Books read in 2024 by Dr Orville Boyd Jenkins

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Finished (93)

Arp, Tyler. Strategy for Replanting Declining Churches. La Mirada, California: Talbot School of Theology, September 2024. (A doctoral dissertation for which I served as a reader. Being read chapter by chapter as it was produced, from July 2023.) Read July 2023 - July 2024. Church & Culture (Philosophy, Communication)

Baker, Alan. The Knight. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, 2003. 217p. (A history of the medieval period of feudalism. Baker describes the stages of development of the structures of feudalism in the centuries following the disintegration of the Roman Empire in Western Europe. He focuses on the development of the class of knights, mounted soldiers, and their role in the military culture. Feudalism was a period of consolidation of land under various lords and higher authorities considered as royalty and kingship under different cultural structures of military power and protection in the dangerous and bellicose Middle Ages. These lords were always trying to expand their domains at the expense of the others, so constant war in Europe was the character of the Middle Ages, even though the universities grew up during this time. Baker covers the several western “Crusades” to fight the invading Turks and the misguided popular and papal crusades, many of which wound up attacking the eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, considered a Christian empire. Baker details the characteristics of the various military church orders of Knights, such as the Knights Templar and Knights of Malta, and explains how the Crusader kingdoms of Jerusalem, and Antioch and others were established and then lost during this medieval period. He includes the saga of the Vikings and relates the crusades to the various voyages and wars of conquest of the Vikings then the Iberians and other European colonial powers into the early modern period as feudalism gave way to full-fledged empire. Detailed but very readable. Baker knows how to tell a story and documents well. He includes a helpful glossary as well as a bibliography of soruces for further reading and an index of subjects in the book.) Bought 8 March 2024 from the Arlington, Texas, Library. Read 6-8 October 2024. History (Middle Ages, the Crusades, Military Catholic Orders)

Bainton, Roland H. Erasmus of Christendom. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 2016. 355p. (A reprint of an original volume of biographical history by the British historian Roland Bainton. Originally published in 1969, based on a lecture series in 1967 by Bainton at Princeton theological Seminary and again in Bethel College in Kansas. Erasmus was a late medieval biblical scholar, overlapping with the Protestant Reformation. He was claimed by some reformers and carried on a long correspondence with Martin Luther, but he never left the Roman communion. He was a reform-minded leader, serving as advisor to popes, archbishops and King Henry of England. From the Netherlands, he was a monk and scholar of biblical manuscripts. He was responsible for raising awareness of the ancient Greek manuscripts in a European milieu long oriented to Rome and the Latin Vulgate translation of Jerome. He was the first scholar to present a comparative Greek text that included notes on variations between the Greek texts then available. This went through several editions during his lifetime as he continued refining his work and including more manuscripts in his critical comparisons. This was a delightful and informative story, well-told by Bainton in extensive but very readable detail. Bainton provides a very good picture of the complex interactions of the streams of theology and piety involved in the period, as well as dealing clearly with the clerical corruption that Erasmus and Luther were so concerned about. He details the ways in which Erasmus serves as a bridge into the Reformation era, and indicates how Erasmus’ own campaign for reform led to many corrections made by the Roman Catholic Church through the Counter Reformation.) Bought 13 March 2024 from Christianbook. Read 31 July -8 August 2024. Biography (European History, Christian History, Philosophy)

Baker, Sharon L. Executing God: Rethinking Everything You’ve Been Taught about Salvation and the Cross. Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2013. 205p. (My niece alerted me to this book by Dr Baker, with whom I was not familiar. Theologian and Christian historian Baker reviews the historical theories of atonement and looks at the violence of the cross. She analyzes the attribution of violence to God in the Old Testament in contrast to the non-violent approach of Love that Jesus taught and that is proclaimed in the New Testament. She looks at the violence, and injustices perpetrated by the Christian church and so-called Christian governments, and the papacy as well, and looks at the major theories of atonement in relationship to this European history of violence. The popular concept, which appears late and only gradually in Christian theology, that God the Father required the propitiating death of his own son as a human, is evaluated in contrast to the non-violent way of life and the defeat of evil that Jesus taught as the way Love overcomes evil. This, of course, entails the consideration of the Justice of God. Very thoughtful analysis and alternative proposals for understanding the metaphors in the New Testament in light of the non-violent teachings of Jesus about the nature of the Kingdom of God.) Bought 13 March 2024 on Christianbook. Read 17-19 August 2024. Theology (Atonement, Justice of God, Biblical Doctrine)

Bernstein, Josh. Digging for the Truth: One Man’s Epic Adventure Exploring the World’s Greatest Archaeological Mysteries. NY: Gotham Books/The History Channel, 2006. 200p. Bought 8 March 2024 in Arlington, Texas. Read 5-7 April 2024. Science (Archaeology, History, Peoples and Cultures)
Borthwick, Paul. How to Be a World-Class Christian: Becoming Part of God’s Global Christian. Downer’s Grove, Illinois: IVP Press, 2009. 225p. Read 4-5 January 2024. Faith and Life
Bradnock, W J, Editor. The Bible Translator: Periodical for the Assistance of Bible Translators. London: United Bible Societies, Vol 5, No 3, July 1954. 48p. Read 11-12 February 2024. Science (Languages and Linguistics; Theology)

Brown, Michael L. Donald Trump is Not My Savior: An Evangelical Leader Speaks His Mind About the Man He Supports as President. Shippensburg, Pennsylvania: Destiny Image Publishers, 2018. 345p. Bought 23 September 2023 in Arlington, Texas. Read 14-15 February 2024. Church and Culture

Carlson, David. Peace Be With You: Monastic Wisdom for a Terror-Filled World. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2011. 276p. Bought 23 September 2024 from Christianbook. Read 26-30 November 2024. Theology (Mysticism, Peace and Non-violence in Response to Terrorism)

Cary, Phillip. The History of Christian Theology. Chantilly, Virginia: The Teaching Company, 2008. 226p. Received 25 September 2024 from St Barnabas United Methodist Church. Read 17-20 November 2024. Theology (Western History; Philosophy)

Centineo, Joe. More Encounters with God: More Stories of a Man’s Personal Encounters with God. Bedford, Texas: Burkhart Books, 2024. 152p. Received 30 August 2024 in Arlington, Texas, from the author. Read 14 September 2024. Personal/Health (Family)

Chan, Francis. Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit. Colorado Springs: David C Cook, 2009. 186p. Received 28 August 2024 from Crossroad Arlington. Read 29 August 2024. Theology (Faith and Life)

Chilcote, Paul W. Multiplying Love: A Vision of United Methodist Life Together. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2023. 109p. (Written in response to the movement to disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church over doctrine and membership differences. This Wesleyan scholar wrote in specific response to the book Multiplying Methodism, by Jeff Greenway and Mike Lowry advocating disaffiliation of congregations from the UMC and defending the schism as the basis of the founding of a rival Global Methodist Church, which would be doctrinally based. Chilcote reviews the biblical concept of unity in love, and cites John and Charles Wesley and the original emphasis on love as the organizing core and basis of the original Methodist movement within the Anglican Church and the gospel of love being primary, not abstract doctrine. He advocates unity in diversity, the operating principle established by John Wesley in his extensive writings explaining Methodism and the New ethos of the “Kingdom of God” and the gospel of the kingdom taught by Jesus.) Bought 8 October 2024 from Amazon. Read 11 October 2024. Church & Culture (Theology, Methodism, the Gospels, Unity)

Chopra, Deepak and Leonard Mlodinow. War of the Worldviews. NY: Books on Tape/Random House, 2011. Audiobook. (A stimulating and informative series of essays read by the authors in debate format. Each author addresses a series of topics exploring the focuses of Materialism (Mlodinow) and Spirituality (Chopra). Mlodinow proposes and defends the perspective that consciousness and self-awareness arose out of matter at some stage in evolution. Chopra proposes that Consciousness is the foundation and origin of the material universe.) Bought 23 September 2023. Heard over a period of several days, finished 15 February 2024. Science (Science vs Spirituality, Mind-Brain Dualism, Consciousness and Materialism)

Clear, Val. Where the Saints Have Trod: A History of the Church of God Reformation Movement. Chesterfield, Indiana: Midwest Publications, 1977. 200p. Bought December 1980 in Dallas, Texas. Read 5-10 January 2024. History (Church History, Church of God History)

Comer, John Mark. The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry. Colorado Springs: Waterbrook, 2019. 288p. Received as a gift 9 September 2024 in Arlington, Texas. Read 15-17 September 2024. Personal/Health (Lifestyle, Family, Faith)

Condren, Mary. The Serpent and the Goddess: Women, Religion and Power in Celtic Ireland. San Francisco/NY: Harper and Row, 1989. 268p. Bought 26 September 2024 from the Arlington, Texas, Library. Read 5-12 November 2024. Church and Culture (Theology; Feminism; Patriarchy; Ecclesiology; Syncretism; Myth)

Cupitt, Don. Radical Theology: Selected Essays. Santa Rosa, California: Polebridge Press, 2006. 145p. (In Memory of John A T Robinson 1919-1983.) Bought 8 March 2024 from Arlington Public Library. Read 28-29 April 2024. Theology (Radical Theology, Death of God, Existentialism, Spiritual Growth)

D’Souza, Dinesh. The Roots of Obama’s Rage. Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing, 2010. 258p. Bought 8 March 2024 from Arlington Library. Read 22-25 May 2024. American Politics and Culture (President Obama, Race and Politics)

Dew, James K Jr and Mark W Foreman. How Do We Know: An Introduction to Epistemology. Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP Academic, 2014. 174p. Bought 13 March 2024 from Christianbook. Read 20-21 May 2024. Philosophy (Epistemology)

Dramm, Sabine. Dietrich Bonhoeffer: An Introduction to His Thought. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 2010. 258p. Bought 13 March 2024 from Christianbook. Read 11-17 May 2024. Theology (Philosophy)

Elliff, Bill. a small book about the large ways of a powerful God taught to a weak creature in his brief life preparing him for an endless eternity. North Little Rock: Truthink Publications, 2018. Received March 2023. Read 2 March 2024. Faith and Life (Humility, Faith, Spiritual Development)

Evans, Patricia. The Verbally Abusive Relationship: How to Recognize and How to Respond. NY/London etal: Adams Media, 2010, 1992. 239p. Received September 2023. Read 20 August - 5 November 2024. Mental Health (Psychology, Counseling, Morality)

Everett, Jeremy K. I Was Hungry: Cultivating Common Ground to End an American Crisis. Grand Rapids: BrazosPress, 2019. 159p. (A biographical story of practical responses to the problem of hunger in Texas and from there throughout the USA. The author is the founder of the Texas Hunger Project (THI), which was developed at the request of the Baptist General Convention of Texas to address the massive problem of poverty and food supply in the state of Texas. Everett tells the story of his response to personal experience and calling to meeting this need, and his and his family’s experiences living in the “bad” and poor part of Waco and San Antonio, Texas, and the format he developed for developing community networks for ongoing self-support projects in Texas and working with the US Depart of Agriculture to match up farmers and food market suppliers, restaurants, for-profit and non-profits service agencies and local civic and government organizations. He presents statistics and data form THI’s own field research, that there are 40 million Americans who are food insecure. That is, they go hungry or have insufficient or only periodic food. A major problem Everett has addressed has resulted in 5000 locations in Texas where such networks supply two or more meals per day to children during the summer, when their schools are not in session and their families cannot provide foods. There are about 5.5 million food insecure people in Texas.) Bought 13 March 2024 from Christianbook. Read 1-2 July 2024. American Politics and Culture (Faith & Life)

Farley, Andrew. Relaxing With God: The Neglected Spiritual Discipline. Grand Rapids: BakerBooks, 2014. 170p. Received 2022. Read 30 April - 4 May 2024. Faith and Life (Dealing with Guilt, Spiritual Freedom)

Floyd, E Randall. The Good, The Bad, and the Mad: Some Weird People in American History. NY: Fall River Press, 1999. 176p. Bought 8 March 2024 in Arlington, Texas. Read 2-4 April 2024. Biography (American History)

Forasteros, J R. Empathy for the Devil: Finding Ourselves in the Villains of the Bible. Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP Books, 2017. 227p. Bought 29 November 2004 from Christianbook. Read 30 November - 2 December 2024. Faith and Life (Bible; Theology)

Forth, Gregory. Between Ape and Human: An Anthropologist on the Trail of a Hidden Hominoid. NY/London: Pegasus Books, 2022. 279p. Bought 5 January 2024 on Amazon. Read 12-16 January 2024. Science (Paleoanthropology, Anthropology)

Fowlkes, Dane and David L Neely. The Transformational Church: Moving from Transactional to Transformational Ministry. Monee, Illinois: The Unfinished Task Network, 2021. (In development from training programs conducted in several languages and countries around the world, this book is copyrighted 2021, but was published as a formal resource in the current very attractive form near the end of 2023. I have known both the authors since they began their overseas service. Together these two entrepreneurial Christian workers applied their efforts to training church leaders and church members to serve their communities in very practical ways. They founded the Unfinished Task Network as a platform to facilitate church development among peoples new to the Gospel through indigenous churches as bases for community transformation. I was asked to review an early version of their training manual for this project and was privileged to write the foreword to this published manual and guide that lays out a practical theology of cross-cultural communication strategy through meeting felt need at a practical level. Dismissing the common transactional approach, they advocate a transformational approach -- making a real difference, without preconditions. They have put great effort into training indigenous Christian leaders and church members to implement this ministry of community development. They include an excellent, clear chapter on a Theology of Evangelism. This rejects the modern evangelical formulary approaches to “evangelism” that using a marketing format of leading a person through a syllogism of questions to a decision then considering them “converted.” The authors propose instead a relational teaching model of the Good News.) Received as a gift from the authors 12 February 2024. Read 12- February 2024. Church & Culture (Philosophy, Communication)

Foy, Terri Savelle. Make Your Dreams Bigger than Your Memories: Don’t Let Your Past Keep You from Your Future. Minneapolis: Chosen (Baker), 2010. 238p. Read 15-17 November 2024. Personal Development

Frazier, Gary and Jim Flectcher. Miracle of Israel: The Shocking, Untold Story of God’s Love for His People. Green Forest, Arkansas: New Leaf Press, 2016. 187p. Read 10-11 May 2024. Peoples and Cultures

Freddoso, David. The Case Against Barack Obama: The Unlikely Rise and Unexamined Agenda of the Media’s Favorite Candidate. Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing (Eagle Publishing), 2008. 290p. (An uncomplimentary history of the meteoric rise of Barack Obama in Illinois Politics, revealing his association with the dread Machine Politics of Chicago and it power and corruption in the state. Written in the year of the campaign and election which put Barack Obama in the White House.) Bought 8 March 2024. Read 23-27 April 2024. American Politics and Culture

Goldsworthy, Adrian. The Fall of Carthage: The Punic Wars 265-146 BC. London: Widenfeld and Nicholson, 2006. 412p. Bought 8 February 2023 on Amazon. Read 16 February - 1 March 2024. History (Roman History, Classical History)

Greeley, Andrew. The Catholic Revolution: New Wine, Old Wineskins, and the Second Vatican Council. Berkeley/LA/London: University of California Press, 2004. 224p. (This Catholic historian details and analyzes the dynamics and results of the second Vatican Council of 1963. Greeley sets out the background of the council, factors in the culture and within the church that led to the calling of a new council, and the revolutionary directions laid out in the decisions of Vatican II. He provides insights into the struggles in the church in followup between the Curia in Rome and the priests on the ground around the world. He lays out some of the practical results of the changes and benefits for the faithful, as well as problems and difficulties encountered.) Bought 26 September 2024 from the Arlington, Texas, Library. Read 3-6 October 2024. Church & Culture (Vatican II, Catholic History and Theology, Modernism)

Hagner, Donald A. How New is the New Testament?: First-Century Judaism and the Emergence of Christianity. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2018. 211p. (A review of current scholarship on the character of Jewish theology in the first century and the character of traditional Old Testament Judaism and its relationship to the emergent Christian faith. The author probes new perspectives and evaluates historical sources on the relationship of Paul the Apostle’s writings and relation to the Judaizers he refers to.) Bought 26 August 2024. Read 1-9 September 2024. Bible (Cultural and Historical Context)

Hamilton, Adam. Creed: What Christians Believe and Why: Exploring the Apostles’ Creed. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2016. 187p. Received 25 September 2024 from St Barnabas United Methodist Church. Read 25-28 September 2024. Theology (The Apostle’s Creed)

Hamilton, Adam. Enough: Discovering Joy through Simplicity and Generosity. Nashville: Abingdon, 2018. 153p. Received 9 June 2024 from First United Methodist Church in Round Rock, Texas. Read 9 June 2024. Personal Development (Economic Stewardship)

Hamilton, Robert. Wrestling with Doubt, Finding Faith. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2023. 166p. Read 18-20 September 2024. Faith and Life

Hanson, J W. Bible Proofs of Universal Salvation: Containing the Principal Passages of Scripture that Teach the Final Holiness and Happiness of All Mankind. Chicago: J W Hanson, 1877. 107p. Bought years ago. Read several years ago; reread 12 February 2024. Theology (Universalism)

Hasker, William. Metaphysics: Constructing a Worldview. Downers Grove, Illinois/Nottingham, England: IVP Academic/Inter-Varsity Press, 1983. 132p. (A volume in the series Contours of Christian Philosophy, C Stephen Evans, Series Editor.) Bought 13 March 2024 on Christianbook. Read 19-23 April 2024. Philosophy

Haugen, Gary A. Just Courage: God’s Great Expedition for the Restless Christian. Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP Books, 2008. 149p. Bought 13 March 2024 from Christianbook. Read 21-22 May 2024. Theology (Social Justice, Moral Theology)

Johansen, Bob, Joseph Press, Christine Bullen. Office Shock: Creating Better Futures for Working and Living. Oakland, Calilfornia: Barrett-Koehler Publishers, 2023. 282p. (A resource from Institute from the Future.) Received 9 June 2024 from First United Methodist Church in Round Rock, Texas. Read 26 June - 1 July 2024. Business (Personal Development)

Johnstone, Patrick with Dean Merrill. Serving God in a Migrant Crisis: The Neglected Spiritual Discipline. Downer’s Grove, Illinois: IVP Books, 2018. 139p. Bought 23 September 2024 from Christianbook. Read 23-25 September 2024. Faith and Life (Social Evil, Christian Ministry to Refugees, World Crises, Human History of Migration)

Jones, Marcus M. Christ the Yard: A Guide to Christian Living and Ministry on the College Campus. Eugene, Oregon: Resource Publications, 2017. 27p plus 6 pages front matter. Received 10 June 2024 from the Central Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church in Round Rock, Texas. Read 10 June 2024. Church and Culture (Creative College Campus Ministry)

Jones, Scotty J and Arthur D Jones. Scripture and the Wesleyan Way. Nashville: Abingdon, 2018. 126p. Received 25 September 2024 from St Barnabas UMC, Arlington, Texas. Read 2-3 October 2024. Faith and Life

Joyner, F Belton Jr. Engaging Being Methodist in the Bible Belt: A Theological Survival Guide for Youth, Parents and Other Confused Methodists. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2004. 93p. Received 4 September 2024 from St Barnabas UMC, Arlington, Texas. Read 31 October - 1 November 2024. Theology (Bible; Faith and Life; Sociology)

Kanipe, Jeff. The Cosmic Connection: How Astronomical Events Impact Life on Earth. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books, 2009. 296p. Bought 23 September 2023 in Arlington, Texas. Read 1-4 January 2024. Science (Cosmology, Climate Change, Ice Ages)

Labberton, Mark, ed. Still Evangelical?: Insiders Consider Political, Social, and Theological Meaning. Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP Books, 2018. 214p. (A series of articles by leaders in various schools and agencies associated with what has been known as the “Evangelical” movement of US Christianity. They discuss the historical and sociological development and use of the term and the modern movement that has gone by this name. They analyze the changes in meaning and usage of this term since the 1980s politicization of the term “Evangelical” and especially its association with the 2016 and later political campaigns and issues. The term came to be identified in the press, and largely in self-identification, with the campaign of Donald Trump and the overtly unchristian characteristics of his personal morality and of the ironically anti-Christian character and tenor of the campaign and the anti-democratic emphasis of the Trump administration and the Republican Party in recent years. The writers consider whether the term should still be used or can still be used with any positive connotation now that it is associated in the media with such a hateful, anti-democratic and recalcitrant movement in politics.) Bought 13 March 2024. Read 27-29 May 2024. Church & Culture (“Evangelical,” Political Identity)

Lencioni, Patrick. The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass (A Wiley Imprint), 2012. 216p. (The Four Disciplines Model, Values and Strategies.) Received 4 September 2024 from St Barnabas United Methodist Church in Arlington, Texas. Read 10-11 September 2024. Business (Organization Health)

Mancini, Will. Church Unique: How Missional Leaders Cast Vision, Capture Culture, and Create Movement. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass (Wiley), 2008. 271p. (This Leadership Network consultant lays out a plan for a church to find its unique character and culture and develop its missional character. Mancini deals with casting vision and developing a visionary, united leadership team for a congregation of any size, and steps to successfully lead a congregation through the change necessary to clarify and implement its unique vision.) Received March 2023. Read 5-8 May 2024. Church & Culture (Leadership, Vision Casting)

Mann, Thomas. Joseph in Egypt. NY: Alfred A Knopf (for Borzoi Books), 1938. 368p. (Translated from German in 1938 by H T Lowe-Porter. This book was hard to read. It was translated from German, which was the source of some of the unusual syntax. But the fact that it was translated in 1938 English also affected the style negatively for a modern English reader. Then the author himself used a flighty, arcane format of dialogue, often unrealistic and hard to follow in its wandering. He tried to provide cultural and geographic background through his various dialogues between Joseph and the Midianites that bought him and took him with them into Egypt, and did this fairly well. But this fanciful dialogue was often distracting rather than helpful. The translation did not help, as the English translator used artificial Elizabethan English for the dialogues that took place in the early period, when Joseph was traveling slowly with the Midianite traders toward their destination in Thebes, the capital of Egypt at that time. For some reason, in the period after Joseph was sold to Potiphar, the dialogue was in the normal stilted English of the translator. The story ends with his being appointed head steward of Potiphar’s household and lands.) Received as a gift 28 July 2024. Read 8-22 August 2024. Fiction (Murder Mystery, Psychological Drama)

Marrow, Albert. The Spanish-American War. NY: Atheneum, 1991. 182p. Bought 8 March 2024 from the Arlington, Texas, Public Library. Read 1-2 October 2024. History (War and Politics)

Martin, Jim. The Just Church: Becoming a Risk-Taking, Justice-Seeking, Disciple-Making Congregation. Grand Rapids: International Justice Mission/Tyndale, 2012. 260p. Bought 27 May 2023. Read 19-22 January 2024. Church and Culture

Marty, Peter, ed. The Christian Century: Latino Churches and Their Social Ministry. Chicago: The Christian Century, Vol 141, No 5, May 2024. 104p. Read 15-16 April 2024. Church and Culture (Theology, Sociology)

Marty, Peter, ed. The Christian Century: New Directions in Theological Education. Chicago: The Christian Century, Vol 141, No 2, February 2024. 96p. Read 1-14 April 2024. Church and Culture (Theology, Sociology)

McNeal, Reggie. The Present Future: Six Tough Questions for the Church. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass (Wiley), 2003. 151p. (refocusing the American church from focus on the church as an institution towards a refocus on the Kingdom of God and its spread into the community and through the world. He documents how the American church has become institutionalized and organized along the same lines as the general American business culture. He challenges the church to refocus from a consumer-driven focus on getting people into the church and meetings their expectations, shifting to focusing on the needs of the community at large and meetings those needs as the servants of God. He comments on the church developing answers to questions no one is asking anymore, and developing ways to enhance its programs and participation in them. He provides an alternative approach by reformulating six major questions asked in “church development.”) Received March 2023. Read 19-24 March 2024. Church & Culture (Emerging Church, Deinstitutionalizing, Decentralizing the Church)

McConnell, Douglas. Cultural Insights for Christian Leaders: New Directions for Organizations Serving God’s Mission. Grand Rapids: BakerAcademic, 2018. 200p. Bought 27 May 2023 from Christianbook. Read 18-25 June 2024. Philosophy (Leadership; Cognition and Epistemology; Systems Theory; Deconstruction; Sociology; Church and Culture)

Miller, Stephen M. Strange and Mysterious Stuff from the Bible: From the Weird to the Wonderful. Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House, 2014. 223p. Received 4 September 2024 from St Barnabas United Methodist Church in Arlington, Texas. Read 11-13 September 2024. Bible (Oddities)

Moore, Johnnie. 10 Things You Should Know About the Global War on Christianity. Carol Stream, Illinois: Tyndale Momentum, 2017. 84p. (An advocacy and information source on religious persecution, particularly as it affects Christians in various countries of the world. He discusses the religious aspects of the ISIS and other Islamic violence movements and governments supporting them.) Bought 23 September 2024 from Christianbook. Read 27 November 2024. Church and Culture (Religious Freedom; International Terrorism)

Moore, Russell and Andrew T Walker, eds. The Gospel for Life Series: The Gospel and Racial Reconciliation. Nashville: B&H, 2016. 102p. Bought 23 September 2024 from Christianbook. Read 25 September 2024. Church and Culture

Morris, Robert. Frequency: Tune In. Hear God. Nashville: W Publishing Group, 2016. 199p. Read 11-15 July 2024. Faith and Life (“Hearing” God)

Motyer, Alec. 6 Ways the Old Testament Speaks Today: An Interactive Guide. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2016. 240p. Bought 26 August 2024 from Christianbook. Read 9-10 October 2024. Bible

Oliver, Neil. The Vikings: A New History. NY/London: Pegasus, 2014. 284p. (Though I had studied the Vikings somewhat extensively in the past, I learned much form historian Neil Oliver. He develops in great detail the settlement of northern Europe, the extensive archaeological discoveries of the ancient period in Jutland and what we now know as Sweden and Norway. He connects the patterns of tribal Germanic settlement and migration with the better-known peaceful and military movements of waves of people from Asia into Europe, then across the world form prehistoric into modern times. Oliver probes the details of early settlement and culture of the Germanic tribes in what became Viking areas, and places into historical and cultural context the development of what came to be called Viking culture that developed in the 600s to 800s CE. One helpful perspective was to realize that the Danes were building boats as inland burial coffins before they actually began any sea-faring adventures. The Swedes were the early water travelers, sailing on the rivers to the east and establishing trading centers and settlements in Novgorod, then Kiev, and the early empire they called Rus, which led to the Viking establishment of Moscow as a joint Viking-Slavic center. He details the adventures to the northern lands of Iceland, Greenland, and North America, as well as the Byzantine Empire where Vikings served as mercenaries for the Emperor of the eastern Roman Empire. He includes the Crusades, connecting generally known facts with details we don’t usually hear concerning the Vikings in the north African and eastern centers. He provides helpful information about the Danish and Norse connections over the centuries with the Celtic northern British Isles and Ireland and the Saxon-Briton kingdoms of Great Britain. This was an exciting read, not a boring set of facts. Color photos and maps were very helpful in placing the stories and archaeological finds in real-life settings.) Received as a gift 15 September 2024. Read 24-29 October 2024. History (Vikings, Pre-Vikings, Kievan Rus)

O’Reilly, Bill and Martin Dugard. Killing the Legends. NY: St Martin’s Press, 2022. 289p. (New York Times best-selling author Martin Dugard joins author and journalist Bill O’Reilly for another in O’Reilly’s acclaimed series Killing .... In this volume they detail the vivid lives and deaths of three icons of popular culture, Elvis Presley, John Lennon and Muhammad Ali.) Received as a Christmas gift 2023. Read 22-27 January 2023. History (Celebrity Deaths)

O’Reilly, Bill and Martin Dugard. Killing the Witches. NY: St Martin’s Press, 2023. 292p. (New York Times best-selling author Martin Dugard joins Bill O’Reilly for another in the acclaimed series Killing .... This tells the detailed history of the English colonies of New England and the paranoia and fever that swept through Massachusetts in the late 1600s. He lays out well the context of the Puritan faith of fear and manipulation. The story shows how the pretensions and lies of young girls led to the charging of hundreds and the death of dozens in the culture of superstition, fear of the Devil and authoritarian rule under laws that allowed no witness charged with witchcraft to present any defense, and admissions were exacted by the cruelest tortures.) Received as a Christmas gift 2023. Read 21-23 September 2024. History

Pagels, Elaine. Adam, Eve and the Serpent. NY: Vintage Books (Random House), 1988. 189p. (This is a historical survey of how the Garden Story of Adam. Eve, and the Serpent has been interpreted by Christian theologians and Bible commentators. Pagels provides excellent historical detail for the exegesis of the sequence of concepts and shifts in interpretation of this story and the concept of sin. She provides excellent, helpful detail on how Augustine developed his novel doctrine of Original Sin out of this story, in the backdrop of Augustine’s lifelong struggle with concupiscence and sexual excess. Augustine’s dark, gloomy inner world, overwhelmed with the memory of his youthful sinful profligacy, his long search for peace and a spiritual identity, fills his vision of why humans are afflicted with sin. He developed a detailed theory of biological transmission of sin based on the first couple’s sin. Pagels compares Augustine’s theory with his contemporaries and all those who preceded him in the first four centuries of the faith. She documents thoroughly the early Christina perspectives of liberty and freedom of the human will, which considered that every individual was free to make moral choices. Augustine, n contrast, declared that after the Garden affair, no human ever again had free will. Referring to his own tormented experience, he generalized in his writings that his was the state of every other human living since the beginning. He held we were born bound to sin and had no freedom of will to choose. This led to an insidious theory of predestination that blamed God for our ultimate condition. The depths of human depravity, though, for Augustine, were contrasted with the abundance of divine grace. By his time, the Christian movement was consolidating its administrative structure and structure and was aligning closely with the power and structure of the Roman empire. Sadly in his extensive debates with other Christian thinkers of his era, Augustine succumbed to using the judicial and military power of the imperial authority in his African province to remove, punish and/or exile other Christian bishops and writers who disagreed with him. Alas, Augustine was able to shift the whole of the Catholic structure into this new perspective of total depravity and the concept of the human soul’s moral captivity to sin. This doctrine squeezed out the earlier orthodox perspective of celebrating the goodness of God’s creation, including the free moral liberty of humanity.) Bought 8 March 2024 in Arlington, Texas. Read 25 March - 1 April 2024. Theology (Bible, Church History, Historical Theology)

Panko, Stephen M. Martin Buber (In the Series Makers of the Modern Theological Mind). Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publisher, (first release 1976) this edition 2016. 106p. Bought 13 March 2024 from Christianbook. Read 25-27 May 2024. Theology (Philosophy; History)

Patrick, Darrin and Matt Carter, with Joel A Lindsey. For the City: Proclaiming and Living Out the Gospel. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010. 181p. (Two urban church strategists discuss experiences and strategies for presenting Good News to the cultures of the urban and metropolitan population centers of North America. They discuss the modern problem in Christianity, including syncretism and modern cultural idols such as approval and success. They look at the “Gospel,” meaning Good News, as a lifestyle to be lived out and evangelism as relationships of daily life as members of the kingdom of God Jesus describes in the Gospels.) Received 17 October 2024 from St Barnabas UMC, Arlington, Texas. Read 30-31 October 2024. Church and Culture (Sociology; Cross-Cultural Communication)

Patterson, James. The People vs Alex Cross. NY: Recorded Books/Hachette Audio, 2011. Audiobook. Bought 8 March 2024 from the Arlington Library. Finished 16 October 2024. Fiction (Murder Mystery, Trial, Conspiracy)

Patterson, James and Candice Fox. Liar, Liar. NY/Boston: Grand Central Publishing (Hachette), 2019. 368p. Found among my mother’s books 2023. Read 9-10 February 2024. Fiction (Murder Mystery, Psychological Drama)

Patterson, John Henry. The Man-Eaters of Tsavo and Other East African Adventures. NY: Skyhorse Publishing, 2013. 347p. (A reprint of the original publication by the author in 1906-1907. This is the story of the building of the Uganda Railroad from Mombasa to Nairobi, Kenya, and the plague of man-eating lions that killed a number of the Indian and African work and camp crew. Patterson was the design and construction engineer for long sections of the railway, which ultimate connected the Indian Ocean port city of Mombasa (Kenya) to Entebbe, the capital of colonial Uganda, under British rule at the time. Patterson includes very good detail about the peoples along the route across the land, like the Taita, Kamba, Kikuyu and Maasai. He details adventures of trekking through the countryside to track game for food for the railway construction workers or for trophies. The story of the man-eating lions was made into a movie in the late 2oth century. The author includes many photos he took during the months of the railway construction across the Kenyan plain. Maps are also included.) Received as a gift 25 December 2022. Read 13 February 2024. History (Africa)

Pollard, C William. The Tides of Life. Wheaton: Crossway, 2014. 272p. Bought 27 May 2023 from Christianbook. Read 2-11 July 2024. Biography (Business, Education; Personal Character, Customer Service, Integrity)

Quammen, David. The Tangled Tree: A Radical New History of Life. NY/London: Simon and Schuster, 2018. 461p. Bought 24 February 2023 on Amazon. Read 15-31 July 2024. Science (Biology, History, Evolution, DNA)

Rieger, Joerg. Faith on the Road: A Short Theology of Travel and Justice. Downers Grove, lllinois: IVP Academic, 2015. 137p. (The biblical doctrine of Social Justice and care for the Stranger, exploring conditions and scenarios in our current crisis of Human Migration. Life as Travel with a view to justice.) Bought 13 March 2024 on Christianbook. Read 8-9 May 2024. Theology (Social Justice, Moral Theology (Ethics), Biblical Doctrine, Migration)

Robb, Susan. Called: Hearing and Responding to God’s Voice (Lessons from Six Biblical Characters). Nashville: Abingdon, 2019. 144p. Received from St Barnabas United Methodist Church 4 September 2024. Read 9 September 2024. Bible

Rubenstein, Richard L. After Auschwitz: History, Theology, and Contemporary Judaism. Baltimore.London: Johns-Hopkins University Press, 1992. 358p. Borrowed 3 April 2024. Read 3 April - 20 May 2024. Religions (Philosophy)

Schnase, Robert. Practicing Extravagant Generosity: Daily Readings on the Grace of Giving. Nashville: Abingdon, 2011. 90p. Received 1 September 2024 from St Barnabas United Methodist Church in Arlington, Texas. Read 9 September 2024. Personal Development

Shanks, Hershel, Editor. Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism: A Parallel History of their Origins and Early Development (Second Edition). Washington, DC: Biblical Archaeology Society, 2011. 461p. Bought 6 January 2021 on Christianbook. Read 27 January - 6 February 2024. History (Church History, Patristics; 1st Century BCE/CE)

Singh, Simran Jeet. The Light We Give: How Sikh Wisdom Can Transform Your Life. NY: Riverhead Books, 2022. 303p. Received 25 September 2024 from St Barnabas UMC, Arlington, Texas. Read 20-23 November 2024. Religions (American Politics and Culture)

Smelser, Marshall. The Democratic Republic: 1801-1815. NY: Harper Torchbooks, 1968. 258p. Bought 26 September 2024 from Arlington Library. Read 14-22 October 2024. American Politics and Culture (The Jeffersonian Presidency, The Development of the Federalists, The Refining of the US Governmental Structure and Balance of Powers)

Smithsonian Institution. Smithsonian (Official Journal), Vol 55, No 1, April-May 2024. 128p. Read 19 April - 17 May 2024. Peoples & Cultures, Sociology

Stearns, Rick. The Dignity Revolution: Reclaiming God’s Rich Vision for Humanity. UK/USA/Australia: thegoodbook.com, 2018. 222p. (Stearns lays the foundation for an attitude and practice of dignity in every individual human, based on the biblical doctrine of creation in God’s image. His discusses social and political implications for personal and societal morality, in recognizing the dignity of all persons.) Bought 23 September 2024 on Christianbook. Read 2-5 November 2024. Church and Culture

Sykes, Bryan. Bigfoot, Yeti and the Last Neanderthal: A Geneticist’s Search for Modern Apemen. Newburyport, Massachusetts: Disinformation Books, 2016. 321p. Bought Bought 6 September 2023 on Amazon. Read 17-19 January 2024. Science (Unidentified Hominids, Cryptozoology, DNA)

Tyson, Neil DeGrasse Tyson and Lindsey Nyx Walker. To Infinity and Beyond: A Journey of Cosmic Discovery. Washington, DC: National Geographic, 2023. 319p. Bought 4 January 2024 on Amazon. Read Read 5-12 January 2024. Science (Cosmology, Star and Planet Formation, Effects on the Earth)

Veale, Graham. New Atheism: A Survival Guide. Fearn, Scotland: Christian Focus, 2013. 125p. Bought 26 August 2024 from Christianbook. Read 22-23 October 2024. Theology (Philosophy; Science and Faith)

Voerding, Philip. The Trouble with Christianity: A Concise Outline of Christian History. Bloomington, Indiana: AuthorHouse, 2009. 166p. (This is an excellent summary of the history of the Christian faith and the intellectual and social variations, or sects, of institutional Christianity, particularly covering Western Christianity thoroughly. I learned many details in this fairly summary history that I had never known before, though I have studied Christian history for decades. The author comes from an American Roman Catholic background, converting to a fundamentalist sect, then progressing from that through Pentecostal contexts, with a study of several world religions, finally settling on conversion to Shia Islam. This history of Christianity is very well done, and he shows extensive research into the American sects that have arisen out of the various revivalist and awakening movements. As he goes through history, he outlines the interactions of early Christianity with the various pagan and Gnostic sects, then Islam as that spread through the Arab conquests and the later conflicts in the Crusades. He deals with doctrinal and philosophical concepts differences between Islam and Christianity.) Bought 8 March 2024 in Arlington, Texas. Read 17-18 April 2024. History (Christian History, Christianity and Islam, Christian Sects and Heresies)

Vroegop, Mark. Weep With Me: How Lament Opens a Door for Racial Reconciliation. Wheaton: Crossway, 2020. 290p. Bought 23 September 2024 from Christianbook. Read 13-14 November 2024. American Politics and Culture

Walker, Brent. Church-State Matters: Fighting for Religious Liberty in our Nation’s Capital. Macon, Georgia: Mercer University Press, 2008. 260p. Bought 26 September 2024 in Arlington, Texas. Read 1-2 October 2024. Church and Culture

Wentz, David. John Wesley’s The Character of a Methodist: Set in Modern Language with Introduction and Suggestions for Group Use. (No location): Doing Christianity, 2020. 54p. Bought 8 October 2024 from Amazon. Read 12 October 2024. Faith and Life

Wesley, John. A Plain Account of Christian Perfection. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Christian Classics, 2007. 126p. Bought 13 March from Christianbook. Read 18 March 2023. Faith and Life

Wills, Garry. The Rosary: Prayer Comes Around. NY: Viking (Penguin Group), 2005. 190p. Bought 8 March from Arlington Public Library 8 March 2024. Read 27-30 August 2024. Faith and Life

Wink, Walter. Engaging the Powers: Discernment and Resistance in a World of Domination. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1992. 424p. Borrowed 21 February 2024. Read 2 March - 2 April 2024. Theology (Moral Theology; Church & Empire, Powers and Principalities, Nonviolence, Jesus’ Morality of the Kingdom)

Yarza, Francisco Caudet. Benito Juárez. Madrid: Dastin S L, 2003. 201p. (A volume in the series Grandes Mexicanos Ilustres.) Bought 8 March 2024 from Arlington Public Library. Read 30 May - 17 June 2024. Biography (Mexican History)

Now Reading (2)

Montefiore, Simon Sebag. Jerusalem: The Biography. NY: Vintage (Random House), 2011. 649p. Borrowed 11 September 2024 in Arlington, Texas. Read 30 September - October 2024. History (History of Jerusalem)

Walton, John H. The lost World of the Prophets: Old Testament Prophecy and Apocalyptic Literature in Ancient Context. Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP Books, 2024. 183p. Bought 27 November 2024 from Christianbook. Read 3- December 2024. Bible Backgrounds

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