Meet the Author Since 2004, William H. Willimon has served as a Bishop in the United Methodist Church responsible for overseeing 57,000 members and 792 pastors in North Alabama. Previously, he served for twenty years as Dean of the Chapel and Professor of Christian Ministry at Duke University. Willimon is the author of over sixty books including two best sellers: Sinning Like a Christian: A New Look at the Seven Deadly Sins and Thank God It’s Read More …
Books
Review of the Power of Parable (#0683)
Meet the Author John Dominic Crossan "is generally regarded as the leading historical Jesus scholar in the world." He has been a professor of religious studies at DePaul University since 1969 and currently serves that institution as professor emeritus. Over the last forty years Crossan has written over twenty-five books on the historical Jesus, earliest Christianity, and the historical Paul. Some of his best-sellers include God and Empire: Jesus Against Read More …
Review of Religion for Atheists (#0680)
Meet the Author Alain de Botton is the founder and chairman of the School of Life and creative director of Living Architecture. He is the author of numerous essays on a variety of topics as well as multiple best-selling books, including The Architecture of Happiness (2006) and How Proust Can Change Your Life (1997). (I recently blogged about his TED talk on Atheism 2.0, which focuses on the theme of his latest book: Religion for Atheists.) Book Read More …
Review of The Holocaust by Bullets (#0676)
Meet the Author Father Patrick Desbois is Roman Catholic priest who has devoted his life to confronting antisemitism and furthering Catholic-Jewish understanding. Desbois serves as co-founder and president of Yahad-In Unum, an organization committed to (1) supporting initiatives of dialogue "between Catholic and Jewish religious authorities and (2) to respond to the great needs of today's world through common projects based on an ethic inspired by the Law received on Mount Read More …
Review of the Permanent Revolution (#0673)
Meet the Authors Alan Hirsch serves as founding director of Forge Mission Training Network, and co-leads Future Travelers, an innovative learning program helping megachurches become missional movements. A thought leader in the missional church movement, he is an associate professor at Wheaton College and an adjunct professor at Fuller Seminary and George Fox Seminary. His books include ReJesus: A Wild Messiah for a Missional Church (2009, co-authored with Michael Frost - read my Read More …
Review of I Am a Follower (#0666)
Meet the Author Leonard Sweet is the E. Stanley Jones professor of evangelism atDrew University and visiting distinguished professor of Evangelism at George Fox University, was voted one of the 50 Most Influential Christians in America, and continues to write and speak prophetically about the church. An ordained United Methodist pastor, Sweet has authored over 20 books and 600 articles, and is perhaps best known for his forward thinking ideas about the church. For Read More …
Review of the Underground Church (#0659)
Meet the Author Since 1985, Robin R. Meyers has served as the Senior Minister of the 750 member Mayflower Congregational Church in Oklahoma City, which has been recognized as the fastest growing United Church of Christ congregation in the Kansas-Oklahoma Conference. In addition, he serves as a tenured professor of rhetoric in the Department of Philosophy at Oklahoma City University. Meyers has written five books in the last decade, including The Read More …
Book Reviews – Helpful or ? (#0654)
I have now posted well over 125 book reviews on this site. This diverse list focuses on books published in recent years that have been helpful to me on my journey of faith. Many of the books I have reviewed are "religious," but others have no overtly religious or spiritual content. I find that the discipline of writing the reviews to fit my normal format (meet the author, book basics, and so what) forces me to capture the basics of who wrote, what they said, and why it matters. Read More …
Review of Christianity After Religion (#0653)
Meet the Author Diana Butler Bass is "an author, speaker, and independent scholar specializing in American religion and culture." Currently she serves as a Chabraja Fellow with the SeaburyNEXT project at Seabury Western Theological Seminary. Additionally, she has taught at Westmont College, the University of California at Santa Barbara, Macalester College, Rhodes College, and the Virginia Theological Seminary. In the early years of this century she was the Project Read More …
Review of Gathering Those Driven Away (#0638)
Meet the Author Wendy Farley is professor in the Department of Religion at Emory University with "teaching and research interests (that) include women theologians, religious dialogue, classical texts, contemporary ethical issues, and contemplative practices." She is the author of four books including Gathering Those Driven Away: A Theology of Incarnation (2011) and The Wounding and Healing of Desire: Weaving Heaven and Earth (2005). Book Basics Gathering Those Driven Away is a Read More …