Religious Books > D Religious Books

Advantages: An interesting look at ecumenical and interfaith issues
Disadvantages: -

Marjorie Hewitt Suchocki challenges the old assumptions of religious pluralism on many levels in her text, `Divinity and Diversity: A Christian Affirmation of Religious Pluralism.' As she states in the preface, once upon a time religious diversity in America largely extended to the different varieties of Protestant churches, and the one Catholic church (and, maybe, if the town was large enough, a Synagogue). As Judeo-Christian thought shares a common ...
...didn't involve much more than looking beyond various shades of gray. Today's situation is vastly different, with the number of world and home-grown religions in many communities reach double or even triple digit proportions. Suchocki asks the question, how do we deal with this phenomenon as Christians? Through various discussions of creation, radical incarnation, and the image of God in Godself, Suchocki argues that both the created world and God ... Read review

Advantages: Extremely well written, Counteracts Dawkins arguments concisely, Small book
Disadvantages: Some chapters extremely short, though this is not neceserilly a weakness.

The body of the text in this book talks about extremely complicated philosphical and theological concerning both the existence and nature of God that Richard Dawkins so casually and powerfully attempts to devalue. It is written to form the counter argument to Richard Dawkin's controversial book "The God Delusion" and does just that. Where some authors would be tempted to pile in every argument under the sun to do this, Cornwell is extremely particular, ...
...It is not written as an angry God attempting to shout down a non-believer either. In fact, the peace that is present in the volume of this book is extremely humbling and reminds Dawkins what the Christian doctrine of God and Angels are. Peace, Love, Goodwill. Not Anger, Hate, Suffering. ... Read review

Advantages: Interesting writing, good brief summaries
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...is this title? -------------------------------------------------------------------- Doctors of the Church have been so named because they have provided critical insight into the life, practice, spirituality and definition of the church at key historical points, and have done so in such as way as to endeavour to teach and otherwise impart this knowledge to others. These are the great teachers of the church, in word and deed. They are divided into ...
...of church councils. These Patristic Doctors are thirteen in number: Athanasius of Alexandria Ephrem the Syrian Hilary of Poitiers Cyril of Jerusalem Basil of Caesarea Gregory of Nazianzus Ambrose of Milan John Chrysostom Jerome Augustine of Hippo Cyril of Alexandria Peter Chrysologus Leo the Great The next subgrouping is the Medieval Doctors: Gregory the Great Isador of Seville Bede the Venerable John of Damascus Peter Damian Anselm ... Read review

Advantages: Well written, fascinating subject
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...with using a sword. David's loyalty to Saul and to Israel is, through much of David's early career, never complete and never without question. Consider this: 'suppose, during the height of the Cold War, a popular American general decided to reside the USSR because he had a difficulty with the President, and even helped them in a few military operations against American interests. When that President was gone, he returned to the United States. Is ...
...interest is the succession -- David's reign was never a peaceful one, and with so many sons running around waiting for a chance to reign, it is no wonder there would be strife. Was the succession of Solomon, however, David's own design, or has history been revised to legitimise Solomon? Certainly in modern convention we have a difficult time understanding the nuanced behaviours of the characters involved in the story. One question that can be asked ... Read review

Advantages: Great insights, good travel story
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...anchorite and hermit in the desert in Christian history. Anthony gave up the splendours of life in Egypt (which was, at his time, one of the most splendid places on earth to live), forsaking the Nile for the desert, and forsaking the customs and comforts of society for the solitary, mud-brick and cave existence of an ascetic. Cowan traveled to the still-extant Monastery of St. Anthony, near Mount Colzim (for those looking on maps, it might also be ...
...the men of the Egyptian desert were the first to devise a Christ-like modus vivendi that broke with the classical model. No matter what might be said about the early Christian theologians as intellectual and spiritual pioneers - men such as Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, Origen, Jerome, Athanasius, and even Augustine - they were still classically motivated in their actions and still saw themselves as philosophers whose reputations were founded ... Read review