Benjamin J. Dueholm Eerdmans, 176 pages Reviewed by Gordon Lindsey When we review the ways Christians have expressed their faith, we face a puzzle. Theologies vary. So do ethical systems. Worship styles come and go. So what gives the Christian movement its continuity from generation to generation, from culture to culture? It is the enduring practices of Christianity, contends Benjamin Dueholm in his new book “Spiritual Signposts.” “If nothing else, a religion is what it does,” says Dueholm, a Lutheran pastor. “We take hold of religious practices, and they take hold of us.” And so he devotes his book to discussing the “central, sacred, vexing practices of Christianity, the ‘holy possessions’ by which Christians receive and enact their faith.” For Dueholm, those seven holy possessions include the Word of God, baptism, Eucharist and the cross. His book reflects on each in a separate chapter. I found these chapters thought provoking in ways I did not expect. In each case, I came … [Read more...]

Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile IVP Books, 220 pages The Enneagram is ancient tool that helps people gain a greater understanding of themselves and their relationships. Not to be confused with the once popular Meyers-Briggs personality system, the Enneagram has deeper roots in esoteric philosophy and even theology. The history is a bit murky but often associated with Evagrius, a Christian monk of the 4th century and the Desert Mothers and Fathers who reportedly used it in pastoral counseling. It is also associated with Sufism and in the 20th century was renewed by George Gurdjieff. Eventually it made its way to an American psychiatrist, Claudio Naranjo. Naranjo began using it in teaching seminars that included Christian priests and pastors. Hence, the Enneagram entered more fully into Christian spiritual practice.  Ian Cron and Suzanne Stabile are active Christians and master teachers of the Enneagram, former students and now colleagues with Richard Rohr. This is an … [Read more...]

Catherine Kerrison Ballantine Books, 448 pages Reviewed by Melissa Kirkpatrick The years of the Revolution and the Early Republic, full of tumult and contradictions as they are, provide the setting for another story — one of extended and interwoven families, a society in the midst of change and three sisters. Read this book, get a refresher course in the public events of the period and let your mind experience the sights, sounds and even smells of the streets of Paris and Washington, as well as Virginia. Learn of the difficulties and ironies of life as the daughters of one of the most prominent of the country’s founders. Jefferson was a brilliant man, but his vision, limited by his times, did not extend to the gifts and potential of women or people of color. Educated in Virginia and in Paris in the style of the elite, his daughters from his marriage to Martha Wayles were bright and capable. This was a period that saw the publication of Mary Wollstonecraft’s “A Vindication of … [Read more...]

Rachel Held Evans Thomas Nelson, 240 pages Reviewed by T.J. Remaley If there’s one thing that Rachel Held Evans sets out to accomplish in her newest book, “Inspired,” it’s to demonstrate just how seriously she takes the Bible. One could consider this an ambitious goal for Evans to undertake, considering her previous works led many in the evangelical community to accuse her of diminishing the Bible, and several Christian bookstore chains have banned her books from appearing on their shelves. Yet, the eagerness with which she dives into a deeper exploration of scriptural texts testifies to how seriously she views the task, as does the depth of the citations she includes as bibliographic endnotes. In her characteristically accessible way, the author strives – and mostly succeeds – to incorporate sound biblical scholarship and imaginative creative writing into the style of memoir for which she has become known. The result is an invitation to accompany her on a journey that engages … [Read more...]

Shannon Craigo-Snell and Christopher J. Doucot Westminster John Knox Press, 144 pages Reviewed by Angela Williams “No Innocent Bystanders” by Shannon Craigo-Snell and Christopher J. Doucot is a wonderfully practical primer written by, to and for white Christians seeking to become allies in the struggle for racial justice. Tracing the similarities and differences between the struggles for LGBTQ equality and racial justice, the book explores how to be an ally from historical, theological and practical perspectives.  Craigo-Snell and Doucot give an excellent crash course in the history of the LGBTQ equality movement in the U.S. and how the presence of straight allies helped that movement create change so quickly. After laying out some facts in the history of racism, the authors identify issues of welcome, relationship and classism that white would-be allies must address to start antiracism work. This framing adequately addresses the need for the work to be intersectional and for … [Read more...]