Monthly Archives: March 2016

Book Reviews, Theology

Book Review: Answering Jihad: A Better Way Forward, by Nabeel Qureshi

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Answering JihadThey obviously didn’t begin then, but since September 11, 2001, conversations on Muslim-Christian relations have been on a sharp rise, even more so with recent worldwide bombings. Tensions are high, misunderstandings are often higher, and hate fills more rooms than the love of Christ. This is what eventually pushed Nabeel Qureshi, a former Muslim who converted to Christianity some years ago, to break his silence on the matter and quickly write Answering Jihad: A Better Way Forward. Qureshi does not waste his reader’s time; in the Introduction he explains his background, purpose in writing, and the point on which he will eventually land: “[A]s long as Islam is practiced in a way that calls Muslims to return to its foundations, violence will follow. … I really do feel that the Christian teaching of loving one’s enemies, even in the face of death, might perhaps be the most powerful answer to jihad at our disposal today. Not only does it allow us to counter jihad, it also enables us to treat Muslims with the utmost dignity: as image bearers of God” (19–20). From there the book is divided into three parts in which Qureshi answers eighteen questions to eventually get to his point:

Part 1: The Origins of Jihad
Question 1: What Is Islam?
Question 2: Is Islam “a Religion of Peace”?
Question 3: What Is Jihad?
Question 4: Is Jihad in the Quran and the Life of Muhammad?
Question 5: What Is Sharia?
Question 6: Was Islam Spread by the Sword?

Part 2: Jihad Today
Question 7: What Is Radical Islam?
Question 8: Does Islam Need a Reformation?
Question 9: Who Are Al-Qaida, ISIS, and Boko Haram?
Question 10: Who Are the True Muslims—Violent or Peaceful Muslims?
Question 11: Why Are Muslims Being Radicalized?
Question 12: Are Muslims Trying to Take Over the West with Sharia?

Part 3: Jihad in Judeo-Christian Context
Question 13: Do Muslims and Christians Worship the Same God?
Question 14: Why Do Some Christians Call God “Allah”?
Question 15: How Does Jihad Compare with Old Testament Warfare?
Question 16: What Does Jesus Teach about Violence?
Question 17: How Does Jihad Compare with the Crusades?
Question 18: What Does Jesus Have to Do with Jihad?
Conclusion: Answering Jihad

Also included are several helpful appendices that are worth reading.

 

Given that my wife was living in Manhattan on 9/11 and subsequently obtained her M.A. through the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (studying Middle East relations, terrorism, and Arabic), I knew throughout the reading of this book that we’d be having some intense discussions later. So, until she gets a chance to read it herself and we actually have more of those discussions (I don’t know Arabic and have not studied Islamic scholarship), I’ll try to address this text based on the evidence presented, convincing or otherwise, and keep “but my wife says” comments out of it. (Maybe we’ll add a follow-up inclusion or post later!) If nothing else, this has lead to our determination to read together the Quran (in English—please save “there is no translation of the Quran” comments for forums that wish to engage in those debates) and hadith in their entirety so that we can better address these things.

 

Parts 1 and 2 I found quite helpful in defining terms and ideas using the Quran and traditions chronologically as to maintain timeline of what they meant and came to mean, establishing a convincing argument, in my estimation, of the violent foundation of Islam and that to which “radicals” are bringing people back. Does this mean all “good Muslims” are violent? No, and Qureshi addresses this (91–92); but his argument throughout the book is that of Islam’s foundation (the Quran and Muhammad’s teachings) and what a call to this will bring: violence.

 

Part 3: This is where my “expertise” and scholarship comes into play, and this is where I find many of Qureshi’s arguments wanting.

Question 13: Quershi’s answer is an absolute “no.” That’s fine, but his reason is perhaps based on a semantic misunderstanding of the word same. His principle argument is that Islam denies Jesus and the Holy Spirit as God, and therefore worships a different God. He claims this is not the case with Jews because the Trinity can be developed from the Old Testament; however, he stops short of answering whether or not Jews practicing Judaism (those who deny Jesus as the Messiah) are worshipping the same God. His arguments would say they don’t. So, as he writes in reference to the word Allah in Question 14, perhaps these words may also be applied to same: “The term can be used in multiple ways, and our conversations would be far better served by focusing on meaningful matters rather than proper use of a term that can be legitimately used in many ways” (119).

Question 15: The conclusion: “The final marching order of Islam is jihad. The final marching orders of Christians are grace and love” (125). Okay, but let’s not sidestep theses Old Testament passages by stating that they “serve little more than an historical footnote in the practice and expectation of the Christian life” (124). That’s not very helpful.

Question 16: Jesus makes no room for violence, even in self-defense. Amen! Qureshi does a great job in briefly and concisely addressing the seemingly problematic verses for pacifists in the New Testament in favor of complete nonviolence. Jesus calls us to peace and to love our enemy. It appears that he really is going to conclude the book with the love of Christ and sacrifice, not retaliation, in the face of jihad. But then he addresses Question 17…

Question 17: “When we condemn the Crusades, we ought to do so in light of what they actually were, a defensive effort after much of the Christian world had been conquered by Muslims. Yet I do condemn the Crusades. The slaughter of Jews in the Rhineland and Muslims in Jerusalem was unconscionable, especially since crusaders had taken on the name of Christ. If their efforts had represented the state and not the church, and had they been much more humane, perhaps I would feel differently. But to take the symbol of the cross, on which Jesus died for his enemies, and to turn it into a symbol for killing one’s enemies in my mind deserves to be condemned” (136, emphasis mine). Wait, what? If the Crusades had been in the name of the state on not in the name of Christ Qureshi may have felt differently about them? Only because the cross of Christ was taken into battle does he have a problem with it? When do Christians not carry the cross of Christ? Did Jesus ask us to take up our cross in a church building and lay it down when our nations call us to action on their behalf? Never! This is a dangerous door being opened, which will be fully swung open in his ultimate conclusion (Question 18 properly reflects Question 16).

Conclusion: “I am not advocating naïve pacifism in the face of genocide and murder. Many Christians believe it is the duty of the state to fight for and protect its people, as defending the oppressed is an expression of loving one’s neighbor. They often refer to passages such as Romans 13:1–5 and 1 Peter 2:13–14 to suggest that Christians should play active roles in such state-led efforts.
     So, I am not promoting pacifism, but neither am I advocating a violent response. I am, in fact, not advocating any particular course of action, but rather a frame of heart and mind that will, in turn, shape the way we respond” (146–147, emphasis mine).

Here Qureshi unfortunately does not address the noted passages as he did with those in Question 16, perhaps avoiding further conflict with the military background of his family, though I don’t know how a proper addressing of these passages and maintain a nonviolent stance in the name of Christ would be anymore offensive or controversial than writing this book with a still Muslim family. And if not advocating for any particular course of action, then what is the point of the book? Seriously, love is not apathetic; it is active. With heart framed in Christ, we are called to action; not violent action, but action nonetheless. Being passive is not the same thing as pacifism. Jesus calls us to lay down our lives, not to take others’.

By opening this door to violence in the name of a nation, Qureshi has effectively sanctioned jihad for any people group, Christians included, in the name of a nation’s best interest. If an Islamic state exists, then they could rightly use Qureshi’s own words to point out that it is not in the name of religion but in the name of the nation that they “defend” others from the “evils” of “Western culture,” just as Western nations use violence to “defend” others from ill-perceived cultures and to promote its own ideals. Patriotism is idolatry. We are first citizens of the kingdom of God, and we ought never lay down our cross.

 

Love our neighbors, Muslim or otherwise, yes. Leave open the possibility of violence in the name of our nation so that we can justify that which goes against the act of loving? Never! Jesus is Lord, and demonstrating his love is the only way forward.

I’m not sure who to recommend this book to because the Christians I know who already hate Muslims (or really anyone they disagree with) would take away from this book exactly that which I found dangerous in Qureshi’s conclusion: a way to kill them all through via the nation state. Of course, my response: #facepalm Missed. The. Point. But if listening to Qureshi, they’re positioned could be justified. Those who are already trying to love their neighbor do not need this book (at least not for its intended purpose). So, I’m torn. There’s some really compelling material here with a cataclysmic conclusion.

 

*Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Reviews, Theology

Book Review: Why Church History Matters: An Invitation to Love and Learn from Our Past, by Robert F. Rea

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Why Church History MattersRobert F. Rea, a professor of church history, wrote Why Church History Matters: An Invitation to Love and Learn from Our Past to fill a void he had in providing (primarily Bible and seminary) students with a resource that both explains the necessity of studying church history and instills a practical and encouraging desire to want to study it. I, too, have been hoping to find such a resource for students, so I was excited when I stumbled upon this one. After reading, I was hoping this book would be accessible to a broader audience than that for which the author intended. Granted, IVP Academic published it, but one can still hope, right?

The nature of the text makes me wonder for whom the book is really written. It seems as though it may be most helpful if taken before a history course, although without some knowledge of history one may be lost on some of the references. It’s rare that a Bible/seminary student would follow a strictly prescribed course schedule, so I’m not sure when this would be read—in some introductory course for the program, in another non-history course, or within the first week or two of a specific history course that may or may not be taken as the student’s first? Some people (like me) enjoy reading academic literature outside of educational institutions, but I don’t think this is one that’s going to be picked up by the average churchgoer who really needs something like this. So, when, where and by whom is it really going to be read? I don’t know.

 

The book’s sections and chapters are as follows:

Part One: How We Understand the Tradition

  1. What Is the Tradition?
  2. How Have We Understood Tradition Historically?
  3. How Do We Understand the Tradition Today?

Part Two: Expanding Circles of Inquiry

  1. Who Am I? Christian History and Christian Identity
  2. A Great Cloud of Witnesses: Christian Community Across the Centuries
  3. Accountability Partners: Sharing Accountability with Historic Christians
  4. Mentors and Friends: Historic Christians Broaden Our Horizons and Fill Gaps in Our Understanding

Part Three: Tradition Serving the Church

  1. Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth
  2. Tradition and Ministry

 

“Part One” is fantastic and especially helpful in defining “tradition, traditions, traditioning, and Tradition” as they are used and understood among different Christian spheres, including why some people like and others oppose them. This is the most unbiased and informative section in the book, and that which I highly recommend to anyone.

“Part Two” begins with a helpful description of our spheres of influence and why it is important to become more aware of others, which should helpful increase our own spheres without being one who simply buys into anything and everything. However, the author’s particular beliefs in what is right and wrong about Christian history via specific examples begins to come out, though he never explicitly states the tradition from which he writes, perhaps distancing some readers and himself demonstrating why it is important to study church history—if one has read a good bit of history and understands more of the politicking involved in some faith decisions among some traditions he or she may see that there is more involved than just the Holy Spirit, and that power grabs sometimes win the debate, leading some to come to a different conclusion about the specific examples Rea uses.

“Part Three” takes an even more practical approach to the title’s question with an ever-increasing bias from the author’s own tradition.

If one is able to recognize the author’s biases and take them in stride, I believe this book can be quite helpful (again, if nothing else, especially “Part One”). However, as it is, the audience has been unnecessarily limited to students of particulars strains of evangelicalism, which is quite ironic given the broad spheres of past and present influence from which the author desires we pull in our understanding of the church and its continued direction.

Book Reviews

Book Review: This Is Awkward: How Life’s Uncomfortable Moments Open the Door to Intimacy and Connection, by Sammy Rhodes

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This Is AwkwardSo, this is awkward… Really. I follow Sammy Rhodes (@SammyRhodes) on Twitter because I can empathize with his humorous, self-deprecating, introverted gluttony in 144 characters or less. That kind of awkward I can handle. The first half of This Is Awkward I could not.

When Rhodes announced his upcoming book, I thought to myself, “I really hope it works for him because he doesn’t need one more thing that denies him some affirmation.” I didn’t plan on reading it (ever), but when it came up as an option for me to review, I decided to see just how awkward it was going to be. I’ve never not finished a book I agreed to review, but I really wanted to put this one down.

The forced insertions of journal-like entries of his writing process in the middle of the actual writing, none of which are contextually appropriate in any way, only emphasized the uncomfortable way in which this first book was written. I assume the intent was to find a novel way in which to engage the reader in the life of the awkward Sammy Rhodes and the difficult process of writing a book, but they really read like further desires for affirmation and “I really hope you like this book and don’t write about hating it because my insecurities may not be able to handle it.” I’m not sure if I should feel pity or just more awkwardness… (Probably both.) Here’s an utterly inappropriate and awkward example of just how inappropriately awkward the book is: Rhodes honestly and vulnerably talks about an older boy physically “teaching” him about sexuality, which leads Rhodes to question whether or not he’s gay as a child; but then, in one of this disjointed journal entries, immediately follows with (intentional or not, I really can’t tell) the difficulty in peeling and eating a banana while writing. … Yes, that happened. (My apologies for instilling in you the awkwardness this book instilled in me.)

However, things began to change with Chapter 6: “I Kissed Marriage Hello After Kissing Dating Goodbye.” The first few pages are laugh-out-loud stories leading up to and including Rhodes’ wedding day. Seriously awkward. Seriously funny. I’m not sure how much time elapsed between his beginning to write the book and the start of this latter half of the manuscript, but the writing and appropriate level of awkward definitely change for the better. I began to buy into the journal entries as part of the journey, even though I still didn’t care much for their integration without connective material. I made it to the end without wincing the whole way.

In addition to what I’ve already written about the writing style, I must include the perpetual appeal to pop-culture references of which the reader may or may not be aware. This isn’t that surprising from someone who got his start in a social media following, but that kind of writing (to me) feels a lot like using other’s ideas because the author does not have enough words of his own. (This should not be confused with plagiarism, for which Rhodes has previously been accused, to what legitimate extent I know not.) I simply find it a bit too cliché and leaving the reader left out if unaware of the references (like what John Eldridge does with movies and plays, but with a broader range). (Rhodes also misidentifies some of his references, although the points he makes by them are not thereby negatively affected.)

Rhodes has some good stuff in here, but I’m not sure wading through the rest of the text is worth the effort. Perhaps other articles, subsequent tweets, or maybe another book will prove beneficial in bringing out that information now that the ice has been broken.

 

*Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Reviews, Health

Book Review: Manmade: The Essential Skincare & Grooming Reference for Every Man, by Chris Salgardo

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ManmadeDo you read Vanity Fair, GQ, newspaper horoscopes and gossip columns? Do you watch shows like “The Bachelor”? Do you click on the sensationalized links with tempting pictures on the columns beside almost every “news” or gossip website out there? Do you say, “I read Playboy for the articles,” or maybe, “I go to Hooters for the hot wings”? Do you enjoy redundancy, contradiction, unsubstantiated claims, and vanity poorly disguised as humility? Do you lie to yourself a lot? Do you like Donald Trump? Yes? Then Manmade: The Essential Skincare & Grooming Reference for Every Man by Chris Salgardo, president of Kiehl’s Since 1851, is your kind of material.

This is one of the worst books I’ve ever read. When I saw the title was available for review, I picked it up thinking it might be kind of fun to a book like this in my collection. A third of the way through I was already bored out of my mind reading the same things page after page—literally the same words and advice—presented in a most unappealing and unhelpful way; however, I did manage to get through it all. This can be reduced to a brochure for product that also offers beauty advice, much as a L’OREAL commercial with about that much depth.

In the middle of this drivel, Salgardo divides men into five categories: The Modern Gentleman, The Hands-On Man, The Extreme Dude, The Rebel Artist, and The Renaissance Man. For each category there is an introductory narrative that reads like a bad conclusion to a survey taken on Facebook to determine what kind of superhero you are, an interview in which he asks a “famous” specimen (I have no clue who any of them) that is completely unhelpful and mostly unrelated to the book, and sometimes actually contradictory to the book’s mission, and finally (among other things) a picture collage of examples of these types of men, in each of which Salgardo has placed a picture of himself posing as if from 1980’s album cover—but he makes sure to remind his readers on several occasions that this is not about vanity; it’s about presenting your best self. Riiiight.

In order to properly express all my thoughts on just how horrible this text is, I would have to write more content than the text itself contains without the pictures and redundancy. However, I will offer one example. Since I am known for my beard, I thought this relevant bit from the book would be enough to dissuade its purchase:

“BEARD … Don’t confuse shave oils for beard oils. The first are used to prepare the skin for shaving, the second to keep facial hair looking great. Buy both” (53). (Okay.)

“Beard Oil: Applied before shaving—preferably in the shower, where the steamy heat can help the oils penetrate more deeply—beard oil softens facial hair, making it easier to shave off, helping prevent razor burn” (61). (Wait…What?)

“BEARD OIL OR CONDITIONER To keep facial hair from getting wiry.

SHAVING OIL, CREAM, AND RAZOR To prepare skin for a smoother, nick-free shave that foams just can’t provide” (63). (Okay, getting back on track, but the redundancy is killing me.)

Yes, Salgardo, please do not get them confused, especially not within just a few pages in a book wherein you claim to be an expert and answer all types of questions from men who stop you on the street every day because you are so famous.

His best advice is this: Look at product labels, purchase and experiment with different things to see if they do what they say they do, and stick with what works for you. Ironically, this is exactly what we already do, rendering his book completely unnecessary.

I’m not familiar with Pam Krauss Books, but it’s an imprint of Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House, from which I have reviewed several books. Their credibility really took a hit with this one.

It’s just…so…bad.

 

*I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.