St. Peter's United Methodist Church

July 2002 Newsletter

BOOKS

Books have been, are, and always will be an important part of the Church’s life. After all, the Christian faith has a tradition that goes back 2,000 years, and that tradition will continue until our Lord returns in glory.

The faith and its tradition begin with the Word, the Word of God. And the written Word, the Bible, is our first and primary book. The Bible is the Church’s book. And the Bible has been the inspiration of countless books over the centuries. All of those books add up to this claim: Christianity today possesses the deepest, most enduring intellectual tradition available in the world.

A few weeks ago the Education Committee at St. Peter’s Church asked that the pastor provide a list of suggested books that might be appropriate for the Church Library. This pastor was a bit surprised by, and most grateful for, this assignment. Below is the list that was developed.

Perhaps you will not be interested in the titles that follow. On the other hand, perhaps you might want to borrow or buy one or two of them, and use some summer hours for some enrichment of the mind and heart.

*Anatomy of the New Testament: A Guide to Its Structure and Meaning by D. Moody Smith and Robert A. Spivey. This is a useful introduction to the New Testament and a good handbook of Biblical theology.

*The Book of Discipline (2002). This contains the doctrine and discipline of The United Methodist Church.

*The Book of Resolutions (2002). This is a compilation of resolutions passed at recent General Conferences. These resolutions function as commentaries on, and applications of, The Social Principles of The United Methodist Church.

*Catechism of the Catholic Church. All the bishops of the Roman Catholic Church participated in the development of this book. It contains an outstanding index of citations from the Bible.

*The Content of Our Character: A New Vision of Race in America by Shelby Steele. This presents a different way to look at race today.

*The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Bonhoeffer, executed by the Nazis at the end of World War II, is both devotional and doctrinal in this important work.

*Crossing the Threshold of Hope by John Paul II. This book is brief but profound.

*Eucharist and Eschatology by Geoffrey Wainwright. The Service of Holy Communion is powerfully linked to the coming Kingdom of God, Professor Wainwright contends.

*Foolishness to the Greeks: The Gospel and Western Culture by Lesslie Newbigin. This book describes how Western Civilization resulted from, and is challenged by, the Christian Gospel.

*Freedom for Ministry by Richard John Neuhaus. A very helpful text on faithful, ordained ministry today.

*John Wesley, edited by Albert C. Outler. This is a collection of important works by Wesley. Outler’s theological description of Wesley’s life is wonderful.

*Letters and Papers from Prison by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. This contains instructive and moving correspondence from a great Lutheran theologian who was to die at the hands of the Nazis.

*Man’s Search for Meaning: An Introduction to Logotherapy by Viktor E. Frankl. This is an approach to psychology, unlike most, that takes morality seriously.

*Moral Man and Immoral Society by Reinhold Niebuhr. This is by one of America’s great public theologians.

*Moral Vision of the New Testament: A Contemporary Introduction to New Testament Ethics by Richard B. Hays. This is an example of outstanding Biblical theology for our time.

*The Naked Public Square: Religion and Democracy in America by Richard John Neuhaus. This is a convincing description of religion’s place in American public life.

*The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. This is an outstanding, basic reference book on the Church catholic.

*Resident Aliens: A Provocative Christian Assessment of Culture and Ministry for People Who Know that Something Is Wrong by Stanley Hauerwas and William H. Williimon. This book will change your thinking, if not you mind, about the Church today.

*Strength to Love by Martin Luther King, Jr. This is a solid collection of Dr. King’s sermons.

*Understanding the Old Testament by Bernard W. Anderson. This work provides an inviting entrance into the world of the Old Testament.

*Wesley’s Notes on the New Testament by John Wesley. This is Wesley’s commentary on the New Testament.