I will not have a lot to say about this next chapter of The Benedict Option, the chapter on “Eros and the New Christian Counterculture.” I do have some cavils here and there about how much monastics have to teach us about human sexuality, but in the main this is a really solid … [Read more...]
Book of the Month/June 2017
Out of the Ashes really is a marvelous book, and Anthony Esolen is a baller. He tackles the same problem that Rod Dreher is addressing in The Benedict Option—which is the apostasy and resultant deterioration of a formerly Christian culture—but he does it with a lot more verve. … [Read more...]
The Classical Christian Option
In his next chapter, Rod Dreher spends a good bit of time singing a song I am very familiar with, and he says many good things. The cultural key is education, and what Dreher urges is, from one standpoint, very heartening. “This is why we have to focus tightly and without … [Read more...]
Book of the Month/May 2017
This month’s pick is The Whole Christ by Sinclair Ferguson. That title is intriguing, but the subtitle—depending on who you are—is even more intriguing. It is Legalism, Antinomianism & Gospel Assurance—Why the Marrow Controversy Still Matters. The Marrow controversy was an … [Read more...]
Benedict or Billy?
In the next chapter of The Benedict Option, Dreher makes a number of shrewd observations about the role of community in resisting the encroachments of the Leviathan state. What Hillary Clinton famously said in promotion of that devouring Leviathan turns out actually to be true in … [Read more...]
The Door Before
The Door Before by N.D. Wilson My rating: 5 of 5 stars Young fans of N.D. Wilson's fantasy fiction, once they find out about the pending release of this book, will be jumping up and down with barely contained excitement. In some cases, it won't be barely contained. It will be … [Read more...]
Book of the Month/April 2017
So my selection for this month is Deeper Magic by Donald T. Williams. The subtitle brings everything into focus—The Theology Behind the Writings of C.S. Lewis. The book is a fantastic resource for those who are interested in the theological underpinnings of Lewis’s writings. … [Read more...]
My Idea of a Fantastic Book Trailer
So watch this one to the end. A laugh-out-loud book trailer. https://vimeo.com/209978725 … [Read more...]
Renewal and Reformation
In the next chapter, Rod Dreher outlines a modern description of and rationale for the Benedictine order. And in the particulars, he says a number of wise and good things. Dreher sees one of the most essential things. “We need to embed ourselves in stable communities of faith” … [Read more...]
Finding the Seven Thousand
The second chapter of Dreher’s The Benedict Option is really quite good overall. I found myself agreeing with much of it, and agreeing also with the various qualifications Dreher made as he went along. What he does in this chapter is give a brief intellectual history of the … [Read more...]
Catacombs or Cloister?
So I would like to invite you to read through The Benedict Option with me. For the most part we will go a chapter at a time, although this first time out we will take the Introduction and Chapter One together. For various reasons this is an important book, and how we respond to … [Read more...]
The Shack
Because The Shack has now been made into a movie, I thought I should bump this old review of the book to the top of the pile. This was first published on 8/21/08. I had been asked by several different people what I thought of The Shack, a hot selling book by William Young. It … [Read more...]
Book of the Month/March 2017
Our annual Grace Agenda conference is coming up later this month, and our outside guest is Mike Reeves. You can check out more details on the conference here. The fact that we were having him speak for us motivated me to read a couple of his books, Delighting in the Trinity and … [Read more...]
Review: Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer
Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer by Roy Peter Clark My rating: 5 of 5 stars This was a very fine book on writing. Some really shrewd wisdom in this thing. One of my favorites is this: Choose words the average writer avoids but the average reader … [Read more...]
Review: The Portable Dante
The Portable Dante by Dante Alighieri My rating: 4 of 5 stars Of course, glorious and wise. Well worth it. But I was struck -- and perhaps unfairly -- with the Christlessness of his Heaven. View all my reviews … [Read more...]
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