Tag: society

Book Briefs: “America’s Pastor: Billy Graham and the Shaping of a Nation” by Grant Wacker

~ Bob Hayton ~ Leave a comment

Billy Graham passed away this week at the ripe old age of 99. He had been withdrawn from public life for quite a number of years now, giving his last sermon by video five years ago. It has been more than 12 years since his last evangelistic crusade. Gone are the days where crowds would flock to hear this giant of a man and his addresses would be telecast on live TV. Now an entire generation of Christians has grown up largely unfamiliar with Graham and his ministry.

The occasion of his death offers many of us a good reason to remind ourselves of Graham’s significance. There are a number of good biographies on Graham and a wealth of resources for studying his unique impact on American Christianity and Culture at large, and Christianity Today has a commemorative magazine edition – with an interactive webpage to go with it.

A few years ago I listened to an audio book from ChristianAudio.com that I want to recommend as a helpful introduction to those who may not be fully aware of the impact Billy Graham has had on our nation. Wacker’s book is not exactly a biography, and Wacker himself is a self-proclaimed evangelical who sides with Graham on a number of his positions. The book instead walks through Graham’s life and evaluates what it was that made him great. It asks who exactly was this man?

The chapters explore different aspects of Graham: his roles of preacher, icon, Southerner, entrepreneur, architect, pilgrim, pastor, and patriarch. The ethos of Graham’s ministry amid the backdrop of the cultural and social nature of the day are stressed. A lot of time is devoted to Graham’s interaction with the presidents and his own angst at Nixon’s fall. Also highlighted is the key role that Graham played, early on, in helping the civil rights movement in the 50s — including his asking Martin Luther King Jr. to pray at his 1957 New York Madison Square Gardens Crusade. Some argue that Graham could have done more on this issue and others, and Walker explores the ins and outs of that debate and situates Graham within the context of his time as a one who moved the needle in positive ways.

Wacker highlights controversial points of Graham’s legacy, too. He explores Graham’s departure from American fundamentalism and his creation of a moderate position (which became known as new evangelicalism, and which is spawned the Evangelicalism most prevalent today). He pinpoints a bizarre interview with Robert Schuler, and presses into what Graham may have really believed about inerrancy and other doctrinal questions. He spent time on some newly discovered disparaging marks Graham made toward Jews in the oval office – and what that says (and doesn’t) about his character. Overall Wacker paints a portrait of Graham that is rich and colorful, and yet reveals a simple and true-hearted man, who honestly attempted to introduce as many people as possible to the life-giving message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ by whatever means were at his disposal.

The final part of the book includes Wacker’s own accounts of his interviews with the aged Graham, and his attempt to size up the real Graham. The aged evangelist exuded a warm humility that appealed to Wacker, and which appealed to so many throughout his decades of public ministry.

The audiobook version of this book is easy to listen to: the narrator reads in a matter of fact voice, but not with an emotional poignance that can at time distract. The format may make it an easy way to reflect on Graham and evangelical history amid the pressures of today’s modern world. I highly recommend this title.

Book Blurbs:

“Excellent… It is not a biography, but rather a disciplined, admirably fair-minded effort to understand and explain how 20th-century American culture produced a figure like Billy Graham, and how Graham in turn helped to shape that same culture.” — Robert P. George, Professor of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University

“A striking and authoritative account of one of the most influential Americans of recent times. Wacker writes gracefully and offers a fund of astute insights. By exploring Graham’s background, his character, his beliefs, and his work, he reveals how Graham could move so comfortably among the powerful and at the same time always be able to speak effectively to so many ordinary people. Both Graham’s admirers and his critics will come away from America’s Pastor with a fresh appreciation of the man and his world.” — George M. Marsden, author of The Twilight of the American Enlightenment: The 1950s and the Crisis of Liberal Belief

“Grant Wacker has given us a superb―and richly detailed―portrait of Billy Graham, presented in the context of a solid cultural and historical analysis of the era in which Graham served as the kind of religious leader we are not likely to see again. And all of this from a marvelous storyteller. Wacker’s deeply moving epilogue can stand alone as a model of inspiring prose!” — Richard J. Mouw, Professor of Faith and Public Life and former President, Fuller Theological Seminary

Where to Buy:
Pick up a copy of this book at any of the following online retailers: Amazon, ChristianBook.com, or direct from ChristianAudio.com or Harvard University Press.

Disclaimer:
This book was provided by ChristianAudio.com. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a positive review.

About Book Briefs: Book Briefs are book notes, or short-form book reviews. They are my informed evaluation of a book, but stop short of being a full-length book review.

Book Briefs: “Old-Earth or Evolutionary Creation? Discussing Origins with Reasons to Believe and BioLogos”

~ Bob Hayton ~ 1 Comment

Science and Faith are at a crossroads in today’s world. The new atheists like Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, and Stephen Hawking are pushing the conclusion that Science rules out Faith. No need to believe in a “God of the gaps” anymore. Everything can be explained by Science.

Christians can seem to corroborate this view by disputing the widely held claims of Science and clinging stubbornly to a young earth based on their interpretation of the first book of the Bible. Case in point. You either take Science, or you hold to your Faith.

Increasingly, evangelical Christians are moving away from an “anti-Science” approach (which itself largely stems from the 1961 book The Genesis Flood by John Whitcomb and Henry Morris), and embracing an “old-earth creationist” approach which has an affinity with evangelical positions held widely from the 18th through early 20th Centuries. Two of the most influential Christian organizations which respect Science and hold to an old earth, yet also stand against the new atheism and its denial of a Creator, are Reasons to Believe (RTB) and BioLogos.

The main difference between the two is RTB’s denial of evolution as the mechanism by which God created animals and man. Instead RTB believes in a series of special creative acts throughout Earth’s long history. BioLogos on the other hand, sees evolution as testament to God’s handiwork and not at all antithetical to a belief in human exceptionalism and humanity’s creation in the Image of God. Their approach is termed evolutionary creation.

Such is not a small difference, but over the past several years representatives from both of these organizations have met routinely to dialogue and better understand their respective positions. This book is one of the results of that ongoing interaction. The moderators for their meetings have been professors at a number of Southern Baptist institutions, who mostly represent a young earth approach. Each chapter in the book starts with one of the Southern Baptist moderators presenting the stage for that chapter’s topic and asking questions of both organizations.

Rather than being a typical “two views” book, the use of moderators keeps the tone gracious and the result is an introduction to the views of both organizations on a host of important topics related to the intersection of Science and Faith generally, and on the evidences for evolution in particular. Key topics covered include how each group explains natural evil and death predating “the Fall”, what range of options concerning Adam and Eve are viable positions for each group, what role does natural theology play, how does the Bible inform their scientific positions, how is the fossil evidence for evolution and particularly the hominids best explained, and how does genetics support each group’s position.

This book delivered a fantastic introduction to each organization and points the way forward for further research. It will introduce people to viable evangelical positions and raise questions and evidences that the reader may not have thought of before. It is a technical book, and there will be sections over the head of the average reader, but for the most part the moderators do a good job of keeping things grounded.

For those who hold to a young-earth, there is not much in this volume that directly addresses the evidences for an old-earth and why each organization holds to that understanding, even though one or two of the moderators seem to ask for some of this. Instead both groups agree and move on to the areas where they disagree. In a few of the chapters, there are points I would have raised for or against a given position that don’t arise. I am surprised, for instance, that the fusing of two chromosomes found in chimpanzees into a single chromosome found in humans is not brought up (as potential evidence for evolution to be dealt with) in the chapter on genetics. That being said, I learned a lot more about genetics than I had previously, and that illustrates the only real problem I have with this book: there is so much more that could be said in any of these chapters! But all things considered, the editors do a great job of including as much content as they do and still keeping the book readable.

Above all, this book does a great job illustrating how Christians can and should interaction on such issues. The gracious spirit and charitable dialogue found here should be an example for all of us as we think through how best to comprehend the data that Science continues to bring forth in light of the bedrock reality of the Authority of Scripture. This book goes along way toward lighting the way for those who seek to embrace both Science and Faith, and at the very least it advances the discussion in meaningful ways.

Blurbs:
“This conversation is definitely worth listening to! The book is deeply satisfying, with knowledgeable and articulate advocates of differing positions expounding on areas of disagreement clearly as well as respectfully. At the same time, it is deeply unsatisfying, but in a good way: I found my own assumptions challenged, my horizons stretched. I think differently after reading it. An excellent job by all participants, moderators included.”
—C. John “Jack” Collins, professor of Old Testament, Covenant Theological Seminary, St. Louis

“This Reasons to Believe and BioLogos conversation is highly commendable, and it’s important for a number of reasons. First, its tone is irenic, gracious, and humble. Second, its participants trust the Christian integrity of the other conversation partners. Third, it takes the authority of Scripture seriously as participants grapple with the implications of biblical interpretation in light of scientific discovery. Fourth, the Southern Baptist theologians serving as moderators are effective in guiding and focusing the conversation as they call for clarification and further elaboration from both sides. Finally, this conversation takes for granted the strong evidence for an ancient earth, allowing the discussion to push past the young-earth versus old-earth debate to far more pressing issues needing attention within the Christian community”
—Paul Copan, professor and Pledger Family Chair of Philosophy and Ethics, Palm Beach Atlantic University, coeditor of The Dictionary of Christianity and Science

“Origins, particularly human origins, continues to be a controversial issue among evangelical Protestants. In Old-Earth or Evolutionary Creation?, the organizations BioLogos and Reasons to Believe model a respectful interchange of ideas in spite of their significant differences. The result is an intelligent and illuminating discussion of this crucial and timely topic.”
—Tremper Longman III, Robert H. Gundry Professor of Biblical Studies, Westmont College

Where to Buy:
Pick up a copy of this book at any of the following online retailers: Amazon, ChristianBook.com, or direct from IVP.

Disclaimer:
This book was provided by IVP Academic. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a positive review.

About Book Briefs: Book Briefs are book notes, or short-form book reviews. They are my informed evaluation of a book, but stop short of being a full-length book review.

Book Briefs: “Against the Flow: The Inspiration of Daniel in an Age of Relativism” by John Lennox

~ Bob Hayton

Against the Flow: The Inspiration of Daniel in an Age of Relativism by John LennoxJohn Lennox is professor of Mathematics at Oxford, yet he offers us a commentary on the Old Testament book of Daniel as an encouragement for Christians everywhere to continue to stand “against the flow” of today’s secular age. Lennox has debated Richard Dawkins, and is known for his books integrating faith and science. He is an old-earth creationist and well versed in the philosophical debates which threaten the faith in our age. His new book Against the Flow: The Inspiration of Daniel in an Age of Relativism (Monarch Books, 2015) is a popular-level reflection on the book of Daniel that is both inspiring and challenging.

The book is not a detailed exegetical commentary on the text of Daniel. Instead it is more of a social commentary, drawing lessons from Daniel’s day and drawing parallels with our own age of skepticism and secularism. The book is replete with quotes from philosophers and news articles, ancient Near-Eastern texts and a vareity of other works. Pictures play a large role, and are interspersed in the text and also found in a full color insert section in the middle.

Lennox writes with British humor, at times, and with a scientist’s mind on the text. His exegetical insights are not profound, but he brings out the big picture realities that flow from the text. This is not a science and faith title, necessarily. It is about the Biblical book of Daniel. But there are lessons to be drawn that apply to the science debate and others. He offers some techincal resources and includes several appendices. And while he does defend the faith and the historicity of Daniel, that is not the book’s primary purpose. This is written to inspire believers to stand firm for their Christian faith in an age of secularism. We haven’t faced the lions in our Western society quite yet, but Daniel has much to offer us as to how to influence the culture while standing true to our faith.

This book is not a simple read, and its message is not light. It offers a challenge to our faith and an encouragement at the same time. I hope it will find a wide readership.

Blurbs:
“Few parts of Scripture are more conscious of the clash between the wisdom of God and the wisdom of the world than the Old Testament book of Daniel. Few authors today are more expert at analysing and articulating both than John Lennox. It is a masterful combination, and the result is extraordinary.”
—John Dickson, Founding Director, Centre for Public Christianity; Senior Research Fellow, Department of Ancient History, Macquarie University; Author, A Doubter’s Guide to the Bible

“This book is an outstanding example of our responsibility both to understand God’s Word and the culture in which we live, and then to make the connections between the two. John Lennox is uniquely gifted to help us do this, as he addresses the big themes of God’s work in history, the place of morality, the nature of humankind, the challenges to faith, the trustworthiness of scripture, and the call to proclaim the truth whatever the cost. As a Bible teacher, a scientist, and a courageous disciple of Christ, John Lennox has provided us with an extraordinary resource – I wholeheartedly recommend this remarkable book.”
—Jonathan Lamb, CEO and minister-at-large, Keswick Ministries

“John Lennox has done it again. Combining deep thought, pervasive research and a keen eye on contemporary Western culture, Lennox has managed to draw tight, informative parallels between Daniel’s life and circumstances and the contemporary believer’s life and circumstances. In my view, the most interesting point in Against the Flow is Lennox’s point that while embedded in the top echelons of a pluralistic culture growingly hostile to biblical religion, Daniel did not rest content to shrink his witness to one of personal piety. Instead, Daniel maintained public engagement with the ideas and practices extant in his day. Finally, Lennox offers wise advice and practical application for how we can become modern-day Daniels. I highly recommend this book.”
—J. P. Moreland, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, Biola University

Where to Buy:
Pick up a copy of this book at any of the following online retailers: Amazon, ChristianBook.com, or direct from Kregel Books (US distributor for Monarch).

Disclaimer:
This book was provided by the publisher for review. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a positive review.

About Book Briefs: Book Briefs are book notes, or short-form book reviews. They are my informed evaluation of a book, but stop short of being a full-length book review.

Book Briefs: “Blood and Bone” by Don Hoesel

~ Bob Hayton

Blood and Bone by Don HoeselHidden enclaves, secret societies, and mysterious codes await the reader of this book; as do car chases, gun fights, and the discovery of skulls in dark catacombs. Archeologist and adventurer, Jack Hawthorne can’t seem to shake such dark discoveries as he makes his way around the globe. And in this third and final book detailing his adventures, Hawthorne will finally come to the end of himself and unravel the secrets of an ancient society, thousands of years old and as evil as they come.

Blood and Bone is the third and final book in Don Hoesel’s adventure series following the life of archaeologist and bounty hunter, Jack Hawthorne. In the earlier books, Elisha’s Bones and Serpent of Moses, Hawthorne makes improbable discoveries of biblical relics with miraculous power. Along the way he makes enemies and raises the ire of fellow bounty hunters and government officials the world over.

Hawthorne’s adventures takes him to five continents, and lands him in impossible situations and dire predicaments more times than can be remembered. His weapons are his wide grasp of archaeology and ancient languages, dumb luck and his slowly growing faith in the God of his youth. This tale finds him married to his long-time girlfriend who happens to be a world-class authority on ancient cultures herself. She doesn’t let him venture off alone as together they race to meet the demands of the kidnappers who have stolen their two children.

In this final installment, Hoesel pulls all the stops and delivers a top-notch adventure that gets to the bottom of the secret society Jack has tangled with in the first two books. Along the way, Jack finally discovers the faith that has eluded him, and the adventure series reaches a satisfying finish.

Unlike the second book in the series, this one returns to the high level of artistry Hoesel accomplished in his first title. The books cover fantastic and unbelievable tales, but the stories themselves are well-written, and credible. The characters are intricately developed and suspense and discovery take turns dominating the narrative.

Readers looking for a fast-paced, mystery tale in the vein of Indiana Jones or Paul Maier’s A Skeleton in God’s Closet, will eat up this series from Don Hoesel. This is archaeological fiction at its best. I highly recommend it.

Pick up a copy of this book at any of the following online retailers: Amazon, ChristianBook.com, or direct from Bethany House.

Disclaimer: This book was provided by Bethany House Publishers. The reviewer was under no obligation to offer a positive review.

About Book Briefs: Book Briefs are book notes, or short-form book reviews. They are my informed evaluation of a book, but stop short of being a full-length book review.

What Jerry Sandusky’s Fall Teaches Us about the Christian Basis for Morality

~ Bob Hayton ~ 3 Comments

Like most everyone else, my heart was sickened by all the news surrounding Jerry Sandusky. Now that he has been convicted on 45 counts of child sexual molestation, it seems that justice is served. Setting aside the questions of whether Penn State should have done more to ferret out Sandusky, his conviction offers an opportunity to ponder the moral impulse of our society. By and large, the general public is shocked and outraged by Sandusky’s behavior, especially since he was in a position of authority. Pedophilia is universally condemned, and this by people of many different world-views.

The Gospel Coalition blog alerted me to an excellent article in the Catholic World Report that explores why Sandusky is guilty in the public opinion. The answer is Christianity and its effect on our culture and its undergirding of our moral fibers for hundreds of years. Let me excerpt the article and encourage you to go read the whole thing.

This is 2012. Turn the historical clock back 2000 years, and find yourself in the pagan Roman Empire before Christianity arose, i.e., before the Christianization of the West. In Rome, as in ancient Greece, homosexuality was completely acceptable. To be more exact, homosexual activity was frowned on (but not very diligently) when it occurred between two free-born men, but it was cheerfully affirmed between a master and his slave, and even more, a man and a boy between the ripe ages of about 12 to 17—just the target age of Sandusky. The man generally presented himself as a kindly benefactor to the boy, taking him under his wing, so to speak, and (in return for sexual favors) helping him up the social ladder. Just like Sandusky.

If Sandusky would have lived 2000 years ago, he would not have been found guilty of anything. He would not even have been noticed. His actions would have been entirely unremarkable. There would have been no disgust, no anger. The verdict would have been innocent, and in fact, the notion that he was guilty of anything would have been unintelligible.

There is one and only one reason, 2000 years later, that Sandusky is guilty now…Our consciences, our minds, our hearts, our legal system in America have been formed by Christian moral teaching about sexuality. Subtract Christianity from history, and we would be back in Rome. In pagan Rome, Sandusky would be innocent.

The piece goes on to illustrate how natural morality, darwinianism, democracy, psychology and philosophy all fail to lead to a condemnation of the kinds of acts that Sandusky is convicted of. But the article concludes with a warning:

But again, here’s the problem. Our society is being successively and successfully de-Christianized. The moral formation is wearing off rapidly. Now that we’ve answered the why of Sandusky’s guilt, we’ve got one more question to ask: How long will we continue to feel guilty?

That is a good question indeed. But I would demur. We still have many Christian underpinnings in our society, and for that we should be thankful. I often bring up this free attitude toward pedophilia or even ritualistic sex that was so pervasive in Rome and Corinth, and other ancient cultures, when I encounter the widespread Christian pessimism about how bad things are getting today. Christianity thrived in the most pagan of cultures, and it will continue to thrive the darker it gets today. Saving our society and improving our secular culture shouldn’t be the primary focus of Christians. Living out the Gospel of Jesus Christ in all its tranformative moral power should be. May God help us “be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom [we] shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life” (Phil. 2:15b-16a).