Anarchy evolution : faith, science, and bad religion in a world without god

 by Greg Graffin. With the assistance of science journalist Olson (Mapping Human History: Discovering the Past Through Our Genes, 2002, etc.), Bad Religion leader Graffin presents a memoir of a life lived "at the intersection of evolutionary biology and punk rock." In 1980, at age 15, Graffin co-founded the seminal punk band and also became fascinated with the writings and ideas of evolution. Bad Religion still plays and records, and the author is an evolutionary biologist with a doctorate in zoology from Cornell University. For Graffin, the appeal of both worlds was that, at their best, they challenged authority, dogma and given truths and opened up space for the anarchic process of creativity. As a naturalist, the author states that "the physical universe is the universe"—there is nothing more. But that is more than enough for him, as having a role in the unfolding adventure of life on earth—which includes both tragedy and death—sustains him. Life, he writes, is not simply an inexorable process of natural selection, in which the fittest survive and procreate, but an anarchic creative collision of biology and environment, chance and circumstance. Graffin and Olson explain this view of evolution in clear, accessible language. While avoiding easy analogies with evolution, a large part of the book is devoted to the evolution of Bad Religion, as its art and career careened in unpredictable directions. Along the way, Graffin provides a wonderful depiction of the early L.A. punk scene, a detailed account of his adventures doing field work in the remote Amazon region of Bolivia and an honest appraisal of his failure to successfully balance science, music and family. In the end, writes the author, it is the human trait of empathy—not religion or any other authority—that allows us to recognize our common humanity and to accept the uniqueness of each individual. Humble, challenging and inspiring. --Kirkus (Check Catalog)

Original sin and everyday Protestants : the theology of Reinhold Niebuhr, Billy Graham, and Paul Tillich in an age of anxiety

 by Andrew S. Finstuen. This unconventional study by Finstuen (Pacific Lutheran Univ.) presents "a curious trinity" of Reinhold Niebuhr, Billy Graham, and Paul Tillich, examined in relationship to one another through the prism of original sin. For each, the doctrine was the interpretive principle by which to reach a wide audience of "ordinary Protestants" in the post-WW II "age of anxiety." Keeping all these components together and focused is a delicate balancing act, but under Finstuen's skillful management of well-researched primary and secondary sources, the final product is an insightful and informative monograph. Finstuen perceptively describes the study's religious and cultural context, persuasively demonstrates that original sin was the underlying doctrinal cohesion among the three figures, and presents their individual and collective influence as diagnosticians of the human condition. Key to his analysis of the period and figures under study is the distinction between a "theological revival" that encouraged the independence of Christian faith from culture and a "captive revival" that encouraged the assimilation of faith into the culture. Niebuhr, Graham, and Tillich led the theological revival that set them against the prevailing ethos of optimism and conformity, and they, along with the "ordinary Protestants" of the era, emerge from this study in a new light. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty/researchers. --Choice (Check Catalog)

Inhabiting the cruciform God : kenosis, justification, and theosis in Paul's narrative soteriology

 by Michael J. Gorman. Gorman (St. Mary's Seminary and University, Baltimore) devotes four chapters to the apostle Paul's understanding of human participation in God's cruciform character. Chapter 1 attends to Paul's view that Christ's self-emptying in the Crucifixion represents the character of God (and not just Christ) and is to be the model-character for humans called to be in Christ as God's representative. Chapter 2 contends that Paul understood the justification of humans by God as requiring human "participating in Christ's resurrection life that is effected by co-crucifixion with him." Chapter 3 argues that Paul regarded human holiness as human participation in the Cross of Christ by the power of God's spirit. Chapter 4 shows that a life of nonviolence and reconciliation is required for human participating in God's cruciform character. A nice summary of this approach to Paul's position is Gorman's statement: "To be truly human is to be Christlike, which is to be Godlike, which is to be kenotic and cruciform." Gorman defines "theosis" as "the process of transformation into the image of this God." The book is nontechnical but carefully attentive to relevant literature on its topic. --Choice (Check catalog)

Crazy love : overwhelmed by a relentless God

 by Francis Chan. Chan, senior pastor of Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, Calif., offers a radical call for evangelicals to consider and emulate in this debut guide to living "crazy" for God. Chan's own life compels him to live with urgency, and with good reason. His mother died giving birth to him, his stepmother died when he was nine, and his dad when he was 12. As a pastor, Chan says that conducting weekly funerals for people younger than himself has likewise sobered him to life's unexpectedness and frailty. Chan writes with infectious exuberance, challenging Christians to take the Bible seriously. He describes at length the sorry state of "lukewarm" Christians who strive for a life characterized by control, safety and an absence of suffering. In stark contrast, the book offers real-life accounts of believers who have given all--time, money, health, even their lives--in obedience to Christ's call. Chan also recounts his own attempts to live "crazy" by significantly downsizing his home and giving away his resources to the poor. Earnest Christians will find valuable take-home lessons from Chan's excellent book. --Publishers Weekly (Check Catalog)

Thinking of answers : questions in the philosophy of everyday l

 by A.C. Grayling. Unlike many other academic philosophers, Grayling cares too much about philosophy to leave it in the classroom. Indeed, as he applies the philosophic habit of mind to the issues arising in ordinary life, he opens remarkably expansive horizons. To be sure, only careful analysis can sound the depths of the larger questions engaged: Can humans ever reach objective truth, or does truth finally disappear in a welter of individual perspectives? What is the source and meaning of personal identity? But even casual reflection on relatively small matters such as smoking and tanning can yield surprising insights. Scornful of all forms of dogmatism, Grayling disavows any intention of definitively settling the controversies he visits in this array of diverse short pieces (first published in various popular journals): he simply aims to stimulate thought, inviting readers to revise or even reject his views. Because the author repeatedly echoes the antireligious diatribes of Dawkins and Hitchens, among others, devout readers will welcome the invitation to develop their own line of reasoning. A bracing miscellany. --Booklist. (Check Catalog)

New York Amish : life in the plain communities of the Empire State

  by Karen Johnson-Weiner.  Amish settlements in New York have grown to some 25 since these German-speaking Anabaptist immigrants first came to the state in the early 19th century and are less well-known than Amish communities in other states, notes Johnson-Weiner (anthropology, State U. of New York, Potsdam). She traces their history, traditions, intragroup differences (e.g., between the Swartzentruber Amish and the Swiss Amish), and relations with non-Amish. The book includes maps and photos, even some of a people who regard such as forbidden graven images. Appendices list existing and extinct Old Order Amish settlements in New York. --Summary (Check catalog)

The global Luther : a theologian for modern times

 The Global Luther is one of those rare finds among edited volumes: a work that across 17 chapters shows remarkable coherence and thematic unity. Its editor, Helmer, guided with great acuity the like-titled conference held at Northwestern in 2008. Helmer has brought together an excellent collection of scholars to assess the continuing impact of Martin Luther on the 21st-century world. Though the roster includes a few long-established scholars, the contributors are largely of a new and emerging generation. Sharing their scholarship with the wider academic community makes this volume important on that point alone. The book begins by examining Luther's impact on Western civilization and the global community. The next two sections look at Luther's understanding of the human being coram deo (before God) and coram hominibus (before humanity). The fourth section places justification by faith into broader conversation with ethics and interreligious dialogue. Finally, the book examines, with appreciated nuance, Luther's approach to politics and the use of coercive power. --Choice (Check Catalog)

Every moment matters : savoring the stuff of life

 by John St. Augustine. In his latest, self-help author St. Augustine (Living an Uncommon Life: Essential Lessons from 12 Extraordinary People) examines the individual instances that have meant much to him, encouraging readers to do the same for themselves: "while the journey has been one of discipline and self-examination my life (and I suspect yours, too) is filled with moments that. taught me something, made me stop alive in my tracks, had me catch my breath." These moments are universal but predictable; one of St. Augustine's first examples is the death of his beloved dog Jake, a time of deep sadness that nevertheless made him realize the value of the companionship, unconditional love, fun, and adventure his pet provided. Another section finds him recalling a decades-old Colorado hiking trip with his friend David, on which he learned that "there is more than one way to reach the top, that it's good to have a buddy along for support, [and] that those who have gone before you often . make the climb a bit more manageable." Though his ruminations tend top be wordy (bordering on mundane self-absorption), St. Augustine makes an eager guide to the importance of reflection and mindfulness. --Publishers Weekly (Check Catalog)

Mencius

 by Mencius. This translation of the Mengzi (391-308 BCE), or as he is know to westerners, Mencius, is a tremendous accomplishment that crowns Bloom's exemplary career as a sinologist. Felicitous and insightful, accurate and challenging, the text is presented in a clearer light than ever before. Ivanhoe's sensitive introduction and editing add to the strength of the work. His introduction focuses on the political, religious, ethical, and cultural views of Mencius. Mencius is concerned primarily with the concept of ren or humaneness, the motivation of human actors of all stations and their mutual respect. This translation shows the depth of his arguments and highlights their impact on generations of Chinese beliefs. The Columbia translations of all Asian texts have been recognized for decades as the best in the field. William Theodore de Bary's assembled scholar/translators have provided generations of teachers, students, and researchers with solid English texts of the classics. This translation should be taken as a model to sinologists and translators throughout their studies. Summing Up: Essential. Upper-level undergraduates through faculty/researchers; general readers. --Choice (Check Catalog)

The new shape of world Christianity : how American experience reflects global faith

 by Mark A. Knoll. Given the dramatic shift in world Christianity in the 20th century away from domination by Europe and North America, Noll (history, Univ. of Notre Dame) argues for a new historical perspective. Whereas in 1900 over 70 percent of Christians were white Europeans, the typical Christian today is African or Latin American. Noll, an evangelical Protestant, focuses on the relationships between American and global Christianity. With convincing interpretations of recent scholarship, he argues that the "template" of American Christianity rather than its direct influence has been the main American contribution to world Christianity, especially in its evangelical and Pentecostal forms. The American model of church growth includes voluntarism (rather than state churches), pragmatism, lay participation, and entrepreneurial initiatives. Voluntary societies, for example, successfully recruited and sent missionaries worldwide. Although scholars often have critiqued missions as serving American interests abroad, they usually have not asked why Christianity flourished. Noll answers that economic globalization has made large parts of the world look "more like America." Christianity has grown not from American imposition but because "parallel historical circumstances" have drawn converts to "the best means of explaining the world around them." --Choice. (Check Catalog)