Book Reviews

"More What if" - edited by Robert Cowley

"Counterfactual history" is the study of what might have been. If Cleopatra's nose had been a little less lovely, would Mark Anthony have been in alliance with her? (apparently yes). If the atom bomb had not been dropped, would Japan have surrendered (apparently no). It's only speculation, but it makes for a fun book and gives you pause for thought about history. Funnily enough, they do have a section on "What if Pontius Pilate had saved Jesus?" Of course he could have done, but chose not to. The book thinks that Jesus would have ended His days as a confused prophet, always returning to Jerusalem trying to provoke His arrest. This implies that Jesus contrived His own crucifixion, and that Pilate was a pawn in this game. I think the crucifixion was inevitable not because Pilate and Judas and the priests were forced to carry out their roles, but because somebody like Jesus was always going to end badly. Pilate could have saved Jesus but chose not to, out of his own free will. Still, the book has lots of other episodes, and shows how sometimes the smallest of differences can have a tremendous effect on subsequent history. What we do matters!

"100 ways to get your church noticed" - Neil Pugmire

It should come as no surprise that when I saw this title I thought "I must get that!" Nor should it be any surprise that Trinity is already doing many of the ideas. However, there were lots of new ideas too, and it is a straightforwardly written book (in 100 short sections) which really makes you think about what we are trying to get across. The church has a general problem of people assuming that we are grey, old-fashioned and empty, and that needs countering with top quality material showing what really goes on. The book suggests lots of ideas for this including colour posters, a website, and regular email contact (like this). Sometimes the medium is as important as the message - typewritten flyers suggests an old-fashioned approach, even if they are advertising a cutting-edge event. Trinity has a specific problem of people not knowing we're here, because the front doors are often closed, and because we don't have our name prominently displayed. Perhaps we need banners, or an A-board (controversial in Hexham) or some other way of getting ourselves noticed? I found the book to be an easy yet challenging read that makes you think.

"Amazing Grace" - Kathleen Norris

When I started this book I didn't think I'd enjoy it after the first few pages, but it really grew on me. The writer takes words like "God" & "Salvation" & "Conversion" etc. and goes back to their root meanings, bringing out all sorts of ideas. It is really the story of her life, her journey to atheism at college, and then her return to Christianity. It's full of striking ideas that befit her full time job as a poet. I particularly liked her response to those who "don't like organised religion" is that they are really saying that they "don't like people", because it is easy to stand on the sidelines in perfect purity, but far harder to engage in real life and community, which can only come through organisation. If you know somebody who feels aggrieved with the Church, this would be a good book to encourage them to read, for she felt very angry with the Church for years (she doesn't like fundamentalists at all), but gradually began to love it for what it is. Recommended.

"Ambiguous Evangelism" - Bob Mayo

This book suggests that we need to be involved in pre-evangelism. This means not calling them to come back to church, but telling them the Christian stories for the first time. This means work in schools, newspapers, mystery plays etc., any way of telling parables to the people. We cannot just say "It's all true" because people hear that as a lifestyle choice, rather than as an absolute. Instead we have to "arouse interest" so that people will seek for themselves. I found the book interesting and accessible, if not as good as some of the other material available.

"Selling Worship" - Pete Ward

"Selling Worship" by Pete Ward sounds as though it ought to be a challenging book. Especially after his previous work "Liquid Church" and "Growing Up evangelical" which are good stuff. Unfortunately it is something else instead: a review of the music and choruses of the last 40 years. I learnt quite a lot I didn't know about the origins of the music, for instance Matt Redman was employed by his church as full time music director while he was still a teenager, which is a pretty cool job, but otherwise it was a disappointment. However, if there is anyone out there who is really interested in contemporary Christian music, then it might be very interesting.

"Believing in Britain" - Ian Bradley

What is it that makes Britain British? Ian Bradley wants to argue that it is Christianity. He thinks the central part of our identity is based on the Protestant faith, and that we need more of it. He thinks that if only our national institutions were more Christian, then things would be better. I'm not sure I agree entirely: I feel that if there were more Christians in the populace rather than in the corridors of power that would probably help more. His message seems to be that we might have more polite queueing and stiffer upper-lips if we could go back to the old ways, but being a Christian isn't about learning to conform and following social norms (discuss). He does however have a positive vision for the future, and an optimistic outlook as to what might happen to our nation, and how we can be a beacon to the world. It's an interesting read and is quite accessible.

"Breakout Churches" - Thom Rainer

This is a fascinating and challenging book. If you've read the management book Good to Great you'll see this is a Christian version, although that secular book uses lots of Christian insights. The question is, how does a good church become a great church? The author and his team looked at churches in America which had grown considerably, but without changing the minister. They ruled out situations where a new person had come in, and moved everything on, or those "superstar" ministers, who started with three people in a motel, and now had 20,000 in their congregations. How did ordinary churches and ministers become extraordinary? Some of the answers were common sense, but many of them were surprising. There wasn't a single "silver bullet" issue, but there seemed to be a need for a rounded approach, a bit like Natural Church Development suggests.

"Choosing Church" - Carol Lytch

I've just finished "Choosing Church" by Carol E Lytch ISBN: 0664227171 which is available in the evangelism section in Hexham Library at the Queen's Hall. The book suggests reasons why teenagers do and do not remain in church as adults. Most of the answers seem common sense, and there are no guarantees, but here are some pointers as to the positives which make a difference.

"Church on the Other Side" - Brian McLaren

The ministers in the circuit have been studying this book over the last few weeks at our Tuesday lunchtime meetings. It's an interesting read, although he does spend an awful lot of time talking about change, and in particular that there's a lot of it about. Apparently, in the future, the church needs to change faster and more often, because it's all about change. The book could probably be about half the length and say the same. It's not complicated, but it is a little repetitive. Some points he thinks are important: A mission statement needs to be clear and simple: eg "More Christians, better Christians, authentic missional community, for the good of the world" (making disciples?) We don't "do" mission separately, everything we do needs to be mission otherwise stop it. There is no single "silver bullet" out there that will solve all our problems. We should trade our traditions for Tradition - ie don't be Methodist be Christian (although in my opinion this can lead to a bland middle of the road approach) Be more artistic and questioning in our faith. Brian McLaren is one of the leaders of the "Emerging Church" movement in America. This is trying to make a "postmodern" church (which gets some Conservatives steamed up). If you're interested in how our culture works today, and how Christianity might connect, then have a read. It's not too technical.

"Counting People In" - Richard Thomas

A very interesting book written from an Anglican perspective. Are we all wrong wanting people to come to church? Richard Thomas says there is "participative" faith - coming along, and "associative" faith - believing without coming except for weddings, baptisms etc. 10% come to church, but 70+% call themselves C of E in the census. How are we making disciples of those 60+%? He says that regarding them as the fringe and encouraging them to come to church is not the right answer. Instead we should be happy that they are out there believing and doing good works round the community. I'm not sure I buy that. I think it depends on a Sunday School model, and when there is no longer mass Sunday School it contains the seeds of its own destruction. It also goes against the Methodist tradition which sees activist, participative faith as real faith, and associative faith in need of conversion. Still, it's good to read a book with an entirely different perspective, to make you think about your own.

"Do Christians Know How to Be Spiritual?" - John Drane

So do we know how to be spiritual? This book follows on from previous ideas about the spiritual age in which we live. John Drane says that the church's response to challenge in the last century was to be more rational than the atheists. We denied any spiritual content to Christianity either with the liberals (It's all myth) or with the evangelicals (it did happen then, but we don't do that sort of thing today sonny). In the mean time the world has swung through 180 degrees, and now people are finding spiritual experiences everywhere except the church. We should be acknowledging the supernatural power of God, rather than denying it. More than half the adult population claim to have had a "religious experience" of some kind. He quotes a lady at a Mind, Body & Spirit Fair who had a dream where she met someone who told her "I am the light of the world". When he told her that Jesus said that in the Bible, she was amazed. He also quotes somebody else who said "Pagans are always the easiest to convert", because they are seeking, and are nearly there. He thinks that the rise of the Charismatic movement within the Church is part of this spiritual move. He also references a church which put an ad in the paper for people who were "spiritually seeking" (no mention of church). They got 40 replies, and a joint committee of church and non-church people was put together. Apparently the non-church people drove the group forwards much faster than the church people, because they were so earnestly seeking. So I wonder how spiritual are we at Trinity? Do we do "that sort of thing"? Or not? And if we wanted to do more of it, where would we start? Borrow the book from Hexham library, and see what you think.......

"Evangelism in a Spiritual Age" - Yvonne Richmond

This is a fascinating read about how people see the church today. Most people think spirituality (open, seeking, experiential) is good and religion (closed, judgemental, dry) is bad. Unfortunately they see the church as religious rather than spiritual. This means that part of our job has to be to change perceptions about what Christianity is about. In this context, evangelism starts with listening rather than telling (Go forth and listen could be a new hymn!). We're not here with all the answers. This fits in well with the Alpha approach, where questions are encouraged. It also fits in with the "Jesus at the centre" kind of church I talked about on Covenant Sunday. So instead of asking: "are there people you could tell about your faith?" I'm asking, "are there people you could listen to about their big questions in life?" And how can we as a church help people realise that we are an arena in which the big questions of life can be asked? Have a look at the book and find out more.........

"Finding Faith: A Self-discovery Guide for Your Spiritual Quest" - Brian McLaren

Brian McLaren, who is a well-known figure in the American "Emerging Church" movement, has written a sensitive guide for those who are agnostic, or seeking the truth about Christianity. He assumes little previous knowledge and is open and encouraging. He admits the many faults of the Church, yet still offers a positive view of Christianity. He says that the battle of ideas is not between faith and atheism, (which he regards as a kind of faith in itself) but between what he calls "good faith" and "bad faith". Good faith is always seeking to move forward and find out more about God. Bad faith is closed and says it knows it all already. His definition of faith is "a state of relative certainty about matters of ultimate concern sufficient to promote action". Faith is about things that really matter, and leads to a response. Faith without action isn't really faith in his mind. I found this to be a fascinating book, and well-worth reading for yourself, and then passing on to your agnostic friends.

"Fish on Friday: Feasting, Fasting, and Discovery of the New World " - Brian Fagan

It is commonly held that the gold of South America had the biggest economic impact on Europe, but it turns out that the fish off the North Atlantic Coast added up to far more wealth in the long term. It also is suggested that the rising demand from Christians for fish on Fridays, combined with new ways of curing it with salt, led to an insatiable demand for new fishing areas, and the money to build better kinds of boats. These factors eventually led to the discovery of America, and this book has several ideas for who got there before Christopher Columbus but kept quiet, including the Vikings, the British and the Basques. More plausibly, it shows how small seemingly insignificant factors such as saltfish can have a tremendous effect on the history of the world. It's an interesting read and available in Hexham library.

"Following Jesus and leading people" - Ross Farley

By looking at the way Jesus worked, the author comes up with four principles for Christian leadership. Leadership is about making change happen; about people not policies; about doing the right thing rather than the popular thing; and about empowering a team rather than being the lone hero. It's an encouraging read, and looks at the gospels to show how the church ought to be. Too many churches settle for keeping their different constituencies happy, rather than driving on towards a clearly defined goal. Too many churches want their own needs met, rather than wanting to change the world...... It's in the church library, is a very easy read, and makes you think.

"God Is Closer Than You Think" - John Ortberg

I got this book on the recommendation of Anne Chandler. It's written in a chatty conversational style, and is easy reading, although clearly American (sorry honey). There are lots of practical ways of being close to God, who is in evidence all around, if only we had eyes to see. I particularly liked his list of seven pathways to spirituality (you can see what mine is when you scroll down to the bottom). Different people find God in different ways and their spirituality is different accordingly. Ortberg suggests this leads to interesting conflicts in churches, because some people just don't "get" what others find so wonderful about their pathway. He also says that each has its dangers if followed too narrowly. He offers the following seven suggestions as to where people's pathway to spirituality lies - I wonder which yours is? (you might have more than one, or indeed all of them(!))

"Harry Potter - The Final One" - J K Rowling

A fantastic way to finish the series and the most Christian by far. This book has themes of death, sacrifice and resurrection and is full of material of a Christian nature, including two direct Bible quotes. I won't tell you who dies or how, but there are plenty of plot twists to keep you on the edge of your seat until the end. There have been complaints from some Christians about the nature of these books, but I think as children's fantasy literature they are no different from stories about fairies, and indeed are much more wholesome in their values, especially this last one. If you do read it, you might like to read up on some of the previous ones, because it references back to all of them, and I kept thinking, who was that? And what did he do? I liked it.

"Into the Stadium: Active Guide to Sport Ministry in the Local Church" - Bryan Mason

I think I was given this book free in a batch of stuff from the Shalom bookshop, but it's actually quite good. The premise is that loads of people are deeply into sport these days, and that's a "community" for the church to reach. We need to get out of our buildings and into the stadium, hence the title. There are lots of things the church can do, and having a team in a secular league should be a great witness. When I was at college the football team came top of the fair-play league three years running (we weren't quite so hot at winning games). Sport can also be used for learning lessons in life, and I liked the idea that our attitude to competition should be showing "Christmanship" rather than the humanistically-based ethic of sportsmanship, or even worse, the selfish ethic of gamesmanship. You can see the latter on Match of the Day each week. Sports ministry is a practical way of reaching out, especially to men, who can be difficult to reach in more conventional "churchy" ways. The book even has suggestions for a golf day, if you like that sort of thing. Pop into the church library and have a look. The book is an entertaining and not too taxing read.

"Invading Secular Space" - Martin Robinson

40 years ago church thinkers decided that by the turn of the century only 8% of the world would be Christians. Mission seemed to be petering out and the warning signs were there. In reality the figure is 33%, mainly due to the phenomenal growth of the church in Africa, Asia and South America. But why did this happen against expectations, and waht can we learn? The first thing to note is there is no truth in the rather patronising notion that the more civilised a nation becomes, the less it is open to Christianity. Growth is happening all over, just not in Western Europe. The second thing to note is that these growing churches "invade secular space". They don't hide behind walls, but get themselves noticed. The Church in this country is perceived very badly by the public. The Church in places where it is growing is admired, because of the way it is seen to be on the side of integrity, the poor, and change to the status quo. When we want to "maintain our heritage" or to "keep a presence" maybe we're doing exactly the opposite to what we should be? Growth can happen when we go out and challenge, rather than stay in and hide.

"John Henry Newman: A View of Catholic Faith for the New Millennium " - John Connolly

I've given some complimentary book reviews recently, but I'm afraid this one (available in Hexham Library) isn't quite so hot. John Henry Newman was one of the great figures of the nineteenth century, and wrote the hymns "Lead Kindly Light" and "Praise to the holiest in the height". He converted from the Church of England to Roman Catholicism, and wrote lots of academic material. In keeping with that, this book is a very academic approach to his theology, and will appeal to those with an interest in philosophy of religion. Unfortunately that's not me.......