Criticism & Interpretation Books

The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible

A. J. Jacobs

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 405 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

From the bestselling author of The Know-It-All comes a fascinating and timely exploration of religion and the Bible.

Raised in a secular family but increasingly interested in the relevance of faith in our modern world, A.J. Jacobs decides to dive in headfirst and attempt to obey the Bible as literally as possible for one full year. He vows to follow the Ten Commandments. To be fruitful and multiply. To love his neighbor. But also to obey the hundreds of less publicized rules: to avoid wearing clothes made of mixed fibers; to play a ten-string harp; to stone adulterers.

The resulting spiritual journey is at once funny and profound, reverent and irreverent, personal and universal and will make you see history's most influential book with new eyes.

Jacobs's quest transforms his life even more radically than the year spent reading the entire Encyclopedia Britannica for The Know-It-All. His beard grows so unruly that he is regularly mistaken for a member of ZZ Top. He immerses himself in prayer, tends sheep in the Israeli desert, battles idolatry, and tells the absolute truth in all situations - much to his wife's chagrin.

Throughout the book, Jacobs also embeds himself in a cross-section of communities that take the Bible literally. He tours a Kentucky-based creationist museum and sings hymns with Pennsylvania Amish. He dances with Hasidic Jews in Brooklyn and does Scripture study with Jehovah's Witnesses. He discovers ancient biblical wisdom of startling relevance. And he wrestles with seemingly archaic rules that baffle the twenty-first-century brain.Jacobs's extraordinary undertaking yields unexpected epiphanies and challenges. A book that will charm readers both secular and religious, The Year of Living Biblically is part Cliff Notes to the Bible, part memoir, and part look into worlds unimaginable. Thou shalt not be able to put it down.

Mother Angelica's Private and Pithy Lessons from the Scriptures

Raymond Arroyo

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Total reviews: 8 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The Word is made fresh by the irrepressible Mother Angelica as she personally escorts you through the Scriptures, unearthing lessons for daily living--the perfect companion to the New York Times bestselling Mother Angelica's Little Book of Life Lessons and Everyday Spirituality.

The founder of the world's largest religious media empire shares her beloved wit and down-to-earth spirituality in MOTHER ANGELICA'S PRIVATE AND PITHY LESSONS FROM THE SCRIPTURES. Editor Raymond Arroyo draws on hundreds of never-before-released private lessons to present the renowned nun's definitive take on the Good Book. Angelica provides readers with guided meditations, probing personal questions, and reveals an often-overlooked practical spirituality. She doesn't just explain the stories, she relates them to our daily lives, helping even those who've never opened the Bible experience its power and life-altering lessons. The apostles Paul ("the little shrimp"), Peter ("that great bungler") and all the characters of the Scriptures are suddenly human again, complete with their foibles and triumphs. Here is the Greatest Story, newly told as only Mother Angelica can. The Bible and you will never be the same.

A portion of the royalties from this book goes to support the work of Our Lady of the Angels Monastery

The First Christmas: What the Gospels Really Teach About Jesus's Birth

Marcus J. Borg, John Dominic Crossan

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 20 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

I have learned so much 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I used a lot of this material for sermons last Christmas and the people received it well. I learned so much from this small book. I highly recommend it!

Editorial Review:

In The First Christmas, two of today's top Jesus scholars, Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan, join forces to show how history has biased our reading of the nativity story as it appears in the gospels of Matthew and Luke. As they did for Easter in their previous book, The Last Week, here they explore the beginning of the life of Christ, peeling away the sentimentalism that has built up over the last two thousand years around this most well known of all stories to reveal the truth of what the gospels actually say. Borg and Crossan help us to see this well-known narrative afresh by answering the question, "What do these stories mean?" in the context of both the first century and the twenty-first century. They successfully show that the Christmas story, read in its original context, is far richer and more challenging than people imagine.

Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why

Bart D. Ehrman

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Total reviews: 368 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

When world-class biblical scholar Bart Ehrman first began to study the texts of the Bible in their original languages he was startled to discover the multitude of mistakes and intentional alterations that had been made by earlier translators. In Misquoting Jesus, Ehrman tells the story behind the mistakes and changes that ancient scribes made to the New Testament and shows the great impact they had upon the Bible we use today. He frames his account with personal reflections on how his study of the Greek manuscripts made him abandon his once ultraconservative views of the Bible.

Since the advent of the printing press and the accurate reproduction of texts, most people have assumed that when they read the New Testament they are reading an exact copy of Jesus's words or Saint Paul's writings. And yet, for almost fifteen hundred years these manuscripts were hand copied by scribes who were deeply influenced by the cultural, theological, and political disputes of their day. Both mistakes and intentional changes abound in the surviving manuscripts, making the original words difficult to reconstruct. For the first time, Ehrman reveals where and why these changes were made and how scholars go about reconstructing the original words of the New Testament as closely as possible.

Ehrman makes the provocative case that many of our cherished biblical stories and widely held beliefs concerning the divinity of Jesus, the Trinity, and the divine origins of the Bible itself stem from both intentional and accidental alterations by scribes -- alterations that dramatically affected all subsequent versions of the Bible.

How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth

Gordon D Fee

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Total reviews: 88 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Wonderful Read for Christians of all Persuasions 4 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

The book is an excellent journey into the word of God and will get you pointed in the right direction. Many Christians do not study the word of God in the correct context and this book rectifies a long standing problem in the Evangelical community concerning the interpretation of Scripture. I was concerned about the author's pushing the TNIV as the translation of choice for serious study of the Bible. I would have preferred that they used the NRSV with the TNIV being a strong secondary translation for study. I did appreciate the fact that they encouraged the use of Bible dictonaries and commentaries to study scripture, but I felt that thay should have done a chapter on good study bibles that can aid in understanding the text. I did feel that they interjected their opinions too much in the book and gave us their pet peeves, couched in the language of exegesis and hermeneutics. In the same vein, they did debunk a few misinterpretations on some biblical passages and they allow for healthy dissent. The most important thing is to read the Bible and this book gives a good start.

Editorial Review:

Biblical interpretation for both beginning and experienced Bible readers. Changes to the new third edition include: updated language, new foreword, improved diagrams, substantial rewriting of several chapters to make them more user-friendly, and updated list of recommended commentaries and resources.

Tell It Slant: A Conversation on the Language of Jesus in His Stories and Prayers

Eugene H. Peterson

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Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Just as God used words both to create the world and to give us commandments, we too use words for many different purposes. In fact, we use the same language to talk to each other and to talk to God. Can our everyday speech, then, be just as important as the words and prayers we hear from the pulpit? Eugene Peterson unequivocally says Yes! Tell It Slant explores how Jesus used language he was earthy, not abstract; metaphorical, not dogmatic. His was not a direct language of information or instruction but an indirect, oblique language requiring a participating imagination slant language. In order to witness and teach accurately in Jesus name, then, it is important for us to use language the way he did. Part 1 focuses on Jesus words in everyday contexts his teachings to the crowds, the stories he told, his conversations with his disciples. Part 2 shifts the focus to Jesus prayers the words he spoke to God the Father.
Petersons Tell It Slant promises to deepen our understanding of Jesus words, strengthen our awareness of language as a gift of God, and nurture our efforts to make all of our speech convey a blessing to others.

3:16: The Numbers of Hope (Thorndike Press Large Print Inspirational Series)

Max Lucado

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Total reviews: 18 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

If 9/11 are the numbers of terror and despair, then 3:16 are the numbers of hope. Best-selling author Max Lucado leads readers through a word-by-word study of John 3:16, the passage that he calls the "Hope Diamond" of Scripture.

3:16 will have a large, multi-faceted campaign, including:

• Multiple licensed products to further extend 3:16 at retail. Partners thus far include Hallmark, Dayspring, Kerusso, and Bob Siemon Designs
• 3:16 curriculum and church musical in development
• 3:16 consumer music CD featuring top Christian music artists
• 3:16 as the centerpiece of a global ministry initiative launched worldwide via simulcast on Palm Sunday, 3/16/08
• Unprecedented release in several languages, including Spanish, German, Swedish, Dutch, Korean, Japanese, and Chinese
• Multiple ancillary publishing products to include evangelism booklet, DVD priced for giveaway, children's product, and gift book

Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist

John Piper

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Total reviews: 111 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Love the Lord Your God With All Your Heart and All Your Soul 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

~Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist~ is the book that started it all. Christian minister John Piper offers a profoundly controversial teaching of 'Christian Hedonism' popular in some evangelical circles, particularly amongst Reformed Protestants. The teaching of Christian Hedonism was first advanced in this book.

What might you ask is a 'Christian Hedonist'? 'Christian Hedonism' at its core sounds contradictory. Piper has stated that such a provocative appellation is "appropriate for a philosophy that has a life changing effect on its adherents." Piper notes: "Christian Hedonism is a liberating and devastating doctrine. It teaches that the value of God shines more brightly in the soul that finds deepest satisfaction in him. Therefore it is liberating because it endorses our inborn desire for joy. And it is devastating because it reveals that no one desires God with the passion he demands. Paradoxically, many people experience both of these truths. That certainly is my own experience (p. 13)."

Piper underscored the message of his works with a theme that the Puritan minister Jonathan Edwards was adamant about: "God is most satisfied in us, when we are most satisfied in Him." Piper elucidates, "This is the essence of what it means to love God -- to be satisfied in him. In him! Loving God may include obeying all his commands; it may include believing all his Word; it may include thanking him for all his gifts; but the essence of loving God is enjoying all he is" (p. 24).

For the philosophically minded, it is worthy of notation that this book was born out of a subliminal opposition to philosopher Immanuel Kant's deontology. Kant suggested: "An action is moral only if one has no desire to perform it, but performs it out of a sense of duty and derives no benefit from it of any sort." Piper is adamant that Scriptures contradict this assertion. Actions can indeed be moral when a Christian pursues them for spiritual gain. It's a heartfelt expression of faith to covet spiritual treasures in Heaven, and seek them as a humble servant. And through faith, walking in the footsteps of God, men can and should strive for spiritual treasures, and Crowns of Righteousness in light of the promises of God. How can we accrue eternal rewards? By obeying God, being ambassadors for Christ, striving to labor for His kingdom, taking pleasure in that work, and being diligent in our appointed station in life as servants of God. In doing so, we are laying hold of 'Future Grace,' which is a subject of another Piper book that later capstoned his 'Desiring God' trilogy.

Editorial Review:

Scripture reveals that the great business of life is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever. In this paradigm-shattering classic, newly revised and expanded, John Piper reveals that the debate between duty and delight doesn't truly exist: Delight is our duty. Readers will embark on a dramatically different and joyful experience of their faith

The pursuit of pleasure is not optional. It is essential.

Scripture reveals that the great business of life is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever. In this paradigm-shattering work, John Piper reveals that the debate between duty and delight doesn’t truly exist: Delight is our duty. Join him as he unveils stunning, life-impacting truths you saw in the Bible but never dared to believe.

Things Hidden: Scripture As Spirituality

Richard Rohr

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Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

richard releases the freshest breeze of resurrection air 5 out of 5 stars.
5 of 7 people found this review helpful.

with this book, once again richard
releases the freshest breeze of resurrection air
within the catholic tradition.

i entreat mr bunbury to read the book again,
but this time with easter-eyes
and thus enter the joy of being wrong
(to paraphrase james alison,
another one of the freshest, catholic voices).

rohr here gives us in simple language
(and without losing any of the depth)
an interpretation of the paradigmatic work of rene girard.
for this christianity as a whole is to be grateful.

but mostly the book continues richard's
efforts to expand on the venture that is
living one's life grafted upon the
life-abundant of resurrection-spirit.

Nothing To Be Afraid of in God 4 out of 5 stars.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

"The amazing wonder of biblical revelation that I hope to make clear in this book is that God is much different than we thought, and also much better than we feared," promises Richard Rohr in the first chapter of Things Hidden. The book is based on the author's earlier talks on great themes of scripture. Two key themes he stresses are "Divine, unmerited generosity" is offered unconditionally, and the Spirit promised by Jesus is available to all.

In the Bible, writes Rohr, any time God or an angel breaks into human life, the event is prefaced by "Do not be afraid." God's entering the scene was considered bad news. "Even today most feel that God's love and attention must be earned and then we deeply resent the process." The earliest Hebrews saw God as punitive and petty, demanding of blood sacrifices. By the time of Abraham the sacrificial instinct "matured a bit," Rohr tells us, and animals became the sacrifice of choice "to please this fearsome God." When we get to the Risen Jesus, there is nothing to be afraid of in God.

The author uses numerous examples to show the gradual enlightenment. Of the Adam and Eve story, he suggests that seeking knowledge may seem more like virtue than sin. However, it isn't knowledge that God is trying to keep us from, but "lust for certitude, explanation, resolution and answers." He sees Noah's Ark as an image of how God liberates us, embodying "the contradictions, the opposites, the tensions and the paradoxes of humanity." And in Mary, he finds God's total gift of grace. She asks how the angel's proposition will come about without wondering why she is chosen or protesting her unworthiness "It takes all of the Bible to work up to one perfect vessel that knows how to say an unquestioning yes to an utterly free gift."

The Bible for Dummies

Jeffrey C. Geoghegan, Michael M. Homan

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Total reviews: 28 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The Bible has been translated into more languages, sold more copies, and been read by more people than any other book in history, but when trying to understand the book as a whole, its difficult to know where to begin. The Bible For Dummies explains in plain English whats in the Bible, how its organized, who wrote it, and what its all about. This engaging guide includes easy-to-use maps, charts, and pictures to help you make sense of the Bible and important historical and cultural insights that bring the Bible to life. Writing from an interfaith perspective, the authors focus on the Bible not only as a holy book for people of faith but also as a cultural reference necessary for understanding works of art, literature, and public discourse. With fascinating background information, The Bible For Dummies is a[n interesting] one-stop guide to the worlds all-time bestseller.

Jeffrey Geoghegan, PhD, is Assistant Professor of Biblical Theology at Boston College. Michael Homan, PhD, is Assistant Professor of Biblical Studies at Xavier University, Louisiana. They are also coauthors of The Nine Commandments and Over and Under the Biblical Lands.