BOOK REVIEW - CHURCH MEMBERSHIP: HOW THE WORLD KNOWS WHO REPRESENTS JESUS BY JONATHAN LEEMAN

Church Membership: How the World Knows Who Represents Jesus by Jonathan Leeman is a short read, as is characteristic in the 9Marks: Building Healthy Churches series. Also, as is characteristic, it takes you out of the comfort zone and gives you things to to think about.

Leeman starts off by raising the question if our view of church membership and whether it is not just important but necessary in a Christian's life. He doesn't candy coat the subject; there are concepts that are, to be honest, jarring, such as the phrase "Submitting to the church". With authoritarian movements and cult groups, there is a reason for that distrust. On the other hand, some of that discomfort is that we are looking at things from our individualistic, materialistic, often hedonistic societal American worldview. (By the way, when you read the book, "submitting to the church" is not as scary as it sounds.

One question that is dealt with is whether there is a difference in dealing with a person who is a part of the "universal church" and one who also is a part of your local church. Another is whether where you live and work is your personal decision or whether one should consult the church in making these important choices. Like I said, this book will take you out of your comfort zone.

This book is to-the-point, but Leeman also gives some humor in the book to help make this an enjoyable read. I would suggest this as a book a new member of a church should read. Just as important, I would recommend reading with others, be it in a Sunday School class or a discussion group.
 

BOOK REVIEW - BITTER TRUTH BY JANET SKETCHLEY

There are some stories that I find hard to give a teaser for without being a spoiler as well, and this is one of those stories. What does that usually mean? It means you've got a well-written novel that will keep you glued till the end.

Bitter Truth is part three of the Green Dory Inn Mystery series by Janet Sketchley, and yes, I'd recommend that you read the previous stories to help you become more familiar with the characters and what had previously occurred.

I've enjoyed this series, but as far as mystery, this one is the best. A nice assorted cast of possible suspects, and lots of twists in the plot that will keep you guessing.

However, the best part are the characters. It was nice to see some favorites like Nigel back in the story, as well as some visitors from Sketchley's Redemption's Edge trilogy. But the other characters are definitely three dimensional, and there are plenty of issues to think about. I've read some cozy mysteries that seem shallow and even silly; this is not true about this series.

I've read reviewers that seem allergic to anybody mentioning issues of faith, and mainly the Christian faith. This book does have a faith thread in it, but 1) that thread is organic to the story and not used as an opportunity to preach and 2) recognizes that the Christian life isn't easy and deals with true dillemas many believers have.

I would without reservation recommend this book and the rest of the series. You also might enjoy Sketchley's Redemption's Edge stories.

I received a free copy of this book from the author for my unbiased review.

One last comment for my blog readers: This is a book I'd love to be able to discuss in a discussion group. 

BOOK REVIEW: GETTING TO KNOW THE CHURCH FATHERS (2ND EDITION) BY BRYAN LITFIN

 I had a semester of church history at Bible College, and about a decade later read through the whole text-book. But that didn't give me a handle on a lot of the people, let alone help me relate to them. This book does an excellent job at that.

In the first edition of this book, Litfin selected ten people from the first five hundred years of church history; in this second edition, he adds two more. With each one, he gives a more contemporary illustration that either was connected to the perception of the church father or an event in their life (such as dealing with twins as an example of the debate on Christ's natures in the intro on Cyril of Alexandria). He then gives a short history of that person's life, and concludes with a section titled "Reflections on ________". This is followed by five or six discussion questions, helping bridge the gap between the historical person and our current times. A list of sources for further study are provided, and followed by "A Taste of __________" where it gives a sample of the writing of that individual.

This is not meant to be an exhaustive work on Church History. Neither of what I call the Clement Brothers (respectively of Rome and Alexandria) are dealt with, nor is Jerome. You learn some about people (good and bad alike) like Polycarp, Marcion, Montanus, Ambrose, and Leo the Great when they're mentioned in connection with one of the twelve highlighted people. I do think Perpetua seems a little out of place, and included only so there's a church mother there with all the church fathers. Likewise, while I consider Patrick of Ireland a hero of the faith, I would not consider him a church father.

It gave me an appreciation for my favorite church fathers, Tertullian and Athanasius. It also helped me gain an understanding of others like Ignatius and especially John Chrysostom. My pastor and I also took some time reading this book and going through the discussion questions.

I would highly recommend this book both for personal knowledge and for small groups.

Are you familiar with any of the church fathers? If so, who would be your favorites? Any other people from church history you consider heroes?

NOTE: The church fathers dealt with in this book are Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr, Iranneus of Lyons, Tertullian, Perpetua, Origen, Athanasius, Ephram the Syrian, John Chrysostom, Augustine of Hippo, Cyril of Alexandria, and Patrick of Ireland.