Author: rtrube54

The Weekly Wrap: October 12-18

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The Weekly Wrap: October 12-18

The First Amendment and Readers

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

One of the most chilling conversations I had about twenty years ago was with a progressive law student who argued for the repeal of the First Amendment. More recently, the arguments have come from conservative voices. Just as chilling.

The First Amendment, I would argue, is one of the most extraordinary statements in the history of government, perhaps alongside and a direct descendent of the Magna Carta. It sets forth a seamless garment of freedom consisting of five strands: freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and freedom to petition the government.

Those living in the United States may believe, say, and publish what they choose with a few exceptions, gather with like-minded people, and individually and collectively appeal to the government to make right a grievance. It doesn’t mean we are free to defame another, incite to imminent lawless action, threaten violence, engage in obscenity, or commit fraud. And it doesn’t permit civil disobedience, the breaking of a law in making a protest. Those who commit civil disobedience need to understand that they may be charged and punished for their act.

Today is the day of “No Kings” demonstrations throughout the United States. Whatever you think of these gatherings, I hope we can affirm the First Amendment Rights of those who protest, so long as their words and actions do not exceed First Amendment protections. But it means living with speech we may not like, even speech to which we may take offense. That’s why the law students I was speaking with twenty years ago wanted to do away with the First Amendment. They believed in a mythical freedom to not be offended or disagreed with. And I think it is the same thing that may animate calls to repeal the First Amendment today.

Every reader, no matter your politics, should oppose any such effort. To restrict what we may say, believe, and publish is to restrict what we may read and think. But this means seeing books we disagree with. In addition, it means defending the right to publish and seek an audience for such books. However, it also means the freedom to make good arguments about what is wrong with those books. For example, it protects the freedom of book critics to “pan” a book. The remedy for free speech we don’t like or disagree with is dissenting free speech. In essence, that means not less speech but more.

Therefore, as readers, let’s keep the First Amendment first!

Five Articles Worth Reading

But can we use speech to build bridges rather than walls? “The Connector” profiles former atheist turned Catholic Leah Libresco Sargeant. She promotes discourse across divides. Likewise, her own ideas fail to fit neatly into our political boxes.

One of my favorite U2 songs is “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.” “A Warning for the Modern Striver” review a biography of Peter Matthiessen, portraying his life as a relentless search for “True Nature.”

Have you ever walked into a bookstore, glimpsed the new releases and wondered what is worth perusing and perhaps buying. The Millions’ “Great Fall 2025 Book Preview” came out this week with around one hundred titles they considered worth reading. They offer brief summaries of each book.

But where do you go to buy such books? One place might be Recluse Books if you are anywhere near Fort Worth, Texas. “Recluse books” interviews one of the store owners who made this comment on the name of the store: “There’s so much focus on the reclusive writer, but reading is also a reclusive, solitary activity. It requires you to focus on something and be alone with the words if you’re really going to do it well.” Sounds like my kind of place!

Finally, developing a kinder, gentler culture begins with each of us. One thing it means is building real friendships rather than just having online “friends” and “followers.” And for parents, it means helping our children build good friendships, as well. “3 Picture Books That Capture the Essence of Friendship” might be a place to begin.

Quote of the Week

Playwright Eugene O’Neill was born October 16, 1888. He made this thought-provoking observation:

“Man is born broken. He lives by mending. The grace of God is glue.”

Miscellaneous Musings

I was captivated by Charlie Mackesy’s The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse. So I was delighted to receive Always Remember, his new book, featuring the same characters, drawn in the same way.

Although I no longer write about Growing Up in Working Class Youngstown, I still love books with a Youngstown connection. Runs in the Family is the story of Deland McCullough, a former NFL running back and coach who grew up on Youngstown’s East side. He was adopted, and only in his forties did he learn who his parents were, giving him the surprise of his life.

I review a lot of Christian literature. So, I found myself resonating with Matthew James Smith’s article “I Don’t Like Christian Literature.” Paradoxically, he argues that the books he has liked are the ones that don’t make him feel good. I agree. Thus, I try to find those books to review (though not always succeeding).

Next Week’s Reviews

Monday: Mitchell Chase, Walking the Way of the Wise

Tuesday: Ethan Tapper, How to Love a Forest

Wednesday: Stephen J. Chester, Paul Through the Eyes of the Reformers

Thursday: Sarah Spain and Deland McCullough, Runs in the Family

Friday: Erin F. Moniz, Knowing and Being Known

So, that’s The Weekly Wrap for October 12-18.

Find past editions of The Weekly Wrap under The Weekly Wrap heading on this page

Review: Buckeye

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Cover image of "Buckeye" by Patrick Ryan

Buckeye, Patrick Ryan. Random House (ISBN: 9780593595039) 2025.

Summary: Two couples in a small, post-war Ohio town have secrets between them that will shake their lives and the son who connects them.

Why was everyone in small town Bonhomie, Ohio celebrating? That’s what Margaret Salt wanted to know when she went into the hardware store where Cal Jenkins worked as a clerk. They go down to the basement and turn on the radio to learn the Allies had defeated Germany in World War II. Spontaneously, she kisses Cal–passionately, on the lips–igniting a passion that would change forever two families.

Margaret, a woman of striking looks and red hair, had been raised in an orphanage in eastern Ohio, abandoned by her mother. When she comes of age, she moves to Columbus, where her sexuality is awakened. She meets Felix, a dashing executive for a manufacturing company. They marry after a short courtship but he seems to have little sexual drive, though he treats her wonderfully. He is promoted and assigned to a plant in Bonhomie, a fictional town located near Findlay, Ohio

Meanwhile, Cal Jenkins grew up in Bonhomie, raised by Everett, a father with PTSD from World War I (though no one called it that). One of his legs was shorter than the other. Yet he learned to work hard, and in the course of things, met Becky, whose father owned the hardware store and several other small businesses in the area. Becky had a special gift of being able to connect with spirits of the departed. They married and Cal went to work for her father. Soon, a son, Cal, Jr. but Skip to everyone came along.

Then something else came along. World War II. Eventually, Felix enlisted in the Navy, assigned to a ship in the Pacific. Cal was turned down for service because of his leg. Becky developed a practice, especially for those who’d lost sons or husbands. She came to the attention of a promoter by the name of LaGrange. who would have used her gift for a money-making scheme (she never charged for sittings). Instead of letting her handle it, Cal threatens the man and drives him off, creating a rift in the marriage. It is while this was going on that Margaret encountered Cal. Soon they struck up an affair. Meanwhile, Felix has an affair of his own, with another man, Augie, who dies when their ship is sunk. Felix survives and after recovering from injuries receives his discharge.

When Felix’s ship was sunk, his fate was unclear for a time, and Margaret cut off contact with Cal. Until the night before Felix was due home. They got together one last time–without their usual precautions. Then, the next night, Felix wanted to be with her. You guessed it. Shortly after, Margaret was pregnant. They raised Tom as if Felix was his father. He had Margaret’s red hair. But there were other signs that he was Cal’s son. Those in the know kept the secret.

And it seemed to work for a time. Cal and Becky got back together, aided by timely counsel to Cal from Becky’s father. Felix and Margaret gave themselves to raising Tom, even though Felix struggled with his own PTSD and kept the secret of Augie. Felix’s career nosedives as Cal takes over the management of the hardware store, expanding it. Becky continues to offer sittings. And in an awkward turn, Skip and Tom become friends, with Tom nicknamed “Buckeye.”

But secrets have a way of coming out. Much of this story centers on the unraveling of secrets, and what they meant for everyone involved. Each person made different decisions, to lean into or turn away from relationships.

Parentage is a big theme of this story. Margaret struggled with abandonment. Cal coped with a difficult father. Felix wrestled with being a good father to Tom. Cal lived wondering about whether he had a second son. And for so many of Becky’s clients, the fate of a lost child or relative was their great concern. Patrick Ryan reminds us of the ways parentage inescapably weaves through our lives.

Ryan also is pitch-perfect in capturing post World War II America. The boom of growth. The hiddenness of gay life. The brewing tensions of race…and a far off conflict in Asia. Likewise, Ryan captures the ethos of Ohio during this time. While not an Ohio native, he did graduate work in Bowling Green, Ohio, not far from the location of his fictional town. His place names and descriptions in Toledo, Columbus, and small town Ohio are spot on, even though Bonhomie is a fictional place.

As much as I enjoyed all this, I most appreciated the intergenerational story Ryan wove. Against the Ohio canvas, he invites us to remember our own loves, families, and secrets. While these shape us, he also reminds us of the choices each of us may make–to love, to be vulnerable, to accept, to forgive–or not.

Review: The Asylum Seekers

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Cover image of "The Asylum Seekers" by Cristina Rathbone

The Asylum Seekers, Cristina Rathbone. Broadleaf Books (ISBN: 9798889832010) 2025.

Summary: A priest lives with asylum seekers in Juarez, learning about what they fled, the community they built, and their faith.

Why would you leave home, community, livelihood? Why would you make a costly and perilous journey to the Mexican-American border for the uncertain opportunity to apply for asylum? This is a mental exercise I wonder if many on the American side of the border have ever engaged. So I ask, what would it take for you to do this in your situation.

Cristina Rathbone, an Episcopal priest, lived for close to a year in 2019 and early 2020 on the border, spending her days with the growing community of asylum seekers in Juarez. The Rio Grande and a bridge were not all that separated them from El Paso, and the United States. She learned why they came there. In general, they were fleeing gangs and cartels threatening their lives. In some cases they’d already lost a family member. Others had been threatened with death. Some wanted to save their children from choosing between life in a cartel and certain death. Up to 80 percent of the women had been sexually assaulted during their journey to Juarez. Many had spent fortunes on the journey.

Rathbone, a former journalist, had completed a parish assignment in Boston. Her mother’s family had immigrated from Cuba, and so she had some sense of what was stake, and felt it was time for her to see what she could do, and more importantly, what she could learn. In Boston, she had worked in a people-centered, community-based ministry among the homeless. And that is what she set out to do in Juarez. Very quickly, she came to struggle with the futility of her efforts. So many people. And border officials, acting for higher powers, who wanted to admit as few as possible. She wanted to flee until climbing one of the mountains to pray, and looking across the valley, she spotted a silhouetted statue of Jesus.

“Oh my God. Not to stay would be to run away. This is what I knew, all of a sudden: not to stay now would be to run away from him. And tell me, please, what in the world would there be to do after running away from Jesus?”

And so she stayed. Listened to stories. Organized children to collect trash. Set up a school with several other volunteers. Eventually, it was suggested she accompany families up the bridge to the border checkpoint where they could request asylum. It was thought her presence might help some get through. More often, though, they heard that there was no room (even though she later learned there were ample facilities sitting empty). And so she walked back down the bridge with those families. Presence.

She chronicles how a mass of refugees formed a community. Selected leaders. Established a list of asylum seekers, an order the community followed. Shared resources. Organized celebrations. Then as some succeeded in gaining entrance, others stepped up to lead.

Rathbone describes the pressure to set up big programs and how funders, and even her host bishop struggled to understand the person-centered ministry she engaged in. She writes:

“Small, real things. Small, real things. This is what I kept trying to remember and to trust. Not big, impressive things but small, real things are the way to love–with, through, and for the other. Small not because we can’t be bothered but because we are small ourselves.”

Often, her struggle was with herself. For example, she wrestled with her anger toward immigration officials representing an intransigent government. Or she despaired as family after family returned, especially after a more stringent HARP program. This program centered around a “credible fear” interview. If asylum seekers could not convince interviewers of the danger to their lives, the U.S. refused asylum and sent them back. And they could not re-apply. Consequently, they either had to return to the danger they fled, or try to find refuge with relatives living elsewhere.

Rathbone’s narrative is one in which she is kept, sometimes barely, by the scriptures and prayer–and the resilient faith of asylum seekers. Eventually, she gets help from the diocese, so that she never makes the march up the bridge unaccompanied.

Reading this narrative saddens one with the lack of generosity and humanitarian feeling of our country, which has only worsened. Far from the caricatures of asylum seekers as criminals, the people we meet on these pages are people I want as neighbors. They show determination, resilience, courage, integrity, and faith. Rathbone’s account offers a different vision of asylum seekers–one that looks beyond the challenges of settlement to the gift asylum seekers can be to a country. Along with that, her account reminds us that central to ministry is simply being the presence of Christ with people. Without that, we are just brash, arrogant Americans.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book for review from the publisher through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers Program.

Review: Galatians and Ephesians Through Old Testament Eyes

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Cover image of "Galatians and Ephesians" by Gary M. Burge

Galatians and Ephesians Through Old Testament Eyes, Gary M. Burge. Kregel Academic (ISBN: 9780825445187) 2025.

Summary: A commentary drawing out the Old Testament allusions and references Paul makes.

Galatians and Ephesians sit side by side in our Bibles. But they are so different. Galatians begins harshly. Ephesians glows with a marvelous prayer and thanksgiving. Galatians is unanimously attributed to Paul. The authorship of Ephesians is disputed. But we treasure them both.

Gary M. Burge sees these books as written by an author or authors (he opts for Paul as author for both) steeped in the Jewish scriptures and in his commentary on these two books notes the references and illusions that inform the writing. This is one of the distinctive features of the Through Old Testament Eyes series. In addition to the running commentary, “Through Old Testament Eyes” insertions explain references and allusions in the text. There are also periodic insertions on “What the Structure Means” and “Going Deeper.” The latter unpacks implications of the text for present day readers.

Befitting this series, I will focus on some of the Old Testament material discussed in the commentary for each book. In Galatians, the discussions of circumcision, meals, Gentiles and separation, and the material on Abraham and his seed. What is most striking is that Burge sees the promises made to Abraham as applying to all who, by faith are children of Abraham. And the land promise? It is no longer limited to a strip of land on the eastern Mediterranean but extends to the whole world. In Going Deeper discussions, Burge elaborates the significance of this for present day Israel

Turning to Ephesians, Burge first elaborates the Old Testament concept of “blessing,” so much a part of the opening prayer. Several articles elaborate Ephesians 2:11-22, discussing relations of Jews and Gentiles, and the dividing wall of the temple (and Christ’s new temple. In Ephesians 4:20-21, he contrasts Old Testament codes and learning Christ. Then, he sets the household codes not only in their Gentile context but also in terms of Old Testament teaching on marriage and slavery.

In addition, the “Going Deeper: sections move from commentary to challenging implications. He challenges racism and sexism in the church on the basis of Galatians 3:28. Instead of allegiance to an earthly Jerusalem, he calls for allegiance to Christian Israelis and Palestinians and our expectation of the New Jerusalem. His words on our use of words and anger from Ephesians 4:29-32 are much needed as is his calling out of marital abuse and the misuse of Ephesians 5:21-33.

In addition, Burge offers helpful background and timeline material based on and including a well-argued southern Galatia hypothesis. He offers helpful structural observations of Paul’s argument in both books and background on letter-writing conventions, so important given Paul’s breech of those conventions in Galatians. In conclusion, this is a valuable commentary for devotional study, teaching, and preaching.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for review.

Reviews of other commentaries in this series:

Matthew: https://bobonbooks.com/2024/06/11/review-matthew-through-old-testament-eyes/

Mark: https://bobonbooks.com/2017/12/04/review-mark-through-old-testament-eyes/

John: https://bobonbooks.com/2023/12/18/review-john-through-old-testament-eyes/

Revelation: https://bobonbooks.com/2022/11/28/review-revelation-through-old-testament-eyes/

Review: The Color of Magic

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Cover image of "The Color of Magic" by Terry Pratchett

The Color of Magic (Discworld, 1) Terry Pratchett. (HarperCollins (ISBN: 9780063373662) 2024 (first published in 1983).

Summary: A failure at wizard school is compelled to protect a rich but naive traveler with a most unusual luggage chest.

So, I’ve taken the plunge into Discworld. For the uninitiated, Discworld is a planet that exists as a flat disc with continents and oceans. Four huge elephants support Discworld. They, in turn, stand on the shell of one gigantic turtle, the Great A’Tuin, who swims through space. From that alone, you will probably deduce that this is fantasy at its zaniest. And you would not be wrong. Given the huge popularity of the series, you might be surprised to know that the original British press run back in 1983 was 506 copies.

In a way, this first book serves to introduce us to Discworld. It takes the form of an odyssey that begins at Ankh-Morpork, the biggest city of Discworld. Rincewind is a wizard school flunkout whose one accomplishment was to memorize one of the eight powerful spells, which drove any other magic out of his head. Twoflower, an insurance salesman from the Agatean Empire, approaches him to serve as a guide.. He is accompanied by the Luggage–a chest with legs. The chest is full of gold and is ferociously protective of Twoflower. He hires Rincewind as a guide for what is an exorbitant fee for the poor wizard. Rincewind, of questionable scruples, tries to run away but Ankh-Morpork’s Patrician captures him and compels him to “protect” Twoflower. Relations with the much richer Agateans are at stake.

However, thieves kidnap Twoflower. Prior to the kidnapping, Twoflower had sold an insurance policy to the owner of the tavern where they were staying. While Rincewind rescues Twoflower, the owner burns down the tavern to get the insurance money, destroying the town. Rincewind and Twoflower decide to skedaddle.

In a series of adventures orchestrated by the gods of Discworld, they visit Quirm and Wyrmberg, surviving a series of challenges, complete with trolls and dragons, only to end up in the ocean. The current carries them to edge of Discworld, but the Circumfence, a net built by the nation of Krull, catches them. A sea troll retrieves them and sends them to Krull–to be sacrifices.

Twoflower seems less worried about danger than Rincewind. He is an intrepid explorer who even wants to see the beast supporting Discworld. At one time or the other Rincewind, Twoflower, the Luggage, and even a magic picture box (camera) are responsible for rescues when things were looking bad. Death personified pursues Rincewind throughout, but through his own devices and those of the gods, he elude’s Death’s grasp.

At first, I thought all of this quite strange and a bit confusing. Then the strange became interesting and amusing. By the end, I was looking forward to the next zany escape and the next adventure. Which takes me to Book Two… (I see what you are doing Terry Pratchett!).

By the way, the color of magic is octarine, a fluorescent greenish-yellow-purple. Only magicians can see it and it occurs in the presence of magic. For what it is worth.

Review: Insane for the Light

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Cover image of "Insane for the Light" by Ronald Rolheiser

Insane for the Light, Ronald Rolheiser. Image (ISBN: 9780593736463) 2025.

Summary: The spiritual journey of our final years, learning not only how to relinquish one’s life but to give away one’s death.

On Saturday, I learned of the passing of an actor whose movies I watched as a young adult. She was eight years older than I am. This is not an uncommon experience when I read of the deaths of famous people, or the obituary page from my high school on Facebook. It reminds me that part of the business of this stage of my life is to live with intention and attention toward my death. How does God want to continue to form me in the way of Christ as my bodily and mental powers wane? And how may I live so that my life, and even my death, may be a gift to those I love?

There are not many guides for this journey. Many of the books about spirituality address our productive years and the transitions of midlife. But what about the years of autumn and winter? In recent years, I’ve come to appreciate the writing of Ronald Rolheiser in his books The Holy Longing and Sacred Fire. I discovered that this new book, Insane for the Light completes this trilogy. In the first, Rolheiser writes about our search for meaning. Then in the second, he speaks to how we give our lives away. Now, in an interesting turn of phrase, he writes about how we give our deaths away. Rolheiser observes:

“Giving our deaths away as a gift to our loved ones means that at some point in our lives, we need to stop focusing on our agenda and begin to focus on our obituary, on what kind of spirit we will leave behind.”

But what does that look like?

Rolheiser begins with anthropologies from aging, considering voices as diverse as Hindu mythology’s sannyasin to Germain Greer’s crone, Richard Rohr’s angry or holy old fools, and David Brooks’ call to scale the second mountain of meaning and love. Then he considers the challenge of transformation in aging. Instead of becoming the same person, only more so, he addresses seven transformations, all summarized in Jesus call to metanoia, the change of mind into creatures more like God. More like Christ. In the end, the image of Christ defenseless on the cross, submitting to death and giving his life, is our model. In our death, how we deal with helplessness, the loss of control are crucial. It is the experience of passivity. We may embrace or bitterly fight this, but if embraced, following Jesus in death is lifegiving to others.

But this journey is sometimes a journey through dark nights. Rolheiser draws upon the wisdom of St. john of the Cross’s Dark Night of the Soul. He offers wise counsel for how we live through such nights (pp. 80-82) that is worth the price of the book. He proposes that the purpose of the “dark night” is so that “God can flow into our lives and into this world purely, uncontaminated by human projection and self interest, because in our frustrating darkness we are helpless to control the experience.”

Then Rolheiser turns to the image of the “beggars hut.” In fact, that hut is the aging process. a kind of monastic existence with its own order of tasks. Carrying tension for the young. Offering prophecy to the world. Radiating God’s compassion. Rescuing God from narrowness. Blessing the young. Giving up on fear. Preparing for our move to a place beyond the illusion of self sufficiency. Making peace with those in our circle through the words “Please forgive me,” “I forgive you,” “Thank you,” and “I love you.” Rolheiser synthesizes Henri Nouwen’s ideas of how we give our deaths away into twelve invitations.

In his final chapters Rolheiser addresses his thoughts about the afterlife, including our communion with those who have died. Finally, he outlines St. John of the Cross’s paradigm of spiritual transformation. He includes examples of transformation through prayer and through service. His parting word comes from St. John’s advice:

“We all have made vows: to one another, to God, and to ourselves. John of the Cross simply advises that we stay within these vows and accept the times of disillusionment–and then love, others, maturity, and God will find us,”

It seems to me that the book’s central idea is that our aging is an invitation to die with Christ. What I find most attractive in this is that it suggests that old people can grow! We can be transformed by God through the aging process. We can mellow, become grateful, forgiving, hopeful, and childlike. Then we generously give away the remainder of our lives–and our deaths. And in our dying, we become “insane for the light” of God’s glory. I recall reading of my childhood pastor’s final words: “The glory, the glory!” To read these words was a gift, as is remembering them. He gave his death away to others.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for review.

The Weekly Wrap: October 5-11

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woman in white crew neck t shirt in a bookstore wrapping books
Photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels.com

The Weekly Wrap: October 5-11

Great But Unreadable

Have you ever tried to read a book that for one reason or another is “great” but just haven’t been able to finish it? I recently asked a question about books people found confusing. I was surprised by how many “great” authors made the list including Joyce Carol Oates and Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Of course, topping the list for many was James Joyce’s Ulysses.

It’s book award season and I think the belief among many in the reading public is that the books nominated for these awards are ones most people won’t find readable. I think part of the suspicion is that most people have never heard of most of these books before they made the lists, let alone read them.

The most recent instance of this is this week’s nominee for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Laszlo Krasznahorkai was hardly a household name before this week. I doubt his newest novel will do much to change that (but read the review below). In English it runs four hundred pages and consists of one sentence. One period.

This is not always the case. Han Kang, last year’s Nobel winner is someone I found challenging to read, yet whose voice drew me in. The Pulitzers for fiction in recent years include authors like Percival Everett, Barbara Kingsolver, Colson Whitehead (twice) and Anthony Doerr.

My own opinion? I think great literature will often require a certain amount of attention that “mind candy” books do not. They will require us to wrestle with hard things. But it does not seem to me that obscurity, turgid writing, or lots of “deadwood” are ever excusable. Is it too much to ask that a mark of great books is that the writing be readable?

Five Articles Worth Reading

So, speaking of four hundred page sentences, Garth Risk Hallberg reviews Herscht 07769 by Laszlo Krasznahorkai. In “This Novel Has Fewer Periods Than This Headline. It’s 400 Pages Long.” Hallberg discusses the novel as well as previous works by the author.

A lot of ink has been spilled on the causes of global populism. But after considering nine possible reasons and allowing for complexity, Francis Fukuyama argues that one reason stands out in “It’s the Internet, Stupid.”

Any of us who live in Ohio will tell you that there are at least two Ohios. There are the big cities and then the small, working class rural towns. Paper Girl: A Memoir of Home and Family in a Fractured America, a book by Beth Macy, explores the culture of Urbana, Ohio, where she grew up. “What Happened to Ohio?” is an article adapted from the book.

The drinking of alcohol is on a decline. Sloane Crosley considers the drinking culture of authors like F. Scott Fitzgerald and asks “How Sober Should a Writer Be?“

Finally, as a reviewer, I’ve gotten a glimpse of the challenges of making ends meet as a writer. David Berry describes “How I Managed to Write a Book without Going (Too) Broke.” It will give you a renewed appreciation of the gift we are given with every book we read and why protecting author’s rights matters so much.

Quote of the Week

Poet and novelist Ciarán Carson was born on October 9, 1948. He puts into words the challenge any of us who write have when trying to express what is in our minds:

“How do you say a thing at all, at the end of the day? How do you say what’s in your mind? And as soon as you say what you actually have in mind, it’s wrong, isn’t it?”

Miscellaneous Musings

Marce Catlett, Wendell Berry’s latest Port William story arrived at my doorstep today. I am so profoundly thankful that Mr. Berry has lived to the age of 91 and continues to bless us with stories, reminding us placeless Americans of the importance of place and community and what we lose when we neglect and lose these.

One example of someone who cares for place is Ethan Tapper. In How to Love a Forest, he recounts his decision to buy a poorly managed piece of forest land in Vermont. Then he narrates vignettes of how he is seeking to restore the land, using his forestry training. Contrary to popular belief, this doesn’t mean leaving it alone. From pruning to cutting down diseased and invasive growth, he writes about how humans can promote healthy forests.

David McCullough’s latest book History Matters is a posthumous collection of his essays and lectures, mostly previously unpublished. He recommends a number of others who were influential on him including Paul Horgan and his book, Great River on the Rio Grande. I was so intrigued, I ordered a copy, not noticing the 900+ page count. Thus, I’m hoping for 900 pages of great, readable prose.

Next Week’s Reviews

Monday: Ronald Rohlheiser, Insane for the Light

Tuesday: Terry Patchett, The Color of Magic (Discworld #1)

Wednesday: Gary M. Burge, Galatians and Ephesians (Through Old Testament Eyes)

Thursday: Christin Rathbone, The Asylum Seekers

Friday: Patrick Ryan, Buckeye

So, that’s The Weekly Wrap for October 5-11.

Find past editions of The Weekly Wrap under The Weekly Wrap heading on this page

Review: The Peaceable Kingdom

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Cover image of "The Peaceable Kingdom" by Stanley Hauerwas

The Peaceable Kingdom, Stanley Hauerwas. University of Notre Dame Press (ISBN:  9780268015541) 1991.

Summary: A Christian ethic centered in the character of the rule Jesus inaugurated, lived by the church in nonviolent service.

I recently reviewed a distillation of Stanley Hauerwas’ writings titled Jesus Changes Everything (at https://bobonbooks.com/2025/03/26/review-jesus-changes-everything/). I was so impressed with his writings that I wanted to read more and picked up his The Peaceable Kingdom. This is his “primer in Christian ethics” and elaborates the idea that peace and nonviolence is central to the character of Jesus’ kingdom and the calling of those who follow him, gathered in Christian communities. I was surprised in reading this work to find it was far more “academic,” befitting his work as a seminary professor at Duke.

In my review, I will not focus on all the details of what is at times a dense discussion (but well worth the wading). Rather, I will summarize what I found and briefly comment.

First of all, he denies the possibility of an “absolute” ethics while arguing for the distinctiveness of a Christian ethic. For him, doctrine and ethics are inseparable. Truth must be lived and this inevitably involves an ethic. Moreover, for the Christian, that ethic centers in the narrative of Jesus–his life, death, and resurrection–that inaugurates a kingdom of forgiveness and peace. That peace is both with God and with one another.

Jesus calls his followers into a community of character. Specifically, Jesus calls us into lives of repenting from violence and discord, exercising our agency to live peaceably. Hence, the church, as Christ’s body, doesn’t have an ethic but is one. We are the servant community living in patience and hope for the dawning of Jesus kingdom. The church isn’t the kingdom but lives in anticipation of it by its character.

Hauerwas notes the focus on casuistry and ethical decision-making in much of ethics. A Christian ethic is different, flowing not from calculated decisions but what a person or community is and is becoming. Finally, Hauerwas proposes that a key virtue undergirding peaceableness is patience. He argues the virtue of doing nothing, siding with H. Richard Niebuhr over his brother Reinhold Niebuhr. With this patience comes joy, as we relinquish controlling our lives and those of others to God. Rather than tackling the many problems of the world, he argues for the grace of doing one thing.

For me, the strongest parts of Hauerwas’ argument are the appeal to the narrative of Jesus for our ethic and the insistence that the church is a social ethic. However, I do not believe that nonviolence always means doing nothing. Rosa Parks was peaceable and nonviolent, but she sat down. So were John Lewis and others who engaged in sit-ins. And sometimes, doing nothing is an act of nonviolent resistance, not nonresistance. Given that Hauerwas wrote twenty-five years after the civil rights movement, it surprises me he does not address this.

However, Hauerwas is one of the leading voices in reasserting the calling of the church to peace and nonviolence within society. It is an important testimony at a time when Christians seem bent on “taking sides” in the divisive political issues of our days, even using warfare metaphors to characterize their efforts. Perhaps this book is indeed a “primer” for how then we should live as the people of God.

Review: Shalom and the Community of Creation

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Cover image of "Shalom and the Community of Creation" by Randy S. Woodley

Shalom and the Community of Creation (Prophetic Christianity) Randy S. Woodley. Wm. B. Eerdmans (ISBN: 9780802866783) 2012.

Summary: The “Harmony Way” of the indigenous and biblical shalom between peoples, with creation, and the Creator.

Shalom is one of the most beautiful of Hebrew words. Often translated as “peace,” it signifies far more. Shalom exists where there is health, wholeness, and flourishing in human relationships and communities, with the rest of the creation, and with the Creator. Randy Woodley, whose Ph.D dissertation is on the indigenous idea of “the Harmony Way,” explores how the indigenous vision may enrich and flesh out the idea of shalom.

Woodley begins with our alienation from God, others, and the rest of the creation, so characteristic of modern experience. As a Christian theologian, he recognizes how the expansive, universal vision of the wholeness and peace of shalom addresses this deep human emptiness. Among Native Americans, the ideas of balance and harmony, often including peacemaking ceremonies illuminates shalom. He then discusses how shalom centers in Jesus, who inaugurates a kingdom that is a community of shalom, a community of creation.

Turning to creation, Woodley explores Jesus’ intimate connection to the good creation. Drawing on indigenous ideas of the sacredness of creation, he proposes that Jesus restores the sense of creation as something holy, and not just something to be used, and of our inextricable and reciprocal relationship to the rest of creation. Furthermore, the harmony way challenges the dualism of modern life. For example, this speaks to the dualism of oppressed and oppressors. Instead, harmony understands that we are all related. Harmony and the wholeness of shalom also transcend the thinking/doing divide. Not unlike the Hebrew idea, harmony focuses on experiential learning. One knows something when one has experienced it.

One of the most challenging chapters in the book dealt with the conflict between indigenous and western ideas of time and place. For Westerners, place is often transient and the time orientation is event and future oriented. By contrast the indigenous idea values place and a community’s past and present in that place. This is why things begin when everyone is present. Woodley explores how such a place-orientation is closer to biblical shalom in emphasizing wholistic relationships between Creator, people, and land. Storytelling is also a shalom practice, emphasizing heart to heart and not just head to head communication. Finally, shalom and the harmony way is about generous community, the extravagant pursuit of the lost and the celebration that follows. It’s about justice that restores what has been stolen. Then alienated relationships can be restored.

Woodley’s book is yet another reminder of how much we have to learn from believers who aren’t like us. The Harmony Way of Native Americans turns the concept of shalom into a rich way of life. It illuminates the shalom in scripture that our own cultural blinders have prevented us from seeing. In a country so much at war with itself as well as the land, might God use the wisdom of Indigenous Christians to bring shalom? Might it even mean the healing of our national sins against indigenous people and their treasured lands? That’s a big ask, but not too great for the Prince of Shalom.

Review: History Matters

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Cover image of "History Matters" by David McCullough

History Matters, David McCullough (edited by Dorie McCullough Lawson and Michael Hill, foreword by Jon Meacham). Simon & Schuster (ISBN: 9781668098998) 2025.

Summary: Essays and lectures on the importance of history, biographical vignettes, influences on the writer, and writing process.

I became a fan while reading Harry Truman. Nine hundred pages in and I didn’t want the book to end. It was not only the subject, but the writing. And so I’ve read just about everything David McCullough has written. (Looking over his publications, I discovered I somehow had missed Brave Companions. I will remedy that soon!). And so I was delighted to learn of this new, posthumous collection of his essays and lecture transcripts, edited by daughter Dorie McCullough Lawson and researcher Michael Hill.

The pieces in this collection are grouped into four parts. Firstly, apropos of the title is a section titled “why History?” He sums it up as follows:

“But, I think, what it really comes down to is that history is an extension of life. It both enlarges and intensifies the experience of being alive. It’s like poetry and art. Or music. And it’s ours, to enjoy” (p.4).

He adds, in the words of Barbara Tuchman that the key to good historiography is to “Tell stories.” He goes on to write about American values and hid long-range optimism about the country. A short essay on luck and history explores Washington’s luck with the weather in escaping the British and McCullough’s own good fortune. The final essay in this section is a transcript of his Paris Review interview with good background on his beginnings as a writer and behind the scenes glimpses of several of his books. Most interesting was his reason for not writing on Picasso–he just didn’t like him. He found when you have to spend years researching someone, it helps to like them as a person.

Part Two is titled “Figures in a Landscape.” These essays offer vignettes of Americans against the backdrop of their history: Thomas Eakins, Harriet Beecher Stowe, George Washington, and Harry Truman. The two longest ones are on Washington and Truman. Of Washington, he described his essential trait as leadership–of people and a nation. He could call people to do things beyond what they thought their capacity. Of Truman, he argues that part of his greatness was his profound sense of history. In less than twenty pages, he summarizes the strengths and flaws of the man, considering him among America’s great presidents.

In Part Three, the topic is “Influences.” He begins with the love of learning of three Yale men: Ezra Stiles, John Trumbull, and Manasseh Cutler. The latter was a pioneer in higher education on the Ohio frontier, and Ohio University’s oldest building is Cutler Hall. He offers a profile of the actor Vincent Scully. This is followed by McCullough’s account of getting a speech idea through to Arthur Schlesinger, advisor to candidate John Kennedy. In the end, one sentence made it into a speech. I was so fascinated by his profile of Paul Horgan, I found used copies of a couple of his works. He loved the writing of Herman Wouk. Of course, one essay offers a list of his favorite books. The section concludes with a delightful Christmas ritual titled “A Book on Every Bed.”

Part Four centers on McCullough’s writing process. He begins with great writing advice and his own practice of never working from an outline, which he likens to painting by number. Like many writers, he emphasizes the hard work of rewriting, describing himself as a rewriter. He offers a tribute to his Royal Standard typewriter, on which he wrote all of his books. In his advice to writers, he advises reading widely as well as deeply and this section includes an essay with more book recommendations. The final essay is on history and art, highlighting Churchill as an artist. McCullough was as well, the endpapers featuring two of his watercolors.

If McCullough is new to you, it will whet your appetite for his books (and many others as well). For others, it clarifies the values that informed McCullough’s writing–of history’s importance, of telling a good story, of living with a character long enough to bring them to life. Finally, these essays are a workshop for writers, especially of biography and history. They represent a fitting summing up of his life.