Archives

23 Aug 2015

A Gentler God

Breaking free of the Almighty in the company of the human Jesus, Menangle: Albatross Books, 2010; 390 pp. There can be no doubt that Doug Frank, in a A Gentler God, has faced into the darker and more disturbing aspects of the North American reformed and evangelical ethos---he did so,…

Editor No Comments

11 Apr 2015

A Farewell to Mars

An Evangelical Pastor’s Journey Toward the Biblical Gospel of Peace, Brian Zahnd, Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2014, 208pp. An excerpt: This is an outstanding read. ... The book bristles with the message of peace. For anyone finding his or her way on this matter, the book is highly recommended!…

Editor No Comments

26 Jan 2015

The Executed God

The Way of the Cross in Lockdown America, Mark Lewis Taylor, Fortress Press, 2001, 208 pp. WN: “Is it a contradiction that Christians pray and adore their imprisoned and executed God while supporting or tolerating the execution and imprisonment of so many today?... Is there a contradiction when in 2001…

Editor No Comments

26 Jan 2015

The Biblical Revelation of the Cross

A Bible Study of the Atonement of Jesus Christ - the Righteous Servant, Norman McIlwain, Oak Wood Publishing House, 2006 NOTE: Reviewed by Phil Groom Why did Jesus die? It's a simple enough question at first glance: he was crucified. That's what happens: crucifixion kills. But for Christians, as well…

Editor No Comments

26 Jan 2015

Solving Hell

A Mystery Story, by Chris Friesen, A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary (Fresno, CA), In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Theology, 2003, unpublished WN: In 1992 a former missionary colleague, Larry Dixon, published The Other Side of the Good News:…

Editor

24 Jan 2015

Reason, Faith, and Revolution

Reflections on the God Debate, Terry Eagleton, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2009, 185 pp. NOTE: This is less "Review" than "Interactions With". I had generally felt uninterested in the recent spate of neoatheistic publications, including The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins, and God is Not Great, by…

Editor

22 Feb 2014

Beyond Retribution

A New Testament Vision for Justice, Crime, and Punishment,Christopher D. Marshall, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2001, 342 pages. An excerpt: This book is central to "secular" Western culture, steeped ineluctably in Judeo-Christian trappings, in its quest to move towards Restorative Justice. "It is an irony of history", claims Religious…

Editor

18 Feb 2014

God’s Just Vengeance

Crime, violence and the rhetoric of salvation, Timothy Gorringe, Cambridge University Press, 1996, 280 pages An excerpt: "This book examines the relationship between the theologies of atonement and penal strategies." is the description from the inside cover. Its theme is "[t]he question of theimpact of religious sensibilities, or the structure…

Editor

26 Jan 2014

Compassionate Justice

An Interdisciplinary Dialogue with Two Gospel Parables on Law, Crime, and Restorative Justice, Christopher D. Marshall, Eugene Oregon: Cascade Books, 2012 An excerpt: At the first national teleconference in the United States on Restorative Justice (in 1991 I believe), a woman asked the panel about the Christian roots of Restorative…

MasterEditor No Comments