"Heaven forbid that God should turn out to be an artist," writes Schmidt in the introduction to this refreshing and unusual collection of essays about "the artistry, the imagination, the beauty of a particular event: the death of Jesus." Schmidt writes very well, offering perceptive interpretations of the age-old story of Christ's death and resurrection. The essays are related to one another, but they do not pull together into a single argument—an indication of its postmodern sensibilities. One particularly fascinating chapter quite persuasively explores the role of alliteration as a symbol of the cross in Hebrews 2:14b. Imaginative and offbeat, these essays convince readers not only that God is an artist, but that Schmidt is one, too. (Jan.)
