Monthly Archives: August 2016

Book Reviews, Theology

Book Review: Outlaw Christian: Finding Authentic Faith by Breaking the “Rules”, by Jacqueline A. Bussie

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Outlaw ChristianLutheran professor Jacqueline A. Bussie’s Outlaw Christian: Finding Authentic Faith by Breaking the “Rules” reads like an infomercial for the purported latest and greatest form of “just be you” faith and new club: Outlaw Christians. She writes:

Outlaw Christianity: (noun)

  1. a new, life-giving faith for those who ache for a more authentic relationship with God and other people by no longer having to hide their doubt, anger, grief, scars, or questions
  2. an honest, outside-the-law faith for those seeking a hope that really speaks to the world’s hurt (p.xi)

Bussie rightly pushes back against the notions many have of not being able to be really in honest in some Christian circles, having to hide anger, doubt, and scars in the midst of real pain and uncertainty; however, the path taken in this book is not one to recommend. In order to travel this path, one must, as Bussie has, redefine a number of terms to create this new faith club. Rather than revere the Almighty, Bussie encourages the reader to bring God down to a human level as she does, stating that God learns and grows with us, comparing her relationship with him to an angry married couple in which both sides are flawed people just trying to figure things out and get along.

I concur that we can learn from people not like us, even other religions; but if it is not ultimately God honoring and glorifying then it is of no use. However, Bussie seems to take this a bit further down an apparent path of universalism when she writes about our “brothers and sisters of other religions” (137) and redefines sin by stating, “To keep things simple as well as practical and concrete, I now define evil and sin as anything we say, do, or believe (or fail to say, do, or believe) that robs us of our humanity or the earth of its dignity” (129). The emphasis of this book is certainly on oneself and being honest about one’s humanity, reveling in doubt and sharing each other’s pain and suffering, for which Bussie claims there is no other meaning than that it is shared. She reminds her reader that something isn’t sin if it’s honest; so be honest because that’s authentic and authenticity attracts.

So, while being honest and attempting to attract others to this new club of “outlaws” that is said to include Job, Jesus, and God, Bussie demonstrates where she’s really at with God when she states that he “carries a dead child, and that child is Jesus, and all of us too” (157). No, Jesus is risen! Yes, there is suffering, but there’s so much more that can be helpful for potential readers than to bring God completely down to an utterly flawed human level and say something like “he’s just like us, so he understands.” He understands, and has conquered!

To be fair, there are also small sections in the book that praise God and his love, but I think Bussie’s experience with her mother’s suffering and passing is still eating away at her and is the lens through which she sees her life, her students, and the rest of the world. Yes, we are called to participate in changing the world (examples of which are included in the final chapter and may or may not be helpful for a Christ follower), but it is in Christ that we should have our identity, and it is through and for him that we are able.

Given the poor exegesis and evaluation of the book of Job in the second chapter, I would not have gone any further had I not agreed to review this book. However, having finished it in its entirety, I can say that my concerns about its direction were validated. In its sincere desire to help and encourage struggling Christians or those who have been pushed away by hypocrisy, it can be even more damaging than the things it attempts to correct.

 

 

*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.”

Game Reviews

Game Review: Punderdome®, by Jo and Fred Firestone

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PunderdomeLet’s not waste any time: Punderdome®, by Jo and Fred Firestone, is the worst game I’ve ever played. Ever. I play tested this with eight people last night who agreed to be guinea pigs for this review. As I opened the box and began reading the instruction card, I felt like we were following the first instructions perfectly:

Assembling Players
In order to play Punderdome, you’ll need to gather at least two or more of your most pun-tolerant friends and/or relatives. Inform them they are about to play this game with you. Apologize later.

This is some of the worst marketing, but seriously honest in anticipating players’ reactions. (Games are meant to be enjoyable and fun, remember?) I apologized after making them endure just three rounds of misery before we moved on to other games.

Apparently some comedians have a live game show on which this “card game” is based. Perhaps that New York venue and atmosphere a more aptly suited for the awkward performer and audience participation in the creation of uncomfortable puns, but a home based game will find few homes and audiences willing to endure the test.

Never mind that the game doesn’t even come with everything you need to play, it’s horribly unoriginal and lacks the input of anyone with experience in game mechanics. The only redeeming quality, and by that I mean it is in no way redeeming, is that it’s simply a flagrant combination of two beloved games that have found their way into the hearts of many family gamers.

Imagine, if you will, Apples to Apples® and Scattergories® get sloshed at an office holiday party and a series of unfortunate events lands them both inside the same dark supply closet filled with a suffocating aroma of industrial cleaners and mildewed mops and rags. The space is cramped and the air toxic, but for these two debauchery-fueled household names it’s intoxicatingly arousing. Nine months and several lawsuits later, a convent receives a knock at the door. The elderly, bent abbess slowly opens the door to find something unrecognizable, yet familiar, swaddled in a stale blanket. Though she’s never had children and doesn’t know the first thing about raising an infant, she believes hiding it in the catacombs and educating it by candlelit solitude will properly prepare it for an introduction to twenty-first century society upon reaching adulthood. So, with all the love and compassion any parent would have, she presents to the world one summer’s day her gruel-fed child dressed in potato sack burlap and bare feet. Encouraged to make its own way in the world, it’s placed on a bus headed for Wall Street. Upon arrival, the child yells to the Goldman Sachs building, “Which office is mine?” It’s mostly ignored, but a few suits look on in wonderment, baffled by the child’s tenacity and naivety. It’s then that a neighboring homeless man feels compassion for the child, pulls out a five-gallon bucket and piece of cardboard, and sets up a makeshift desk and chair. He folds a piece of paper to make a nameplate for the cardboard desk and asks, “What should I write.” The child responds, “Punderdome.” And that’s where, to this day, the child sits participating in the global market.

My wife loves puns. She intentionally uses them more than anyone I know, and it is for her that I got this game to review. She’s also much more concerned about others’ feelings than am I when it comes to my reviews. I remind her that they are reviews of things, not their authors, and that people should have access to real, honest, and raw perspectives to help them in their potential purchasing decisions. (If you’re new to reading my reviews, there’s your heads-up on what to expect.) Still, she’d rather I not publish my little story above because it may hurt the comedians’ feelings. (Yup, you read that correctly.) However, upon reading the game’s play examples, she exclaimed, “These aren’t puns! … These aren’t even funny!” Exactly. The “punniest” person I know doesn’t even like the well thought out examples used to entice one to play the game. (Okay, she said two of them were clever even if not funny, but that she couldn’t take a whole game of them. She reminded me of this when I read this paragraph to her. See? More compassion.)

Please. Just say no. Friends don’t let friends play Punderdome®.

 

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

Book Reviews, Theology

Book Review: Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels, by Kenneth E. Bailey

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Jesus Through Middle Eastern EyesKenneth E. Bailey’s Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels is a treasure trove of cultural insights on the life and teachings of Jesus the Christ. Bailey pulls together writings, traditions, and perspectives both ancient and contemporary to help us better understand Scripture. Though it is written more for the academic, I would recommend this to anyone wanting a deeper understanding of Scripture. He writes that neither separating “the exact words of Jesus from the careful editing of the Gospel authors” nor authoring a “full-fledged technical commentary” are purposes of this book (20); rather, “My intent is to contribute new perspectives from the Eastern tradition that have rarely, if ever, been considered outside the Arabic-speaking Christian world” (21).

The book is presented in six parts, each worth the reader’s time and energy:

  1. The Birth of Jesus
  2. The Beatitudes
  3. The Lord’s Prayer
  4. Dramatic Actions of Jesus
  5. Jesus and Women
  6. Parables of Jesus

Most people I know read the Bible solely from a Western tradition and perspective heavily influenced by the Enlightenment period, completely unaware of over a millennium’s worth of culture and writings predating those views that have been virtually ignored, often intentionally. Many thanks to Bailey for making some of this more accessible and bringing these things to light.

Book Reviews, Theology

Book Review: What Christians Ought to Believe: An Introduction to Christian Doctrine Through the Apostle’s Creed, by Michael F. Bird

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What Christians Ought to BelieveMichael F. Bird’s What Christians Ought to Believe: An Introduction to Christian Doctrine Through the Apostle’s Creed attempts to convince college students (the intended primary audience) of the author’s belief in the necessity of creeds and then presents his own theology through the skeleton of what is widely known as the Apostle’s Creed. Using circular arguments, Bird fails to convince of its necessity, though there is a positive argument of a creed’s potential usefulness. Though Bird says he’s unpacking the theology of the Apostle’s Creed, he fails to present the theological history and politics that went into the establishment of this and comparable creeds that promote division within a desire for unity. What he actually does is unpack his own theology from a modern perspective that can be seen in lengthier and more specific creeds in contrast to the simpler and more universally accepted Apostle’s Creed; thus, this is not an honest approach to the creed at hand and probably should not be used in courses including the subject.

Though we have different approaches to creedal theology and disagree on a number of potentially significant fronts, there are a few subsections of chapters that I found to be helpful for any reader. Among them: How Creeds Can Invigorate Your Faith (in Ch. 2), The Lord Jesus (in Ch. 6), Why the Virgin Birth? (in Ch.7), The Foolishness of the Cross (in Ch. 8), and When Did You Get Saved? (in Ch.14).

In my opinion, it isn’t worth adding to a syllabus and requiring students to purchase and read it. For those who disagree, in addition to this text, there are resources available for both instructors and students with Zondervan Academic accounts.

 

*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.”