What's the Least I Can Believe and Still Be a Christian? is both an important question and the title of a popular new book by Martin Thielen. According to Bob Smietana's March 13 article in The Tennessean the book was released in January and "has become a surprise hit, with a second printing on the way." Thielen is a former Southern Baptist who left the denomination when it took a fundamentalist turn. He is now an ordained United Methodist pastor who serves as the Pastor of Lebanon Read More …
Books
Review of The Good and Beautiful God (#0300)
James Bryan Smith. The Good and Beautiful God: Falling in Love with the God Jesus Knows. InterVarsity Press, 2009. ISBN: 9780830835317. Meet the Author James Bryan Smith is an ordained United Methodist minister who specializes in spiritual formation. He has been associated with Friends University for over twenty years and currently serves as the Director of the APRENTIS Institute for Christian Spiritual Formation and as Assistant Professor of Read More …
Review of Open Source Gospel (#0286)
Landon Whitsitt. Open Source Gospel: Ten Commandments for the Future of the Christian Faith. E-book, 2010. Available online at http://landonwhitsitt.com/open-source-gospel/ Meet the Author Landon Whitsitt is an ordained Presbyterian (PCUSA) pastor who serves as the pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Liberty, Missouri, and as the Vice-Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA), which is the second highest elected official in the 2.3 million Read More …
Review of The Unlikely Disciple (#0272)
Kevin Roose. The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner's Semester at America's Holiest University. Grand Central Publishing, 2009. ISBN: 9780446178426. Meet the Author Kevin Roose is a senior at Brown University. His first book, The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner's Semester at America's Holiest University (2009), was chosen for Barnes & Noble’s “Discover Great New Writers” series and an excerpt from it received Brown University’s 2009 Casey Shearer Memorial award for best Read More …
Review of America’s Four Gods (#0263)
Paul Froese and Christopher Bader. America's Four Gods: What We Say About God - & What That Says About Us. Oxford University Press, 2010. ISBN: 9780195341478. Meet the Authors Paul Froese and Christopher Bader both serve as assistant professors of sociology at Baylor University. America's Four Gods: What We Say About God - & What That Says About Us (2010) is the first book they have written together. Froese (pictured at left) specializes in Read More …
Review of Christians & Jews – Faith to Faith (#0252)
Rabbi James Rudin. Christians & Jews - Faith to Faith: Tragic History, Promising Present, Fragile Future. Jewish Lights Publishing: 2011. ISBN: 9781580234320. Meet the Author Rabbi James Rudin is widely recognized as an international leader in interreligious relations. He has been affiliated with the American Jewish Committee (AJC) since 1968 in a variety of roles including National Interreligious Affairs Director. Since retiring from that position in 2000, he Read More …
Review of The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything (#0246)
James Martin, SJ. The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything: A Spirituality for Real Life. HarperOne: 2010. ISBN: 9780061432682. Meet the Author The Rev. James Martin, S.J., is a Jesuit priest, and is the culture editor of America, the national Catholic magazine. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business with a bachelor's degree in finance. After working for six years in corporate finance and human resources, he entered the Society of Jesus Read More …
Review of The Heartbeat of God (#0243)
Katharine Jefferts Schori. The Heartbeat of God: Finding the Sacred in the Middle of Everything. Skylight Paths, 2011. ISBN: 9781594732928. Meet the Author The Most Rev. Dr. Katharine Jefferts Schori is the twenty-sixth Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church. In that role, she serves as the chief pastor to the Episcopal Church's 2.4 million members in 16 countries and 110 dioceses. Jefferts Schori entered the priesthood when she was ordained in 1994 following a Read More …
Review of Spiritual Envy (#0240)
Michael Krasny. Spiritual Envy: An Agnostic's Quest. New World Library, 2010. ISBN: 9781577319122. Meet the Author Michael Krasny is a professor of English at San Francisco State University, where he has taught since 1970. He is a widely published scholar and literary critic as well as a fiction writer. Krasny is the co-author of Sound Ideas (2009) and author of Off Mike: A Memoir of Talk Radio and Literary Life (2007) and Spiritual Envy: An Read More …
Review of If the Church Were Christian (#0231)
Philip Gulley. If the Church Were Christian: Rediscovering the Values of Jesus. Harper One: 2010. ISBN: 9780061698767. Meet the Author Philip Gulley is a Quaker minister, author, and tv show host. Gulley has served in pastoral ministry for twenty-five years and is currently the Senior Pastor of Fairfield Friends Meeting near Indianapolis. He has written sixteen books including the Harmony series of novels, chronicling life in the eccentric Quaker community of Harmony, Indiana Read More …