Book Reviews and Reflections
Welcome to the Reviews and Reflections page. I am Larry the Librarian. I earned a bachelor of arts at Bethany Bible College. I was a Theology major and a History minor. I first developed my love of research there while writing a paper on the early church's debates on the Trinity. (There is a certain irony that I am now the librarian at Trinity Library.) I also received a Masters Degree at San Francisco Theological Seminary were I experienced and enjoyed the Graduate Theological Library in Berkeley. While at Princeton I was privileged to use the Wright Library to complete my Doctoral work on religious initiation from both theological and sociological perspectives. We are a truly literary church. We have a modest but mighty book collection. I will be highlighting aspects of that collection on this page.
The Books Reviewed Below Highlight the Pilgrimage of the heart
The Kingdom of God is within You: Christianity Not as a Mystic Religion but as a New Theory of Life By Leo Tolstoy
This book is a bit of a “thick read” but it has changed the world. Ghandhi said of this book, “Before the independent thinking, profound morality, and the truthfulness of this book all the books given to me by Mr. Coates seemed to pale into insignificance. Coates was a Quaker who supplied books to the Barrister Ghandhi in the hopes of converting him to Christianity. It did convert Ghandi to the non-violent revolution which changes so much in his world and in ours through Martin Luther King.
Why We Can't Wait Doctor Matin Luther King I
In this remarkable book—winner of the Nobel Peace Prize—Dr. King recounts the story of Birmingham in vivid detail, tracing the history of the struggle for civil rights back to its beginnings three centuries ago and looking to the future, assessing the work to be done beyond Birmingham to bring about full equality for African Americans. Above all, Dr. King offers an eloquent and penetrating analysis of the events and pressures that propelled the Civil Rights movement from lunch counter sit-ins and prayer marches to the forefront of American consciousness. This book includes the famous “Letter from a Birmingham Jail’
Releasing the Rivers Within: The Exhilaration of Total Dependence on God. by Dwight Edwards,
In Releasing the Rivers Within, Dwight Edwards reveals that all the good God wants to dispense through your life finds its origin in the indwelling supernatural resources He has already implanted within you.
As Jesus told us in John 7:38, every believer has “rivers of living waters” within, pressing forward and awaiting release. And as you open yourself up and allow God’s life to flow through you, you’ll bring the greatest glory to Him, the most good to others, and the deepest satisfaction to yourself.
Discover the resources God has placed within you. Release the rivers within…and experience life as God intended it: filled to overflowing. (Review from Penguin Books)
Inviting the mystic, supporting the prophet : an introduction to spiritual direction
by L. Patrick Carroll (Author), Katherine Dyckman (Author)
This is one of those truly timeless books. Its target audience are people who want to become Spiritual Directors. However I found it to be a wonderful resource for critiquing my own Spiritual pilgrimage.
It is short (92 pages) well written and to the point.