Scripture
Dance in the dark: Preaching the blues without despair
America is living stormy Monday while the pulpit is preaching happy Sunday. Can we recover a blues sensibility?
How wide is God’s mercy? The Holy Spirit in other religions
Could the Spirit's love be poured into the hearts of people untouched by the incarnation? Could non-Christians be lovers of the only God there is?
Saving the Original Sinner, by Karl W. Giberson
Karl Giberson offers a cultural history of the Bible's first human. It's an intriguing and unsettling story.
Biblical Prophecy, by Ellen F. Davis
Ellen Davis is full of surprises. Some are delightful, others raise questions for further study, and still others throw up stumbling blocks.
Warm and warmer: One degree can be a big difference
In Oslo, the freeze-thaw cycle of a warm winter made my bike commute unpleasant. Elsewhere, it's a matter of survival.
Psalms, by Walter Brueggemann and William H. Bellinger Jr.
What are the best Psalms commentaries for Christian exposition? Walter Brueggemann and William Bellinger's book deserves a place alongside Clinton McCann and James Mays.
A New Heaven and a New Earth, by J. Richard Middleton
These days, we need a strong current of theological explication of Christian eschatology. Richard Middleton has stepped forward—and his book doesn't even mention zombies.
Discerning desire
I was 29, agonizing over a decision, when I came upon a little book by Robert Ochs.
Short Stories by Jesus, by Amy-Jill Levine
Reading Amy-Jill Levine's Short Stories by Jesus, I kept wishing she had published it earlier. It would have saved me some mistakes in the pulpit.
Found in translation
George Steiner said that "the translator invades, extracts, and brings home." In this remarkable volume, Everett Fox does all of this.
Jesus Was a Migrant, by Deirdre Cornell, and Border Patrol Nation, by Todd Miller
Two new books on immigration complement each other well. And where Todd Miller’s falls short, Deirdre Cornell’s shines most brightly.