The cost of discipleship

by Dietrich Bonhoefer     (Get the Book)
One of the most important theologians of the twentieth century illuminates the relationship between ourselves and the teachings of Jesus in this classic text on ethics, humanism, and civic duty. What can the call to discipleship, the adherence to the word of Jesus, mean today to the businessman, the soldier, the laborer, or the aristocrat? What did Jesus mean to say to us? What is his will for us today? Drawing on the Sermon on the Mount, Dietrich Bonhoeffer answers these timeless questions by providing a seminal reading of the dichotomy between "cheap grace" and "costly grace." "Cheap grace," Bonhoeffer wrote, "is the grace we bestow on ourselves...grace without discipleship....Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the girl which must be asked for, the door at which a man must know....It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life." The Cost of Discipleship is a compelling statement of the demands of sacrifice and ethical consistency from a man whose life and thought were exemplary articulations of a new type of leadership inspired by the Gospel, and imbued with the spirit of Christian humanism and a creative sense of civic duty. (Publisher)

Smart money smart kids : raising the next generation to win with money

by Dave Ramsey    (Get the Book)
Radio host and financial expert Ramsey (The Total Money Makeover) teams up with his daughter, Rachel, in this guide to raising financially savvy kids, using "practical, tactical, spiritual and strategic principles." Ramsey explains how he bankrupted his family in his 20s and then went on to become an expert, espousing debt-free living and teaching his three children how to become financially responsible. Though Ramsey weighs in frequently, most of the text is provided by Cruze, who details what it was like growing up Ramsey: for example, at age 16, she had saved $8,000, which her parents matched for her first car. The authors advise using the "envelope system" to teach kids money management (spend, save, and give) and emphasize teaching them that money has limits ("when it's gone it's gone"). But the authors also warn against rigidity; for instance, a parent who won't cover the tax when a child has saved for a $300 purchase takes things too far. The authors' "five foundations" include teaching kids to (1) establish a $500 emergency fund; (2) live without debt; (3) pay cash for a car; (4) pay cash for college; and (5) build wealth and give. Though biblical references are interspersed, parents of all faiths will benefit from this sound guide. --Publishers weekly

Congratulations, by the way : some thoughts on kindness

by George Saunders    (Get the Book)
An expansion of a commencement speech passed around the web, this essay hits warm and tender notes without straying from safety zone of feel-good advice. In a tone by turns grandfatherly and fun-loving, renowned fiction writer Saunders (Tenth of December) identifies his main regrets in life as what he calls "failures of kindness." While his exploration of kindness initially promises to pull from science and history, it falls back on the maligning of certain self-focused beliefs already widely maligned: the belief that one is indispensable to yet distinct from the universe, and the idea that humans are eternal. Portraying common major life goals (raising children, succeeding in one's career) as part of a never-ending, accomplishment-based cycle, Saunders impugns the cycle for distracting individuals from the important questions, yet he does not adequately establish why pursuing these should hamper an investigation of the meaning of life. Nor does he address obvious counterpoints-that children constitute a personal value of parents and that their pride is therefore an expression of personal joy. As life advice, the speech contains standard contradictions: seek the life that is most fulfilling to you individually, yet follow pursuits that will ultimately diminish your sense of self. His wording is genteel and his examples vivid, but the overall impression is that of a standard-issue secular sermon on loving one another. --Publishers Weekly

Four blood moons : something is about to change

by John Hagee    (Get the Book)
In his latest, pastor Hagee draws connections between celestial events and biblical prophecies. Operating under the initial assumption that god controls various heavenly bodies (e.g. the sun, moon, and stars), Hagee seeks to interpret the spiritual message behind various astronomical phenomena. As the subtitle suggests, Hagee urgently believes change is coming, and he cautions his readers to be on the lookout for messages from God. Gallagher proves a compelling narrator. He reads clearly and briskly, which works to maintain listener interest. Hagee is clearly a devoted pastor and Gallagher does an excellent job capturing that devotion and the fervency of the author's beliefs. At the same time, Gallagher's narration is conversational and practical, and he reads in a matter-of-fact way that makes the author's material seem down-to-earth. A Worthy hardcover. --Publishers Weekly

You are not special... and other encouragements

by David G. McCullough   (Get the Books)
Longtime high school English teacher McCullough scores an A+ with this volume for teens and parents. Rich in literary references and poetic in cadence, the author also offers plenty of hilarious and pointed comments on teens and today's society. The immediate inspiration for the book is the commencement address that McCullough gave at his high school in 2012. He coyly saves the speech itself until the afterword but readers need not worry. From the start, he examines the odd situation of teens who have every advantage but "[a]t some level[.]understand you can't ride the chairlift and call yourself Edmund Hillary." Teens are cosseted by well-meaning parents and bombarded with the "nitwittery" of social media, notes McCullough, and generally so focused on collecting accolades and laurels to boost their chances of getting into college that they miss the point. According to the author, "these indulged kids, our kids, could be, should be part of the solution for a planet in sore need." As he wisely notes: "When at last the electricity in your few pounds of gelatinous stuff sputters out for good, that's that," thus all readers must take pleasure in this fleeting life. --Publishers weekly

Church of mercy

by Pope Francis    (Get the Book)
"A magnificent book, bursting with profound spiritual insights, from a man who has quickly become one of the greatest spiritual teachers of our time." --James Martin, SJ , author of Jesus: A Pilgrimage In the year since he was elected, Pope Francis's simple message of mercy, service, and renewal has spread to every corner of the world. Through his gentle demeanor, selfless actions, and welcoming call for service to others, Pope Francis has captured the attention of a world longing for an authentic message of hope--we want to hear what he has to say. Collected from Pope Francis's speeches, homilies, and papers presented during the first year of his papacy, The Church of Mercy is the first Vatican-authorized book detailing his vision for the Catholic Church.   (Summary)

Living with a Wild God : a memoir

by Barbara Ehrenreich   (Get the Book)
Ehrenreich (Nickel and Dimed) offers a deeply personal look at her search for the truth about life and spirituality. Occasionally brutal in its introspective honesty, this book reveals the alcoholic dysfunction of her parents' relationship and how it affected her growth and beliefs. The author's family's staunch atheism often made Ehrenreich the outsider as a child, but also gave her the tools and freedom to question everything around her, including religion. She dabbled in multiple faiths before settling into atheism herself, but throughout her teen years, she had dissociative "mystical experiences" that she eventually self-diagnosed as a psychological disorder. It wasn't until midlife that she returned to her quest for meaning and attempted to describe her experiences as something more than lapses into mental illness. VERDICT Emotionally evocative, at times disturbing, Ehrenreich's work is engaging and invites-no, demands that its readers question the world around them and everything they believe about it. The author's rational approach to researching "religious experiences" similar to her own, her mission to find an answer to: "Why are we here?" is profoundly relatable to those who have asked similar questions, who have wondered at humanity's purpose, and who have probed at the presence of the Other. Part memoir, part mystical journey, this is essential for anyone with an interest in religious studies, contemporary history, or memoir and biography. --Library Journal

Jesus : a pilgrimage

by James Martin   (Get the Book)
In this work-part travelog, part biblical commentary, part memoir, part meditation-prolific Jesuit author Martin (culture editor, America magazine; My Life with the Saints) devotes a chapter to each of the towns he visited while on a pilgrimage in the Holy Land, villages in which particular incidents in the life of Jesus took place. He explains and reflects on the relevant Gospel stories as he proceeds. For example, in the chapter "Tabgha," he considers the story of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, and reflects on an incident in his experience when Jesus made small things great, and suggests how this event can help those who feel their efforts are inadequate. The chapters are ordered according to the life of Jesus, and do not correspond to the order of Martin's visit, so the account isn't so much about places as it is about coming to understand Jesus better and fostering a deeper relationship with him. Martin often refers accessibly to the scholarship about a particular biblical passage, with the relevant text provided in full at the end of each section. VERDICT This will appeal to readers (not just Catholics) seeking an introduction to the Gospels that is personal but rooted in serious -scholarship. --Library Journal

Learning to walk in the dark

by Barbara Brown Taylor   (Get the Book)
Best-selling author and former Episcopal priest Taylor returns with another thoughtful book. This time Taylor confronts head-on faith and, most significantly, the dark night of the soul. But really this is a meditation on darkness itself more a journal, she emphasizes, than a manual. What does Taylor mean by darkness? Darkness, she writes, is shorthand for anything that scares me. That could include something as profound as the absence of God to the fear of dementia to the loss of family and friends, as well as that nagging question of what it will feel like to die. She recounts how she became impatient with church teachings that accentuated the light while denying the existence of darkness, and comments on the difference between faith and belief, certainty and trust. An elegant writer with the common touch, Taylor is always a wonderful guide to the spiritual world, and this book is no exception. Here she encourages us to turn out the lights and embrace the spiritual darkness, for it is in the dark, she maintains, that one can truly see. --Booklist

Dying every day : Seneca at the Court of Nero

by James Romm    (Get the Book)
Was Roman philosopher Seneca the Younger an exemplar of Stoic virtue who, pulled into politics in the service of Emperor Nero, did his best to modulate the young despot's cruelty? Or was he a shrewd manipulator whose ethical treatises were just a cynical attempt to restore a reputation sullied by his complicity in Nero's cruel and decadent court? Tacitus, who wrote a lot about Seneca, seems to have had trouble making up his mind. Romm suggests that we might bring together these conflicting portraits by understanding Seneca as a serious thinker who suffered from passivity and obsequiousness, and had the misfortune to live at a time when intellectual activity had become particularly dangerous. Seneca's elegant humanistic vision (which would influence, among other things, Roman Catholic church doctrine), therefore, was not fraudulent, but aspirational, and somewhat tragic: ideals articulated by a flawed man who was all too aware of his inability to live up to them. Vividly describing the intensity of political life in the Nero years, and paying particular attention to the Roman fascination with suicide, Romm's narrative is gripping, erudite, and occasionally quite grim. --Booklist