Review: Discipleship: Living for Christ in the Daily Grind

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Cover image of "Discipleship: Living for Christ in the Daily Grind" by J. Heinrich Arnold

Discipleship: Living for Christ in the Daily Grind, J. Heinrich Arnold (Foreword by Henri J.M. Nouwen. Plough (ISBN: 9780874868760) 1994.

Summary: Discipleship: Living for Christ in the Daily Grind is a collection of forthright counsel on various aspects of following Christ.

One of the questions I wrestled with as a young follower of Christ was “now that I’ve begun following Jesus, how do I practically live this life?” Often, it seems that the answer was “read your Bible and God will show you.” I longed for a more mature believer who might walk alongside and offer practical counsel for questions like, “How do I know I am fully converted?” “And if so, why do I sin and what do I do about that?” “How do I remain pure in thought and action as a healthy young man?” “How do I discern and walk in God’s will?” “What is my place in God’s mission?” “What are my gifts and how should I use them?” “How do I cultivate a relationship with God and what is that really like?”

For over forty years J. Heinrich Arnold served as a leader in the Bruderhof movement until his death in 1982. Over that time he counselled many on various aspects of living for Christ “in the daily grind.” Plough Publishing, the publishing arm of the Bruderhof movement has collected the instruction of Arnold on various aspects of discipleship, organizing it by topics. The editors drew much of the material from letters to individuals. And in it, Arnold addresses all the questions I mentioned and many more.

First of all, Arnold has a clear and penetrating vision of the gospel. He writes:

“Anyone who has not been troubled by the scandal of Christ’s sufffering and his complete humilistion is ignorant of the meaning of belief in him.”

Second, I notice how forthright, to the point of bluntness, many of his statements are. He explains why in a letter quoted in a section on Sincerity:

“It is important to be straightforward and honest about your true feelings. Rather be too rude than too smooth, to blunt than too kind. Rather say an unkind word that is true than one that is ‘nice’ but untrue. You can always be sorry for an unkind word, but hypocrisy causes permanent harm unless special grace is given.”

For instance, his writing about sex exemplifies that forthrightness:

“Sex has no purpose apart from marriage. Outside of marriage it is sinful. The Bible demands chastity before it and outside of it; that is very clear. So if you have not always followed the chaste and pure way, then you must find forgiveness in order to stand upright before God. But Jesus wants to give you that forgiveness.“

Throughout, he points people to Christ’s provision and God’s care. To a young person, he concludes his letter thus:

I wish you the protection of God in all you may go through. May the pierced hands of Jesus hold you firmly as you hold firmly to him.”

No sugarcoating. Rather, the promise that God will meet one in trying times and hold one firmly.

The readings fall under three main headings: the disciple, the church, and the kingdom of God. We move from the personal life of the disciple to the community in which the disciple lives to the big picture of God’s bracing vision for the world. His words equally challenge young disciples and leaders. He tells leaders their authority is not over people for whom they humbly care. Their authority is over the spirits! Connected with that, he reminds leaders that their battle is not with people but with evil spirits, a word that seems important for our time.

The call to discipleship is for life. While I wish I had this book as a young man (or Arnold in person!), I’m glad I have it now. Arnold’s writing challenges and encourages young and old alike, beginners and leaders. Sometimes his incisive words are the faithful wounds of a friend that heal. At other times, his word offer spiritual and moral clarity needed in our murky times. And always he keeps central the main thing of Christ, his cross, his kingdom, and our future hope.

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

Review: An Unfinished Love Story

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Cover image of "An Unfinished Love Story" by Doris Kearns Goodwin

An Unfinished Love Story, Doris Kearns Goodwin. Simon & Schuster (ISBN: 9781982108663) 2024.

Summary: An Unfinished Love Story: Doris and Richard Goodwin remember the 1960’s as they review Dick’s archives of work with Johnson and the Kennedys.

Richard Goodwin, a clerk for Felix Frankfurter and Harvard Law classmate of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, joined the Kennedy presidential campaign as a speechwriter under the direction of Ted Sorenson. He estimated he worked on forty percent of Kennedy’s speeches. Kennedy appointed him Deputy Secretary of Inter-American affairs, working out of the White House. Subsequently, Goodwin developed both the name and the beginnings of the Alliance for Progress. Then, Kennedy transferred him to the State Department after a misstep of engaging in an impromptu conversation with Che Guevara. Eventually, he joined Sargent Shriver at the Peace Corps.

After the Kennedy assassination, Lyndon Johnson called on his skills as a speechwriter. Goodwin wrote some of Johnson’s major messages on voting and civil rights and the landmark “Great Society” speech. Johnson’s heady social agenda promised advances in civil rights, poverty reduction, housing, health care (I have Medicare coverage because of his work), and education. It was a bracing experience for Goodwin–until Vietnam jeopardized many of these initiatives. Finally, he tendered his resignation, tired of the lies to the American people and ever-increasing troop numbers.

A close friend of the Kennedys, he was among the first to urge Bobby to run. When Kennedy held back, Goodwin joined the McCarthy campaign, turning a protest movement into a serious presidential challenge, leading to Johnson’s exit from the race–and Bobby’s entrance. Goodwin had told McCarthy he would not work against Kennedy, and joined Bobby’s campaign. He was down the hall from Kennedy at the Ambassador Hotel the night Kennedy died.

Goodwin wrote a memoir of these times in Remembering America (review), published in 1995. He spent the remainder of his working life as a writer. And he married presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin in 1975. For most of their married lives they moved 300 boxes of memorabilia and archives, most from the 1960’s. The memories were too painful. Then, seven months after turning 80, in 2012, Goodwin decided it was time to pull those boxes out. He believed there was a story to tell, another book to be written. An Unfinished Love Story is that story and that book. Doris Kearns Goodwin narrates going through those boxes, with Richard (Dick) narrating his own contribution and participation.

A good part of that narrative tracks closely with the 1995 memoir with added detail and the perspective of two more decades. We feel the relentless yet exhilarating tale of being on the campaign trail with Kennedy in 1960. Then we experience Goodwin’s excitement as Johnson outlines his Great Society vision, going far beyond the Kennedy legacy. And we share Goodwin’s exhilaration as Johnson uses all his legislative skills to enact that vision.

Goodwin recounts his work with Jackie Kennedy, gathering America’s Nobel Laureates for a magical evening at the White house to celebrate their work. It was perhaps the nearest they came to realizing the Camelot myth. Goodwin’s remembering brings that night to life.

However, there is one major difference from the 1995 memoir. It is the counterpoint Doris Kearns Goodwin offers. Dick’s closest affinity was with the Kennedys and his departure from the Johnson administration a lingering, if not festering wound. On the other hand, Doris began a White House Fellowship having just published an article on how to eliminate Johnson from the presidential race, given his Vietnam record. Fearing how he would treat her, she finds him increasingly confiding in her. After his presidency, she is invited to work with him on his memoirs. She writes her first major presidential biography on Johnson.

The book reflects the tension of these two perspectives, resulting in an enlarged perspective on the events and personalities of this time. We see a couple who deeply love and passionately differ compose their differences and sum up their lives. But an “unfinished love story”? It is not their marriage, Nor is it the story Dick would not live to see told. Rather, Doris Kearns Goodwin writes a story of their shared love for America, for what America could be at her best, unfinished in the sense of still being written. It is a story of a just and generous society of opportunity and flourishing for all.

Richard Goodwin never gave up on that dream in all his writing and advocacy. And Doris Kearns Goodwin never gave up on writing of presidents who loved the country–Johnson, Teddy and Franklin Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. In a troubling time, Goodwin offers an account that encourages us to not to give up on the unfinished love story

Review: A Prairie Faith

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Cover image of "A Prairie Faith" by John J. Fry

A Prairie: The Religious Life of Laura Ingalls Wilder (Library of Religious Biography), John J. Fry (Foreword by Mark A. Noll. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (ISBN: 9780802876287) 2024.

Summary: The religious life of Laura Ingalls Wilder drawn from her books and manuscripts, other writings and the places she lived.

I did not discover the Little House books until reading them aloud to our son. Just thinking of that brings good memories of the three of us snuggled on the hunter green sofa bed in our guest room, working our way through the books. I particular remember reading The Long Winter through a particularly cold and long winter, and being thrilled by Almanzo’s daring journey to bring food back to the isolated small town. We loved the affection within the family and the Christian values their lives exemplified and suspected these were important to the author.

That is the conclusion held by John J. Fry, the author of this religious biography of Laura Ingalls Wilder. He maintains that for Wilder, Christian faith was important but not central. Throughout her life, there is evidence of regular personal Bible reading and prayer. Where there was opportunity, she was in weekly attendance at church, but refrained from membership. In many ways, her outlook was more stoic than Christian.

Using her memoirs, manuscripts and publications as well tracing her life through the different places she lived, Fry offers a chronological account of her life. While the focus is on the religious influences in her life and evidence for her religious beliefs, Fry does offer an extensive, if not definitive, account of her life. Until the Wilders settled in Mansfield, Missouri and became established, much of it was life on the move–Kansas, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, the Dakotas, Minnesota again, and Florida.

Surprisingly, before Laura wrote the Little House books, she was, and continued to be, a farm journalist. She translated her own experiences into columns for women in agricultural setting. Then she wrote a memoir, Pioneer Girl, but could not find anyone who wanted to publish it. Working with her daughter Rose, she re-fashioned her account into a series of children’s stories, and with rose’s help found a publisher.

In fact, one of the things we learn, and on which Fry dwells, is the role Rose played in the writing of the books. An accomplished writer herself, Rose reworked Laura’s writing, often “showing” rather than “telling.” This made the books more readable and interesting. In addition, Fry explores the influence of Rose’s religious views on the books, often comparing Laura’s early manuscripts with the published text. Rose was a deist at best, and held a less than friendly view of the church. The record is mixed. Sometimes, she strengthened the portrayal of Christianity. Sometimes the finished manuscripts were more negative. It is striking that Wilder doesn’t mention Jesus in the books, only God. What is clear was that Rose was a significant collaborator in the writing of the books. She deserves more credit than she received.

Fry considers Laura’s religious life in later years. It seems she was less involved in churches and more in fraternal organizations like Eastern Star. But she apparently kept up personal scripture reading. Her faith was characteristic of mainstream moderate Christianity, with a strong emphasis on good works of love for neighbor.

However, she did not extend that love to indigenous peoples. Fry, in assessing the afterlife of her books, notes the criticism of her attitudes toward indigenous peoples. Again, she was typical of her time, which would not be problematic, except for the popularity of her books.

Fry offers an informative and well-paced narrative of Laura’s religious life. This underscores his contention that her faith was important but not central. He also elaborates the collaboration of Rose in the Little House books and the substantial contribution she made to their popularity. None of this detracts from the portrait of the remarkable life of Laura Ingalls Wilder.

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

Review: Dream Work

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Cover image of "Dream Work" by Mary Oliver

Dream Work, Mary Oliver. Atlantic Monthly Press (ISBN: 9780871130693) 1986.

Summary: Poetry of Mary Oliver running the gamut from dogfish to Dachau, from starfish to Orion, and Robert Schumann to Stanley Kunitz.

It seemed fitting to read a collection of the poetry of Mary Oliver in the month of her birth. Dream Work follows Oliver’s Pulitzer winning American Primitive. Like much of her writing, Oliver’s poetry moves from the commonplaces of the natural world like dogfish, geese, starfish, and marsh hawks to remind us of the transcendent, our evanescent existence and the existential questions that endure.

She juxtaposes tiny dogfish with a cri de coeur “to know / whoever I was, I was / alive / for a little while.” She sees the rising sun over a pond of blazing lilies as “a prayer heard and answered / lavishly, / every morning”. Wild trilliums on the hillside contrast with the lack of tenderness of childhood’s ambiguities and the difficult years.

“Dreams” captures the “Dream Work” of this collection’s title. Dreams are likened to budding flowers with a letter at the center of each that eludes the waking self. “Whispers” describes the elusive “heaven of sensation” from which she finds herself held back. Then in “Members of the Tribe” she lists artists, her tribe, who lived between madness and genius. Yet it is not their unhappiness she cannot forgive but the “hurtling / toward oblivion / on the sharp blades of their exquisite poems, saying: / this is the way.“

“Robert Schumann” exemplifies madness in art, thought of by her every day in his lifelong struggle with madness. Yet there was the brief moment when Clara first came into his life. Because of this poem, I had to look up the story of Schumann, who composed brilliantly between fits of madness. On the other hand, there is “Stanley Kunitz.” Likening his work to a beautiful garden effortlessly blossoming, she now understands the toils behind the beauty.

However, it is often the commonplace that speaks most deeply. For example, in “Landscape” she listens each morning to the mosses and the black oaks around her pond. If she closes her heart to them, she is “as good as dead.” Or an approach of a thunderstorm reminds her of how the normalcy of life may be shattered in an instant.

Some of the poetry is darker. For instance “Rage” describes the sexual abuse of a child in chilling terms (Oliver suffered sexual abuse as a child). In a poem written on the fortieth anniversary of the revealing of the German camps, she struggles with the incongruity of forest scenes, mountains of bodies and Mengele enjoying a gourmet meal.

Yet she cannot end here. Rather, the collection concludes with “The Sunflowers” that invite us into the fields to listen to their stories. Amid ugly realities, Oliver points us to a deeper magic. She cannot always find the words. But there is something to be heard.

Review: Othered

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Cover image of "Othered" by Jenai Auman

Othered: Finding Belonging with the God Who Pursues The Hurt, Harmed & Marginalized, Jenai Auman. Baker Books (ISBN: 9781540903914), 2024.

Summary: How God sees, loves, and pursues those hurt, harmed and marginalized by the church and offers them rest, healing, and hope.

Jenai Auman grew up as a bi-racial child in the South, so the experience of feeling marginalized or “othered” was not new to her. But the last place she expected to experience othering was on the staff of a church where she and her husband worked, a church that had been formative in her faith journey. In Othered, she describes the experience of being subject to leadership abuse resulting in a forced “transition” out of her position. She names the abuses, reinforced by the ways it was rationalized, the ways she was blamed, and forced out. But this is not a bitter book. Auman did not abandon her faith. Rather she describes how God embraced her when the church did not.

It began on her first day of work. She was five minutes late for an optional staff Bible study. She was late because her four year old son needed extra attention on the first day of camp. Rather than being given grace, she was upbraided for ten minutes for her lateness. Her executive pastor concluded, “You need to listen to me and respect me, but you also need to give me grace. I had a rough morning.” This was an example of a pattern that only worsened. That is, until Jenai spoke up. That led to her firing.

In succeeding chapters, she describes coming to terms with the abuse. First, it was important to name the abuse. In this case, it was an abuse of power and spiritual authority. Such abuse, she writes, is like the devastating effects of Hurricane Harvey on her city of Houston. The winds weren’t so bad as the insidious flooding from days of rain. She describes “fauxnerability” by which abusive leadership confesses small vulnerabilities to cover up and hold onto larger ones. From a therapist, she realized the broken trust from a former friend for what it was–betrayal. Naming her betrayal helped her see why she struggled to find peace and rest. And it drove her to the God of hesed who doesn’t break trust.

But healing required going deeper into the naming of the dysfunctions in her church. In particular, she describes the love of comfort that shields congregations from seeing abuse.–things like toxic stress, triumphal Christianity, and bypassing pain. In response, Auman discovered the power of lament which names the truth and is met by a God who never outlawed the cries and the tears of the marginalized.

She describes how the longing for belonging can be used to rob a person of the sense of oneself. She learned about DARVO (Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender). This gave her language to describe her treatment by elders at a severance meeting. She is able to exercise a prophetic voice against the abuse of others, having found this language for her own.

But this is a book that goes beyond naming the ways othering inflicts harm. Auman describes how God met her as she named her grief to Him. He met her, as he met many in scripture, in the wilderness. Wilderness became a space of safety to learn to trust again. She learned flourishing in Jesus who was both othered and welcome the othered to his table.

Paradoxically, repentance precedes a life of blessing others. Auman writes, “I will not become the hammer that hurt me.” We must break the cycle of trauma and sin or perpetuate it. Auman concludes by urging remembering rather than forgetting, of refusing rushed forgiveness, just as we refuse to rush to resurrection without the waiting of Holy Saturday. For Auman, honestly facing both her own brokenness and that of the church leads her to Jesus who prayed forgiveness for those who know not what they do. And behind it all is the God Who Sees and the One who is preparing for us a home.

Auman’s personal narrative of othering is powerful both for naming the evils of church abuse and offering hope for the abused. She never names her abusers in this book. I think that may have detracted from the power of naming the abuses she suffered. Instead, she describes how one may heal even when the perpetrators of harm do not repent. In this, she speaks both for and to many in similar situations who live in grief and anger. She reminds us that God especially sees, loves and pursues the marginalized–even those marginalized by the church.

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

The Weekly Wrap: September 15-21

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Image for The Weekly Wrap: person wrapping a book
Photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels.com

You Can’t Read That

Book-banning and censorship has been much in the book news. But I came across an article (posted below) that offers evidence that conservatives are not the only ones who censor literature. This also occurs in progressive literary and scholarly circles. Works accepted for publication get pulled or requests are made to change content of works already deemed to meet the literary or scholarly criteria of the publication. Why? Basically, because of content deemed offensive to some group.

Behind the act of censorship is the assumption that one group has the power to determine what others may read. It is also a decision to not trust readers (or in the case of children, parents) to exercise their own discernment. Not only is this a dangerous assumption of power, it is an admission of failure.

It is a failure of moral education. Censorship often concerns material at variance with one’s morals. Instead of equipping people to make moral choices, censorship precludes moral choices.

It is also a failure in critical education. It may be a failure in teaching how one reads carefully to comprehend what a writer is doing. Or it may be a failure to teach the critical skills for evaluating an argument, including discerning logical fallacies.

Instead someone decides what others can’t read. Sometimes a few people decide for many others. Whoever does this, it destroys a free and open society. And it is an admission of our greatest failure–a failure of our ideas. When we suppress what we think are bad ideas, we tacitly admit that we don’t have better ones–ones that are more winsome and persuasive.

Five Articles Worth Reading

“Scenes From The Literary Blacklist” published in Persuasion, describes the chilling effect of censorship in academic and literary circles and argues that the consequence will be academic and literary pablum.

On the other hand, “The Author of ‘Impossible Creatures’ Tucks Big Ideas in Tales of Wonder” in the New York Times offers the review of the work of Katherine Rundell. In case you haven’t heard of her, she won the Baillie Gifford Prize for non-fiction (50,000 pounds) for a work on the poetry of John Donne. And she has a new children’s book, Impossible Creatures, that is being compared to works of Tolkien, Lewis, and Pullman.

Stephen Metcalf reviews Christophe Lebold’s Leonard Cohen: The Man Who Saw the Angels Fall in an Atlantic article titled “The Anti-Rock Star.” I first encountered Cohen in the late’60’s in his compelling “Suzanne.” He disappeared from my radar for a long time only to re-emerge in the 2000’s with “Hallelujah.” Metcalf filled in the gaps of his career and highlights Cohen’s singular gifts as a writer.

Katie Ward offers a wonderful tribute to the late Hilary Mantel for her role as a mentor in “Hilary Mantel was my mentor. Here are seven things she taught me about writing – and life” A great article for aspiring writers.

Mad Magazine epitomized the anti-establishment mood of the Sixties. As I recall, Alfred E. Neuman was even nominated for President. Take a walk down memory, or discover Mad for the first time in “The Madcap History of Mad Magazine Will Unleash Your Inner Class Clown.“

A Bonus Video

This isn’t an article but rather a video from three years ago when the then-Prince of Wales read Gerard Manley Hopkins’ “God’s Grandeur,” one of my favorite poems. I found it an incredibly moving reading, capturing the mood and movements of the poem. See if you agree, and enjoy the bonus!

Quote of the Week

Following a theme from last week, this quote from Samuel Johnson also focuses on attention. Johnson was born September 18, 1709.

“The true art of memory is the art of attention.”

Since we cannot remember everything, I wonder if part of the art is discerning to what we give our attention.

Miscellaneous Musings

My wife reminded me this week that with Jimmy Carter’s 100th birthday coming on October 1, I should read one of his books. While I’m not sure I can fit that in, it turns out I have plenty to choose from. In addition to serving as our 39th president and his humanitarian work, he wrote 32 books. What an amazing life.

I just finished A Prairie Faith by John J. Fry. It is a study of the religious faith of Laura Ingalls Wilder. She was known for the Little House books which we loved reading aloud as a family when our son was growing up. I discovered that we have her daughter Rose, at least in part, to thank for the quality of these books, and even for the initial publication of the first of these.

Do you re-read books? An occupational hazard of reviewing is having a steady stream of new books to review. In retirement, one of the things I hope to do is revisit some old friends and see how we’ve both changed with the passage of years!

Well, that’s The Weekly Wrap for this week!

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

Review: The Hanged Man of Saint-Pholien

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Cover image of "The Hanged Man of Saint-Pholien" by Georges Simenon

The Hanged Man of Saint-Pholien (Maigret Number 4), Georges Simenon, translated by Linda Coverdale. Penguin Books (ISBN: 9780141393452) 2014 (First published in 1931).

Summary: The Hanged Man of Saint-Pholien, in which Maigret’s swap of a suitcase as he follows a suspicious character results in the man’s suicide.

Maigret is on business in Brussels when he notices a shabbily dressed man mailing a pile of bank notes in an envelope labeled “printed matter.” The man is carrying a cheap cardboard suitcase. He sees the address, a Paris address. His curiosity piqued, he follows the man. Then at a buffet, he manages to switch the suitcase for one filled with paper. Subsequently, he follows the man to a cheap hotel, getting a room next to him. When the man opens the suitcase, he cries in dismay. The next thing Maigret hears is a shot. The man has committed suicide and Maigret, unintentionally, is the cause.

But what was in the suitcase? When Maigret opens it, he finds an old suit, too large for the deceased, with dark stains on it, with a tailor’s label from Paris. Then Maigret goes to the morgue and a businessman, Van Damme shows up as well and offers to travel with Maigret. And he keeps showing up as Maigret explores the life of the deceased, Jean Lecocq d’Arneville. In Paris, when he meets several others connected to the deceased and each other and later in Liege, Van Damme is there. One of the others is a highly successful businessman, Belloir. Another, Janin is a sculptor. And a third, Jef Lombard, is a painter in whose studio are numerous paintings of hanging men.

There’s something they are keeping from Maigret. At times, it seems they are a step ahead, destroying records. At one point there is an attempt on Maigret’s life. And we wonder where the hanging man of Saint-Pholien in the title comes in and whether Lombard’s paintings have anything to do with that. Above all else, Maigret needs to find a satisfying explanation for why Jean Lecocq d’Arneville would kill himself over a suitcase of old clothes that weren’t even his.

This is a short novel that makes for a quick read. What I want to know if you’ve read this or when you do, is whether you liked the ending. I didn’t see it coming, but I liked it when it came.

Review: Christianity and Constitutionalism

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Cover image of "Christianity and Constitutionalism" edited by Nicholas Aroney and Ian Leigh

Christianity and Constitutionalism, edited by Nicholas Aroney and Ian Leigh. Oxford University Press (ISBN: 9780197587256) 2022

Summary: Christianity and Constitutionalism explores the contribution of Christianity to constitutionalism in light of history, law, and theology.

What is constitutionalism? Broadly speaking, it refers to the written and/or unwritten legal framework by which a particular political entity orders its life, be it a monarchy or a democracy. The editors of this work, in their introduction emphasize that this is a contended term. It is either descriptive of what exists in a particular political community or prescriptive of what ought to be. They note its concerns with jurisdiction, authority, and the rule of law. And this reminded me of how important a check this can be on the intrusion of power beyond its proper sphere and the safeguard of the rule of law against corrupt exercises of power.

This purpose of this volume is to explore the contribution of Christianity to constitutionalism. In its three parts, the contributors delineate that contribution through three lenses: history, topics in constitutional law, and particular doctrines bearing on constitutionalism. My review will follow that plan of organization.

Part I: The Historical Influence of Christianity

The articles in this part span history from the Old Testament through Modernity. Jonathan Burnside shows the contribution of Torah to ideas of sovereignty (in this case the sovereignty of God), the covenantal relation between sovereign and people, limited government, separation of powers (kings, priests, and prophets), federalism, and civic virtue. Dorothea H. Bertschmann traces the tension between God’s ultimate rule and the deference due imperial rule. But what pertains when the emperor is Christian? Peter Leithart discusses Constantine and the limits upon state authority when the state recognized church authority. Then Mary Keys and Colleen Mitchell describe how Augustine’s City of God both reoriented love from the earthly to heavenly city while humanizing earthly politics.

As the church moves into the Middle Ages, the emergence of canon law deals with both superior law, binding all, and the division of powers. Richard Helmholz shows how this contribution to constitutionalism haltingly emerged. While the Reformation broke the uniform structures of church and state, it brought forth new elements contributing to constitutionalism. Thus, John Witte, Jr. delineates the new theories of church and state, authority and liberty, duties and rights, legislation and adjudication, and more that proliferated. Finally, Joan Lockwood O’Donovan shows the distinctive contribution of English Reformation public theology in the modern period.

Part II: Christian Perspectives on Constitutionalism

In this part, contributors turn to various topics in constitutional law. Beginning with the concept of sovereignty, Joel Harrison shows how Christianity contributed the idea of intertwining duality and plurality with the one. Li-ann Thio shows how the Christian idea of higher law enriches the rule of law and societal flourishing. Then Richard Ekins addresses the importance of self government to democracy and how ideas of equality and consent of the governed flow from an understanding of God’s rule. Carlos Bernal shows the biblical foundations for the separation of powers, already noted in the Old Testament essay. Julian Rivers offers a critiques of various approaches to human rights rooted in liberal ideologies, arguing that Christians “maintain a coherent and compelling theory of constitutional rights for the good of all.” Capping off these topical discussions, the editors contribute two fine essays on freedom of conscience vis-a-vis religious freedom and on federalism.

Part III: Christian Theology and Constitutionalism

To conclude this volume, the contributors address the relevance of several key Christian doctrines to constitutional law. David VanDrunen explores the relevance of scriptural revelation. Particularly, he focuses in on covenants and especially the Noahic covenant, which authorizes civil authorities to secure justice for capital crimes. According to David McIlroy, Trinitarian belief imposes limits on authorities and distributes authority. And it requires rulers to preserve God’s creational gifts. Jonathan Chaplin traces out eight contemporary implications of the biblical teaching on justice. Tracey Rowland, in a chapter on Christology explores the implications of Poland declaring Christ as her King.

John Milbank contributes one of the denser essays in this collection on natural law and natural right. Then, in an essay that was a highlight for me, Iain T. Benson writes on subsidiarity. Specifically, the focus on the local from families and neighbors to voluntary association re-centers governance in the face of the rise of various forms of statism and obsession with national politics. To conclude the book, Douglas Farrow argues the importance of eschatology for our teleology. We need to know not only for what we were made but also what the achievement of that end will look like. Our eschatological hope for bodily resurrection shapes all sorts of legal thinking about our bodies now.

Recommendation

In some of our countries, it seems that the only thinking about Christianity and law is trying to have enough power to enact our own moral vision into law. This volume represents a recovery of a deeper form of Christian thinking about how governments are constituted in such ways to support God’s aims for the flourishing of humanity and other creatures. There is good thinking about the relation of human constitutions to higher law, about the ways law directs both to good ends and protects from harm. Nicholas Aroney’s chapter on “Federalism” challenged me to think about why federalism exists, something I hadn’t considered since reading the Federalist papers.

The international team of scholars adds to the richness of this collection, representing every continent. This is an excellent supplemental text for courses in constitutional law and a valuable read for anyone who cares about governance. With only one or two exceptions, the chapters are both substantive and accessible, a tribute to the editorial work on this volume.

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

Review: The Tiger in the Smoke

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Cover image of "The Tiger in the Smoke" by Margery Allingham

The Tiger in the Smoke (Albert Campion Number 14), Margery Allingham. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781504087483) 2023 (First published in 1952).

Summary: In a soupy fog, a war widow about to re-marry receives photos of her husband while an escaped killer is on the loose.

A pea soup fog has descended upon London, which only thickens with the plot of this Albert Campuon mystery. A war widow, Meg Elginbrodde, daughter of Canon Avril, is about to marry again to an enterprising young man, Geoffrey Levett. Then she receives grainy photographs purporting that her husband is still alive. As a result, she enlists the help of Campion and Police Inspector Luke. Then she sees the man, who is wearing the coat of her husband. He’s a recently released convict, “Duds” Morrison but there is not enough evidence to hold him.

However, Geoffrey is not satisfied and tries to chase him down. But before he can question him, they are both attacked by a gang led by “Tiddy” Doll. Before Morrison suffers a fatal blow to the head, Doll asks him to reveal the whereabouts of “the Gaffer.” The gang takes Levett, thinking him associated with Morrison, to their hideaway.

Meanwhile, an escaped killer, “The Tiger” a.k.a. Jack Havoc a.k.a. “The Gaffer” is on the loose in the smoky fog. He’s looking for something and soon there is a trail of dead bodies. Then he breaks into Levett’s house while Meg and Amanda are there. They barely escape. Havoc, on the other hand, finds his way to Doll’s hideaway. Levett’s life is in jeopardy until Campion shows up. The gang, including Havoc, escape, but Levett overhears what Havoc is after. It all connects back to a mission Meg’s first husband and Havoc were on before D-Day. This sets up a climactic episode on the coast of France.

Canon Avril, perhaps, is the most heroic figure in the story. In one scene, he confronts Havoc in his church. His concern is for the man’s soul. Havoc trusts his “science of luck.” He stabs Avril, but only wounds him, suggesting how deeply Avril has shaken him. At the same time, Amanda, Campion’s resourceful wife plays only a bit part in the plot. I hope Allingham develops her in future numbers.

All told, Allingham delivers another twisting plot ending with a thrilling climax.

Review: Mercy Falls

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Cover image of "Mercy Falls" by William Kent Krueger

Mercy Falls (Cork O’Connor Number 5), William Kent Krueger. Atria Books (ISBN: 9781439157800) 2009 (First published in 2005).

Summary: Mercy Falls, number five in the Cork O’Connor series finds Cork in a hitman’s sights and danger to his wife in the form of her old flame.

Cork O’Connor, despite reservations from but with the support of Jo O’Connor, is once again sheriff of Tamarack County. One of his practices is to go on calls to the Ojibwe land since he is part Ojibwe. He and deputy answer a domestic violence call. When the deputy, Marsha Dross goes to the house, she is shot by a sniper and Cork must call for help, fight off the attacker, and render first aid. In the end, she survives–barely. But as the investigation proceeds, it is clear the bullet was meant for him. But why?

Meanwhile, Jo is working with a sleazy client, Eddie Jacoby, representing a company that wants to take over the tribal casino management, which has struggled. Then, he is found dead by the overlook to Mercy Falls, gruesomely murdered. There is evidence he’d been with a woman. His rich father and brother arrive from Chicago, along with a “consultant.” Former FBI agent Dina Winter is there to “assist” the investigation and get results. Eddie, for all his troubles, had a special relationship with his father. But the other brother, Ben, is trouble in his own way. Ben and Jo had been in a relationship during law school, before he walked away, and Cork came into her life.

A bomb under the hood of the Cork’s car convinces the family this would be a good time for college visits in the Chicago area, staying with Jo’s sister, now married to Mal. Meanwhile, Cork, now free of family concerns (or so he thinks), goes on a hunt for the sniper. Henry Meloux joins him along with Dina and a deputy. She reveals her skills and there is a growing connection between her and Cork. What Cork hasn’t reckoned with is the danger Jo faces as she comes within reach of the Jacobys.

Krueger explores the complicated relationships between fathers and sons, especially when those relationships come laden with expectations. We also wonder what will happen between Jo and Ben, and between Cork and Dina. These will prove not to be the only tests to the marriage.

This was one of those stories that doesn’t end with the book (I won’t say how). But I’ve got book six in waiting. I just hope Krueger doesn’t do this too often!