By Katie Geneva Cannon
Continuum. 2002. 184 pp. $24.95.
ISBN 0-8264-1441-9
— Review by Lonnie J. Oliver, College Park, Ga.
Teaching Preaching is a creative, fresh approach to teaching and learning preaching form a perspective that integrates the Word of God with everyday challenges and opportunities. The book's style helps the reader to affirm the African experience in America through sound theology and with a clear methodology.
By John T. Galloway Jr.
WJKP. 2003. 168 pp. Pb. $16.95. ISBN 0-664-22584-5
— Review by John D. Dalles, Longwood, Fla.
Want a long conversation with a venerable pastor reflecting on 37 years of ministry, innovative mission and congregational renewal? It's here in John Galloway's Ministry Loves Company. This is theoretical and practical advice on how congregations work and how pastors can help them work better without losing their religion.
By Geffrey B. Kelly and F. Burton Nelson
Eerdmans. 2003. 317 pp. Pb. $25. ISBN 0802805116
— Review by James L. Mechem, Santa Fe, N.M.
There are a lot of people who know something about Bonhoeffer; many know a lot about him; two men who know a great deal about him, Kelley and Nelson, have produced an excellent study of the relation between Bonhoeffer's life, and the theological and ethical dimensions of his thought.
'The Life Of David Gale' is a polemic against the death penalty. It raises, and then answers, the question of 'What if someone executed by the state is actually innocent?' But the viewer finds out all the information only in bits and pieces, that is, at the same rate as the main character, Bitsy (Kate Winslett). She's a big-time magazine reporter who gets chosen for the exclusive rights to interview former philosophy professor David Gale, during his last three days on Death Row.
We, the viewers, get to witness her initial skepticism about the innocence of someone who was accused of rape and murder, and then convicted by three courts. She agrees to do the interview because they have appealed to her pride, as someone suitably high-profile who has proven that she will maintain confidentiality of sources (by going to jail). So she listens to the Gale (played by Kevin Spacey) unfold his story, and it's not pretty.
By John W. de Gruchy
Fortress. 2002. 255 pp. Pb. $29.95. ISBN 0800636007
— Review by Aurelia T. Fule, Santa Fe, N.M.
John W. de Gruchy, professor of Christian studies at the University of Cape Town, South Africa, is known and esteemed by many Western readers because of his earlier works. In Reconciliation he writes:
The relatively peaceful ending of apartheid and the transition to democratic rule in South Africa did . . . take the world by surprise. It also set in motion . . . the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) established to seek the truth about the past in order to facilitate national reconciliation (p. 10).Soaring Where Christ Has Led: Innovative Worship Ideas for the 21st Century
By Richard Avery and Donald Marsh
CSS. 2002. 180 pp. Pb. $29.95.ISBN 0-7880-1906-6
— Review by Mary Ann Lundy, Santa Fe, N.M.
Many of us cannot remember a time when we did not know and sing what came to be a noun, "Avery-and-Marsh." "Let's do an 'Avery-and-Marsh,'" we'd say, or "I'll look in Avery-and-Marsh and see what there is for Easter." Going to national meetings and conferences meant that we could see them "do their thing" in the flesh, which meant arousing passive, stone-faced Presbyterians to move and clap and dance and, yes, sing with gust.Bend It Like Beckham
'Bend It Like Beckham' is this year's 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding.' It's about a girl growing up in a very ethnic family, and how she struggles to honor her roots and yet find some independence. She's not perfect, but she's likable because she's so passionate. And she tries so hard. And while she cannot bend the world to her point of view, she can at least decide what to embrace and what to refrain from embracing (Ecclesiastes 3), and in the process discover something of who she is.
There are several refreshing elements to this film for the American moviegoer. First, it does not adhere to some of the silly Hollywood rules about what is glamorous. The lead character, 'Jess' Bhamra (Parminder K. Nagra), is neither tall nor skinny nor blonde nor blue-eyed; though her friend, Jules Paxton (Keira Knightly), is all those things. What the two girls have in common is a gift for soccer. Jess has just been playing 'football' with (guy) friends in the public park near her house. Jules is playing on a women's team. When she spots Jess' skill, she invites Jess to be on the women's team, as well. The coach, Joe (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers), is skeptical until he sees Jess play. And then he is ecstatic. And so is she, because she didn't realize how good she was until now.Gods and Generals
Actually, it seems more like 'God and Generals' because there is a whole lot of Scripture quoting, praying, conversing about the mysterious will of the Almighty in a reverential tone and, on deathbeds, the literal assurance of Heaven. It's not often a Hollywood movie is so very religious. But it is also very violent.
'Gods and Generals' is the adaptation of Jeff Shaara's Civil War historical novel about the early part of the war, when the Confederates were consistently victorious. Lee and Jackson looked invincible, while the Union suffered with a series of hesitant commanders who were either intimidated, afraid to make a mistake, paralyzed into inactivity, or all three.
The Invisible Child: On Reading and Writing Books for Children
By Katherine Paterson
Dutton. 2001. 266 pp. $24.99.
— Review by Freda Gardner, Princeton, N.J.
The subtitle could be: What Makes Katherine Tick? What are the thoughts, experiences, loves, concerns that make this author so prolific, so admired around the world; so ready to speak to and with children and to care about them with a passion that marks the decades of her life? Who are the people that called forth that passion and keep it burning today? And what of God, who continues to call Katherine Paterson to many ministries, to the use of the gifts that are hers?
Head of State and The Good Thief
Both movies rely heavily on the star power of the leading male, but make sure to feature a young, attractive woman. Both expect the viewers to accept an unlikely plot line long enough to be charmed by the skill and ingenuity of the main character. Both develop the main character as someone not ordinarily thought to be important, but who enjoys tremendous success, and we root for them both because they represent the 'anti-hero,' the one who plays against type.
In 'Head Of State,' Chris Rock plays a lowly town alderman, Mays Gilliam, who is caught on the national news doing a dramatic rescue, just because he happened to be nearby at the time. This catches the attention of the Democratic Party's kingmakers, who have a problem. Their presidential candidate and his running mate have died in a plane crash. They need to find a sacrificial lamb quickly, because the opposition is the well-known Republican who has been the vice president for eight years. Nobody wants to run against him. And so they choose Gilliam, the unknown, the 'man of the people,' and try to garner some goodwill for the next election.LATEST STORIES
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