Book Recommendation: Reflections on the Psalms by C. S. Lewis

Reflections on the Psalms is in my opinion not one of Lewis’ better works.  It actually took a bit of willpower to finish the book, despite its brevity (approx. 140 pages).  I cannot remember whether I have commented on this before, but regardless it is worth repeating.  I respect Lewis more for his insight into human nature than his skill in handling God’s Word.  This is one of the reasons Reflections on the Psalms was in places difficult to get through.  However, for those interested in understanding Lewis view of Scripture and his hermeneutics Reflections on the Psalms will prove a valuable and insightful read.  A few comments on the book may help.

First, Lewis demonstrates his excellent command of languages and ancient languages in Reflections on the Psalms. Although, no Hebrew scholar Lewis has the distinct advantage of having insight into the languages of ancient people and also insight into their culture.

Second, Lewis demonstrates great humility (what an odd expression!) in the presentation of his own views.  Lewis writes as a laymen to laymen.  Thus the tone of the book alleviates any excessive tension by creating a sort of conversation rather than a lecture.

Third, Lewis provides some helpful remarks on innerancy and inspiration.  While he would not hold to innerancy in the contemporary evangelical definition, Lewis would hold that Scripture is sufficiently inerrant for it to accomplish its purposes.  Lewis uses the word impression to describe the relationship between human author and divine author.

Despite some differences of opinion and some slow moments Reflections on the Psalms provides a unique look into the way Lewis himself handled Scripture and reminds us that he was really, just like us, a man who found comfort and strenght in Israel’s songbook.

Book Recommendation: The Faiths of Our Fathers

Evangelicals often assume that the Founding Fathers of the United States were all upstanding Christians, who if alive today would naturally be evangelicals.  The claim is a natural one but is it a true one.  Alf J. Mapp Jr., Eminent Scholar Emeritus at Old Dominion University, would have to say no.  In his informative and accessible book, The Faiths of Our Fathers, he examines the religious and philosophical leanings of a number of the Founding Fathers.  While some of the men certainly do seem to hold to a genuine Christian faith, by and large the Founding Fathers were more influenced by Enlightenment philosophy, Deism and institutional Christianity.  Certainly most of them were men of integrity, men of principle and conviction, many of them great men who did great things, but by and large they were not necessarily Christians.  Regarldess of their individual relgious persuation their comittment as a group to religious liberty not only shaped civil policiy for almost 200 years but it also gave rise to incredible opportunity for the church in America and abroad.

Hodge Podge

How odd!  I just realized I have no idea how to spell “hodge podge.”  I would check the dictionary but somehow I’m afraid it will be an exercise in futility.  What do you know?  It’s there and I spelled it correctly.  Alright, on to bigger and better things now.

Out of Ur has a unique piece by David Swanson up that may be worth checking out.  Swanson compares the setting and plot of Gran Torino with the situation encountered by numerous congregations across the nation as urban and suburban migration, as well as gentrification affect the populations of communities across America.  The challenge for churches is how to proclaim the gospel and minster to a changing demographic, a challenge which Swanson sees mirrored in Eastwood’s character in Gran Torino. I should also confess my original reason for reading the article was actually to find out more about Gran Torino since my roommate has expressed some interest in seeing it.  Now at least I have a slight interest in seeing it as well.

These next two links are both to book lists.  First of all, I am astounded at how much Mark Dever was able to read on his family vacation.  You can see a list of what he read during his week away here.  I was away for five days and got zero reading done.  Then again my vacation was also to my sister’s wedding so I had a few other, more important things going on than reading.  The list is also worth checking out because of the number of books on economics, current events and cultural issues.  Good encouragement to broaden my reading horizons.

Finally, Collin Hansen has ten theology books you should take with you to the beach this Summer.  Bruce Ware’s book, Big Truths for Little Hearts looks excellent.  I picked up a copy last week and hope to take a few middle school students through it this Summer.  I am also interested in Kevin DeYoung’s forthcoming book, Why We Love the Church.  In a church culture which seems obsessed with church bashing, or at least backhand slapping, a book praising it immediately catches the eye.  The other reason is the subtitle which mentions “institutions.”  An odd word to apply to the body of Christ in my mind.  I’m curious to see what he says.  Mark Noll’s new book looks excellent.  I need to get my hands on a copy of it and bumpt it to the top of reading list.  If you have not read anything by Mark Noll, go pick up one of his books and read it as soon as you are done with this post, or sooner even.  Your knowledge of church history will thank you.  So will I next time I see you.  So will Mark for that matter; royalties for books are a nice thing.    Finally, N. T. Wright’s latest book, Justification is a book I should also read before school gets back in session, lest I find myself hopelessly behind the times in theolgoical jargon, debates and current events.  Then again, maybe I’ll just go back and read a bit more Lewis, being in style is such a transient thing and it takes such effort.  Then again, my understanding of justification is important enough to warrant a few hundred pages of reading.

Slave of Christ

Studies over my first year of graduate school forced me to begin wrestling with the issue of slavery in the Bible, as readers of this blog may have picked up from the paper on Philemon.  The Bible’s treatment of slaves is one of the issues most offensive to modern Christians today, because for us the issue of slavery is tied so closely to the issue of racism, a blight far to close to us to be comfortable.  To be fair I must say that my examination of the issue is at the current time is woefully incomplete, and due to the arrival of a new semester in a couple months will most likely remain in that condition for the forseeable future.  However, a more relaxed schedule over the Summer afforded me the opportunity to peruse an excellent book related to the issue of slavery in the New Testament, that is the image of being a slave of Christ.  Murray J. Harris has written an excellent book on this subject that many of you may find helpful, Slave of Christ: A New Testament Metaphor for Total Devotion to Christ. Harris explores the word doulos (slave) in both the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the NT (hereafter the LXX), and the New Testament.  But the book is more than a simple word study.  Harris does admirable work exploring the New Testament cultural background of slavery in the Greco-Roman world.  Along the way, students who are doing advanced New Testament studies will be introduced via footnotes and bibliography to some of the best resources on slavery in ancient times available.  Careful attention to the authors quoted by Harris will certainly suffice to acquaint one with the major figures in this field.  Harris also does a beautiful job of examining the teachings of the New Testament, looking both in the gospels at the parables of Jesus, and to the language of the apostle Paul, who uses the image of slave several times in his letters.  The book is a bit heady, but for those willing to wade through the thickness of cultural background studies, word studies and exegesis the reward will be a better understanding of the biblical text, the God who stands behind that text and our responsibilities as worshipers of that God who are in truth slaves of Christ.

The Lord of the Rings

Outside of the Bible, there is no other book I have spent more time reading than J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings.  This month offered me the first opportunity in some years to return to this modern masterpiece and relive the War of the Ring alongside Frodo, Samwise Gamgee, Aragorn, Gandalf and all the rest.  In addition to being once more caught up in the pagentry and excitment of a roaring good tale, and taking delight in some beautiful writing in places, there were major themes that jumped out at me afresh.  I thought it might be worthwhile to mention a few of them here.

Good & Evil – Throughought the book the line between good and evil is drawn clearly.  Some characters may at times fall prey to evil, Boromir when he attempts to seize the ring, Denethor when he despairs, Frodo when he chooses to take the ring for himself, but people are either on one side or the other.  There is no middle ground, there are no neutral characters, nor are there anti-heroes.  Heroes who are such in spite of not because of their actions.  Boromir and Frodo both come aroun in the end and even Denenthor at the end is presented as a tragic figure and not so much as an evil figure.

Courage & Right Action Despite Despair – Throughout the book characters are faced with seemingly hopeless situatoions.  Situations in which doing the right thing appears doomed for certain failure.  Yet over and over again, the outstanding characters make the hard choice and do what is right and refuse to give in either to cowardice, to apathy or to evil.  The strongest of characters even do so against Sauron’s especially potent fear and despair spread by his ghostly servants, the Nazgul.

Friendship – I can think of no other work of fiction in which friendship and comittment is so highly praised, valued and exemplified.  More than once characters rouse themselves to action by remembering that they are fighting for the lives of the their friends and so they must do their part no matter how small or insignificant it may seem.

The Necessity of Unity in Opposition to Evil – This point comes up over and over again in the books.  Throughout the story good is constantly having to break off their suspicions of each other, their pride, their selfishness and their in-fighting in order to oppose evil in unity.

Heaven – The entire story is laced with heavenly imagery through the medium of the sea and a far green country.  The image is foreshadowed while Frodo rests in the house of Tom Bombadil, and by the end of the book the image is overwhelming.

The best stories always draw us into the world of the story only to equip us to move with greater courage and conviction in our own world.  Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings is exactly one of those stories which is both a pleasure to read and also a challenge to our own lives.

The Four Loves

There may not be another book by C. S. Lewis more widely read and less understood than The Four Loves.  Although, the book receives high praise from places like The New York Times, or the Saturday Evening Review, yet the true message of the book is necessarily lost on some.  Lewis approaches the topic of love and, as is typical, analyzes it through the dual lenses of anthropology and philosophical theology.  So on one level The Four Loves will help you better understand you own feelings of love, or at least help you classify what you mean by love when you use the the English word.  But then again, this is not enough for Lewis, nor should it be for any well thought Chritian.  So it is that Lewis throughout his book also explores the nature of God’s love for us, our love for God and others and the relationship between these.  Theological topics ranging from the sufficiency of God and the social trinity, all mesh together to form a portrait of the love of God for us that is infinitely superior to our love of others or our love for God.  After reading this book, I can’t help but think of the most beautiful human love, for God or for others, as being something like a portrait of a great landscape, but the love of God being the landscape itself.

The Problem of Pain

The Summer of C. S. Lewis continues.  The Problem of Pain is Lewis’ attempt to answer the problem of evil and suffering in the world.  Lewis makes the modest claim of solving the problem only from an intellectual position and does so admirably.  As expected he places the Fall at the center of the problem, and then explores the concepts of heaven and hell, two of the finer points of the book.  His reflection on the purposes of pain ought to remind some readers of James 1.  Again, Lewis is not especially good in his handling of biblical texts or even in his handling of certain theological topics.  But his understanding of pain from an anthropological point of view is brilliant, his vision of hell horrible and his picture of heaven breathtaking.  Another work that is well worth the cost both in terms of time and money.

“The only purpose of The Problem of Pain is to solve the intellectual problem raised by suffering; for the far higher task of teaching fortitude and patience I was never fool enough to suppose myself qualified, nor have I anything to offer my readers except my conviction that when pain is to be borne, a little courage helps more than much knowledge, a little human sympathy more than much courage, and the least tincture of the love of God more than all.”  C. S. Lewis

Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer

If the past week or so is any indication I will do more valuable reading this Summer than in any previous Summer of my life.  Earlier this week I urged you to pick up a copy of The Weight of Glory this Summer.  I am going to expand your reading list for the Summer and include Letters to Malcolm as well.  This collection of letters by Lewis is stunning.  Filled with typical insight from Lewis into life, the faith, the nature of human beings, the church, and relationships, Letters to Malcolm will challenge your mind and heart.  For those of you with busy schedules Letters to Malcolm will be even more accessible than The Weight of Glory because of it’s short length (under 150 pages) and brief chapters (typically 5-6 pages).

Correction: The Weight of Glory

I earlier posted that The Weight of Glory was a collection of five sermons given by Lewis during the years around World War II.  While that was true for the first edition of the book you should be aware that the latest American edition of the book has nine addresses given by Lewis.  I am now in the middle of reading this longer version.  My endorsement of the book remains unchanged.

The Weight of Glory

If you have a few hours to spare this Summer, pick up a copy of C. S. Lewis’ The Weight of Glory. If you do not have a few hours to spare, clear your schedule and make time to pick up and read through The Weight of Glory. The book is a collection of  addresses given during by Lewis.  The sermons address: the dignity of human beings and their ultimate destiny, the place of learning in a world at war, membership in the body, the way of the world and (oddly enough) speaking in tongues.  The title sermon alone makes the book worth its cost.  The sermon on church membership is also quite helpful.  Readable, brief, thought provoking and edifying there is little excuse for this book to not be on your reading list for the Summer.

Thanks to Josh Wakefield for pointing out to me how appropriate it was for a Wheaton student to be reading Lewis during his summer break.