Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Recent Reads

Around the first of January, I said that this year I was going to read mostly older works. By "older" I meant at least 40 years old. I've lived up to that fairly well, having read some from Augustine and Karl Barth, some essays by C. S. Lewis, etc.

I did give myself some wiggle room, and decided to read My Grandfather's Son, the recently-published memoir by Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas. Wow! What a riveting life story. If you like inspiring biography, you really ought to get a copy. You'll have a hard time putting down this story of Justice Thomas and how he was shaped by the extraordinary man who raised him.

By the way, a few weeks ago I saw a statistic in some magazine about how long it had been since Justice Thomas had said anything during oral argument before the Court. It's often said that he hardly ever says anything during Court sessions. So is Clarence Thomas disinterested? Intellectually lazy? He responds to that and a few other questions in a recent Wall Street Journal article, "Mr. Constitution."

N. T. Wright continues to publish faster than I can read. But I did take the time to digest a recent article of his in Christianity Today magazine, "Heaven Is Not Our Home." Check it out and let me know what you think.

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8 comments:

  1. Royce Ogle11:25 AM

    Let me guess. The "new earth" is our home?

    His peace,
    Royce

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  2. Frank Bellizzi2:58 PM

    Royce, in the article, Wright doesn't talk about 2 Peter 3 or Revelation 21, where we get that expression "new earth."

    He does emphasize that life for the redeemed following the Second Coming will be bodily resurrection life, which is consistent with Paul's expectation of "the redemption of our bodies."

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  3. Royce Ogle8:54 AM

    Frank,

    I wholeheartedly agree that we will live the resurrection life in a body just as Jesus did on earth and does now.

    His Peace,
    Royce

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  4. preacherman10:19 AM

    Frank,
    I would love to recommend a wonderful book brother. "Adventures in Missing the Point" by Brian McLaren and Tony Campolo. It is one of the best books I have read in a long time.

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  5. Frank Bellizzi10:46 AM

    Good to hear from you guys.

    Preacherman, I had missed hearing about that book. Because of the authors, I'm interested to say the least. Thanks for the recommendation.

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  6. Anonymous5:33 PM

    Hey, Frank -

    Thanks for the review of the book and articles. Sound good.

    I hope you are doing well and that Michele's hearing continues to improve. I've been praying for her in it.

    Drop by Finding Direction when you have a little time and read my four Wind Vane posts and comment on which three you like best because I'm going to enter the three best in a writing contest and am looking for input.

    THANKS!

    Much love,

    Dee

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  7. Leland V8:47 AM

    The article by N T Wright in CT makes a lot of sense to me. I have a copy of "Surprised by Hope" sitting on the shelf, and will try to start it in the next few weeks. I have had difficulties explaining "life after life after death" to others, including Jackie, but I believe he is heading in the right direction with his explanation.

    It looks as though Spring may come to Kansas City this year, certainly before June.

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  8. Arlene Kasselman8:56 AM

    Frank, if you want to wiggle in another "new" book....have you read, "The Divine Embrace" by Robert Webber. I highly recommend it. The author is over 40, does that count?

    ReplyDelete