Full Text for Book Reviews (Text)

THE SPRINGFIELDER is published quarterly by the faculty cordia Theological Seminary, Sp~gf ie ld , Ilhois, of the L Church-Missouri Synod. EDITORIAL COMMIIITEE ERICH H. HEMTZEN, Editor R~YMOND F. SURBURG, Book Revitxu Editor DAVID P . SCAER, Associate Editor JOHN D. FRITZ, Associate Editor PRESIDENT J . A. 0. PREUS, ex officio Contents EDITORIALS R.I. Luther, b. Nov. 10, 1 iVho speaks for the bliss A DANISH LUTHERAN DOGMA RAYMOND F. SURBURG, Department of Exegetical Theology, Springfield, Illinois ................ EVANGELICAL TESTIRIONY AT SITTENSEN.. :: OTTO F. STAHLKE, Departme Springfield, Illinois \VHO CAY THIS BE? A R EUGENE F. KLUG, Departme Springfteld, Illinois BOOKS RECEIVED .............................................................. .i Missouri, mill also cover mailing change of The Springfielder. of address should be sent to the Business Manager of The Spring cordia Theological Seminary, Springfield, Illinois 62702. Address communications to the Editor, Erich H. Heintzen, Concor logical Seminary, Springfield, Illinois 62702. Book Reviews INVITATION TO T H E OLD TESTAMENT. By Jacob M. Myers. Double' day & Company Garden City, New York, 1967. P'dper. $1.95. This book i s intended as a. laymen's guide to the major religious nlessages of the Old Testament. The contents of the volume were oril-5- inally written for The Lt~lhel-an, the official organ of The Lutheran Church in America. The book was first published in 1965, with its copyright being by the Commission on Church Papers of the uni ted Lutheran Chul'ch in America. The fact that Doubleday & Company has decided to ~ubl i s l l it in Paperback will make its contents available to lrlany more readers Outside the Lutheran Church in America. The views set forth by this well known l~rofessor of Old Tcstarllent at Gettysburg Seminary a r e those that the student can find ill RnY nulllbel* critical Old Testament introductions. While the book co~l ta ins 1lluch helllful Inaterial, the author rejec'ts the inerrancy of Scrilltul'e a s ~ ~ 1 1 as i t s reliability on mat ters reported in the Old Testanlent. A11 the major dist inctive positions of Eiblical criticis111 that. have been stn1~d:~l.d ill cri t ical circles for a long t ime have been c.mhl.aced by 1)1.. MYPrs. 1410~ hilll Parts of the Old Testalllellt a re ]lased upon pagan myths \\'hicll tjlc Hebrews borrowed froill their environment. The docunl~ntary t h e lllultillle authorship of Isaiah, Zecllariah a n d othcr books il(lo~)tcd. as is the second century date for 1);lnicl. IssiaIl 53. rrferrcd 10 f r~ (~ l l~ l l t l J ' i n the New Testament as prophecy of the death, cbrucilisiarl, rcsulrc('tiOn Of Christ was not ;l direct Messianic prol~llccy, bill ilpl)liC'(l in the first Place to the Israelite nation. /,'(I 111 0t1d /'I. ivli 1 [J 1 1 I . ! / THE OLD TESTAMENT U~J)EKST.\S ~)IS(; OF (;()I). 13y .J. S i a l l l c ~ Chestnut. The %Testminster prpss. pl~ilndcll,hin, 196s. 3 9 2 1):lGf's ra i ler . $2.45. The author is Associate I'rofessor of ItcJiginn ;tntl Associatt: 1)iri:cLoY Sunllller School, Florida I>res),yterian College. 111 the pr(-f'ncc! the W1.iter s ta tes : ''This book js ahollt, idens of Cjod i l l the Old 'rcst,illHent. It at:teml)ts to djscover t]le most sjglljficant e spress io~~s nE ar1cic.11t Israel's unders tanding of ~ o d , \vllo was kllnwn l o her a s Yahwc l~ . and to relate t he se expressions to l:hct ongoil>,q history of Israel's rc l ig io~~." I lr . C:hcstnl.lt s t a t e s t h a t his is not to b~ rcgardcd i . 1 ~ a ~.csl ,c,~~sc to the so-called "dea'th of God" theology, Old Testament, silnply ;lsslllll(!S the: ~ ~ i s t . c r l c ( : o f God as fact. I n ten chapters the allthor set.s forth thi? diffcrcrit 1 1 ) God h e l d f rom i,atriarc],nl lilllps t o t h e latest period of Oid Tf>stnalent rc l i~ion as r'eflected in the wisdolll literature and in the poct~.~' of tl-IC Old Testa- They believed in God l~ecause they had encountered Him ill t h e every day experiences of their lives. After acknowledging ' that God is--one is still forced to ask: Wha t does the Old Testalllent s a y cibozct God? T h e answers to this question are not altogether clear. Old Testalllent wr i te rs did not concern thenlselves with 'the matter as to how God made Himself known. The most importallt way tha t God revealed Hinlself in t h e Old Testa- ment was by llleans of history. Israel's religious life was t h e l~roduct of a n historical fa i th tha t centered ill God. In dealing with Old Testalllent theology Chestnut clai~lls t h e student ought not concerli hinlself about "religious institutions and rituals, the na ture of worship, system of ethics, o r anything else bu t the fact of God and His relation to man" (11. 1 8 ) . According to th i s rliethod t h e doctrines of man, t h e world, sin, salvation, death and t h e fu ture life a r e not central, but obtain the i r significance fro111 a n understanding of the existence and deeds of God. While the re is a certain unity in the Old Testament, Dr . Chestnut clailns that there is also a surprising variety. Thus he asserts: "Con- sider the theological naivet6 of the Ynhwist t radit ions in Gen. chs. 2 and 3, against t h e nlonotheisnl of Second Isaiah. Or the reflections of demon- ism in Gen. ch. 32, and Ex. ch. 4, against t h e awareness of t h e Presence of Cod i n Ps. 27 and Isa. ch. 6." Dr. Chestnut avers tha t one of the iiiost challenging insights coming from twentieth-ccntury Biblical criticis111 is t h e suggestion of Bultnlann to delnythologize the ~nytliological world view of the Bible. How to use 13ultmann's nlethodology i n the Old Testa.inent field needs t o he pursued fur ther so a s to 1iiak.e the Old Testament relevant for 11eol)le today. While t h e author states that in the past the Old Testanlent was api)roached in :I wrong manner by a s sun l i~ ig tha t t he Old Testalllent did not sinlply grow from a~l i l l l i s~l l to l)olytheis~ii to n~ono the i s~ l l i n the space of few centuries, yet I)r. Chegtnut portrays the religion of Yahweh developing from polytheism to nlonotheisnl. Ilowever, t h i s position is not according to the New Testalllent where t h e God of thc patr iarchs was t.lle same God that Jesus canle to luake known. According to our au'thor there was no csplicit ~nonotlleism kllowll in the days of Moses. There are no clirect prophecies in the Old Testanlent, a t ru th enlphasized agaill arid i~b'ain by Christ and the A1)ostlc.s. T h e idea of God as depicted in this volullle i s more a matter of discovery t h a u tha t of divine revelation. The volume js 11ell)ful in showing what conclusions Old Testanlent stn- dents reach when they adopt the historical critical l r~e thod a n d the theories that, have been developed by i ts devotees. 1i'(1~11/.01/ (2 if'. .Y 11,1-?1?1 ?-{I - -- . . -- TI-1E 1:OOk.i O F ABIOY. I3y Page 11. JCelley. Raker Book House, Grand Rapids, 1966 9s pages. I'al)cr. $1 50. This volume is designcd as a s tudy ~ u i d e a n d represents another volunle in t h e incomidete Old Testalllent selqics, a t gresent be ing l~ublished by Iiaker I3ook House. This book follo\vs t h e general pa t te rn of t h e other h o k s i n 7'h(3 Slriclrl Uible S t ~ d j t G1pi[les1. There js an j n g t ~ ~ c t j ~ ~ jntro- Book Reviews 4 7 . duction and a clear logical outline of the Book of Anlos. This is followed by a brief but thorough colnnlentary which will serve any group or indi- vidual well as a guide in studying the Book of Amos. The author, Dr. Page H. Kelley, i s professor of Old Testament Inter- pretat ion a t The Southern Raptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky. Those of our readers who have specialized in the Book of Amos will recognize tha t the author is well versed in the literature dealing wi th this prophetic book. Amos has been extremely popular with those religionists who have been and who are advocates of the social gospel. Dr. ICelley claims t h a t the Christian pastor and laymen nlus't be concerned wi th the social ills of our time, tha t preaching on social issues ought to be a par t of the pastor's duty. However, "at the saine tinle," he opines, "one lllust recognize 'the danger of a secularized social ethic. Some would adopt the ethic of Anlcs but. reject his theology. There are those who admire the teacllings of Jesus but will not accept the atonement. Against t h i s kind of "social gosl~el" there is a legitimate protest. To follow this road i s to fail to recognize that the prophet's ethic was grounded in his theology. A purely secularized social ethic will always lack the dynainic t h a t one encounters in tlie prophets. They became crusaders for justice Precisely because thei r knowledge of God demanded 'that they do so" (1). 2 4 ) . Professor Kelley believes tha t the Book of Anlos has a number of messages which a r e relevant for today. The discerning reader will note h o w t h e author has successfully pointed out the parallels between Amos' d a y and our own. T h e Book of Amos ends on a note of hope. I11 the last five verses the re has been depicted a glorious picture of the golden age 'lo come. Scholars have differed on the question of whether or not the colicluding verses were penned by Amos or wlletller some one later added Lhem. 1x1 Kelley's opinion i t would not i i~a t t e r if they were later added by a n indi- v idual ; nevertheless the verses could still be illspired by the Lord. Iiegret- tably nothing is said about the flilfillinent of th is prophecry in the days of t h e Apostolic Church, as Janies informs the participants i n the Apos- tol ic Conference in Jerusalem, meeting about A.D. 45 (Acts 15) . W e agree with 'the author's remarks in tlle preface where hc expresses t h e hope tha t this book should ]lot only be studied in [.he senlinary c1a.s~- rooill and the church Sllnday School, but that men in Inany walks of life ough t also study th is book wherein they will find light and truth. ]\'a ?/ n1, o ,z d I;'. S 11 r bu ?'!I CREATION VERSUS CI-IAOS. Ey Bernhardt Anderson. Association l'rcss, New York, 1967, 1 9 2 pages. Cloth. $4.95. Dr. Bernhardt IV. Anderson, fornlerly of Ilrew Theological Seminary a n d now a member of the Princeton Theological Seminary faculty, author of t h e well know11 book, t'nderstcl?tcli~?g t l ~ c Old Tcstr17nerrt has wrilten a volunle in which he has endeayored to show the dependence of the Biblical doct r ine of creation upon the primordial water chaos belief as found in the BabyIoniali Enunm Elisle el~ic. Although Hernlann Gunkel has been dead since 1932, i t inay be said that though dead, yet he speaketh. Through his writings and books, as the father of form criticism he is influencing scholarly studies in the Old Testament field. Gunkel was also a proponent of the school of colnparative religion (religionsgeschichtliche Schule) . Anderson admits that the in- spiration for C?.eation versus Chaos came from Gunkel's Sch6pfu?zg 2lnd Chaos, published in 1895. IIe follows the lead of Gunkel in labelling the early chapters of Genesis as mythological. Even though Dr. Anderson is aware of the fact that myth is not the proper terin to be used when discussing the Biblical materials in Genesis 1-11, yet with the help of another scholar he still inanages to find a definition of myth which he then applies to the opening chapters of the Scriptures. His interpretation of Genesis is worked out within the framework of the documentary hy~o the s i s and other critical views tha t have charac- terized the history of theological liberalism. Anderson has adopted Mowinckel's view that an annual new year festival was celebrated in Israel similar to the enkitu festival of the Babylonian, a t which i t was custo~llary as a paft of the liturgical proceedings to recite the Enuma Elish epic, which gave the 13abylonian version of the creation of the world and of man. The Princeton professor is fur ther concerned t o show that the 13abylonian story is found in many other passages of t he Old Testa- nicnt. The word "sea" is interpreted by him as a direct or indirect reference to water-chaos of the Enunla Elish epic. There is no reference whatever to the fact that this interpretation has been questioned by Ass~riologists and Semitists. The reason that Dr. Anderson call present such extreme views on the doctrine of creatiorl can only be accounted for by his seriously deficient view of irlspiration and revelation. A proponent of revelation by the "nlighty acts of God," he only allows for a few acts by which God revealed llimself and all else is man's response to these Divine acts. Thus in the Old Testanlcnt we lllerely have the iinpressions which the Israelites had of God in history, rather than recognizing that in the Old Tcstnn~ent we have a record of God's revelation of how God dealt dil'cSctly with i i l ~ l l ike Adani, Koah, Abraham, Moses, Sainuel, the prophets and conllnunicated not only Hilnself but also made known to them divine truths in l~ropositional st;\temcnts, which Christiails to th is day can read :Ire es1)ectc.d to accept and obey. TVe prefer to believe tha t in Genesis 1-2 we llavc accounts that are reliable because their contents were revealed by (:od. ficlyl~rond F. Sul-b?ir!/ HESET) I N THE 13llJLE. By h'elson Cilueck. Translated by Alfred Gottsl-halk. Wit11 an Introduction by Gerald A. Larue. Edited by Elias 12. 1Spstei1i. Tlic ITebrew I'nion College Press, Cincinnati, 1967. 107 1,nces. C'loth. $5.00. 111 ]!I27 Alfiaed TBpelmann in Giessell l~ublislied the doctoral disserta- ti011 wllicll Glueck had submitted ;tt the University of Jena and which 1l;ls l l ~ ( ~ 1 1 W r i l t e l l nnder tlle super~is ion of proferjrjors )Vil l i Staerk and Hook Reviews -- 4 -- IIug.0 Gressmann. In 'this d isser ta t io~l Glueck endeavored to show tha L~secl was a n idea that was not born full blown. I t evolved with l0gica a n d dynamic consequences in connection with the development and deep en ing of the socially equitable a n d divinely based relationship of man tc m a n and to God and especially in the refinement of the covenant relation sh ip of the brotherhood of man under the fatherhood of God. In this volume Glueck concluded that "the significance of hesed Car be rendered by 'loyalty,' 'mutual aid,' o r 'reciprocal love,'" the attributf whicll is in order among the people united by some bond. According t c Young's AltCLZyti~al Concor(lctr2ce t h e King James version transkites the Hebrew root hesecl by eleven different words, with the meaning "mercy" used most frequently. Although much water llas run under the bridge of OId Testalllent studies since 1927, Dr. Glueck writes in the 1960 preface to the second ckrlllan edition of his study published again by Alfred Tiipelniann: "I have had occasion during the irltei-vening years to reexamine i t and have found no reason to change i ts methodological a l~ l~ roach or its final con- clusions." The translation by Elias Epstein has made this lexico,ora~)liical stlldy available to a larger reader audience. I11 the preface Mr. Larut' refers to other important studies of hesed that have appeased since 1927. After surveying then1 he coilcludes tha t despite these new studies, "thel-e can be 110 doubt tha t Glueck's interpretation has remained psi l l lar~." This is a book which the serious student of the IIe1)l .e~ Old Testalllent will want to have in l ~ i s library, so that he may consult i t fro111 tillle to tinie. i f ( l ? / l l l 0?l (T if'. A'-"ll v/ EVANGELICAL, WHAT ~ ) O E S IT ~ ~ E A L L Y NEAN? Uy E1.11st Kindel'. Translated by Edtvasd and JIal.ie Scliroeder. Co~lcordia ~ ' ~ ~ h l i s ~ ~ i ~ ~ f i - House, St . Louis, 19GS. 105 pages. $2.75. 111 a day such as ours whell the word '3e\ang(;lical" is sc, frc~luorltl?: misunderstood and misnsed, it is refreshing to read a book ~vhicll seeks to clarify th i s rich and vital tel-111 by tracing it to its root wol.d ctl!ln(trlion in S e w Testalnent. Ernst Kindel- has perlorlned ~i valnable scl-vice for the church by conduci,i1lg this stlldy. This snla.11 h u t \cry rendablc I)ook contains llluch interesting and relevant m:itc?rinl. The author contellds tha t this sig1lific:tnl wort1 has unforlunatclv lost much of i ts lllealling and and has dcg-cnerai:ed into little nlorc thall .h label ilidicatillg a Christianity t h a t is not Ronla~) Catholic. I n other instnnccs it is equated with an e:isjer, 1)roader I'rotestantisr~ll without substance or conlnlitnlent, or a more moderll, Illore el-~ligbiened. nlorc liberal and prosressiv(! forlll of C!hrisl,i;inity t.1~11: im1)lies a permissiveness i n doctrine and, life. On the crontrary, says Kinder, i f the church is lo l ~ u 1 4 . C!va1lgelical. the11 i ts at t i tude, profession, and lift: must hi! ' 'shaped by t h e Gospel and attllned to Gospe).lp The a u t l r ~ l - then ~>rOcc€!d~ to d ~ f i 1 1 ~ lnealls ),y th(> tern1 C;osoel, 13e deals i\*it.h such i n l ~ o r t a l l ~ S I ~ ~ ~ Q C ~ S 33 s in , law and Gospel, justification, fai th and new life. All of these, i l l lp l ie~ Kinder, a r e t o be included in t h e te rm Gospel. Kinder then relates all of t h i s to the Reformation. The Reforlllation was t ru ly evangelical because i t rediscovered th is Gospel a s the true, living principle of Christianity and t h e churcll. T h e author clainls tha t t he reformation actually did not introduce anything substantially new; i t only established a new priority. It yrovided tha t t he Gosl~el, which i s t he genuine hea r t of the church, should now be consciously and admit- tedly the center of t h e church, dominating everything else. If Lutheranisni today i s to be evangelical, i t lllust identify itself with th i s sanie principle, r a the r than al igning itself in soille s l a ~ i s h colnnlitlllent to the persou of hlartin Luther as if to appropriate all of his opinions and expressions a n d consider all of 111s measures uncondit iona:l~ correct and worthy of imitation. T h e church nlus't instead concentrate on the Gospel of Christ and have this beconic the control ins 1)rinciple for everything instituted and undertaken in t h e church, with everything ill the church obediently related to it. According to Kinder, to be evangelical implies furthernlore tha t t he Christian nus st be incorl~orated into the total life of the c o ~ ~ ~ l i l u n i t y of faith. Thus the author sees the churcli as a very i inportant factor in evangelical Christianity. Evangelical, he says, implies conl~nuni ty and fellowship. I l e laillcnts the existence of what he calls uilevangelical, indiridtialistic l J ro t c*s t an t i s~~~ . He evc.11 goes a s f a r a s t o clailli t ha t " ~ e r s o n a l faitli in the Gospel cannot exist without the church." One wonders a t this point Iiow hv defines t h e church. C a r r y i ~ ~ g liis al.gumcnt one stell fortlier. ICiiider suggests tha t evangel- ical also i n i ~ l i t ' s c:c~lnieiii(ral o r catholic.. H e arr ives a t th is c o l l c l ~ ~ i ~ l l by calling a t tcnt io~i to the Reforniation doctrille of the " o n e n c ? ~ ~ " of the church. TIC argues that. Lutlieraiis at. the time of the Reformation con- fessc?d on the basis of Scripture that tliere is oilly one church which consist.^ of all believers. I n this oile church were 1)ot.h Lutherans a n d Catllolics. said the refor~iicrs. This u11it.y existed under the Gospel. From this lie coiicludes Illat an evangelical sp i r i t or a t t i t ~ t d e nlust have a n cculnenical pc.rspect ive. 'Hut does this follow? Kinder grants that t h c one church of Jesus Christ, of which the L n t l ~ r r : ~ i i confessions speak. is not a11 estel.nal organization. Still t h e Chl.istia11 tod;lp should seek to espress sonir.thing of this oneness. This , of course, is an attitude shared 1)y many Lutheran theologians of t h e past. But iiiiporrant is thc question: "kIo\v sIiall Christians give esljression to this unity of 1\11 11clic.vers ill Christ?" Kinder suggests t h a t uni ty does not nccessai~ily have to sllo\v itself in uniformity, or identical organiza- tions and folSlns, as valuahl(1 :IS tliis might br. But i t s tr ives by a l l m e a n s for. expression " t l i rou~l i a coliiiiion binding c.onft.ssioii of t he t r u e center of the cllurcll. the (:osl)cl in TYord and Sacranlc.nt." I(indel- then a s se r t s tlizit ~vllcrf. there is rlliity in this respect. "tliere the c>ssontial oncncss of the c1iui.ch :\pllenl.s in sufficient ineasurc tha t onc can p1-actice church Icllo~\-shil~." I:ut is this in fact a sufticient basis for such fel lo\vshil~? D i d the Lut11cr;cn C1111rch at t h c t l n w of tile f i c l o r ~ ~ ~ i ~ t i o n consider i t sufficient? Rook Rcvie~vs 5 1 ---- --- - -_ _ _ __ -__-__I___-__----- - Did they not require subscril)tioll to the entire c'olplrs ctoctrinnt: a s ex- Pressed in t h e confessions before fellowship be established? Finally, Kinder discusses what cont.ribution the Evangelical Lutheran Church can make in the current ecumenical struggle. H e suggests that "the Evangelical Lutheran ~ h u r c h ' s contribution must be its Gospel- centered view of the one church of Jesus Christ." But is this the extent of t h e Lutheran contribution? These have been a few of the major points in the book that seem Particularly significant. s 1 a . n ~ others could be highlighted with profit. Kinder has performed a valuable seryice for the church ~>articularlY in reem~)hasizing the central glace of the (;ospel in Lutheran theology. It is also heartening to note the author's comu~ent that "nccol-ding to the Reformation, comnii tn~ent to the Gosl)cl must also be esl)resscd by corn- nli'tment to t h e t ru th revealed in the Gospel. There can be no pal'ticipa- tion witliout also confessing the contents of t h e Gospel. This is dogma in t h e evangelical sense of tile term. ~t is not riglit to sce (:os~)cl alld d o ~ l l l a a s i ~ i c o ~ ~ l p a t i b l e ogposites a s did a 1:ttcr Protesta~lt is~ll , whcll eV:lll- gelical was erroneously ,thought to bc a tllorougllly 11ondog1n:ttic and ;illti- doglnatic form of Cl~ristianity." Kinder is also to be colnmcnded for such statements a s : '.The closer each church collies to t h e Gosl)el, t l l ~ closel. the churc l l~s ( ~ l l l f ? to another. The path to the cellter is tile path to oneness." Bu t lllally Lutheran readers will find in illis book ~el-t.aill disii~l)oint- especially whcn the authol- relates c\-;tnge?ical to c('lll1l['ni(:itY. we to assume that tlie Lutheran (:llurch is sonlething less tllall ~'varl.~cli(!al i f i t cannot arr ive a t an ester.ll:il rl1lioll'! M~lst take fol. ~ ~ ; u l t ( ; ( i t he Refonlintion doctrillc of the oIleIl(;ss of the C ~ U ~ C I I I C C ( ' S S ~ ~ ; ~ ( C S ( : I~ I ITc]~ fellowsllip? Furtherinore, olle migllt wish tha t t.he arlt,llor ll;rd csl,rt!ssc~I I ~ i s ~ i c w s C0ml)lctely c o n c ~ r n i n g the content of tllat Cospcl \vlii(~Ii 111us1. shfi1)e t h e fa i th a n d life of the church i f it is lo ))e c?vanficlic.al. S ~ ) t ! ~ . ~ i ~ i i : ~ ~ ~ ~ , which doctrines a r e to be illcludrd in the tern1 C;osl)el? \\.ha1 I.; the extent of the Gospel wllich determines fc.llowshi1)? Is 1.11(! t ( ? l . l l l (';0sllel intended to inclllde the entire co,-),,,.s rloct,.intri: a s they arc1 sci fo r th j11 t h e Confessions? Ipinally, orle nligllt \vjsh that t.hc al~l.llor had gi~t:11 :I J l 1 ( \ I ' C b ~l(~[ilil~'d dcscriptioll of his views regarding such yil.31 doctrines as just ifi(:atioll and f a i th since h e inclndes tllelll i l l te1.m Cospc!~. Is justific:ltior~ a forens ic act Of God as collfessions state? 1s faith to hc: thoright 0i rrllst i n t h e redemptive work of Clirist, or does i t include I ~ x : I ~ ~ ' s oScdi!:l~c(:'~ T1lerc? can be little doubt that this book will be l'c2d 1,)- Illan?', 1';lr- ticulal.ly since it is now i n p;r~glish t rans ln t~ol~: :~rld i ts cnce on I,ntheranisnl ill Alllerica will he (lcc[)l\.* [elt. ~ [ Q I I . ( I 1.d i\'. I ' ~ . / ) ~ f , t ' T H E CRISIS OF PIETY, I : ~ I)orlnld c.. Jlloesch. 1 ~ 1 1 1 . 13. h:crdn~al~s Plthlisl1illg ~ o l ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ , ~ , ~ m n d Rapids, 196s. 16s lX%SrS. 1 . $ 3 . 8 0 . serving as a professor a t a Presbyterian seminary, is destined to lllal h is ]nark on the Alnericari theological scene in a constructive Way. I is already known to Inany of our readers through recent articles in t Missouri Synod related I,uthe~.(in I701.2111~ and Gh?-istinnity l ' o d a ~ . T Crisis o f Piety follows one year behind Y'he Chris t ia~z L i f e (rnd Ka l l ;~ t i ( which as the review in this journal indicated was a high water m a r k fresh and original approaches to theology. Hloesch, who identifies hilns as a "conservative" does not suffer from the disease so collllllon to llla conservatives in that he is constructive rather than destructive. A here is his approach different. Faced with the near eradication of personal and corporate 1IietY the wake of the secular theology, 13loesch lays out a course of action the Christian which involves recoycry of the devotional life and un( standing conversion and cornnlitment. Tlle purpose is here in a se polemical in that he wants to restore a pronlinence Christian sanctifical in a theological system which has blurred the lines between tho religi and the secular. Espoused is the cause of "evangelical devotionisnl" wl is based on the nlessage of the justification of the ungodly, folio necessarily by the lifelong process of sanctification. Careful considera is give11 to other options such as an extreme mysticisnl or an extr involvelllent in the world. Refreshing in Dloesch's approach is t h a t R he distinguishes the church's nlissions for the concerns of this world the next world, he does not separate them. One is continually inl1)re by Bloesch's broad understanding of historical theology from whicl effortlessly demonstrates his thesis. 13loesch's sacralllerltal theology st a t tilncs a little less than consistent. While he chastises the L u t h doctrine of Raptisln as approachiug "sacralllental objectivism," h e not see that he comes undcr the same verdict with his own espous a bestowal of the Holy Spirit on the child a t Baptism. Blocsch's t ' seeills very llluch to be related to Jiirgen hIoltmann's I'heoloyy o f where "the kingdon1 is both radically future and th is worldly." One of the side benefits for the reader in Bloesch's a1,proach i s the reader enjoys his assessillent of a t least 250 theologians and a nuniber of deno~ilinations and religious societies. How niany of our re know t l ~ e "ultra-conservative evangelicalism" of "such neo-Anab groups a s the Society of Brothers"? Did you also know that Angl Folino prayed for the death of her falllily so tha t she rnight be a' lnore effectively serve God? I n bringing a wide background of knov to delllollstrate a point, Gloesch st~ccecds in making theology both able and interesting. Readers of this journal will take sl~ecial in in the fact that Jaroslav Pelikan and the founder of the Spril seminary, JVilhelm Loehe, a rc called part of t h e school of E v a n Catholicislll because of their insistence tha t the Bible nlust be read the churcll. Tlie reader lliust a t times forgive Rloesch's native de to Calvin o w r against Luther on Illany points, but the reader \vi here a kno\sledgeable yoice intruding itself in what frequexitly a to hc :L \TrY ~ o n f ~ l ~ i l l ~ . theological sitnation. 1)trcirl Y. rrcr Book Rcvicws 5 ; 1 JVHAT'S NEW IN RELIGION? By Kenneth Hamiliton. A Critical S t u d ~ of New Theology, New Morality and Secular Christianity. Wm. B. Eerdnlans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, 1968. 176 pages. Cloth. $3.50. The name Kenneth Hamiliton is appearing as author on an ever increasing number of books dealing especially with secular theology. The Canadian divine is not only a gifted theologian, but also a penetrating analysist and interesting writ,er. This recent book follows quickly behind others dealing with Paul Tillich and the phrase "God is dead." Even apart from any discussion of theology proper, the first two chapters with their discussion of what exactly is meant by "new," so ~ ~ o p u l a r in coIltemporary theological jargon, is both devastating and delightful. Hamiliton well suills up the present situation: As each generation rebels amins t the values and attitudes of the l~revious one, t h e historian of culture who tries to see the larger picture beyond the inlnlediate clash of "new" and "old" is likely to view the successive rebellions as so lllany swings of the pendelum. Those who a re inlbued with a "new" and "revolutionary spirit," or who at least make these and similar words prominent in their vocab~llary arc embarrassingly reminded of Martin Heidegger's whole-hearted endorse- ment of the Austrian house painter: The new courage nus st be conditioned iiito steadhstness, for the struggle for educational strongholds of the leaders will take 10llg. I t will be fought with the energies of the new state wliich thrx ~ e 0 l ) l e ' ~ chancellor Adolf Hitlcr will bring to reality. Solliehow this language reniinds this reviewer of llrc'sent day move- ments. Colulnbia University, anyone'? Getting down to the business of the "new theology," I-Tal~liliton llas sonle deep cutting bu t still pleasant to read observations. IIo is very critical of the procedure used by the "I-Ionest to God" bishop, l)r. John Robinson, in that he clumps tlleologia~is together who have no 1)nsiness being tarnished by association. Iiescued fro111 the falllily tree o f thc 'God is dead' theologians is surprisingly enough Dietrich Ronhooffer. After rend- i n g Robinson and the others one receives the impression that Bonhoeffer was a lllore radical Biblical critic than Rudolf I3ult1nn1ln. %-hell ill reality. Bonhoeffer was as nluch a biblicist a s any Gernlan theologinll could yossi- bly be. H e wished for death of religion so that "there would be 'a clearing of t h ~ decks for the God of the Eil>le.'" These arc hardly appropriate words coming frotii a 111iu11 designated as a step-father, or a t least one of t h e god-fathers, of the secular theology. In prison J3onhocffer read the Bible piously and observed the church year rigorously. This hardly sounds l i ke t he religionless Christianity of Altizer et 111. Cox is put forth as a disjointed theologian. He has tnkrn c o l l c ~ ~ t s applicable to the Biblical descri~tion of the kingdon1 of iilld sim1)I~ superjml)osed then1 on the city, or to use the more terhnirnl tel'rll, "Leach- nopolis." In the challtcr on the "Selv 3Ioriiljly" JJnrn~lllon it5 iit his devastating best. H e chastises ''New Morality" theologian Fleicher for his absurd blessing of Tru~l lan 's decision to use the at0111 bomb a s " 'a loving use of force."' The ''New Mol-ality" which prides itself in i ts ethic of freedom from rigid codes i s itself especially rigid and cabalic. I n supporting abortion, Fletcher writes, '; 'no ,unzc;anted and unintended baby s7loulcl ever be born.' ". ( the italics a r e Fletcher's). Hamilton 1)oints out tha t Fletcher with the words "no" a n d "ever" is establishing a m i - versa1 rule. Thus the "New Morality" h a s a legalism all of its Own. This book would fit perfectly into the decor of the pastor who has the opportunity to steal away into the living room on a quiet evening to study a contemporary theological ~ r o b l e m without drowning hilnself ill a sea of technicalities. The tongue in cheek att i tude of Haniiliton is demonstrated in his own self-assess~nent a s he assesses the secular the- ology. AS it is, my role has been apparently that of the wicked fairygod- mother a t the baby yrincess's christening. Where everyone else had blessed the child and predicted a happy and fortunate future, I have thought it ~ l i y duty to cast a gloonl over the proceedings by foretelling a disaster. At the head of every chapter and scattered here a n d there through the text a r e little ditties placed there f o r wisdoill and for what aI)Pears to be conlical relief. This reviewer could not avoid the nasty temptation of including this one. I often think it's co~nical How Nature always does contrive That every boy and every gal That's born into the world alive, 1s either a little Liberal, Or else a little Conservative! Diil;id I-'. Xccre?' CI-lRIST TIIE TIGER. I3y Thom:ts Howard. .J. R. Lippincott COlllPanY~ I-'hiladclphia/New York, 1967. 160 pages. Paper. $2.25. If I recall correctly, it was the a~lcieiit cynic, Diogonese, who in a period of national cl-isis rolled a n empty barrel through the streets of Athens because he was of the opinion, so he said, tha t i n such crucial timrls ever~bodv ought to be doing so~lletlling! I n t h e critical tillles in which we live, Illany people seem to t l l i~ lk tha t i t is vitally necessary to wrltc hooks. anal?-.tic;tl or autobiographical, ahout human existence-alld allllost every one of these hooks leaves the iillprcssion t h a t its author was the m e who tliscove~etl htlman existence, or a t least sollle insight into hulllan existence known to no axle hel-etofore, The safest way, of course. to write about hunlan esistence is to use the autobiographical method. You tell the story of ~ o u , - life, and state the understanding of human existence a t \\.hi& arr ived on the basis of Sour 911n cs~er ience : and i f anyone challenges t11c validity of Your interpretation. you look hill1 ~LraiRllt In tile eye. and 1~1 th all the jntensjly Book Reviews 5 5 and earnestness that you car1 xiluster, you declare siniply and solemnly: "I lived it!" No one can a rgue with such a claim. This reviewer does not intend to argue with Howard's book, first, because you can't argue with a report of a man's own inner and private experiences; secondly, because I agree with tha t part of the book which I th ink I understand; thirdly, because i t wouldn't be good sense t o argue with the part I don't understand--the more sensible procedure in this case i s to ask the author to say more clearly whatever i t is that he is t ry ing to say. T h e part of the book I think I understand covers roughly the first 150 pages. As nearly as I can inake oat , t h e author in these pages traces the route by which he arrived at the conclusion that hulliail exist- ence abounds with ambiguities, entails considerable risk, and is nlarked by lilnitation. While it is highly doubtful t h a t anyone else ever arrived a t such a conclusion by precisely the sa111e route, i t is very improbable that there a r e many people old enough to grow a beard who not discovered for themselves tha t human existence is too fragile to perillit much "coziness." There a re many of us who a re quite ready to gl-ant the validity of the author's observations about hztmn)! ezistc?lc'(~--but some of us would ask by what logic this rules out the possibility of inspired Scriptures, 01. necessarily implies the incertitude of orthodox Christ ian doginas ! T h e part of t h e book I do not understand begins at page 153 \rrIlel'e the au thor begins to talk about "redemption." Read his owl1 words to see wha t you can get out of theni: The Christian vision affirms iilythic and mimatic iniagery. I t sees here the heroic attestatioil by hunian consciousrwss to perfection and worth in t h e face of our experience of fraglncntation a ~ l d havoc. It. sees here t h e huiiian suspicion that there is an order which is uncon- ditionally significant, and which is not necessarily or im~nediatcly apparent to tech~iological inquiry. nu ' t Christian vision steps beyond aesthetics whcii it affirms that a t a point in history the I-;iythology was actualized. Perfec:tic.)~~ and beauty became visible. Glory and truth appeared. Thc epiphany was, to be sure, a disappointing one. Tlie ternis were not auspicious. Nevertheless, the Christian understanding is that. in the fignro o f Inlmanuel t h e human eye sees the final and the perfect. actualization of the myth. (page 153) . . . But 1 could think tha t i n the figure of Jesus w e s aw I l i i ~ l l a ~ ~ e l , t h a t is, God, that is, Love. I t was a figure who, appeariilg so inauspi- ciously among us, broke U D our secularist aiid our rc:ligio~ls categories, a n d beckoned us and judged us and damned us nild saved 11s. and exhibited to us a kind of life that participates in t.he i~idestrnetihle. And it was a figure who announced the validity of: our eterllal eft'ot-1 to discover significance and beauty beyond inanition and horror h~ announcing to us the unthinkable: redemption. (paga 1.54) H e appeared a s a Illall alld demonstrated a kind of life wh011~ foreign 'to a]] of our inclinations. For h e showed 11s what il l l l a l? '~ lilt JS l i ke when i t is energized by cxcrita.~, and in doing this, he became our judge, because we knew too well tha t i t is that other love, c t b ~ ~ i d i t a s ~ that energizes us. H e told 11s of a city, the City of God, in which ctr?.itGs rules. H e told us that a,l] who participate in this are citizens of t ha t city. (page 155) It would seen1 tha t th is Rind of language does not express the tradi- tional, orthodox understanding of redemption. The back cover of the book reports that Martin Marty said: "y'i!lel' burns bright." Whatever this remark means, it can hardly mean that Tifjel* shines with the l ight of the GoslIel of Christ's substitionary l ife and death which atones for the sins of all Inen, and brings 11ardon and lIeace to everyone that believeth. H . -1. H~lt71 HEYTORY O F THEOLOGY. By Bengt Hiigglund. Translated by Gelle J. Lund. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1968. Cloth. 425 1)ages. Subject and person index. $9.95. "It looks good," a history depar tn~ent colleague who borrowed ll1Y coi)y coliinicnted, before I was able to tu rn attention to it. IIaving read it I can now add the 1)ersonal conviction: I t is good. The fact that by 1966 it went through three editions in Sweden alone is evidence eno1lgl1 that ;I 111ajor ill~l)ortant work had beer1 lannched. History of theology books do not ordinarily attain such distinction ix1 this day age. That fact also led t,o i t s tmrlslation, a good, readable one incidentally. Con- cordia Publishills. IIouse has therewith rendered a distinct service in broadening thc hook's f idd of llenetration. I t is really not a long book, considering the: vast scope, and yet i t stlcceeds in laying out the whole 1)icture of C:hristiall tlleology. As everyotle knows, th is is a n in t r i ca tc l~ involved tapestry. The great ~uc?rit of Hiigglund's work is that i t is so (:leal., and 111-oceeds with snch grace fro111 period to period, trend to trend, t.l~iriker to thinko~., all thc \\rhilt? keeping llold of the mainstrean] central thrust of thc Christian, evangelical core. The book's jacket describes 'Hii~.glnlld as objective in his \vork. I think this is so. 13nt 110 Illan a1~1Iro:ic'hcs any task \\:it11 com1,lete T ~ ~ o ~ ~ r r ~ r s . s e t x z ~ t ~ g s l o s i y k c ~ i f . wi'thout P~es l~ l~ l~os i t ions . kno\v his predecessors, IIarnack, Sceberg, Loof% h a d (11(?111. and \v(? know, too, the effect that. these "glasses" tiley were wear in^ had on \vll:lt they said aiid 011 whe1.e they canle out. EIiigzlund clellrl!: 1135 a 1 ove for conservative Christian t ruth , for the collsistellcY of Luther ant1 tho Cnnfessions, and lle ultiniately draws everything illto critirluc befor.(: this ~ositioxi, althongh he does this so subtly and softly that. e\(?ll th(: libcl.al mill hardly llot,ic(? i t \vllile he is haying his hide tanned or his scall) lifted. This holds trtle also for the fine coxlcludillS chal~tcr. an addition t.o the third edit.ion, "The Tlleology of the Early 20th (;clliul-y: Coiltc?lnporary Trends." Ual4th, Tillich, Bnlt~llanll. etc.. rc?cf?ivf2 \vhat call Only be described as an escelle~lt, bit: of s u ~ l l ~ ~ a r i z i n g , brilliant bccausc of its sllarl,, short. fair analysis, llleaningfnl alld useful bccausr of j t a i n c i s i \ . ~ C T ~ ~ I ~ U P , ]-iijgg]~]ld does silnglv stand tjlere Book Revic~vs 5 7 - - -- with mouth open and eyes transfixed for holy awe of the lnodern the- ological "giants." H e knows both dogma and history, a n d with ad~n i rah le egalite et ela?t h e deinonstrates where the philosophical and historical roots of modern theologizing a r e to be found. Very little can be said to he missing it1 this survey of Christian theology. Without cluestion this , plus the fac t that the au thor never loses h is readers with tiresome parade of facts, accounts for the book's appeal. But i t i s scholarly. One can 'travel froin the a1)ostolic fathers, Clenlent, Qnatius, Polycarl), etc., all the way to the three "B's" (Barth, Bultmallll, Hrunner ) and feel t ha t t he story of Christian theology and i t s vicissitudes i s there. The otitline i s eminently lucid and easy to follow. Probably that i s inore properly the book's title, "Outline" of Christ ian Theology, because of t h e relative brevity of i t s chapters. But f rankly th i s i s n o real weakness, and Hligglund has not failed h i s readers in th is reslject, for he evinces ,the kind of sagacity of the sander in the lumber lllill who knows when t o hear down with more pressure and when to let UP. Generally a n excellent balance of material is nlajntained. Individual tastes and favorite focal yoints are, of course, things to reckon with. 13ut Hiigglund has managed to keep from getting on a n y specific "kick," even le't us say a s to a special treatlncnt for the Scand iaa~ ia l l theologians (which might have been expected n i ~ d excusable), and as a result has achieved a w1-ayltrcgn optls of a kind. T h e footnoto- and dctail- snooper will of course be disappointed, as will also the "fans" or tllcology's hall-of-fanlers, s ince for the forluer Hiigglund c.oulii no1 c'nrc lcss ( n o t that h e i s not precise in detail! he just does not belabor thel~l! ). and, ;IS for lat ter , he was shown that the i r idols tit a f te r :ill into their littlc t l i ~ h e s a n d t h a t they often have feet of s t l~ iw . Where does h e s t and? That 's a good cluest-ion, a n d it is left unanswered. H i s enlphasis :lt the right plnc(~ls, \vi l l~ f'11lle1- :~llti Illore detailed handling, show this, f o r it is Atl~anasius. Augustil~c, and cbsi)e- c i a l l ~ Lu the r , who come in for the most solit1 trcat.lncllt: nl~tl uncl(!l-lillil~g. A n d why not? T h a t also accords wit11 history. \Vitho~~t. rc~nlly saying i t in SO illany words, the hook reaches the top o f Evc:rcsl. ~vit.Il L~ l the r , because, a s Hiigglund puts it , '.his \vritings llavc to n grcxter or lesser degree served as a. direct source of i~~sp i rn t ion for t.licologic:al I h o u ~ h t a n d the preaching of the Word thro~lghout all of l l ~ r ol)ochs which h t~vc 13assed sillce t h e tillle of the Reformation" (21 1 ) . $lcli\11~11t 1on. %\vingli. Calvin, etc., ge t appropriate coverage, but all in good h:al:lncc to t.llc!il' lesser significance in Clll.istian t,heo]ogy. Thc tl.c;ttlnenl. of the tllc()lWi;lns of Lu the ran Ortllodosy is illore sel~si t ivc ailti sensibl(! t h a n hns yccellt.lJ' appeared anywhere excel,t in co1isel.v:itivc Lulhcl.n~l circlcs. 'rhis is ref reshing because it is more :lccl~l.ate historically a n d tht!olo~:'i('allY. Hiigglulld's delineatioll of pictisln's place in theology is sul)erI). as is t h e period of t h e El,]ightenment, and then the mutldletl 19 th ccntur?. with Sch]eierll1acher, Rage], t he Erlangen school, el(?., brief though all of sketches are . pe rhaps this brevity ncc~IIIlt ,~ for the fact that in lrcat,ir'g t h e forces in 13th century tlieology IIliggll~ntl 0nlik rnclltiorl of A ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ T ~ thcologjcal giant in the Luthcran C ~ U ~ C ~ I , C. F7. \r. \\':lltllcr. Perhaps, on the ot}ler hand, tlljs 1)()jni.; U p tltf O n ? r t n k ~ ~ t s s lhr 1)l)f)b shows: t h e l)redilection for characterizing all "free" churches as throw- backs to a kind of Donatist tendency, o r si~nl>ly omitting all mention of thein a s is the case wi th the Lutheran groups, whether American or Eurol~ean. (Cf, 124-26; 365-1313 where they a re given the old "repristina- tion" t a g ; 384 where they a re linked with Pietism in Sweden.) This kind of lumping is neither accurate nor understandable. Also puzzling is the omission of reference to the Prllssian Union of 1817 which had sue11 far-reaching effect on the theological scene in Germany and beyond. Devotees of contemporary glanloi- figures in the theological realm, like Bonhoeffer, Niehuhr, Pannenherg, Kiing, etc., will be let down. Hiigglund does not bother with them. Wisely SO, no doubt. Time will tell whether what they have said, or still will say, has made any lasting iml>act on theology or whether i t was af ter all theologically peripheral. The pace- setters through twenty centuries a r e all therc, and lIligglund deserlres kudos fo r a work well done. Concordia Publishing IIouse has a s usual done i ts knitting well, too, in the printing makeup, and as usllal i ts price also is high. TOO bad 011 tha t last point! The book deserves wide reading and a lower Price with volume sales might have nladc up the difference. - - - .- -. - -- - - - - -- . I< . F. Kluy MO1)ERN TI-IEOLOGIANS, C H R I S T I ~ ~ N S ANI) JEWS. Edited by Thomas E. Rird. The University of Notre Danle Press, Notre T)anic, Indiana and Associati011 Press, New york, 1967. 224 pages. Cloth. $5.95. Presented here a re theological evalllations of ten theologians. Of the tcn tlic~ologians evaluated, three a r e Protestant (Hick, J.A.T. Robinson and Hromadka), t\vo a r e Jewish (13uber and Heschel) and the relllaining five a r e Ronlan Catholic (Murray, liiiring, Schillebeccks, Lonegrall and Luhac..) Since there a r e ten different authors, the essays differ in quality. I J J \ v ~ ~ ~ Streiker's essay on Buber consists lnairlly in large blocks of quota- tions fro111 his sul~jcct and u t l fo r t~~na te ly lacks in evaluation. The same could be said of the same 11ian's ailnlysis of the "Honest to God" B l s h o ~ , Dr. Rohinso~l. The Protestant clergynlell will find the value of this colleclioll i l l their evaluation of Catholic theology today. The Dutch Catllolic theologian, Schillcheecks' rcinterprcltation of scholastic theology in l>ersonali~ti(. terms is almost essential in understanding a n inlportant trend in Roilian Catholicisill today. \lThile not denying given theological realities. he does allow for a change in conce1)tual cogxlition of these realities. Rothchild's essay on Rabbi $Iescllel clearly shows ho\v nee- or t l lodox~, generally associaled with Protestantis~n, can also fit into the scheme of Judaism. Though the foul. sectioils of the book classify the theolo~ialls according to these four tollics, dialogue, l i fe of the cllurch, intellectual rcnel\lal, and mystical experience, the editor nlight have done well merely lo have liniited lii~nself to Itonla11 Catholics wri t ing on RollIan Catholics. The Protestant churches a r e in dire lleed of uxldersta~lding the theologlcal currents in the Church of Rollle today. I i e re are a few steps in the right direction. An exhaustive bibliography 011 each thelogian is a131lended a t thc back of the book for tllosc illclined to additional research, Dcrz7i(l P. Swtl' PHILOSOPHY FOR EVERYRIAN, by Dagobert D. Runes. Philosophical Library, Inc., New York, 1968. 148 pages. Cloth. $4.75. C a r r ~ i l l g the sub-title, E1ron~ Socrates to Sartre, this handbook of Philos01)hical thought offers the reader brief (some too brief! ) studies of a n i l l l~osing a r ray of philosophers, touching on thctil- background, con- cepts, and impact on 111odern civilization. Dr. Runes has undertaken a truly impressive task, too iml~ressive in fact! Because he devoted h i s research less to schools of philosophy than the ~hi1osol)hers themselves he oftell leads the render from one thinker to another without quite making a meaningful connection between them. In discussing t h e early philosophers, for example, he does not point out differences and similarities be'tween the Ionians, Eleatics and Hylozoists. A mere twelve pages take one from Aquinas to Francis Bacon! Christian Wolf£ lllerits but eleven lines and Schleiermacher rates only nine. Ortho- dox theologians of his day and a few decades after his day llligllt retort t h a t lv0lff and Schleicq-macher collld have been skipped entirely but all lnust ZWee tha t to g i ~ e David IIullle one 1)aragraph s i~nply will not do- not when a n assessmctnt of l)hi~osopI~icsl thought is under consideration. Logical Positivislll is take11 care of in twellty four lines, about half of which describes Moritz Schlick's tragic death and 1)hilosophical method- ology. Under Existelltialisln Jaspers, Heidegger, and Sar t re each get Paragraijh with scant mention goiiig to Kierkegaard. This does not suggest that there art: no nugget.^ to be found in this .mine of information. I thillk that one gets a different p e r s i ~ e c t i ~ c on the l ife and work of Ficllte he ~.e:tds that his .I,ectlr~.cs o,11 tlrc CC'l.lll.(l~?~ Natiot~, already carried overtones of Cer~~lani l : racial mipcriority. Alld the author serves sollie very palatable food for thou.~ht wllr<11 hc ohser~t?s t h a t reactionaries like Fichte, Schclling. and Hegel coultl gel. awn!' with the i r rash ~h i losoph ic ~-al~l\)linjis hecause they always \v\.cr'c c:nl.eful to renlain loyal to the govt?rnlne~lt. The social r.c:fol.n~ei.s ci)uld f i g h t f o r l iberty; the phi1osol)llers ~ r o p o s e d simple panaceas of rcsul.rt?ctian i l l the next world and subjection in this one. ~ ' i l . i l O . ~ O p i ~ y for El .cry~, la ,~ is described by the cover its ail illt.crcsliIIg reference book for quick consultation. I gr~css it can rlunlify f o l - that. 1)r. Ruiies would undollbtedly b,: alnollg the first. t o rccogni~(? tllal justice can im1)ossibly be done t.he giarlts illcluded i n his S L I ~ ~ C Y \vhcn one, dashes from ThaIes t o Sartl-e in 139 pages follo\ved by ]line 1)agcs of n0t.W. .loll , , I.'. .ioh?t.sow CHRIST AKD THE .JEX];:'S. Cornelius Van Til Thc T'resbytt)ri;~n and Refornled Publishing Coulpany. Philadelphia. 1968. 90 pages Pnr~cr. $1.95. This is a nlollograph in tile serles of the International L ~ b r a r y of Philosophy and Theology (Biblici~l and Theological Studies). T h e edltor is Robert I,. Heynlond who has also written a preface! to th r volunle W e call attention to this ''nlonograph on Jt>wisll X~)ologetics" as t h e a u t h o r calls i t , hecause of t h e comparafi\.elq. I a r ~ e number of books arid essays on the problem of the Jew \which hare alil~enred Rlnce t h ~ ",?I1 Days War." The events of the last collflict between Jew and Arab have focused the attention of all kinds of theological convictions on the web- le1n of the conversion of the Jews with many and varied eschatological and eschatomillenialistic views. Add t o that the so-called "ecumenical" thrust of our day which spreads i t s a rms t o embrace as spiritual brothers any and every religion and we haye a veritable psychedelic whorl of opinions and beliefs. I t is a relief t o have men say, as Reymond in the preface to ''Cllrist and the Jew:" "The Christian should love the Jew, certainly, but the sooner the Christian realizes that the Jew is as hopelessly lost and as hopelessly blind, if not illore so (Rom. 11:G-II), than the Gentile, and that to win the Jew to Christ he must crush any and every hope for salvation which is related in any way to the fact tha t he is a Jew and a "son of the Torah," the sooner the Chrjstian will honor his Lord by his witness to the Jew and the lllore effective will his witness become." The author sets Jewish thought, both ancient and modern over against Christian thought and de11lonstr:ites that there is no 1)ossibIe reconciliation between the two. Moreolrer, he shows tha t liiodern Prates- tantisill inakes a nlission to tile Jew ilnpossible by denying the infallible revelation of God in the Old and New Testaillent. T l ~ e four chapters treat Philo, T\vo T y ~ c s of Fai th , the Torah, The Lord of History. The chapter on Two Types of Fa i th discusses Martin Bu1)er. Of IJubcr Van Ti1 says ill llis introduction: '.TVheil Uuber sl)eaks of J e ~ u s a s liis "great brother" without speaking of hiin as his divine Savior, this is still to reject Christ" (l)age 2 ) . (;ad's Word has power to give life. All Inen, dead in tressgasses and siris need the mc.ssnge of C,l1ristvs atonelllpnt. So we preach Christ i o JCWS and Circeks and know that th~b Ivord of Life can br.iiig rnen to the knowl rd~c of thrir Sayioi.. This hook call Iielp us to understand the 1)rohlclll of our nlissioll to t]lra .Jp;v. 31. -1. A-11 li ~ t ~ ( O l 1 ~ T(~lllIIS'I ' 1N ISRAEL. By 8. 31. I-Iougllton. The I?annel- of Truth Tl'nst, Lorldoli. 19G'i. 220 Dages p;rpel-. 5 shillings. Lfsccllc~it r.c;tding fol- those lvho a1.c planning a Palestine tour; delifhif'ul for tliosc who llnvc 1nadc the pilgriniage. I n n few instances \-ii:\vlroint jB 13nglis11, hut this lllay he counted as added rharnl. \yell scllc(:lcd piclurcs and 1)octry accolllpally the test. The "Toni-kt!' goes solllc\~h:kt. I )e~ond the boundaries of .'lsracl." since Allllllall i~lld r e t r a arc also visited. Thc 1iai.rative t~riiigs Tiiblical. arcliaeologica1, and hislor.ical illf0l.lll~tioll to bear ul)oli the illaces under discussioll. The hopc that God rlitlst Iiavc sor~ic grcal Zut.ure destiny fol- Israel is strongly c?~prcssed "cod's calling of Tsr:~el is i l.l.eyoca)>le." The anther \Vi IS in Palestine shortly before the ont,break of last year's hos l i l i t i r~ : the iriciurc of the national boundaries is ill :~ccol.d with that fact. Tllc thousands of L ~ ~ t h e r a n '.toulSists in Israel" will also enjoy this book nud find ll~cl~lsclvcs \vit,h the author ill the conlpany of 11lally allciellt and r~~odi:rn l)ilfi~.illl~. o t t o I,'. 8j(1?/1Xe Hook Reviews 6 1 READINESS FOR RELIGION. By Ronald Goldman. The Seabury Press, New York, 1968. 235 pages. Cloth. This reviewer agrees wi th hlnrvill A. Johnson, Educational Research Associate of t he Board of Par i sh Education of the Lutheran Church in America, t ha t ". . . this is not a n important book, it's a veru important book." Originally published by Routledge and Kegan Paul in 1965, t h i s F i r s t Seabury Edition br ings to the American p~tb l ic more of the collcerns of Ronald Goldman abou t religious education. Much of the book refers to t h e Bri t ish se t t i ng of teaching re l ig io~l in thc s t a t e schools p u r s u a ~ ~ t to t h e Education Act of 1944. These references can be overlooked. Essen- t ial ly, Goldman is asking, "Why is religious educatiori so inc~ffective?" H e ignores t h e logical answer t h a t teaching rrbot6t religion cannot be equated wi th teaching the fai th fo r life. Rather , he examines the theoreti- ca l bases for curr iculum and method and suggests drastic changes. Goldman gives us a popular npplicat ion of t he devclopniental psy- chology of J e a n Piaget . We seen1 to be in the nlidst of a Piagct ian fad. Nevertheless, educators of all kinds \vo111d do well lo fairliliarize them- se lves wi th the concepts. Following Piaget , Goldnian suggests t ha t beforc dcc id i l i~ what ; u ~ d h o w t o teach religion to children, we n111st nndarstand that their cogllitive a n d emotional abi l i t ies advance in rather sgcc.ific stagc>s. Pr ior l o t h e a g e of thir teen, a child does not 1)osscss the 111ental slruc.1urt.s to think abstrncl ly. Since t h e Bible is ;I book written for rtdulls, 111nr.h of i t is unteachable t o cliildrert without "translation." C!lildren a r e ready for religion froni n very early asc' Goldman i n s i s t s t ha t t h i s m u s t be qualified in ternis of wliat kind of rc4igioli they are ready for. "To teach the Christ ian fai th 'p:lre a ~ i d n ~ ~ d t ~ f i l c d ' in au a d u l t form to chi ldren is impossible l~crnuse it i s ~ ~ ~ i r c ~ n l i s i ~ r . " 111 t h r e a r l y years, t h e chi ld is cs t rc~l le ly cgor.c.11tric and forlns c o ~ ~ c ~ r ~ ) ~ ? ~ of 0 1 1 1 ~ Very conccrte things. Goldnlan arrivcbs a t the princi1)lr lhnl r t ' l i ~ i o a s educai ion fo r young children s h o ~ ~ l c l be built dircrt ly 1111:)rl t hc11' Ow'n experiences wi th na ture . ln ln~aturc \ c>oncepts o f i l ~ n r i~l ld hi):L('t' nlake sys t ema t i c a n d chronological teaching of biblical evcnts 1 1 1 1 ~ a t i s S a ~ t 0 r ~ Goldman's thesis csglains our proble~ns w i t h youlh Ijiblc classes. J u s t when they begin to get t he nlental c~cluipii~rnt t o ~l~ldcrslarhd thc abs t r ac t ions of religion, their \villilignrss t o think sfrcnuo~lsly n h ~ ) u t ~t Seems t o die. This , says the author, is becaose their csonc.epls o T (;od h a v e been based upon the parental relationship. I n ;~tlolcsccnct: t he youth beg ins t o reject h i s parents, and God goes with them. It i s in teres t ing to ~ i o t e t ha t the traditional pracnt~c-cb of t'onfirnlilrg c h i l d r e n at t h e a g e of thirteen has strong support. in l'iagcl-Coldnlnn terms. Both intellectual and emotional rradincss for tlortrintl ;II ' (> dckcl. oped a t t h a t point. One cannot follow C;oldnlan in his cstini;ttes of Srl-ip111r.c l)tal>ending u p o n one's psychological bias, one may not wish to follow' h l ~ meth- odological directives. The important 1,oinl seems to b(. that h ~ r e 211 I('aSt a man has held to a consistently dev~lo1)ed psycholony of cllild growth and developlnent and translated i t in to practical pedagogy. If Piaget falls, so will Goldman. I n view of Piaget 's highly vulnerable (one almost wr i tes "sloppy") research techniques and h is peculiar interlningling of scientific research and l,hilosoghical genetic epistemology, the practical educator reads wi th interest but abides by the wise adage, " C a ~ e a t emptor." IZicl~cr~-rl J . S c h ~ l l f z VISION AND TACTICS. By Gabriel RIoran. Herder a n d Herder , Xew York, 1968. 155 pages. Cloth, $3.95; P a ~ e r , $1.95. This reviewer finds hinlself heart i ly in accord with t h e basic theses of Moran's book. Pract ical Christ ian educators need the theologians to build a s t rong theological foundation under our practices. (Hence the title, Vision ant1 Ttcctics.) Too much Christ ian education i s a patchwork of various ( a n d often conflicting) learn ing theories, philosophies of edu- cation, theological fancies and orthographic tricks. Fur thermore , me clap fo r joy to read tha t if one takes seriously the theology of t h e Scrip- tures, t h e whole focus of Christian education will sh i f t f rom children to adults. Lutheranism, a s well a s Roman Catholicisn~, suffers froill a mis- placed emphasis on children. T h e whole tlieological emphasis on the theology of renewal, the church as God's 1)eople on r ~ ~ i s s i o n and the theology of the lai ty will not be imple~rlented until we have a radical change in the age-focus premise of Christ ian education. Mora l ' s grirlcil)lcs and prol>osals o ~ i g l ~ t to be of interest to tlleologialls and churchmen, even if they a re not particularly interested in child edu- cation. H e 1)rogoses not merely new content and new niethod of religious education, but "the large-scale changiilg of institutional pattel-11s." I-Iis book bclongs in the "renewal of t h e llarish" l i terature. One can readily take th i s book a s a Roman Catholic l)olemic against Roman Catholic parochial schools. I t h a s such a n elenlent. T h e new elelllent is that the au thor would not lilcrely drop schools. H e would replace (luztntity wit11 quality. H e insists tha t theology can't be taught to children. To face our kind of world, howe\-el., we need Christians who can theologize. JIoran's l>rol)osals are, by his o\\-n adlizission, revolutionary. Several r e a d i n ~ s of his book would bc required to grasp and work out t hc ii1ll)lica- tions of h i s position. I-Te is dclibprately s t rong on "vision" and sketchy on "tactics." This is evidenced, for instance, by his suggestion tha t hcinceforth teacher-lraining consist of sol~hist icated theology and thc eliln- inatin,- of the old content-method approach. Teachers a r e t o become ra ther high class theologians so tha t they call assis t in t h e formation of the bod? of Christ and i n helping Christ ians to face the i r mission in a secular world. Lay people would have to be committed to solnething l ike two full ?-ears of theological s tudy before teaching in t h e parish. Their tcachiilg would bt. ~ilostly adult education. The new Dutch C a t e c h i s ~ l ~ i s defended ns ;t "catechism conle of age." It is t l l c o l o g ~ for the laity ~.is-rr-~.i .? t h e seculall \\lor]d. It takes [)]Q queSm -- Rook Reviews 6 3 t ions of the coritemporary world and throws the light of the Gospel upon them, claims Moran. In general, Moran demonstrates what embracing recent Catholic t rends would mean in a prograin of parish education. One finds here applause for freedom of conscience, denial of ultinlaie authoritarianism, t h e theology of hope vs. the theology of faith, the arrival a t orthodoxy v ia inductive reasoning rather than deductive assiinilation, the social dimensions of Christian morality and many others. Perhaps the specific post-Vatican 11 content of this book is not the significant elenient for a non-Catholic reader. Rather, the kind of task which the author sets for himself is the intriguing reality. He boldly faces the probability that new theological accents callnot be nlerely lubri- cated into existing institutional fornls. The forlns thenlselves must change. New wine requires new skins. The book is stiillulatiilg and highly infor- mat ive about Catholic theology and practice on the farthest frontiel-s. Ric'hard J . S c h l ~ l t ~ TINDER IN TABASCO. By Charles Bennett. Willialll 1). Eierdnlans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, 196s. 213 pages. Paper. $2.95. Charles Bennett writes an excellent analysis of the recent Presby- t e r ian missions in Tabasco, the south eastern niost province of Mexico. Anlong his qualifications one may illclude the author's statemei~t: "Befo1.e in i t ia t ing the formal study of the Tabasco Chnrcll, I had visited 109 of t h e 244 congregations on one or many occasiolls during an eight-year Period, attending regular services in most cases. During the sanle period I h a d made over 10,000 low-altitude flights over Tabitsco and had come to know every community and alrllost eyery chapel and mecting placc? by sight." For those who must evaluate and report the work in any nlission field th is little book call serve as a niodel. The writer has "writtcLn with llluch devotion and love," but also "with uncoinmon conc.reteness of con- ception." H e is not blind to sollle of the lnislakes and the "overhallg" of European nlethods and idealism. Tile indigenous church is tlear t o his hea r t , even if the local lninistry will be deficient in acaden~ic t.r,?illiil&' for a t ime. Bennett also defends the Pentecostal leaders, whose work is not. of such "poor quality" that merits the condescending sl l l i l~. Since Tabasco borders on Guatemala and Honduras, t h i s l~lission deserves close scrutiny on our part, since \ve are tvorking anloll:: silllilar people. O t t o .I.'. Strlhlkc DICTIONARY OF PROSU~CIATIOS. By Sallluel Soory. 11. S. Barnes a n d Company, Inc., Xew Irork, 1965. 519 pages. Cloth. $7.50. There is little doubt tllat all English-s~eaking people pay n heavy cu l tu ra l price for the way they spell their words. English spelling is o n e of t h e most difficult and archaiac in the world. Ilnagiue tile time t h a t could be saved and the headaches avoided i f we \ V O U ~ ~ write Our l anguage in a letter-to-sound manner. These thoughts proinpted this reviewer t o bring Noory's book to Your attention again, though it has been off the press for 3 years, in hopes that inore of you will take a good hard look a t it and join forces with those of US who would like to inlprove the crazy spelling of English. Mr. Samuel Noory worked 25 years to ~ r o d u c e his Dictio?zcl?'y of Pronunciutiolz, which is not only an excellent guide for pronunciation, but also is a lucid analysis of English speech. The dictionary "distinguishes variable spellings a t a glance (gray , grey) ; cross-references and defines, again for the first time in any dictionary, the ambiguous English homo- nyms (such as zcrife. u'right. ?-ight. r i t e ) : and introduces other original features." n u t nlore than that. His dictionary introduces an egoch-71~ctki?i!/ phonetic alphubet fo?. E n y l i s l ~ that is based entirely upon the reading and writing habits of English sl~eakers. The alphabet that he proposes is silllple and easy to read. He uses 26 sylllbols for the 37 basic sounds that he distinguishes. All but two of these a re the same alphabet with which we grew up. The two new characters are but slight modifications of the familiar e and 7 r . Thus the phonetic writing that results does not appear to be difficult or outlandish. Retween Phontypy, with i ts nlany unfaniiliar letters, and the partial reform represented by Simplified Spell- ing, that still contains inany "irregular spellings," lies Noory's ~ rac t ica l , and linguistically sound alphabet. I n his article in the front of the book, l t ' hy . lohnny Can't Rend . Noory Paries the usual objections of etymology, intelligibility, pronunciation, and homonynis with skill and true linguistic insight. The last pages con- tain Lincoln's inaugural address both in the ordinary and phonetic spell- ings, placed side by side. Noory feels that his work is the first realistic apl~roach in its field. IIe believes that it will "simplify ini~nensely the phonetic idea in English, and ~ a v e the way for a pronouncing systeni, and ultimately for a spelling. as easy to learn and as virile as the language itself." Otto (1. I f i 7 l t z ~ THE PREACHER'S HERITAGE, TASIC, S N D RESOURCES. By Ralph G. Turnbull. Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, 1968. 178 pages. l>a])cr. $2.95. Tlic author is pastor of the large First Presbyterian Church of Seattle, kVasliington. 1Ie foriilerly served as P~~ofe s so r f Homiletics a t Western Theological Senii~iary, Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and has held pastorates i n Grcat Britain, Canada, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A frequent lecturer a t l'astor's Institutes, Church Conferences, and Seminaries, the rore of his book consists of ten lectures in the field of practical theology and p r c a c h i n ~ niodified for presentation in book form. Under the preach- er's heritage the author discnsses the Puritan, Evangelical, and Liberal influences and thc~ir interaction. The 1)rcacher's task is considered i n terms of its aims, difficulties, and opportunities. In collnection with t he prcacllt3r's resources the author speaks of the use of Puritan and neforllled standards, the urgency of preaching, the evangel in preaching, and the i l n ~ o r t a n c e and influence of the pulpit. I n the first part of the book the author contends that neither human- isnl nor scientific natnralism can explain the Ainerican way of life. That social concerns, materialistic pursuits, and idealistic politics dominate our life does not obviate the fact that "we are the heirs of religious forces" (1). 80) . "The history of A~ner ica testifies abundantly to t h e power a n d influence of the preacher with the Christian inessage" (p. 12) . The Dulllit, he believes, still has a unique opportunity to reach men. No o ther agency secures the minds of inen to listen. People do not come out every week, year af ter year, to listen to a politician. Rut illillioils still a t t end the word of the preacher, expecting to hear some Word of the L o r d through his lips (1). 76) . Other millions do not listen to the preacher, however, and i t is with th i s 1)roblem of reaching p e o ~ l e outside the church that the author con- cerns himself in t h e second part of the book. After describing 111:1n as seen through lllodern fiction, he nlakes clear that men wiIl not be con- ver ted (conversion is oil^ of the ailils of preaching) by Iowerinfi o w s tandards o r by changing our message. Not even a change of 1anfiua:i.c to becollle l ike "the outsider" will do it. While Paul and his comi~anions Presented thei r message in the speech of that day, they also brought new ideas, new words, new concepts. A Ronian world order, a Gl-eek-speaking l)eople, were confrorited with Hebre\\r idcas. The breakthrough \\.as accolnplished not by accommodatioll hut by the preaching of truths wliich answered the questiolls in the llrofonnd drpths of man's bciiig. At the Sallle time, the preacher must be vital in spirit. Fervor and corivic-ti011 a r e needed. This does not call for shouting but intensity. l ~ i i r t l ~ ~ r i i i o r e , t h e preacher who would win lnen must have tllc slicplirrd-htlart; 1ir ~iiust be knowledgeable and esl)eric>nced, watchful and si~icerc T h e author does not oversimplify the task of r re aching. In i l l ( > third P a r t of llis book h e poillts out that thtt Cospcl nlust he preached in t h e l igh t of man's needs in this generation. Every ajic has I ~ S s l ~ ~ c i n l 1)erils a n d needs. Prophetic l~reachers a re needed ~ I i o have the: insight to srr t h e tillles in which we live ill the light of God. This calls for wisdom a n d discernment. \Vhat was 0rigin;illy l)rc.acblled and recorded is 11i('n "rel>reached as eternal truth for thc 1)l.esent n ~ c " (I) . 130). Turllbull is well acquai~lted with t h c Biblc and wit11 othcr lltcrnlure. T h e bibliography a t the end of the book reveals a jildiciolis Use of a wid(; r a n g e of theological works. Fro111 this niatcrial the :luthW' draws striki11.r: vignettes and percelltive insights. IIis own solidly Scril)tllral and cv:ln- gelical stance together wit11 his scllsible c ~ l l ~ l ~ l ~ i o n ~ con]l)ine to 1~rodll('c a book on preaching that is instructive nlld inh1)irirl~. Gcrlrcr?'tl -1710 FROM THE ROCK TO THE G-kTES O F I-IEIAIJ. By Andrew IV. Iilack- wood, Jr. Raker Book House, Grand Ral~ids, 19GS. 127 pages. Cloth $3.95. S o n of t h e late holllileticiall a t 1'1.inc-eton, Andrew I!lackwood, .JI'. has a claim to fame as a preacher in his own right. This series of eight serlnons is specifically directed to the church whose skies a re nlore and lllox-e darkened by the verbage and the problems of the secular theology. T h e concerns of the recent nlovements in Chris- tianity are applied constructively to the man in the pew. More specifically, each sermon centers around a different aspect of the church's c o r ~ o r a t e life. Topics discussed include the origin of t h e church, the church as the body of Christ, the church as the center of the Spirit's activity, the church as i t confronts the ecumenical inovernent, worship, Christian leadership, the church and civil affairs, and the fu tu re of religionless Christianity. This book will serve well that pastor who wants to take a doctrinally sound approach to the church in the contemporary setting. But for those IJastol-s, who consciences a r e not so tender, these sermons can be preached ill t o t o with only a few alterations here and there. Clackwood's n~e thod of inundating a congregation with Biblical data and contelr~porary con- cerns in rapid fire succession would make fo r successful preaching in any 1)ulpit. llctcicl P. Srttcl' -- - 1 -- THE SILEh'T TH0USAKI)S SPEAK. 13y Charles E. Blair. Zo~~derva l l Publishing I-Iousc, Grand Rapids, 19G8. 149 pages. Cloth. $3.95. I t was Niebuhr who said, "There is nothing so irrelevant as a n answer to a question that is not being asked." Ministers, of coursc, lla\'e often been accused o f answering questions that no one was asking. This book rel~resents the results of trying to determine, scientifically, wha t i)t'o~)lt? really wanted to hear from the pulpit. After methodically 1)olling large audiences froin bot.11 inside rind outside the church, the wri t ten rerluests of five tliousnlld respondents were analyzed by a co~nl)utc!r, and arranged in order of tllc? ten snbjects people wanted most to hear dis- cussed. Tlle poll revealed not ollly the g e ~ ~ e r a l subjects of highest interest bllt also those details within cach subject that peol)le wanted to have cxi~lainecl. Armed with this inforniation, the author prepared and delivered a series of "The Ten 3Iost Asked-For Sermons Of Our Day." Charles E. Blair is the pastor of Calvary Temple, Denver, Colorado, an j~iterdenonlin;lt,ional church tllat is somet.hing of a 1)henonlenon on t h e -4lllerican scene. This single chllrch supports \vholly or in part, o n e hundred th1.t.e ~n i s s io l~ary falnilies in forty-three countries. Blair h a s an hour-long Sunday telecast fro111 l ~ i s church each Sunday, and collducts a. half-llour radio counsc?lling service five days n ~veek. The tell tcq~ics lliat the respondents listed a re : Where Are JVe 111 Pro i )hec~? How Can I Find God's Will I'or RIy Life? What Will H e a v e n n e Like? II'iliit Is The Fornlula For a EIapl)y Home Life? How Call I Live n Full and Effective Life? Hou- Can I Overcome Fear? How Can I I-'ra\- Effectively'! \\'hat Exactly I s Salvation? How Can I Deal JVith ~ t ~ l ~ t i o l l a l Stresses'! l3ow no 1 Have F a i t h ? and large tllc sermons are soundly Scriptural and exude g r e a t \+:;ir111tk and understanding. The style is plain and direct.. While so lne of the sermons arc scattered, ]lot as tightly structured as they migh t be. Illair does a nlasterful joh of letting the Scripture speak to the v a r i o u s needs of ucoplc. Idis ouoting of Scriptrrre is ~le~btinent, and his illustra= - Book Revicws 6 7 t ions make many of the abstract ~Veligious colicepts meaningful. There i s always the danger in 1)roblein-centered preaching tha t one focuses Illore on People than on Christ and the Gospel, but Blair has achieved a healthy balance. His down-to-earth discussion of peol,lels needs and God's answers t o those llceds is worthwllile reading. Gei.hav(l .1h0 ALL LOVES EXCELLING. Aillerican Protestallt Wonlen in World Mis- sion. BY R. Pierce R e a v e ~ . TVm. 73. Eerdinans Publishing Col1ll~anY, Grand Rapids, 1968. 227 pages. Paper. $2.95. Agaill Dr. Beaver conles forth with more very useful nlnt.erial on t,lle rise and dcveloplllent of American ~nissions. T h i s t ime he surveys the American protestant women's world ~ n i s - s i O n a r ~ mO~enlerlt ' that began with a Cent Society and tt wolnen's inite. he traces i t s development from a Miss hIary Webb. an invalid in a wheelchair, who gathered together 14 13apt.ist and Collgrogationnl wOnlen on October 9, 1500, and orgarlized the I:lost.on Fcillale Socicty for Pur1)oses. Women were to (:ontribute their lllites towartl the of the (iospel. Their dues were $2.00 annually. Soon other wolncn over New England and eventually all oyt!~. the country copied t l l ~ exalnple of the wolllell ill rjostoll. ~ l l e y met lvitll stiff 01)position fro111 the lllen who thought that \vomen had n o ljlac'e i n such work 011 thclii- Own. At length they overcalne this opposit.ioll, but nc.vtXr conll)lett:lv. ~ i O l l l e n ' ~ lllission efforts centered on honic. ~nissions a t first.. but a r o u n d 1812 branched out into foreign ulissiolis. 'rhc sailing of the first P a r t y of l~~ i s s i ona r i e s fro111 Xlnericii t.0 India had much l o (lo with th:lt. Tirives of missionaries in overseas (:ountl-ies elicited a gr(:;lt deal of i n t e r e s t and supl,(lrt f r o m wonlen at, ]lnlllc. \vidows who S ~ R Y P ~ 011 or' r e t u r n e d in place of their. deceased hlrs1)~nds becanie t h o forcrllrln(:r:: of s i n g l e wonlell 111issional.irs \vho~ll hoards (?vent ually sent abroa(1. l i e r e a g a i n was ~ n u c h opl,ositioll to the stxllding of si l~glc "defenseless w o l l ~ ~ l . " Gradual ly t h e wolllpn forlned their own ljoards whicll \\.ere scndillg agencies . I t was the only way in which rhey ,\-ere ablc 10 ~ f ? t I.@'@ pol icy making, determining strategy, and admillistration. At c\cl'Y --children, teell-age girls yollng wnmt:l~---the~-r was illl.ensi\.(.' clllti1.ii- t i o n of stewardsllil, alld systelllatic giving t i , S1l~l)ort the overSt:as pro- grams of an evangelistic, educational, medical and philanfhrol)ic nature. T h e y s e n t orlt Illany single wolllell who did o~ltstandil~.z kirlgdolll lvork. Wonlen's boards united to accoinplisll thirlgs that individual ones coll ld no t . W i t h full p r ~ r t i c i ~ a t i o n 111 t h e \vorld lllissio~l by thc wonlen, allegatiolls fro111 t h e officials of the denominational hoards (111erl) concerning C @ l l - f u s i o n , duglicatjoll, over-emli]lasis 011 one aspect of ~rlis.;inn cork, of m o n e y fo r tire gelleral cause, cle. arosi: lllorc f requcn t l~ force full^, Then lletweoll l f j 1 0 a n d 196.1 the women's hoards were intecmted into t h e denominat ional boards, at t,i]lres Being coei-ced t h i s ~~r.OCeSs was gencrslly achieved b y the end of tfle 1920's. Women continued to exert influence thru the administrative posts allowed them. But progressively throughout the years the number of these posts has declined, as has the influence of the women. As these waned, so also did the participation in the world mission effort. Now' since the decade of 1810 to 1820, commitment, to world missions has never been so low. Dr. Beaver's book makes inforinative and inspiring reading for any- one, but especially for the members of our Lutheran Women's Missionary League. There is a good sprinkling of the life stories of great wonlen throughout his book. I t is a must for the officials of the League to read, for there a r e many important lessons to be learned from the history of the work of other women. Finally, those in our Synod who are making a study of the relationship of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and the Lutheran Women's ilIissionary League should ponder Dr. Beaver's interpretation and conclusions. Otto G . IIi?lfze Rooks Reccived BOOKS RECEIVED filflck Q?zd If'rce. 1lx Ton] S l i i ~ ~ n e r . Zondcrvnn I'r~blisliing Jlonsc, Gr:lnd Rapids, 1%S. 154 pages. Clo t l~ . $".!).i. T'hc Infol l iblc 1Ferd. I:y Facu l ty of 1%-cst~ninstrr Theo1ogic:rl Semin i l~ .~ . Presby- t e r i a n a n d ReEorlned P n b l i s l ~ i l ~ g Company, Phi1ndrlphi:l. 194G. 30s pages. P a ~ e l ' . $2.05. Reprint , 1968. 7% Second Epist le of l 'e tcr cr~td Iltc 1;pistlt: of Jude. I:y Michael Green. Wnl. 13. Nerdmans l 'uhl is l~ing C O I I I ~ ~ I I Y , Grand Ilapids, 196s. 192 pages. Cloth. $3.95. A ~ T e ~ ~ ~ Z ' M l o s o ~ l i ~ of Lifc. Gy J. 13. Wegerif. Phi losopl~ical Library. S c ~ v l'ork, IDFS. 290 pages. Cloth. $ i . ! )S . W71,flt is tltc Qucstiori? B y I Ia r ry N. I iushold. Concordia 1'1lblislli11g EIOUSC, St. I ~ o u i s , 1966. 91 pages. Clotll. $2.95. Runshinc. 13y Jock l'lirvea. rrhe I3anuc.r of T r u t h T r u s t , Lo!idon, 106s. 206 Pages. P:ipcr. ( K O price given). Crisis a?zd C'reetl.. L:y 0. l 'homns Jlilcs. Ivillinln 1%. I.;erdlnnns IJr~l)Jisl~i~~:: Conipnng, G r a n d Ral~ ids , 1966. 62 pages. l>apcr. $1.6;. B?J O ~ t h Consigned. I3v Jlcreditli (;. Klincb. W i l l i a l ~ ~ 1;. I C ~ r d ~ ~ l n n s I'ublishing C01ll- paily. Grand 11:rpids. 106s. 110 1):lgc.s. Cloth. $3.75. Soul rebook fo r ~YpcczLcr,~. l g l e a ~ ~ o r Don!i. %oiidei-ran I ~ u l ~ l i s h i n g House, (:rand Rar)ids, 1068. 407 pages. Clotll. $ 5 . 0 ~ . C?-~~C*,' .Y Compizt Co?zco+da.i~ce. l3y Alexander Cruclcn. John 12adic. Editor. %on- d c r v a n Publishing ZZousc, Grand Rapids. I!lCil. 56:: pages. Clotli. 83.95. Py-eff l~e to Puri.uh ltcnclr-(17. E y n7al]a(.t: I,]. I~Tsl~er . -\bingdon I'rcas. Silshvillc, 196s. 14.3 pages. Pnlwr. $I . i s . T7ae G r c a t Lig11.t. IEy Jamcls .\t\tin:ion. mill. I:. I. 1'31 $4.95. .uarr ' s Jtclif]ion of l i c ~ : o l ~ l t i o t ~ : 3'hc I )oc t r - i~~c 01 Ct-catit:c .l)c,slr~lction. I:?. c1:ar.v Sol 'I'he C r a f g I'rcss. Nutlcy, Sen? Jcrsc:~., 13f;S. 253 pagrs. Paper. PO.7,;. J)itrlogue i?t .4fcclici?lc a n d Tkcoloqy. Edi trr l I.,?. 1 ) ~ l c JVllitc. I \bingdi)~l I'rcsu. S a r i l le , l!)(iS. liG pngcx. Papc'r. $7.95. !?he Realit!] of I~'flit71.. Hy 1.1. 31. K11itp1-t.. \VIII. 1;. ] ~ : ~ ~ , ~ I I I ; I I ~ s l * l \ ) l i s \ ~ i l ~ ~ ('O l p21 Grand I. I ~ I I I . ;. I*:P~(]III:IIIS ~ I ~ ~ ~ l ) l i s l ~ i ~ ~ ~ ~'01111):l Grand l l n ~ i d s , IOCiS. 110 pages. ('loth. $3.75. 7 ' 7 1 ~ .An!llir.on 1Such.t.ist ill Bcume~~ic:crl Pr~-al,c<:ti~:c: l)ocl~-i~ccr a t ~ d ICiEc ft.011~ (,'I mer to Ncnburq. I?y Edward P. E!ch]i~l, S..T. Tllc Scal)ury I'rcss. S c w York. 1' 305 pagcs. Clotl,. $7.50. Tilt Prc:crclro-'s I-let-itafjc. Task. a r ~ d l:cso~,-~.c.~. 1;y Italp11 C:. ' l ' l ~ r ~ ~ l u ~ l l . I!:~krr ITousc, Grnntl I. W'l~o I s I f c ? 1:y Mrs. Carl 1:ailr~y. Co~lcorcli:~ l 'ublisl~inl: ITousc. St. T~ouis. 1 Stildy ( : ~ ~ i d c . S5 pnges; T,eadcr's > I ~ I I L I : I ~ . !I;) pages. lBnpcr. $ Y'ILG I'ottc).rt of X C I ~ : 7'c.stotnc1t.t T1'1.11111. I:y (;corgc! E l d o ~ l Lnd(1. n-m. X. Et'rtll I'ublishil~p Co. , G r a ~ r d Itnpitls, l!)(;X. II ! ) pager-.. C l n t l ~ . .C;;;.7.7. l~'olanlco- 7')ni1ci>l.q u ~ i d J)ct.r7opnrrnt: . I Jlntr unl jor C o n ~ r n ~ ~ ~ ) ~ i l ! / Cr.olcpn. I:y . I i . S1-cnzel nud llclell 31. l.'ecntly. . \ l ) i~~=clo~? 11~cs3. Sc\\- Ynrl; nlrcl S : ~ r h I9GS. 22':; 1r;lges. Cln t l~ . $5.95. (:ufl~-cfntcctl: :It~rirral Jrrcomc. Cy II'hili~, tVcga111:111. .\l)illgtlol~ I'rctcc. Sc*\\- \.ark NasI~villc. ]!)(is. ( 1 5 s pi~jics). (:lotll. $3.50.