5 comments about Things We Couldn't Say.

1. I bought this book at the American Book Center in The Hague, Netherlands, a few years ago. As I knew many of the places mentioned in the book, it took on an even deeper meaning for me. I love this book, and I list Diet Eman and Hein Sietsma as heroes. Definitely 5+ stars!



2. The true story of true Christians, and Dutch patriots, Diet Eman and Hein Sietsma, and their courageous risk of everything to resist Nazi tyranny and hide thousands of Dutch Jews.
   True Christians always love the Jewish people and Israel, and true nationalists are opposed to both Communism and Nazism, both the antithesis of national self-determination.
   Diet recounts her own life, and experiences and what she saw and heard, as well as her deep faith in G-D, that guided her in all she did and thought.
   Diet recounts her experiences in Scheveningen prison, where she describes how Jewish families, who were caught in hiding, were hauled into the prison, mothers, fathers and children: 'On the nights the guards brought Jews in, we always heard the children crying all through that place. It was bad enough for us to have to suffer through a place, like Scheveningen, but it was terrible to hear those poor innocent children crying.'
   It is up to true Christians and righteous gentiles to stand by the State of Israel today, in the struggle for her survival and that of her children, against the monstrous Islamic-extreme leftist hate machine.



3. Excellent book. The book is fast paced, exciting and touching.
   
   The risks and sacrifices that the author and her fiance went through for their beliefs and for unkwown people amazed and inspired me. Highly recommended.



4. The account of the author and her experiences fighting the German occupation of Holland during WWII is harrowing. It is hard to imagine that any human being can display so mush courage at such a young age.



5. I have read more than 75 books of this genre depicting this period of history. "What would I have done under the same circumstances?" That is the question I am always asking of myself whilst reading these stories. This is the story of a group of people with the courage of their convictions...Diet's story is inspiring and touching. It illustrates perfectly that the power of prayer is undeniable and when 'all one can do is pray' one has done everything.

5 comments about Maid of Heaven: The Story of Saint Joan of Arc.

1. Everyone knows of the general legend of Joan of Arc - a young and illiterate girl hears voices from God and leads France against the invading English. "Maid of Heaven: The Story of Saint Joan of Arc", however, tells the complete and through story of a sixteen year old girl who rose up to stand against insurmountable odds. Nonfiction, but written and reads like fiction, "Maid of Heaven: The Story of Saint Joan of Arc" is expertly composed and highly recommended to world history shelves and for anyone who wants a complete understanding of this enigmatic teenage girl who was anything but.



2. I've read many books about France's Partron Saint, Joan of Arc, but never seen one like 'Maid of Heaven' by Ben Kennedy. It is Joan's life portrayed through beautiful poetic form. Mr. Kennedy does an amazing job of putting such a lyrical story into capitivating lyrical form. It is the kind of book that catches your attentiion, and then never lets go. Once I started, I was compelled to continue to the very end. The poetry is lovely and well versed, and the historical perspecties reflect an accurate accounting of Joan's amazing story. Most importantly, Mr. Kennedy doesn't neglect to include the spiritaul perspectives and implications in his work, and we are all the better for it. I highly recommend this lovely and most original approach to Joan's life.



3. An epic flash back that water my eyes. I had read several books including condemnation files but Ben compiled the historic events in a magnificent poem. I did not expect this breathtaking story.



4. What an incredible way to cover the life of Joan of Arc. All of the history is there and I love the clever way he incorporates some of Joan's most famous quotes into the poem. The way it is written made me feel like I had traveled back in time and was right there with Joan. I like this book so much that I donated my copy to my church library so that everyone can read it and learn more about Joan of Arc. By far the best historical book I have ever read.



5. Jeanne the Maid is a bold, brave and brash figure who remains true to her calling. This book is true to her. It is a poem, not a scholarly work, but Kennedy has tried to present the true story of the Maid accurately and I think he succeeds. Those who love the Maid will be delighted. Those who don't may find themselves wanting to know more after reading this fine poem.

5 comments about Azusa Street.

1. For many, this will be one of those life changing books.
   If your heart is sensitive to it, you will feel the pain of watching greed and avarice step on, use, and pollute that which is pure.
   You will see those who long for the touch of a loving God pursue Him in the midst of persecution and manipulation. You will revel in the Holy Spirit. You will see men struting like swollen roosters brought to their knees in humility before Him. You will see Laban ministries who see God's people as servants for the advancement of their herds. Some will bow before God. Some will sell their souls to keep their titles.
   All in the historical context. You MUST KNOW this story.
   Men build systems. Systems guarantee conformity. Religious systems require that certain people play certain roles. The Holy Spirit doesn't work this way. He goes where He wills. Men don't like that.
   That's why each religious organization has their own assembly-line of ministers. Those who control the systems require the **MARK** of conformity.



2. This is a very good book which describes the early years of the outpooring of the Spirit. I have been very challenged by this book. It shows the cost for a revival: Prayer, obedience and a sincere longing for more of God. This is a very good book. God will bless you in reading it.



3. I did not receive this book, I thought it may have been my fault because I received 2 Devine Life Books. Obviously that is not true because you are inqiring about Azusa Street. Please send it to me.
   Thank you, Roy Holmes



4. Great book on the history of the spiritual experiences and what preparatory work was necessary in the 1906 pentecostal revival. The work may hurt a few feelings, especially if you are in the Pentecostal denominations, because it does not pull any punches. It says quite clearly that the reason that the Holy Spirit is not moving so strongly now is because of man's usurping God's authority and placing it into a man-made structure [denominational or otherwise]. If you are looking for a book that WILL change your outlook on how you need to approach recieving the Holy Spirit or rekindling your walk, then this is it. I loved it!



5. Frank Bartleman gives a first hand view of Asuza Street and the manifestations of the Holy Spirit. I was greatly encouraged and challenged by the aspect of becoming small enough for God to use. All of Him(Jesus). None of me.

3 comments about All Cracked Up: Experiencing God in the Broken Places (Women of Faith).

1. I have gone to a women of faith conference,and i love this author.I was thoroughly prepared to enjoy it,and i did. Patsy really is a petite woman, but she is a dynamic speaker irl, and it translates to her book. I could just hear her voice in the pages.
   If you are contemplating going to a WOF conference, i recommend it. It truly is a life changing experience.



2. Patsy Clairemont's book is great. You can use it as a devotional and her outlook on life is so funny, yet she shows you God is in it all.



3. It's a funny yet serious book.....I have bought one and sent it to a friend. Mine I read then share with others, Pass Around the Good Feelings You Get From Reading Them. This was a great great book that I think any woman can relate too, and leaves you smiling.

5 comments about Prophets and Personal Prophecy (Prophets, 1).

1. Having delivered over 45,000 personal prophecies to people that he has ministered to in over fifty years of ministry Bill Hamon's words as a modern day prophet are certainly words you want to pay some close attention to.
   
   God called me to the prophetic ministry a little over four years ago. He gave me the gift of word of knowledge, the gift of word of wisdom and the gift of prophecy and I was able to perform in those gifts as I prophesied but I had to buy a book to understand what they are and more about the gifts I was active in. I searched for a book on the gifts of the Spirit for two years before giving up and then the Lord brought a book across my path through a friend. In that book I learned about the three prophetic gifts but didn't learn much about the role of a prophet.
   
   Bill's book is comprehensive on the role of a prophet and the role of personal prophecy in their lives. The book is full of personal stories that illustrate his points and full of scriptural supports. It is a book that I know I want to lend to a couple of friends, but rather then lending it I might simply buy them copies as I know I want to read this book from cover to cover again.
   
   No person taught me how to prophesy and though I have done a lot of prophecies for people they have not been so much for people I know but for strangers. The Holy Spirit has been a very good guide.
   
   I wonder at the Lords wisdom bringing me across this book as I searched for where my prophetic site was ranked on Google two days ago. I think the Lord allowed me to learn a lot about prophecy and the role of a prophet on my own so that this book would confirm many things that I know.
   
   If you would like the gift of prophecy Bill suggests you seek the Lord in prayer and have a prophet lay hands on you and pray the prayer of faith.
   
   It is obvious this book wasn't just written easy. A lot of work has gone into planning the chapters, the subject headings and then the massive research that has gone into backing up everything he says with a scriptural supporting passage.
   
   If you have a calling on your life toward the prophetic I would say this book is a must for you.
   
   And if you live in charismatic circles and you have received personal prophecies that you still have not seen come true in your life this book is very comforting and very informative.
   
   It mentions a service closing at 9pm and Bill starting to minister in the prophetic at that time and not finishing to 12am. Three hours of speaking the prophetic over hundreds of people is a level of anointing and ability I am yet to see in my life.
   
   Well worth the money and well worth the time you will invest in reading it. I have read it in a day. You won't want your copy to leave your sight either.



2. This is a very informative book. I believe that anyone with the prophetic giftings should read this book and even those who do not operate in the prophetic but have been given prophetic words. It helps one understand what type of gifting they may be operating in and how to apply it. Very good. It also will help you to understand a word given and how to apply it.



3. PROPHETS AND PERSONAL PROPHECY: GOD'S PROPHETIC VOICE TODAY (hereafter, PPP) (Shippensburg, Pennsylvania: Destiny Image Publishers, Inc., 1987/2000) is one of a growing number of "how to" guides concerning the Christian charismatic "gift of prophecy" and its exercise by and on behalf of believing Christians today in the United States and in many countries around the world. I think I am correct in saying that this particular book has the distinction of being the first of its type in modern times. As one of the "seminal fathers" of the present Christian "prophetic movement," and as a respected authority on the subject of "personal prophecy," Dr. Bill Hamon offers practical guidelines and numerous case studies from both his personal and his professional life as a pastor; itinerant prophet; and founder of his own prophetic training institute in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida.
   
   PPP is neither a theological, nor a biblical justification for the practice of prophecy in our day; rather, it is intended as a "practical handbook for those who are already convinced that prophets operate [legitimately] in the Church today, who have themselves received a personal prophecy, and who want to respond properly and fruitfully to what God is saying to them" (pp. 14-15). By its own self-description, PPP is a book designed for and targeted toward a niche audience comprised of Christians from Pentecostal, Charismatic, "restoration," "faith," and "kingdom" churches (pp. 8-9).
   
   Hamon presupposes the divinely endowed prophetic gift to be alive (though sometimes dormant) within the body of Christ today just as it was in the first century after the Holy Spirit had been poured out upon the 120 disciples on the day of Pentecost. Hamon views the modern Christian prophets' words of direction as supplementary to the instruction of Holy Scripture and never contrary to it. He explains that God speaks by his Spirit through the Christian prophet for edification, comfort, and/or direction in the same way he did in biblical times. As the gift of prophecy was present in the lives of certain Old and New Testament persons, so it is still available to believers today. "Activation" of the prophetic gift may require the "laying on of hands" by a "prophetic presbyter" or "prophetic presbytery" along with oversight and ongoing training to reach fruitful maturity. The differentiation between a "rhema" word of God (i.e., original, Holy Spirit inspired words not recorded in the Holy Bible) and the "logos" word of God (i.e., those words which are already recorded as Holy Spirit inspired words from the biblical writers) is also presupposed as an important foundational tenet for this study.
   
   Given the book's ancient (and now revived) subject matter, it is plainly unique in the field of the "Christian charismata" today. For the unfamiliar reader, PPP should prove intiguing with its many "real life" illustrations and stories. Given its ground-breaking character, and the potential audience it might receive as such, I found it regrettable that the manuscript could not have been given a more professional preparation. Greater care during its final revision and preparation for publication would have enhanced its appeal for many additional readers beyond the niche audience. Numerous routine copyediting problems are still evident in the text. Distracting and idiosyncratic habits of capitalization and boldface usage have been retained. Chapter two has (by specific direction of the author) boldfaced every appearance of the word "prophet(s)," and the words "biblical" and "Scripture" are found with and without capitalization throughout the book. The use of hyphens, dashes, italics, and ellipses are often clumsily executed and also without consistency. A dictionary; a writing style manual; and a determination to stay consistent, would have solved these errors and would have improved readability. As one writing style manual admonishes: "--concerning what some may regard as 'trivial departures from convention'--it should be remembered that they stop the reader and make him think of your incompetence instead of your ideas."
   
   PPP is also in need of a "glossary" of technical terms. The number of unfamiliar terms and expressions is substantial even for someone like myself with personal exposure to the prophetic movement. I counted more than twenty terms (charismatic church expressions) that would be unintelligible to the unfamiliar first-time reader. Sometimes a definition is provided within the narrative, but not usually on the first appearance as it should be. Given the large number of Scripture references cited throughout the book, a "Scripture index" would have been much appreciated, and would have encouraged revisits. Again the writer's adage: "Always see your copy as it will look to a stranger"--is important to remember.
   
   Despite the many technical shortcomings, the book has sold extremely well as a P-O-D ("print-on-demand") publication having sold more than 100,000 copies in its first dozen years of availability (probably many more in the last six years), and has been translated into at least six languages! The personal magnanimity of brother Hamon; the charisma of his unique ministry and message; and what is likely a growing and acute hunger for this new genre of Christian literature have, I am sure, all served to explain the book's popularity. I guess when your target audience is large enough, and you are well-known to that audience as a man of integrity for nearly fifty years, a poor presentation is excusable and apparently of little account to the hungry reader.
   
   Content/originality = 5
   Writing/style = 3
   Literary/technical = 1
   ------------------------
   Overall average = 3



4. Dr. Hamon has hit the nail on the head once again. He has saved us countless hours of pain and heartache by sharing his prophetic experiences and lessons with us in this book. Prophecy and the Office of Prophet are essential to the success and the growth of the Body of Christ. Dr. Hamon has removed the mystery surrounding this office and gift.



5. I have read this book over and over again. Every time I read it, I notice gold nuggets I overlooked before. One thing the Lord made stand out in my spirit while reading this book was that I really have to walk in his love and learn more about it in order to operate effectively in any ministry. The Word does say that if we prophecy, prophecy will cease if we have not love. The Word says that without love, none of the other gifts mean anything. If we don't love those around us the way the Lord would, what makes us think we would be set loose on his church. It has answered so many questions about prophets and personal prophecy that I couldn't get anywhere else. Though we all have pastors, teachers, etc., they are human as well and aren't always available or easy to get time with. It was wonderful to find a book to feed my hungry heart without having to arrange to talk to someone else. I couldn't stop reading and the more I read, the hungrier I became...sort of like a starving child sitting down to his/her first meal after a week with no food. Now, I can always refer back to the book if I have forgotton something (we always go back for seconds to the food we enjoy the most). There have been times when I wasn't comfortable to ask anyone about prophecy and the prophetic ministry and I found my answers in this book. I had been in prayer about the many questions I had and would ask Jesus tons of questions...why this, why that, etc. and ask him to provide to me the answers. The Lord certainly has answered prayer with this book and has given me more information that what I even had asked for (Ephesians 3:20). Praise God!

5 comments about Evangelical Is Not Enough: Worship of God in Liturgy and Sacrament.

1. Dr. Thomas Howard was a college English professor who grew up in a well-known evangelical Christian family. (His sister is Elizabeth Elliot.) As a young man, he joined the Anglican (Episcopal) Church and remained there for about 25 years before finally becoming Catholic. The year before he became Catholic, he wrote this book. It is a pseudo-biographical explanation of why someone would leave the evangelical Christian tradition for a more ancient and liturgical form of Christianity.
   
   In the first chapter, Dr. Howard reflects on "Evangelicalism", the tradition in which he grew up. This chapter amounts to the most thoughtful and charitable definition/reflection on "Evangelicalism" and its strengths that I have ever read. He ends by asking why, if so much can be said in favor of Evangelicalism, anyone would ever leave.
   
   He then takes the rest of the book to explain ways in which Evangelicalism, while it has many strengths and gets many things right, nevertheless doesn't give us the whole picture of the Gospel. It misses out on some really important aspects of the Christian Faith. In other words, it's good--very good--but not enough.



2. Mr. Howard explains to us, in a quasi poetic way, the importance and relevance of Liturgy and Sacraments. This is a beautifully written book in which sentences give the impression of having been carefully crafted.
   
   Rites and ceremonies (the backbone of Liturgy) convey a significance of things from Above and enact events of the Church in an accessible way for all types of worshipers.
   
   Rites and ceremonies do not follow the old dictum of form to the detriment of substance as them, having their inspiration on the Bible and in the Church traditions, embody both (substance and form simultaneously).
   
   Sacraments are rooted in the Gospel and have been given their due importance sice Apostolic times. This book is food for the soul.



3. In this classic and moving testimony of Mr. Howard's conversion from devout Evangelical to what he calls, "Catholic Evangelical," we see the philosophical and emotional challenges that underly the begging questions of Christendom. With a linguistic style and pathos reminiscent of C. S. Lewis, Mr. Howard gives us insight in what it is that attracts so many to the ancient faith. In the end, he offers practical suggestions for Evangelicals to obtain some of those attractions while affirming that nothing short of uniting with the Catholic church will grant the fulfillment of their inner man. Mr. Howard's approach is non-threatening and non-polemic. It is a simple description of what great treasures he feels Evangelicals lost in the Reformation. Perhaps it is best summed up in his closing statement: "Yes-I believe that the Roman Catholic Church is the Ancient Church. I accept its claims. I believe that here one finds fullness ("catholicity") of the Faith. Hence, I mourn the splintering in Christendom. I pray daily for the reunion of Christ's Church. "
   
   This is perhaps the best of the flood of conversion stories available in the quality of pros and the deep understanding of liturgy, ceremony, and sacraments. It is also a great work toward helping Protestants and Catholics understand one another. Indeed, the Reformation is not an event for celebration but for sorrow. We would do well to better understand the depths of that great wound and our need for healing.



4. Linkage with our ancestors. The ancient liturgy which Howard discovers was lacking in his evangelical roots and found in liturgical world of Catholicism, Orthodoxy, Lutheran and Anglican confessions, fills this void with ritual/ceremony which proclaims the fullness of the gospel in all ages to all generations.
   
   Worthy is this effort to dispel some of the evangelical objections to such formalized, structured worship tied to the ancient past of the NT church. Howard explains the disconnect that evangelicals have made with is past and centering on individual devotion coming together in meeting sense to worship. While not bemoaning much at all any doctrinal differences (he seems to be consistent in saying there are none that are of essential nature) he found liturgical worship to be a necessary historical engine to run his spiritual life.
   
   While finding much to admire and concur with, several things prevent the fifth star from being awarded. He places great deal of emphasis on worshipper acting out in the gospel drama at times to at the expense of sacramental nature of Word & Sacraments. Here, called and ordained Servants of the Word enter to do the giving and working of faith through the holy means of grace. Second, find that his literary style (which some have attributed closeness to C.S. Lewis) began to wear on me and stifled his thrust. Theological talk at times is stretched by literary means which is understandable from one of his training and profession. Yet this theologian prefers more theology talk when this occurs.
   
   I would be slow to recommend this read to certain individuals who could not relate to such a literary style, and his tendency to ignore Lutheran contributions which he seems to conveniently pile away into misunderstood and misapplied category of "Protestant." Certainly this is biased, as is Howard's. Those interested will find many of same themes explained more clearly and theologically in excellent "Lutheran Worship: History and Practice."
   
   For more sophisticated readers, this book will aid many in seeing richness of ancient liturgical past and seek their individual connection of Howard did.
   
   Lex orandi, lex credendi!



5. One rarely finds any Christian dealing so gently with the dichotomy between Evangelicalism and the Liturgical tradition. Moving from his Evangelical upbringing with a slow, thoughtful conversion, Thomas Howard respectfully describes why he believes that being Evangelical Is, simply, Not Enough.
   
   Howard describes how he came to be reconciled with the more controversial issues of the liturgy - set prayers, the routine of the Church Calendar, priestly garb, prayer for the dead, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the incessant reminder that we are flesh and blood creatures, not pure intellects. Describing the Good Friday liturgy, where the faithful kiss a replica of the cross, Howard days, "I had never before done anything other than try my best to think about the cross. Here I was obliged to carry these sentiments into actual physical gestures. The act not only expresses something real, it gives force and clarity to it" (144). Howard constantly presses his reader to consider both spirit and flesh; his argument rests in the simple fact of the Incarnation: God became flesh and redeemed it thus (pg. 36, especially). Any reading of the Old Testament illustrates the incredible, visceral way God deals with his people: through sacrifice and blood, through incense, smoke, and physical posture, through meals and clothing. Few Christians realize just how important our bodies are, and Howard gently presses this, constantly reminding his reader that the Liturgy actually frees the believer to worship and refrain from being caught up in his own emotion.
   
   As a convert to Catholicism from Evangelicalism, I was encouraged by the way Howard deals with controversy and challenged to keep the faith in my own routines - not just to genuflect, but to bow with my whole heart, not just to recite prayers at Mass, but to mean them. I often tend towards "apologetics with an axe," and I found the dignity of Howard's book inspiring. He is so courteous I wouldn't hesitate to hand this book to the most fervent opposer of the Liturgy, or the most timid searcher.
   
   Perhaps most happily, Howard's writing is beautiful. I was first transfixed by his articles in "Touchstone" magazine - where he pointed out the overwhelming use of the word "just" in Protestant prayer, much to my amusement - and am simply charmed by his adept handling of the art of composition.
   
   Brilliantly written, well-considered, and endlessly courteous, Howard's book deserves a place on all our shelves. As for me, I can't wait to get my hands on his follow-up book, "On Being Catholic."

4 comments about What is a Family?.

1. This book is excellent! The author uses incredible imagery to exemplify her points. Anyone with a family will appreciate this book. Reading it made me think a lot more about what real quality time is all about. It made me think about the things that are truly important! I would recommend this book to anyone I know!



2. Everyone who cares about having a wonderful family life should read this book. It is packed with great ideas to enhance every moment of each other's lives - even when someone is sick. Mrs. Shaeffer is very open in describing their family and how they made things special but not to the point of making their life seem perfect. One of her best chapters is about creating a "Museum of Memories" by choosing to create positive memories instead of just plowing through one more day. I highly recommend this book!



3. This book is lovely. Each chapter explores what a family is and the place of the members in the family. It makes me proud to be a mother and house wife. It makes me look at my place in the family in a new light- I'm a historian, a confidant, a friend, and more. What an uplifting book.



4. This is an inspiring and wonderful book. Edith Schaeffer makes the reader love and appreciate the importance of family. It is a unique perspective. Each chapter decribes the family in a different way. For example, there is a chapter called, "A museum of memories," which explains the importance of making happy memories for your children and some ideas on how to do it. Another chapter is called, "A perpetual relay of truth." The chapter, "A shelter in a time of storm," makes one feel honored to be caring for a sick or needy family member. She has other chapters defining the family in other ways, including a place of education, an economic unit, etc. On the days I had time to read even just a bit of this book, I went about my tasks as a wife and mother joyfully and with contentment.

5 comments about Walking the Bible: A Photographic Journey.

1. Book was very interesting and useful in explaining the culture diffrences in the region.



2. I purchased this book last year as a Christmas gift for my grandmother. The photos are lovely and the accompanying text proved just right for a non-reader - interesting captions and short readable paragraphs, nothing lengthy. She was very happy with it and later said it was "beautiful and interesting to read and look through". Several of us enjoyed looking through it on Christmas day, and we were all impressed with it overall.



3. We bought this book for my father-in-law. My husband was skeptical because he wasn't sure he would have the time to read a book. My 8-year-old daughter looked through the whole book before we wrapped it, exclaming on just about every page, "Oh, this is so beautiful!" and then said, "This will be okay for Grandad, it's mostly pictures." He did seem to like it on Christmas Day



4. This book is a great companion to Walking the Bible book or CD set



5. WALKING THE BIBLE: A PHOTOGRAPHIC JOURNEY could also have been featured in our Spirituality section: it's reviewed here for its striking photo impact so that artists don't miss the value of its presentation. It's a companion volume to the new PBS series on its way: in 2004 Feiler reprised the 10,000 mile walk through the Middle East deserts which led to his WALKING THE BIBLE. This photographic odyssey blends stunning photos - many taken by Feiler - with a survey of Biblical places and landscapes. A striking visual panorama, not to be missed.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch

5 comments about Plain Secrets: An Outsider among the Amish.

1. Neither a scholarly treatise nor a vilification, an idealization nor an exposé, Joe Mackall's PLAIN SECRETS is a narrative that explores one man's relationship to an Amish family and, by extension, a community.
   
   Mackall, who lives in Ashland County, Ohio, befriends the Shetler family: Samuel, Mary and their nine children (names changed by the author). Over the years, living in close proximity to the Shetlers, Mackall develops as close a relationship with the family as an Englisher might be allowed. What emerges is the peace, beauty and goodness of the culture, as well as the disturbing questions he finds himself asking about legalism, the rights of women and the protection of children. His friendship with the family also helps him learn more about himself. "I have chosen...to mine the raw material of their everyday lives in search of everyday truths," writes Mackall.
   
   It's an immersion into the world of the Swartzentruber, the most traditional and strict of the Amish sects. The Swartzentruber refuse to use reflective signs on the back of their buggies, leave school after the eighth grade, bathe only once a week and carry no insurance. The women are not permitted to wear bras and are not allowed to shave their underarms or legs.
   
   However, there are plenty of surprises. This conservative sect shops at Wal-Mart and loves the Dollar Store, and may enjoy junk food such as Milky Way candy bars and potato chips. Although they don't practice "rumspringa" like many other Amish sects, the Swartzentruber Amish let their teens go on "dates," in which a teenage boy and girl spend the night together, side by side, in her bed. Mackall skillfully weaves other information throughout the narrative: the history of the Swartzentruber, the organization of the church and the ordination of ministers, and Amish perceptions of African Americans.
   
   As part of his exploration, Mackall follows the story of Samuel's nephew Jonas, who leaves the Amish to join the English community. The reader will be alternately intrigued, sympathetic and repelled at how Jonas handles his new-found "freedom." To abandon Amish life, Mackall shows through Jonas's attempt, is to encounter immediate problems. How do you get a Social Security number if your parents refuse to let you have a copy of their marriage license? How do you find a job when you've never gone to school past the eighth grade? The Amish community's culture and rules, Mackall realizes, make it difficult for a child to leave.
   
   Living in close proximity to the Shetler family offers Mackall positive insights as well --- an appreciation and attention to the weather, a realization that he doesn't need as much as he perhaps wants. Mackall, a professor of English and journalism at Ashland University, beautifully pens one particularly haunting scene, which finds him rhythmically tossing butternut squash to Samuel in his truck as they get ready to go to an auction.
   
   "Perhaps it's because the weather is fair and the season is autumn, but suddenly I experience a paroxysm of joy --- sheer, sharp unadulterated joy. I'm suspended between two worlds, an outsider in an outsider's world. I'm here with friends who consider themselves separate from the world but woven into the earth, while we all throw fruits of the earth to one another: seeds planted, sown, produce reaped and cleaned, soon to be sold, bought, and eaten. Toddlers play, teenagers laugh, a friend loses his hat, my back aches, and through it all the beauty and heartbreaking brevity of this life pierce me with their stunning certainty."
   
   Other scenes are not so prosaic. After enjoying his rides in Samuel's buggy and telling others about them "as if I were playing a small part in some quaint drama most people could only watch", he must re-evaluate his thinking after another family's buggy is hit by a car and an eight-year-old girl is killed. This leads to a written personal tirade, which ends with, "Is sticking with your sacred buggies more important than the sanctity of human life? Can't you take care of your children?" Readers will have further concerns when Samuel takes his daughter to a veterinarian for medical treatment or, like all Swartzentrubers, refuses to immunize his children. Mackall's questions as he ponders the less appealing side of Amish life are respectful, vulnerable and thought provoking.
   
   Threaded throughout Mackall's book is Samuel's belief in God's will and how it affects his world. "He talks about God's will the way he reports how much it rained the night before or that one of his cows has the milk disease. God's will is like gravity --- it is rain and dirt and sun and snow and wind and fire and every other elemental thing. It is what it is --- no matter what we do." Despite Mackall's own disagreement with Samuel's theology, he finds himself strangely comforted by it when a disabled uncle dies.
   
   It's these conflicting perceptions that provide the necessary tension that holds Mackall's narrative together. Readers will come away with new perspectives about Amish life and some disturbing questions.
   
   --- Reviewed by Cindy Crosby



2. Plain Secrets was our choice for our book club this month. It was an informative read. Much info about the Amish of Ohio and a good conversation work.



3. Very enjoyable read. Mackall uses his sensitivity, humor and vulnerability to tell us a real story about real Amish people. Living next door and making friends with a Swatzentruber (very orthodox & traditional) Amish family, he is there for them in their time of need, and they welcome him in to their lives - to a certain point. Mackall smashes many of the popular, but inaccurate notions we have about the Amish and leaves us a little more informed and thoroughly entertained.



4. As someone who grew up Swartzentruber Amish in the same community as the "Shetler" family I consider this to be one of the best books on the Amish I've ever come across. It accurately tells the real story without being offensive. My only problem with reading it was knowing how private the Amish are I felt like I was eavesdroping! If you are looking for an accurate account of life inside the Swartzentruber Amish community this book is a must read.



5. Good book, worth reading. Honest, interesting.
   
   Joe Mackall ends up proving the Amish points FOR them in the buggy arena. The English are the ones who need to explain those buggy deaths, not Samuel & his brethren. As Mac says, there are virtually no buggy on buggy deaths- yet he blames the buggy-car deaths on... THE AMISH!!! ???? Blaming the victim, the author's cultural imperialism becomes quite clear... He doesn't seem to have much introspection into the choices and sacrifices he has accepted as normal while qualifying the Amish as abnormal. He bemoans the opportunities and education afforded Amish girls as opposed to boys while the maintsream culture he partakes in has done no better and has created a popular culture porno-slut ideal of womanhood.

2 comments about They Come Back Singing: Finding God With the Refugees.

1. This is a very moving book about a man finding the Lord in very deplorable situations. Seeing the strength and humor and watching him
   grow spirirtually is an awesome experince for the reader. I would love to see him write more books as he journeys through life.



2. The author, a Jesuit priest, spent about six years working with Sudanese refugees living in Uganda; he was "with them" in every way possible and came to love and be loved by many. The book is a series of rather short vignettes of his experiences and profoundly personal reflections drawn from those experiences. There is no effort in the book to prosyletize or argue religious propositions; but most of the primarily reflective pieces do draw on Catholic theological vocabulary. As one who has never been in Africa, I came away from this book with a very very different sense of the ordinary people there than I started out with. Nothing I have seen in the media has come at all close to describing the situation of Sudanese refugees with the poignancy or nitty-gritty detail of this enormously readable book.