does it mean that the valleys will be lifted up and the mountains will be made low?

The gulf between rich and poor in the United States and in the world keeps getting wider . . . We could begin to reverse this trend only if we paid teachers in ghetto schools more than we do sports heroes.

This book was written in 1980, and revised in 1997, but that sort of comment still has the bite of truth in it.

• The Jesus Creed: Loving God, Loving Others © 2004
• Paraclete Press
• 335 pages

This book is the answer to a question: What would the Christian life look like if everyone loved God with their entire being, and loved their neighbours also? The answer is attractive. In The Jesus Creed, McKnight paints a picture of the sort of kingdom-charged life we all can live.

The structure works quite well: there are 30 short meditations that challenge you to examine your life in light of the creed Jesus and his followers lived by. If you’re looking for some devotional reading, this will offer a solid month of character formation. McKnight includes many anecdotes and illustrations that enliven the points he’s making.

I only had one problem with this book: it felt a little scattered at times. All 30 chapters were good, and the points were important—I just didn’t always see how the chapters fit together with each other.

This is a book from a scholar in the form of a popular devotional. There’s depth beneath the easy-reading style. If you’re reading for information, you’ll probably be dissapointed. There are other books for information. If you want to seriously consider how we as Christians should be living, this will search the heart.

As a minister, I’ve led a number of weddings and funerals. I’ve always said: funerals are easier, but weddings are a lot more fun. Here’s Limburg’s pithy take on the purpose of funerals (Encountering Ecclesiastes):

Funerals remind us that we ought not get ourselves confused with God.

This section is the middle of three in the chapter, “Humankind under Indictment”. Now that we’ve seen how Adam completely blew it (§4), we turn to the role of sin and death in the life of a believer. Only after that will we examine the role of the law in human failure. Then (finally), we can move on to some good news!

But for now . . . sin and death:

. . .

Read more

• The Snakebite Letters: Devilishly Devious Secrets for Subverting Society As Taught in Tempter’s Training School © 1998
• Ignatius Press
• 155

I’ve read C. S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters many times, and often wondered why someone didn’t pick up that genre of writing and run with it. Last week while browsing the shelves at Crux Bookstore, I found this little gem from Kreeft: a philosopher I’ve listened to often. Since Kreeft is a C. S. Lewis admirer and biographer with a wicked sense of humor, it seemed like the perfect fit.

If you’ve read Screwtape, you’ll know what to expect: letters from a senior to a junior devil with advice on how best to tempt his assigned human. Kreeft uses this narrative to explore topics like Catholic School, theology, liturgy, and sex. There are a number of brilliant insights here. For example, the connection between Molech and abortion is startling but, in hindsight, obvious. The connection he made between the pleasure a human feels during sex and the corresponding pain a devil feels was also incisive.

The wit did begin to wear on me after a while, though. The repetitious nature of taking something we would assume is good (such as: church attendance, Christian education, etc.) and showing how it can be twisted toward evil became a bit wearisome. I suppose you can blame Snakebite himself for that: hell is essentially boredom.

The other thing that frustrated me was the lack of character development in the person’s life. In Screwtape, Wormwood’s human went through a number of stages in his Christian growth. Kreeft only seemed interested in his polemic towards sex and Christian education.

That said, if you enjoyed Screwtape, read Snakebite. There are a number of terse lines that will make you cringe when you recognize those tendencies creeping into your own life!

This book shines a spotlight on the Devil’s chief maxim: dim the lights.

We’ve all had that sinking sensation when we try to revisit an old haunt, only to find it pales in comparison to our own memories of it. In Sand County Almanac, Aldo Leopold expresses this emotion far more eloquently:

It is the part of wisdom never to revisit a wilderness, for the more golden the lily, the more certain that someone has gilded it. To return not only spoils a trip, but tarnishes a memory. It is only in the mind that shining adventure remains forever bright.

Or more cynically, we have the words of the Qohelet:

Do not say, ‘Why were the former days better than these?’
For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.
— Ecclesiastes 7:10, NRSV

• On the Ground: Poems ©2004
• Graywolf Press
• 64 pages

Appreciating poetry is akin to fine wine-tasting or jazz collecting. It can seem like a mystery to the uninitiated, but a consuming passion to the lovers. I’ll be honest: my poetry acumen is woefully inadequate, but I still enjoy reading it. There were times in this book that I knew the words were important—even beautiful—even if I couldn’t explain why.

This is a book that wrestles with the grand topics of life: war, love, and religion. This book deserves to be read out loud. Even when the traditional way of understanding language disintegrates, the cadence feels somehow appropriate.

I’m afraid that’s the best review this poetry rookie can offer for this book. I enjoyed it, even if I’m unsure quite why.

Here’s a frustrating-yet-true observation on Biblical interpretation from G. K. Beale (in The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text).

All interpretation is a matter of probabilities and possibilities.

I was listening to a discussion yesterday on CBC Radio One. They were debating whether it was wise to allow corporate sponsorship into public schools. On the positive side, it was a tremendous source of income. It also filled a need: kids need chocolate bars and pop, right? On the negative side, the interviewee questioned whether it made sense to manipulate a child’s mind in such a subliminal manner: if I see it in school, it must be okay, right?

Today I received bulk email from CCLI with a link to a free Father’s Day video illustration. You can watch it here. I wanted to vomit. I don’t care whether the movie that the clip is from passes Dobson’s family-friendly filter or not. Does it seem wrong to anyone else out there to shamelessly advertise a film to a congregation—a congregation that, like a student in a school, trusts most of what they here while in the building?

Let’s hear Jesus’ words one more time (John 16:13-14, NRSV):

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth [This promised spirit is brought to you by our fine friends at Christian-Singles online. Choose Christian-Singles online for all your christian companionship needs.]; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears [Having problems hearing the message? For just three monthly installments of $99.99, you too can hear God's word at home in crystal-clear 5.1 surround sound.], and he will declare to you the things that are to come [Worried about your financial future? RRSPs taking a nose-dive? Invest in Christian theme parks. There's a 100-fold blessing guaranteed. You'll be glad you did.]. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you [And you can take what is mine in this special offer...].

I just had to get that rant out of my system. I feel better already.

• Black House © 2001
• Random House
• 625 pages

Having just finished The Talisman, I decided to jump into the sequel. This book surpasses its predecessor in every way possible. The writing style is mature and polished. The horror is truly horrifying. The plot is captivating. The character development is rich, without slowing the pace of the narrative.

To make things even better, there are no subtle allusions to the world of the Dark Tower: it’s explicitly part of the plot. Hearing about the beams, the Crimson King, the Gunslinger, and the breakers all over again brought me right back into that world.

If that last sentence made no sense, you should really read the Dark Tower books followed by The Talisman before opening up this one. It’s worth the time.

Now we wait for the anticipated third book of the trilogy.