Friday, September 14, 2007



Searching for God Knows What

by Donald Miller
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Publishers Weekly:
Miller, author of Blue Like Jazz, serves as campus ministry leader at Reed College. His writing voice is casual and somewhat eccentric, while his theories-largely derived from experience rather than extensive study-are at times brilliant, at times questionable and rarely supported by outside sources. The book covers a great deal of territory: Miller's walking away from God as a teenager and returning to his faith; the competitive nature of human relationships, painfully demonstrated through junior high memories; the meaning of morality and religion; the essence of true Christianity. ...

This has lots to recommend it - though I would say I liked Blue Like Jazz more... but it has a nice survey of Miiler's life, and lots of quirky observations about life and faith. His metaphors of life as (or not as ) a lifeboat, and the circus freak-dimensions are not your run of the mill inspirational book.


Whose Bible Is It?: A Short History of the Scriptures

by Jaroslav Jan Pelikan
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In Whose Bible Is It?, renowned historian Jaroslav Pelikan provides a succinct, accessible introduction to the history of the Bible. The author of Jesus Through the Ages traces the evolution of the holy book from oral traditions to biblical texts to its translations into Latin, Greek, and other languages. He explains how for centuries, Jews, Christians, and Moslems have used biblical interpretation to bolster their authority and doctrinal positions.


I *finally* finished listening to the audio book of this. It wasn't that I didn't like it, I just have lots of audio material (daily podcasts plus other books) - and this takes a little more concentration to listen too.

Very good survey of the Bible and its history among people of faith (and no faith). A devotional story, really - that is, I found inspiring the recounting of the devotion of believers through the ages - something for all of us to aspire to.