3 comments about VISION FOR GOD.

1. Especially when you are reading about the lives of Paul & Margaret Brand. I have had the pleasure of knowing Margaret for many years since they've settled in Seattle. And, as noted in the foreword, she is the most humble person I've ever met, and I had to read her book to get a glimpse of the extraordinary life that she led. Personal feelings aside, I thought that the book was very pleasantly designed, integrating direct quotes and memories from Margaret into the main storyline and historical context provided by the author. I found myself flying through this book, passing a hundred pages at a time. This is a great book, showing how a life, guided by God, can make such a significant impact on so many people. This is a great read and well worth-while purchase.



2. An inspiring book on the life of Margaret Brand. Her personal memories, written in bold type in the book give real insights into the depth of character of this lady and the biographical information fills in the story of a life lived with vision and love for both people and for God. Her life as a wife, mother and as a surgeon in India is quite remarkable
   A great read.



3. Philip Yancey's foreword to this fascinating memoir sums it up best: "It would be difficult to invent a life more full of adventure than Margaret Brand's." This colorful and delightful memoir tells the story of Dr. Margaret Brand, a medical pioneer in the treatment of leprosy ophthalmology. From her childhood in South Africa to her World War II medical training in London to her world-renown work with victims of Hansen's disease (leprosy) in both India and Carville, Louisiana, Dr. Brand's biography is a "can't put it down" story that demonstrates that truth can be even more amazing than fiction. "Dr. Margaret" is a skilled storyteller, and her surgeon son-in-law, James Jost, has done us all a great service by coauthoring her story and bringing it to print. Dr. Margaret's service to God, her family, and those around her suffering from a once mysterious and debilitating disease will inspire readers.

5 comments about The Desert Fathers.

1. The Desert Fathers is an interesting insight into how the Desert Fathers lived their lives and practiced their faith. The preface written by M. Basil Pennington makes an interesting observation that John the Baptist might have been influenced by the Essene/Qumranite community that was in that region of Palestine. John's behavior may seem bizarre to the modern-day reader, but the Essenes were already practicing similar behavior in their desert asceticism, and John was revered as a holy man (Waddell, xxv).
   Waddell's translation can be difficult to understand at times, but overall the book is interesting and insightful, and at points bizarre and unsettling. For example, St. Jerome's account of the hermit Antony's encounter with a hippocentaur and a faun/satyrs is extremely peculiar. Jerome even claims that a faun/satyrs was captured alive and brought to Alexandria during the reign of Constantius. The creature was either killed, or just died, and its remains were then preserved in salt (Waddell, 37-38). Furthermore, Jerome states that lions came and dug the grave for the hermit St. Paul (Waddell, 42). These reports are extremely difficult for the modern-day reader to accept as being historically accurate, and the reader is left wondering if this account is meant to be allegory, and not an actual historical account.
   However, it is interesting to read how the monks had some competitiveness among themselves, and of Jerome's love of classical works (Waddell, 45-46). There are several accounts of monks being well educated and possessing codices of Scripture. The monk Gelasius had a "codex in parchment worth eighteen solidi" (Waddell, 125-127). The monk Arsenius is described as a "great scholar" of Latin and Greek (Waddell, 122).
   Even though there was infighting among some of the monks, it appears that the majority of the Desert Fathers, in their solitary lives, showed great compassion and concern for one another:
   If by chance any one is missing in that gathering, straightway they understand that he has been detained by some unevenness of his body and they all go to visit him, not indeed all of them together but at different times, and each carrying with him whatever he may have by him at home that might seem grateful to the sick. (Waddell, 58)
   
   There kindness to each other and those in need is commendable.
   Racism seems to have always been with us. Pelagius wrote of the monk Moses "the `long black man' who was converted from among the robbers, and was liable to gibes about his colour" (Waddell 65). This same desert abbott Moses was humble, but so revered that a provincial judge sought to meet with him (Waddell, 99).
   The desert monks' lives were lives of fasting, and it appears from the writings that since fasting was such a huge part of their lives they developed a fixation on food. Many of the stories relate to how they often only ate very small portions of food, and frequently that was mere bread and salt. One story relates how an old ailing monk, at the urging of the his fellow monk, ate some cake in hopes of aiding in his recovery, but the cake was accidently spread with linseed oil instead of honey--which likely killed the old monk. The underlying, and untold, moral is that such an indulgence deserved punishment (Waddell, 142).
   Woman, too, are a source of temptation for the monks. There are several stories about the monks' struggles with lust. One young monk who refused to be tempted by women went on a journey with his mother, and wrapped his hands in his cloak to prevent from touching his own mother's hands--for fear of lust, "Because the body of a woman is fire. And even from my touching thee, came the memory of other women into my soul" (Waddell 79). There are also some more fanciful accounts of desert monks being tempted by women. In another account, the temptress actually dies and the monk raises her from the dead to live a new chaste life (Waddell 86-87). This same theme is found at the end of the book in the story of The Life of St. Mary the Harlot (Waddell 199-209). However, there are also accounts of pious women who also lived the desert life (Waddell, 131, 138).
   The life of the dessert monk was one of denial and sacrifice, but also compassion and love for others. This interesting book gives the reader a glimpse into the lives of this devoted men and women.



2. This book is an OK introduction, but otherwise disappointing. There are many other books out there much better. Helen Waddell did translate these writings from the Latin. The problem is that save for the first selection from St. Jerome (originally written in Latin) all of the selections are translations from the Latin but the Latin translations from which Waddell translates are translations of other authors from the original Greek.
   
   Still, if you have not been exposed at all to the thoughts and beliefs of our early Christian monks it may be a good brief introduction. You will get a look into how these early monastic thought and lived their lives. Of course in any translation of the Desert Fathers you will find words of wisdom that you will benefit from.



3. Some thirty years ago I received the Benedictine habit in the Abbey of Saint Pierre in Solesmes, France. My Prior at that time was the Reverend Father Dom Lucien Regnault. Anyone interested in the Desert Fathers would do better to go to the Solesmes homesite and search their "librarie" (bookstore) for the works of Dom Regnault which are unsurpassed for scholarship and spiritual orthodoxy. Dom Regnault's several works in this field (or, rather, desert) are beyond compare, and tragically many are now out-of-print. I cherish mine very much.
   
   This present volume comes through the Vintage Spiritual Classics series. Catholic readers should know this as a section of Random House (who first brought us under Bennet Cerf the greatest novel of our time: Ulysses by James Joyce) and while it is a very excellent and popular printing house (along with its colophon) it is not a Catholic Press and bears no ecclesial authority. This is one reason why you find the poor to luke warm reviews presented here. This is not their field of expertise. We can come little closer than the fine work of Dom Regnault.
   
   Of course those in the know realize the Father Basil Pennington is a well respected author and member of the heroic Trappist Monastery in Spencer, Massachusetts. His spiritual works are well known and appreciated as rich soil for meditation. I have met him personally as well, of course as I have also Dom Regnault, although not as constantly as the very humble yet magnificent and valient Dom Regnault. Yet, even so, I find Dom Regnault's works an unlimited and eternal jewel, and have often meditated them through translation into English.
   
   Notice well that Father Pennington does the Preface alone to this book and not the heavy lifting. Also notice the cover represents a community of monks from after the 1400's (when did Trappists wear an old white habit? Or is this the Carthusians, even later? or "white" Benedictines, even? no indication given in the book aside from a general source of religious illustrations). The cover does not display the mighty anchorites out alone in the Egyptian desert who wrote these apophthegmes a thousand years earlier. Enough said. Believe me, I was mistaken when I automatically gave this five stars. Read your Regnault.
   
   I urge you to find his out-of-print works here in the mighty amazon, or anywhere you can. It is very easy to order what is still in print from Solesmes, and they are very good about shipping and payment. They are after all Benedictines of the highest order.
   
   Vintage Spiritual series meanwhile, is not a Catholic house and its work must be viewed as a popularization rather than a sacrament of the Living Word. The reviewer below who noted the probable age when Ms Waddell wrote this is correct. More recent work abounds. Especially, dare I say, Dom Regnault.



4. I agree with the review of C. Ryan: "One really needs to dig for the most compelling and enlightening material."
   It's an okay read, but probably has more to offer the historian looking for tidbits of insight into the day-to-day lives of the desert fathers, than it does the spiritual seeker hoping to find a spiritual snack.



5. Richard Foster (author of The Spirit of Disciplines and other contemporary Christian works) recommends that for every contemporary Christian book you read it is important to read another one more than at least 400 hundred years old. One way to access such older Christian worlds is through the Vintage Spiritual Classics series that makes classical Christian works accessible to believers who often haven't read anything written prior to currently-living Evangelical writers.

   This is arguably a good introduction to the thoughts and beliefs of early Christian monastics, both male and female. This is a period all Christians should study since it reflects the origins of most early Christian theology and practice derived from men and women who were sometimes just a generation or two removed from the Apostles. It helps Christians get in touch with their spiritual roots and offset some of the spiritual nonsense that occupies much of the shelf space in most Christian bookstores.

   However, I found this relatively thin (221 page) book a disappointment. First, although it's a first edition for this publisher in 1998, it's actually a reproduction of work translated by a woman who died in 1965 at the age of 76, so who knows when it was actually prepared. Then, it's a translation of source documents for the stories and sayings, but they're sometimes less than easy to follow or "pithy" in this format. One really needs to dig for the most compelling and enlightening material. There are a number of more contemporary, extensive and more usefully translated books on the Desert Fathers, a number of which are listed in this book's two-page "Suggestions for Further Reading", virtually all of which post-date by 10-20 years this book itself.

   I suggest consulting Orthodox Christian WEB sites and publishers for good summaries, explanations and references for the philosophy, beliefs and practices of the Desert Fathers since the Orthodox denominations are arguably the Desert Fathers' direct descendents in today's world.

5 comments about The Torn Veil: The Best-Selling Story of Gulshan Esther.

1. If you want a glance into the lives and psychi of the devot muslim, this is the book to read. If your curious about christianity, buy this book- it's a true story. It is well written and once you begin it is difficult to set it down. This is not some freaky christian autobiography. Gulshan Esther does not give any hint of an effort to convert her readers. She tells us, merely what happened to her, what her life experiences have been, in one of the most beautiful narratives imaginable. This book will change your life and the way you view Christianity and Islam. I hope you buy this book. I know I have been changed because of it.



2. This book has changed the way I precieve God's work in people's lives. If you are willing to let yourself feel anothers struggles in a world you could hardly understand. And if you are willing to imagine God to be so great that He could do anything for the one He loves. Then prepare your heart and dive into a deeper relationship with God. Prepare to understand the heart of the lost muslim like never before.



3. I was swept away of the Gulshan Esther's courage. A wonderful person recommended this book - I'm so glad he did because it was hard to put down. I was in awe of Jesus' faithfulness and promise to heal those who call on Him and believe in His name. Truly a powerful story which God desired for His people to read. Gulshan answered that call, not backing down for a moment; she's a beautifully healed soldier.



4. This is a beautiful story of a Muslim girl who is healed by Jesus,and comes to know Him as her Lord and Saviour.
   It is wonderful to read of the power and compassion of Jesus,of how He spoke to her,of how He transformed her body,her heart,and her life.
   A beautiful testimony book not just for Muslims,but for anyone.



5. The story shows how when we are really desperate for God, He reveals Himself in a very powerful and yet in a practical loving way by healing this sick lady.

5 comments about C.S. Lewis: A Complete Guide to His Life & Works.

1. It is absolutely indispensable for lovers of Lewis. This book leads you into his head and his heart, and there is perhaps none so close to the personality of this British genius than Mr. Hooper himself. It is the only guide I have come across truly deserving the title of "guide." Buy this book: it is the door to Lewis' universe.



2. Veal's excellent organizational overview of the work is spot on, and thus not to be duplicated. What this review will attempt to supplement that excellent review is Hooper's intent of providing this companion/guide: to unite the poet, critic and Christian into one. This was one of the major themes Lewis had expressed to Hooper, to find that there is a guiding thread uniting all of his life's writings.
   
   Reading and rereading Lewis is a pleasant and wonderful task, seeking and finding new emphases and insights. Hooper's reflections on the same are thus a friendly aid to this, if one chooses. I find his insights sometimes illuminate, sometimes expose my overlooks, and sometimes stamp what I've already found.
   
   Thus, for Lewis devotee, this is excellent resource. Omitted here is Lewis' work on education, which is so filled in a scholarly fashion by a new work by Joel Heck.



3. Companion and Guide is the sort of reference book that almost always answers the specific question you came in search of and yet whets your appetite for the original texts. I suspect that it would have this effect even on someone who had not yet read the originals.
   
   Immensely helpful for teachers even if they know Lewis very well. For example, Peter Kreeft's excellent talk on "Til We Have Faces" (available on his website) seems to have been built around Hooper's entry in this book.
   
   It was a great help to me in teaching the space trilogy.
   
   Warning: if you are prone -- as I am-- to the vice of curiosity, this book is not always a time-saver. You will find yourself browsing when you meant to be only verifying a fact or running down a citation.
   
   Because of the excelent little book that she wrote on Narnia, I would hesitate to speak ill of Kathryn Lindskoog even if she were still alive and had not died what I consider to be a heroic Christian death. That said, it would be foolhardy in the extreme to let her later attacks on Hooper (some perhaps just, some quite bizarre, personal, and unsubstantiated) so poison your judgment about him that you miss out on this monumental acheivement.



4. C. S. Lewis would doubtless have scoffed at the idea of a reference book about himself, just as he disapproved of university courses devoted to modern authors on the sensible ground that "helps" to reading them are not needed and come between the writer and his audience.

   Nonetheless, students and "fans" of the great Christian apologist and literary scholar now are offered two thick compendia on his life and work. Each has its virtues and faults, and both are worthwhile investments - though not a substitute for the straight, unfiltered Lewis.

   The "Companion and Guide", reviewed here, is the production of one man, who has devoted almost his entire adult lifetime to editing and writing about Lewis. The rival "C. S. Lewis Readers' Encyclopedia" is a composite work whose contributors range from giants in the field to eager amateurs.

   When he first met C. S. Lewis in June 1963, Walter Hooper was an American schoolteacher who had dropped out of studying for the Episcopal priesthood and never gotten started as a graduate student in literature. Instantly star-struck, he volunteered to help with secretarial chores. Within a few months Lewis was dead of a heart attack, and this 32-year-old foreigner, whose academic credentials consisted of a master's degree in education and who had never published a word on any Lewisan topic, improbably became the great man's de facto literary executor. Within a year he had edited the first collected edition of Lewis' poems, and he has worked at the same stand ever since. The double meaning of the present volume's title is no accident. The book is a companion and guide to readers of Lewis' work, but Lewis has also been, metaphorically, a lifetime companion and guide to Walter Hooper.

   "Companion and Guide" weighs in at almost a thousand pages (twice the length of the "Readers' Encyclopedia"). It leads off with a hundred page biography that may well be the best life of Lewis yet written (not that the competition is very formidable). The next and longest section discusses each of CSL's books, with the inexplicable omission of "The Allegory of Love", his seminal tome on courtly love and medieval poetry. Of greatest interest are the accounts of how the works came to be written, which draw on Lewis' vast, incompletely published correspondence and on conversations with his large circle of friends. Also provided are epitomes, which are useful for reference but sometimes flabby, and haphazard excerpts from book reviews. The last feature calls attention to one of the Companion's defects: Hooper is too much a Lewis partisan to pay much attention to detractors. The uniform, almost gushing, praise of the quotations is not representative of contemporary reaction to Lewis. It would be very surprising if smashing modern idols had made him popular among the high priests of idolatry.

   Closely related to the discussions of the works are short essays on "Key Ideas". Relatively long pieces summarize Lewis' positions on such topics as "Imagination", "Natural Law" and "Reason". Shorter ones range from "Bulverism" to "Monarchy" to "Quiddity". These rapid presentations of Lewis' point of view, quoting liberally from his own words, are excellent as far as they go, but have little critical depth.

   Next come a "Who's Who" of people who were important to Lewis, a miscellaneous "What's What" of places, organizations, concepts, terms and facts ("The Kilns", "Oxford University Socratic Club", "Anthroposophy", "Don(s)", "Stage Plays of the Chronicles of Narnia") that relate to Lewis in some fashion, and an 84 page bibliography of everything by Lewis that had appeared in print through about 1996.

   The strength of the Companion is the immense fund of information that it provides. Its weaknesses are the author's uncritical devotion to his subject and the lacunae in those areas that don't interest him. The academic side of Lewis' career, in particular, is underdeveloped. One finds little about the controversy over the Oxford English curriculum, in which Lewis played a prominent role. As already noted, "The Allegory of Love", which made CSL's reputation as a scholar, gets scant notice. Important essays like "What Chaucer Really Did to Il Filostrato", "Donne and Seventeenth Century Love Poetry" and "The Fifteenth-Century Heroic Line" receive none at all.

   The readers who will find the Companion most useful (and will prefer it to the Readers' Encyclopedia) are those who are interested in CSL primarily as a Christian thinker and novelist and who are more concerned with gaining a fuller appreciation of his writings than in examining what others have written about him.

   Since another reviewer has raised it, one must address the question of Mr. Hooper's reliability. When he first came to Lewis studies, a callow outsider abruptly elevated beyond his expectations or deserts, he sought to enhance his statute by falsely claiming a long and intimate association with Lewis. That was a foolish course of action and gained enemies who have hounded him for decades with increasingly sensational accusations. I have no way to judge whether any or all of the charges are well-founded, but they are mostly of interest to biographers of Hooper, not to students of Lewis. Save in marginal areas and subject to normal human frailty, there is no valid reason to impugn the Companion's accuracy. One may leave the last word on this topic to the Readers' Encyclopedia, which, in the course of a far from flattering article about Mr. Hooper, calls the Companion a "landmark volume". Its author may, for all I know, be a bad man, but he is a good encyclopedist.




5. Serious Lewis scholars have known for years that significant questions exist about the veracity of Walter Hooper with respect to his relationship with the famous Christian writer. Kathryn Lindskoog, among others has written extensively on this subject.

   With this in mind, works by or about Lewis, which are written by, edited by or annotated by Hooper must be considered of questionable validity and value.

5 comments about Through Gates of Splendor.

1. I read this book, probably 24 years ago, so this one, I purchased for a friend, but this book had a radical impact upon my life and I'm forever grateful for the life and ministry of Elizabeth Elliot. Dian



2. This is an incredible story about following Jesus and seeking to reach tribal people for Him. This book contains extensive journal entries from the five men involved, so provides a rich amount of detail. Most of the book is comprised of these entries, with Elliot mostly providing background information and transitions between entires. She doesn't fully express herself until the Epilogues, which are very powerful. This book is sure to have a profound impact on all who read it. Highly recommended.



3. I loved this book, it is definitely one to keep in my collection. Although I noticed that the type is very small and therefore a bit difficult to read ( and I have good eyesight ). Also I think something should be mentioned co: the pictures in the book, I knew it was tribal but I was not aware that there were photos. I still would have bought the book but I would definitely give it a PG rating.



4. If you are a Christian - this is a must read. If you are not a Christian - this is a must read.



5. Great book. Poor presentation in this current printing. Words and pictures are small. Paper and physical book itself is low quality.

4 comments about Jesus the Man: Decoding the Real Story of Jesus and Mary Magdalene.

1. What an important book. Barbara Thiering is an interesting scholar / writer. Her work is world changing, yet, there is no change. Apart from the occasional poor souls who venture into criticism of her based on faith at best, personal invective at worst, the most powerful responses to Thiering's hypothesis / hypotheses that there is a truly historical Jesus who lived a "normal" life packed with "normal" historical events is the deafening roar of deliberate silence. That Jesus was perhaps born into an "upper" class despite the traditional Christian teaching that such was otherwise must be truly shocking. That Thiering might actually be right, and I don't know if she is without further research on my own part, must send a shudder through the edifice of modern Christian religion.
   
   If Thiering's work turns out to be fiction, it is the most savagely powerful I have ever encountered; if it turns out to be only partly true, or worse, wholly true: heaven and earth will work wonders to prevent the reverberations bringing the Chritian edifice down. I suspect most will wait well after Thieiring has departed our company when others can distort what she actually said without fear that she can correct them.
   
   I found myself flicking backwards and forwards too often: looking at photographs, chronologies and storylines. Perhaps Thiering can think of a slightly better structure to tell her story with. Perhaps there is none. I think she could usefully do with some more informative maps, genealogies, sub-chronologies and who's-who-relationship diagrams.
   
   Well worth a read. Thoughful and erudite. Certainly makes you think: "where to from here".



2. Let's assume you are not a literal Christian that cannot accept anything that would threaten the Jesus as God preaching. Otherwise, don't buy or even touch this book because it is blasphemy.
   
   Ok, for those of you who can think for yourselves, give it a try. It is complex and takes a careful reading to follow what was a complex society in Qumran. Those scholars (with credentials) that have examined this book (and the others) have not found fault with her compilation of the data. As a scientist I'm impressed with her method which is careful and consistent. Her story makes more logical sense than any other Jesus story I have read (including the Bible). She may be right or wrong but she is definitely not a crackpot or whacko.
   
   As for the duplication; the original "Jesus the Man" was not available in the US for many years because of pressure from Christian groups(according to the publisher). Since there is money to make riding on the Da Vinci Code phenomenon (which Thiering detests) another publisher has jumped in for the bucks.
   
   Her other two books are easier to follow but this one is the core information.



3. It should be noted, as other reviewers have also pointed out, that `Jesus the Man: Decoding the Real Story of Jesus and Mary Magdalene' is the same book as `Jesus the man', which is the same book as `Jesus & the Riddle of the Dead Sea Scrolls'; all different ISBN's and publishers but essentially the same book; repackaging in trying to dodge the negative reviews of the past and trying to cash in on the Da Vinci $.
   
   Thiering uses the pesher technique to try to prop up her works. A look at most other reviewers from those that have read her books, will tell you how flawed this technique is.
   
   I think very little of the present author along with another writer, Laurence Gardner. They both contend that Jesus descended from the cross of which he was nailed and crucified to. Gardner goes that bit further and say's that Jesus Christ was drugged while on the cross until reviving post crucifixion. Both authors use this argument to then continue to say that Jesus lived the happy family life in begetting children. This then is Gardiner's cash cow, the power of the crucifixion to give the appearance of power via an imaginary blood line. Let's put the word 'Logic' on the cross instead. Even if you don't believe in Jesus Christ having been crucified, try to at least understand this. Crucifixion is a death sentence. You have a crowd of people watching and Roman soldiers doing the crucifying. You then have a body that is nailed to timber at the hands and feet. Added to all of this is the scourging that the Romans inflicted inclusive of the spear that pierced the side of Jesus, causing water and blood to gush out. According to scripture, Christ did return to walk this planet, but in a glorified state i.e. "Touch me not for I have not yet ascended". From an esoteric perspective, the mission of Jesus was an evolutionary pathway. According to esoteric wisdom, the need for a human partner would have been a necessity prior to Jesus' sacrificial mission. To insinuate Christs return to father children is preposterous.
   
   So which is it, there is no proof of Christ ever existing, as most armchair internet theologians would try to tell you, or Christ died and came back and fathered children; all equally trying to devalue the mission of Christ in the spirit of Antichrist; the continued voice of the masses, which still cries to this day "Crucify him and give us the murderer Barabbas instead". Hardly the middle ground of Christ came as a sacrifice to die for the sins of humanity. Christ gives us the example towards spirit and spiritual ascension, while the ego with its desires, passions and lusts, stands in direct opposition to this.
   
   This book deserves a 0 star rating. This is the worst book that I have ever read, a book full of unverified fabrications and outright lies. If you're into the Da Vinci code stuff, do yourself a favour and look for a book and author with more credibility, so as to not waste your time and money and to save filling your mind with useless dribble.



4. Read this in 1992, and bought it again recently. It's still whacko. That is except for one brilliant point that stuck in my mind all this time. The problem is she mentions it only in passing..and doesn't follow it to the obvious conclusion. Jesus, she suggests, was the Wicked Priest that is so vilified in the Dead Sea Scrolls. I think she's right.
   
   Mark Gibbs
   Author, The Virgin and The Priest

5 comments about The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume 2 (Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis).

1. This is the most fascinating collection of letters I've ever read: Lewis was not only a genius, but a wise and compassionate man as well. The other reviewers here go into more detail, but I did want to mention this: what struck me most was how creatively and wisely Lewis dealt with his own difficulties in life, his own sadness, his suffering. His deep and active faith helped him to see beyond himself; his kindness kept him caring for others; his lack of self-pity is a wonderful example. He enjoys life both in the many good times, and in the midst of hard times. These letters are not only fun and informative: they are inspiring as well.



2. I should begin this review with an important stipulation: I haven't finished the book yet. I am slightly over halfway done -- about 600 pages into it.
   
   That said, I think I have a pretty good grasp of the course this first volume is taking. And it's a good one. I am thoroughly enjoying this detailed romp through C.S. Lewis's early life, though I must join with a previous reviewer in saying that I do feel a bit guilty reading through his personal papers.
   
   You have to attack this book with the right mindset. It's not a novel, an action adventure story or even a biography. It's simply the unedited, honest ramblings of a man growing up in the early 20th century.
   
   This first volume does contain a lot of excruciating details that one might call mundane. In many of the letters, Lewis is doing nothing more than asking his father for money, describing the binding of a new book he has recently purchased or apologizing for taking so long to write.
   
   But at the same time, the anthology is chock full of minute details that shed infinite light on what life was like at the dawn of the 20th century. The very idea that people would write so many (and so lengthy) letters at all seems foreign to us now in the age of e-mails and instant messages. Imagine growing up in a time when you were expected, not only to learn Greek and Latin, but also to speak and read it fluently. I used to think I was an intellectual for having read The Iliad and The Odyssey in their English translations. Lewis (and likely his contemporaries) seemed to scoff at anyone who would read anything other than the Greek versions. It was a different time.
   
   The other reason this book is appealing is that it enables you to trace a seismic shift in Lewis's worldview. Smattered among the grocery lists, the book reviews and the complaints about his father are honest observations about the universe itself. These doses of philosophy come from Lewis unedited and unexpected -- a sentence or paragraph in between the requests for new socks and a comment on the weather.
   
   By the time he entered his teenage years, Lewis was a staunch athiest. In fact, he sometimes chides his childhood compatriot Arthur Greeves for his belief in Christianity. On several occasions he mockingly calls down the anger of God upon himself and blasts Christianity in favor of the older religions, such as Greek mythology.
   
   But slowly, we see Lewis's atheism whittled down until, by the end of Volume One, he has converted to Christianity. Being a believer myself, I am always amazed to see the contrast between a person before and after they accept Christ. This collection of Lewis's letters provide a window into the "before". Volumes Two and Three will no doubt give us the "after".



3. This is a review of The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume II: Books, Broadcasts, and the War, 1931 - 1939. ISBN 0060727640; HarperCollins, 2004.
   
   Walter Hooper, in the preface to this volume, mentions that Owen Barfield divided Lewis into three different men: the popular theologian, the literary critic, and the writer of popular fiction. Being a fan of Lewis the literary critic doesn't mean you know Lewis the popular theologian exists, and being a fan of Lewis the writer of popular fiction doesn't necessarily mean you like Lewis the literary critic. But fans of all three Lewises owe Walter Hooper a great debt of thanks for editing three thousand-page volumes of the man's letters.
   
   In the first volume, Lewis's correspondence was divided between his father, his brother, and his "First Friend" Arthur Greeves; with a few letters to people such as Cecil Harwood, Owen Barfield, and Leo Baker thrown in for good measure. Here, he writes to many, many people, and is much more interesting: former pupils (Dom Bede Griffiths, Mary Neylan), Sister Penelope, Dorothy Sayers, Americans . . . The years covered by this volume (1931 - 1949) cover some of Lewis's best work: The Screwtape Letters, Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra, That Hideous Strenght, The Problem of Pain, Miracles, and his talks for the BBC that eventually became Mere Christianity. (This period also included more scholarly work such as his Preface to Paradise Lost and The Abolition of Man; also his editing of the Essays Presented to Charles Williams.) He talks about the etymology of Old Solar, the proper pronunciation of double vowels in Old English (palely v. paley), and how to properly read Milton, among other things.
   
   What I found interesting (and rather disappointing) is that Lewis doesn't talk very much about some of his books in his letters. For instance, there's more about the Screwtape Letters in his preface than in his letters. I have to occasionally remind myself that the Lewis writing letters in 1945 was the Lewis who was writing That Hideous Strength at the same time. But there's nothing better than reading a brilliant man talk about books you've both read; and so I enjoyed Lewis's offhand comments on Macdonald, Trollope, and others. Lewis on Cervantes: "I tried to read Don Quixote and failed: it seems to me a wretched affair. I suppose I must be wrong" (page 250).
   
   Though it's true that Volume II is more interesting than Volume I, readers of the first volume already know what a Pigiebotie is, the significance of a P'daytism, and who the Witch of Endor was. I wasn't sorry I read the first volume before the second.
   
   Those who want an introduction to Lewis should try Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, or even the Narnia books; the Letters would probably be too much. But those who already know and love Lewis should buy Volumes I and II of the Letters now, and Volume III when it comes out in October.



4. My opinion of this book is rather similar to the previous reviewer's. This book provides an extraordinary glimpse into the pre-Christian life of the giant of the faith, C. S. Lewis. There are many, many letters which are extremely interesting, and you can see Lewis' thought developing as the years pass in the book. On the other hand, there are also many letters which have no relevance to Lewis' thought at all and are, as far as I can tell, completely useless to anyone who is not some kind of Lewis fanatic or something (who really wants to read a letter about what groceries Lewis needs that week?). Hooper could really have done a better job at choosing what to weed out, and some of the letters he chose to retain are doing nothing but taking up space in the book and frustrating readers who are looking for gems in this book.
   
   One of the best parts of the book is that in a good portion of his letters Lewis writes about books that he is reading at the time. I loved reading about what Lewis thought of the books he was reading, and seeing the vast number of books that Lewis was reading was what inspired me to start reading the classics myself, so I owe a great debt to this book (as well as the 2nd volume, which I read at the same time).
   
   As to the previous reviewers question about how to read through this book, I just read sraight through. It was tough, but I wanted to see Lewis' thoughts develop, which is hard to do if you take the "island hopping" approach. It may be a tough read, but it is definitely worth it.
   
   Overall grade: A-



5. This second volume of C.S. Lewis' letters was, I though, much better than the first. It is amazing to be able to read what c.S. Lewis was doing and what he was thinking. Reading these books of letters has gives me an entirely new perspective of C.S. Lewis. One thing that constantly amazed me was all of the books he read. It seemed that in every letter he was describing which books he had read since the last letter, and it inspired me to begin reading more regularly.
   
   Also, and more importantly, in the latter part of this book C.S. Lewis begins answering fan mail, and in these he talks a lot about theology. These letters are especially interesting and worthwhile to read. In this volume one can also find a letter in which Lewis clearly states his inclusivistic beliefs (I don't remember which one off hand, but it was towards the beginning somwhere).
   
   If you enjoy reading C.S. Lewis material, or if you want to see into the life of a giant of the Christian faith, this is an amazing opportunity for you.

5 comments about Muhammad, Prophet of God.

1. This is a great book. It gives you an overview of the history of Islam. Very easy read.



2. I, like most westerners, have a very shallow understanding of the story of Muhammad. I've read chapters of him in textbooks, and have picked up bits and pieces of his life and influence through various channels. I wanted to learn a bit more, so I picked up this book based on some recommendations.
   
   Peterson has done a great job is this short biography explaining the background and major events in the life of Muhammad. He highlights the many strengths of this great man and puts what we westerners would consider weaknesses into the context of the times. It would be hard to find other leaders of the time that made such a positive impact on society. Peterson didn't highlight the aftermath of his life, but Muslim culture far outshone western culture for hundreds of years.
   
   Is Muhammad a true prophet? Peterson rightly leaves that for others to answer. Was he an honest and sincere man? It appears that most scholars agree that he was.
   
   I recommend this book for anyone seeking to understand more about Muhammad. I have a much clearer picture of his history now that I have read this book.



3. This book is truly a wonderful introduction into the life of Muhammad and the beginnings of Islam. It is well-written and concise, never going into any more detail than is needed for such an introduction. It is an excellent starting point for anyone just getting started in learning the history of Muhammad and Islam.



4. My previous review was removed.
   Please Do not limit FREEDOM OF SPEECH.
   
   This author has made many serious, non-scholarly , most likely deliberate mistakes, errors and accusations in his book.
   
   I have contacted the Author of the Foreword, and found out that Islamic Scholar Khaleel Mohammad was tricked into writing of his foreword and has not even read the Blueprint before the publication of this deceiving work.
   
   Some laughable mistakes...
   
   He claims Qur'an's style is most definitely likely of the Arab Poetry.
   (This is why so many Arabs embraced Islam, Qur'an was so different and higher standard that it reformed and standardized Arabic. This is a baseless attack, the miracle of the Qur'an was its unique style, that can and has been demonstrated by scholars multiple times)
   
   He claims Early Qur'an wasn't truly monotheistic, neither the Prophet.
   (This is comical, THE VERSE OF MONOTHEISM, Al-Ikhlas is an early Sura, and all Suras are inherently unmistakably monotheistic, That's Islam, That's Muhammad (sas))
   
   He says this was a "later" development. (Clear Deception)
   
   He claims Qur'an verses depict Jesus(as) God Incarnate. (LOL)
   (There is not a single verse he can produce for this claim)
   
   He tries to claim that Qur'an borrowed from Christian and Jewish
   sources.
   (This is an old school deception that's been discussed and refuted many times, this can not be established, nor can be proven. The Qur'an itself states it has come to be a guardian of the Scriptures, meaning to restore the truth and correct the mistakes and that's just what it does.)
   
   Overall, the author's image he's trying to give is an Objective, Loving Scholar is a hoax and this book is nothing but a desperate attack upon the Religion of Islam and Beloved Prophet Muhammad(sas), If BYU wants any respect from the Muslim community, it is their duty to pull this Deceptive Book of Lies off publication.
   
   Thank you.



5. I found myself wishing I had known the Prophet; Professor Peterson presents a very human picture of Muhammad, his locale and times. His early history includes the known material, without additional speculation.
   Because Peterson has also produced scholarly translations of classic Arabic texts, I was prepared for a dry or difficult text, however the author's style is warm and comfortable.
   Clearly he enjoys his subject and people.
   The separation between well documented events and those possibly or probably added by adherents at a later time is usually clear.
   That Muhammad's teachings and more importantly his actions were magnanimous is repeatedly illustrated.
   The history and examples of his relationships, and wars, with Jews and Christians was very revealing. He clearly saw them as 'believers', cousins if you will, to the thoughts and patterns of his heart.
   What his followers did with those teachings after his death is only briefly recounted. This is not a study in Islamic thought and historical course, it is limited to Muhammad.
   The Qur'an is the main reference quoted in the text.
   I highly recommend this book, you will enjoy reading it and you will feel much better about Muhammad and Islam.

5 comments about Disturbing the Peace: The Story of Father Roy Bourgeois and the Movement to Close the School of Americas.

1. I began James Hodge's and Linda Cooper's "Disturbing the Peace" (2005, 244-page paperback) with high expectations. This chronicle of Father Roy Boureois' movement to close the US Military's "School of the Americas" promised to be a riveting narrative, in the genre of Oscar Romero, for advocacy and activism. As a Liberation Theology enthusiast (and advocate for the poor) myself, I relished the opportunity to learn from a colleague's experience. With the book's conclusion, however, only one word describes my encounter with this text- disappointing.
   
   The padre's odyssey to re-form government policy and actions is sometimes astonishing, often pedantic, and always interesting. For him, there is redemption and recognition in rebellion against his demons.
   
   Father Boureois is a product of his era's two extremes influences: his US Navy participation in the Viet Nam War and his Roman Catholic Liberation Theology religious training. These opposing, and sometimes polarizing, positions brought him to activism for the poor and oppressed. His story is brilliantly captivating, convincing, and converting! Perhaps, there is redemption in rebellion.
   
   The book is written with seventeen short chapters, fifteen pages of relevant black and white photos, but with only a brief six-page bibliography. It is disappointing that the text contains no footnotes or endnotes (causing it to earn fewer stars). Hodge and Cooper should remember that undocumented history is nothing more than novel fiction. Without retraceable source referencing one does not confidently believe presented material. Father Boureois' story deserves better.
   
   "Disturbing the Peace", as a quick read novel, is cautiously recommended to everyone interested in late 20th century American activism, anti-war advocacy, modern central and south American life, and Liberation Theology.



2. Maryknoll Father Roy Bourgeois is a further example of the US repression of our religious expression.
   
   When Bob Dole went to Nicaragua for a Nixon-style Kitchen debate with freely and fairly elected Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega prior to the 1984 US elections, Dole accused the Nicaraguan government of religious repression. President Ortega, accompanied by hisministers of foreign relations and of education and of culture, Fathers Ernesto Cardenal, his Jesuit brother, and Maryknoll Father Miguel D'Escoto, pulled out a photograph of Father Roy Bourgeois being arrested and dragged away by US military forces at Fort Benning Georgia. This spelled the end of Bob Dole's presidential aspirations and political carreer, to be replaced with an interesting advertising endorsement.
   
   On the other hand the Reverend Father Roy has never wavered from his carreer and his commitment to preaching and to living the Gospel of Peace and Justice in Jesus Christ, with orthodoxy through orthopraxis, to the final consequences, running ever bravely in the footsteps of Our Lord. He remains strong in opposing those assassins of his own Maryknoll brothers and sisters like Bill Woods, and as on the cover here, Maryknoll Sister Ita Ford, killers and generals trained and directed from the SOA in terrorism, torture and homicide, who did not flinch from killing even the greatest prophet, martyr and saint of the Americas, Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero.
   
   Father Roy finds his duty and obligation as Catholic, as priest, as true follower of Jesus Christ, to call to stop the killing and oppression, the torture and genocide. Father Roy never fails to stnad tall as a true prophet of Peace and of Jesus Christ. Let us learn by his holy example to do as well, for as long, in life-long commitment to peace, justice and the Gospel of Jesus Christ in its fullest daily, courageous expression.
   
   Read this book. Every Christian must read this book. All Americans must read this book. Each Catholic must embrace this book as lectio divina, as our own hagiography, as manual and rulebook of how to live as Catholics under this present military regime, courageously, integrally, standing up for peace and for Jesus Christ in our darkened and bloody day.
   
   Read this book before you judge him or stand with those who condemned Jesus Christ before the Sanhedrin. Father Roy is a great man, a great Catholic, an excellent priest, and a fine American, the kind we truly most need for our national moral and ethical recovery.
   
   Please read as well School of Assassins: The Case for Closing the School of the Americas and for Fundamentally Changing U.S. Foreign Policy, Ita Ford: Missionary Martyr, Witnesses to the Kingdom: The Martyrs of El Salvador and the Crucified Peoples, Rigoberta Menchu, Salvador Allende, General Noriega, ARENA in El Salvador, the contra, etc., etc., etc.



3. Disturbing the Peace is a compelling story of a cleric who has dedicated his life to waging what some might call a quixotic battle against the highest military and political forces of the United States. These same forces look away from the evil they have wrought in other lands, specifically Latin America, and in American-run jails in Iraq.
   These evils, thanks to the machinations of the School of the Americas, include torture, murder, rape, and pillage. The school, costing Americans millions of dollars to maintain at Ft. Benning, Ga., is at the center of Bourgeois' relentless crusade. Bourgeois, who as a young man of the Louisiana bayoulands had beauteous Cajun mademoiselles at his beck and call and almost married one, chose the priesthood after heroic service and a Purple Heart in Vietnam. Following discharge, Bourgeois was appalled at America's foreign policy, which fawned upon megalomaniacal foreign dictators and which gave rise to the founding of the School of the Americas.
   This is no Bush-bashing book. Presidents of recent years have all contributed to the shameful institution that teaches young foreign soldiers how to commit the most nefarious crimes, then sends them back home to put into practice what they have been taught on American soil by American teachers.
   Item: Dismembering a 55-year-old woman with a chainsaw.
   Item: Torturing a priest before throwing him out of a high-flying helicopter.
   Item: Killing an archbishop, priests, and nuns in cold blood.
   Bourgeois and his followers have served time in jail and have had their lives threatened over their never-ending crusade to close down this inhumane cancer of the American military. Irony aside, the subject of this insightful, provocative biography is a modern Thomas Paine in clerical garb, indefatigably fighting for justice everywhere and against tranny in his own country.



4. The one thing that stands out the most about this book for me is that this priest was only standing for truth, freedom and justice. Yet the one country that he fought for during the Vietnam War prosecuted him for these beliefs. So much suffering in the world today is simply based on greed. One country trying to profit by controlling the government and natural resources of a smaller, weaker country.That is really what it is all about and the truth is there as long as we do not turn a blind eye as we did on Father Roy Bourgeois. Too many people today simply do as they are told and believe what they hear. You should read this book because the greatest threat facing the world is not knowing or ignoring the truth and sadly the world will continue to suffer at the hands of a few powerful people if we do not open our eyes.



5. This book inspires and educates while still being a page-turner. Roy Bourgeois is a purple heart Vietnam veteran who became a Maryknoll missionary priest. He has been in and out of Latin American countries and in and out of prison as he fights for social justice. In his struggle he discovers the now infamous School of the Americas - Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation at Fort Benning, GA. This school has trained the hemisphere's worst human rights violators. This book skillfully weaves Fr. Roy's story with that of the School of the Americas leaving the reader uplifted by the courage of a man and a movement and appalled by the secret teaching of torture and anti-democracratic use of force. Great read!

4 comments about Blessed Among All Women: Women Saints, Prophets, and Witnesses for Our Time.

1. Robert Ellsberg has another extraordinary book here. As with "The Saints' Guide to Happiness" and "All Saints," he has done obviously extensive research in learning of well- and not-so-well-known people who have heard how God was prompting them to a mission. This time, the spotlighted people are women who discerned that prompting and the book tells how they moved forward with it.
   Ellsberg has a marvelous gift of taking the details of rarely wonderful lives and compacting those details while also making them totally readable, fascinaing and inspiring. The women about whose lives he has written are remarkable.
   No matter what your gender, if you are looking for spiritual inspiration, this book is well worth considering.



2. This is a superb book dealing with women who might well be forgotten.
   The author has emphasized their heroism wihtout bravado.
   He has also presented their spirituality without being sacharine.
   A very good read. Highly recommended especially for the macho class.



3. If you're like me, your childhood was saturated by mawkish tales of holier-than-life saints who were always going around suffering martyrdom with eyes piously turned heavenward. The sheer unreality of such stories inhibited me from taking saints seriously until Robert Ellsberg's 1997 book _All Saints_ awakened me to the fact that saints, both "official" and "unofficial," are ordinary people who manage to love kindness, do justice, and walk humbly with God in extraordinary ways. They're not other-worldly fictions. They're brothers and sisters whose examples help awaken us to our own sainthood.
   
   In his new _Blessed Among All Women_ Ellsberg continues his exploration by offering nearly 150 new vignettes of women saints (again, "official" as well as "unofficial") who have been touched by God and whose witnesses in turn touch us. The vignettes are organized into eight sections that correspond not only to the eight Beatitudes, but also to different approaches to God: contemplative enclosure, gospel-based activism, penitence, mysticism, artistic creativity, and so on. Some of the women Ellsberg writes about are traditional figures: Clare of Assisi, Teresa of Avila, Catherine of Siena. Others are less conventional but totally deserving of our consideration: the four girls martyred in 1963 at the bombing of Birmingham's Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, the "witches" of Salem, and Karla Faye Tucker, executed by the state of Texas in 1998.
   
   Ellsberg's treatment of the saints in _Blessed_ is loving and insightful, with no hint of false piety or sentimentalism. Moreover, he's sensitive to the fact that the spiritual journeys of women saints are often complicated by cultural assumptions about gender, and that many were (and are) persecuted because their fierce devotion to God led them down paths that violated conventional gender norms (the Beguine saints are tragic examples of this) as well as conventional religious sensibilities.
   
   All in all, a fantastically inspiring, thought-provoking book. Highly recommended.



4. Blessed among women is the latest volume from the finest interpreter of holiness in life we have, Robert Ellsberg. He has edited the writings and written about such living icons of our time as Dorothy Day, Charles deFoucauld, Carlo Caretto, to note but a few. His award-winning volume, All Saints, gave us a porrtrait of a holy man or woman each day for a year from across the centuries and the communities of faith. It remains one of the best gifts for spiritual reading for any occasion. In The Saints' Guide to Happiness he dug deeply into the holy life: the tools of sanctity, the struggles, questions, the ways in which people have lived a godly life. I have used this with great profit in my undergradute courses. Now, Blessed Among All Women takes us into the personalities, the lives, the accomplishments of holy women all too often overlooked and ignored. Using the Beatitudes as a framework he presents to us remarkable but not always familiar women of valor such as poet and Carmelite Jessica Powers, martyr of the concentartion camps and writer Etty Hillesum, theologian and mystic Adrienne von Speyer and social activist Cornelia Connelly, among dozens more martyrs, prophets, teachers, and reformers. This is but one more gift to our spiritual lives, for our spiritual reading and most of all to our imitation.
   Fr. Michael Plekon, priest in the Orthodox Church in America, Professor, City University of New York, Baruch College, Sociology/Anthropology, Program in Religion & Culture