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Reviews
Approaching Easter World of the Spirits – a Christian perspective on traditional and folk religions Crossing Over – the hope of heaven The busy Christian’s guide to busyness In the company of Jesus - finding unconventional wisdom and unexpected hope Searching 4 Faith Bible Story Time: The Lost Sheep On that Easter Morning Inspirational Gold - thought provoking meditations from great Christian authors
Approaching Easter By Jane Williams, £9.99 (ISBN 0745951996)
Here is a book by the wife of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Jane Williams, a theologian, asks: What gives meaning to our lives? How can we live a life shared with others?
The seasons of Lent and Easter are traditionally times to reflect upon such fundamental questions as these. In this gentle, reflective book, Jane Williams encourages us to make space for reflection and, in so doing, to draw closer to God.
As she moves through Lent to Good Friday and Easter, the author explores themes such as food, power, love, anger, fear and complicity, compassion, and waiting. In each chapter, she blends personal story, spiritual reflection, and quotations from scripture or other sources to offer an imaginative and powerful way into the meaning of the season.
Illustrated throughout with fine art, Approaching Easter is a beautiful and rewarding seasonal companion.
Jane Williams has taught Doctrine and History at Trinity Theological College, Bristol.
World of the Spirits – a Christian perspective on traditional and folk religions By David Burnett, £10.99 (ISBN 1854247425)
During the last century the Christian faith has made massive inroads into areas dominated by traditional and folk religions. In many cases, however, varieties of syncretism have developed, both in the countries of origin and in the West.
David Burnett’s comprehensive study covers African, Indian, Polynesian, Australian, Asian and South American forms of traditional religion, together with Western expressions of these forms of faith. The topics covered include:
• Cosmology; • Gods and spirits, • Ghosts, • Ancestor worship, • Taboo and pollution, • Rites of passage, • Witchcraft, sorcery and magic, • Methods of divination, • Spirit possession, • Shamans and healers, • Language, translation and contacts with Europeans • Religious syncretism, • Slave religion, • Contemporary religious movements
This is a standard text for all those studying or expecting to work in areas of traditional and folk religion.
Dr David Burnett is Academic Dean at All Nations Christian College, Ware, Herts, UK, and a Fellow of the Royal Anthropological Institute. He has served as a missionary in India and is author of a number of highly-regarded books including Clash of Worlds, The Spirit of Hinduism and The Spirit of Buddhism
Crossing Over – the hope of heaven By Kevin O’Donnell, £6, 99 (ISBN 1854247379)
Perhaps you have lost someone close to you. Perhaps you yourself are facing death, or are worried by the prospect of dying. Perhaps you are looking for comfort for a friend.
The Christian faith does not regard death as the end. The resurrection of Jesus after his death on the Cross is central to Christian belief, and it changes everything – our ambitions, our understanding of ourselves, our relationships with one another.
The Rev. Kevin O’Donnell compares Christian teaching on the afterlife with that of other religions, and also raises the question of ghosts, mediums and near-death experiences. He spells out what the Bible says about the life to come, and tackles the question of the final judgement: what is at stake? What does God’s mercy mean?
This gentle, lucid book will be a source of encouragement, and a sure guide to the future. It includes a range of suitable prayers and liturgies for the bereaved, allowing tears but suggesting hope.
The Rev. Kevin O’Donnell is an Anglican minister in West Sussex.
The busy Christian’s guide to busyness By Tim Chester, £7.99 (ISBN 1844741249)
Do you say ‘yes’ to requests when really you mean to say ‘no’? Do you feel permanently trapped by your 24/7 lifestyle? Do you feel guilty when you look at the size of your e-mail inbox? Do you ever wonder who hit the accelerator?
While offering practical help to busy Christians, Tim Chester also opts for root-and-branch treatment: it’s not enough just to slow down, or to simplify your lifestyle, you need to deal radically with the things that are driving you.
If you’re busy because of the following:
• ‘I need to prove myself’ • ‘Otherwise things get out of control’ • ‘Everyone expects me to be busy’ • ‘I like the pressure’ • ‘I need the money’ …
think again! At the root of our ‘slavery’ are serious misunderstandings, often reinforced by our culture. If we want to be free, then we need to counteract them with God’s word. It’s important to manage our time, but it’s more important to manage our hearts. God has promised his rest to all who are weary and burdened (Matthew 11:28). It’s up to us to accept it.
In the company of Jesus - finding unconventional wisdom and unexpected hope By Bill Donahue, £8.99 (ISBN 1844741222)
Who is Jesus? Is he the blonde-haired, blue-eyed saviour of bad religious art? Or is he just another ‘good thing’, alongside Buddha and crystals? Or is he a fiction – the product of a bunch of first-century deluded fanatics?
In forty short sections, ideal for daily reading, Donahue introduces us to Jesus as provocative teacher, sacred friend, truthful revealer, extreme forgiver, authentic leader, compassionate healer, relentless lover and supreme conqueror.
Searching 4 Faith By Brian Draper, £6.99 (ISBN 0745951953)
How do we find faith today in our materialistic culture? Is it possible to believe in Christ? Brian Draper approaches the subject in an imaginative, poetic way, drawing on images from contemporary culture to help present the case for Christianity.
He covers such questions as:
• Who was Jesus?; • What path should I choose?; • How come everything is so screwed up?; • What do I have to do to get some peace round here? • Must I go to church to be a Christian?; • How do I make the most of my life?
Brian Draper is a lecturer in contemporary culture at the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity. He was formerly editor of Third Way magazine. He has a monthly column on culture in the Christian Herald and also writes for the Church Times. Recently, he has begun writing and presenting for BBC Radio 4’s ‘Thought for the Day’ on the Today programme. He has also written extensively for U2.com and for Amazon.
Bible Story Time: The Lost Sheep By Sophie Piper, £2.99 (ISBN 0745948707) A 500 word story for young children, told with bright and cheerful pictures.
On that Easter Morning By Mary Joslin, £5.99 (ISBN 0745949908)
The events of the first Easter are simply and movingly presented in a new text based closely on a range of passages from the Bible. This stylish and elegant picture book brings together the key events of Holy Week and Easter, culminating in the joy of the first Easter morning.
Inspirational Gold - thought provoking meditations from great Christian authors Ed by Mary Werner, £14.99 (ISBN 1 84550 0601)
Do you want a daily devotional book that delivers riches every day? Do you want to read something profound, something life-changing? Mary Werner has produced a delightful daily devotional made up of quotations selected from the last twenty centuries of Christian experience.
Each day opens with a passage of the Bible that is then illuminated from the writings of great Christian figures and authors. These gems come from a wide variety of sources, early Christians like Cyprian and Iranaeus; then Jerome, Anselm or Francis of Assissi; Thomas a Kempis; Martin Luther and Jonathan Edwards pop up; as do John Donne; Blaise Pascal and John Wesley; also included are more contemporary figures such as Frances Ridley Havergal, George Macdonald - and many more from each and every century of thought.
Refined by the passage of time, these ideas remain as relevant today as when they were written. They will enrich your times of meditation with a freshness and clarity that sets you up for the day.
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