Jesus Freaks: A True Story of Murder and Madness on the Evangelical Edge
Don Lattin. HarperOne, $24.95 (240p) ISBN 978-0-06-111804-3
In January 2005, Ricky Rodriguez stabbed a woman to death and then fled the scene of the crime, finally shooting himself in the California desert. Rodriguez was a high-profile ex-member of the Children of God, also called The Family, a controversial hippie cult of the 1970s that had spiraled into aberrant sexual behaviors and other disconcerting practices. Rodriguez was seeking revenge for the sexual abuse that his murder victim and others had committed against him when he was a child (the cult had gone so far as to record its crimes in a bizarre book that glibly described—and provided photographic evidence of—sexual relations between adults and children). Lattin, who covered the religion beat for the San Francisco Chronicle, offers an arresting, if uneven, account of The Family. He begins by arguing that the cult is best understood in the context of American evangelicalism, and does some strong investigation into the founder's ancestry to prove this point, but does not sustain these threads throughout the book, which becomes a typical true crime tale. Some aspects of The Family, like "flirty fishing" (sacred prostitution), are carefully researched, while others (like a journalistic account of how the cult funded itself so well on a global scale) are underreported. (Oct.)
How Big Is Your God? The Freedom to Experience the Divine
Paul Coutinho. Loyola, $18.95 (192p) ISBN 978-0-8294-2481-2
Coutinho, a Jesuit priest who has lived much of his life in India, once was told by a theology teacher at an American university that he was a heretic. He had merely posed a "what if," asking what the man would do if scripture scholars should determine that Jesus never existed as a historical figure. The teacher said he would have to abandon his work as a priest because he could never base his life on a myth, but Coutinho countered that he would still die for the myth. Conversant with India's Hindu and Buddhist traditions, Coutinho effectively uses this story to illustrate the differences between the Western and Eastern understandings of truth (one, he writes, sees truth as a set of beliefs while the other views it as an experience). Throughout this volume of short essays, Coutinho draws on Eastern religious traditions, blending them with his own Catholic practice to challenge and deepen readers' understandings of God. Besides asking questions like "Can you be religious without knowing God?" and "Are you running for fun or for your life?" he offers practical advice as well, including a PQR (Pause Question Respond) formula for handling difficult situations and BAD (Basement Attic Disposal) days for helping Westerners get rid of consuming possessions. Readers who favor "spirituality" over religion will most enjoy this book. (Oct.)
Life's Healing Choices: Freedom from Your Hurts, Hang-Ups, and Habits
John Baker, S&S/Howard, $19.99 (256p) ISBN 978-1-4165-4395-4
A former pastor of the same Saddleback Church that's famous for best-selling author Rick Warren (who provides the foreword), Baker designs an eight-step Christian recovery program geared toward enjoying spiritual freedom from hurts, hang-ups and bad habits. Baker's book is based on Warren's sermon series "Road to Recovery," which has been tested in the lives of more than 400,000 people in 10,000 churches. Baker's eight steps to spiritual freedom (admitting need, getting help, letting go, coming clean, making changes, repairing relationships, maintaining momentum, and recycling pain) promise to help Christians overcome many kinds of addictive behaviors. Baker likens them to AA's 12-step program, but clarifies that Christ is the source of lasting change. He writes that as believers refuse to admit their powerlessness to overcome tendencies to do wrong, their lives are fraught with fear, frustration, fatigue and failure. The cure? Admitting weakness with a humble heart; then praying, writing, and sharing with others about the problem. Each chapter includes moving narratives of participants in Baker's program who express how its principles changed their lives. These practical, pithy how-tos will galvanize Christians into action with the simplicity of Baker's easy-to-actualize plan. (Sept.)
The Dark Sacrament: True Stories of Modern-day Demon Possession and Exorcism
David M. Kiely and Christina McKenna. HarperOne, $25.95 (416p) ISBN 978-0-06-123816-1
Pick up this real-life thriller and rest assured you will never so much as look at a Ouija board again, never mind consider touching one. Kiely, a professional writer, and his wife McKenna (herself the victim of an unwelcome "visitor" as a child) traverse contemporary Ireland for the demonic and preternatural ("that which is higher than the physical yet subordinate to the supernatural or divine") and turn up ten chilling tales of possessions, hauntings, and all manner of Satanic fare, not to mention two exorcists, one Anglican and the other Catholic. Whether these stories are indeed "true" will cease to matter once audiences delve into the horrors related in this compulsively readable and utterly gripping page-turner. Chapter titles like "Mr. Gant and the Neighbor from Hell" may sound like an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but there's nothing funny about what poor Malachi Gant suffers at the hands of his neighbor Charlie Sherrin, or what the family of devil boy Gary Lyttle endures in "The Boy Who Communes with Demons." Be warned: don't read this home alone at night. (Oct.)
Children's Religion Reviews
My First Ramadan
Karen Katz. Holt, $14.95 (32p) ISBN 978-0-8050-7894-7
Katz (My First Kwanzaa) adds to her canon of picture books about multicultural celebrations with this upbeat and informative work. A boy narrator shares with readers what it is like for him and his family to observe the holy month of Ramadan, an important element of their religion, Islam. He describes various faith traditions and practices such as fasting between sunup and sundown, praying in the mosque and, eventually, marking the end of Ramadan with the celebration of a three-day festival called Eid al-Fitr. With her signature mixed-media and collage artwork depicting people with large, open, friendly faces, Katz accents a solid and inviting introduction to these holidays. Ages 2-5. (Aug.)
Give Thanks to the Lord: Celebrating Psalm 92
Karma Wilson, illus. By Amy June Bates. ZonderKidz, $14.99 (32p) ISBN 978-0-310-71118-6
Noted picture-book scribe Wilson again teams with Bates—the pair also created I Will Rejoice: Celebrating Psalm 118—for a follow-up project that spotlights a biblical psalm. This time around, Wilson ties in references to the titular refrain from Psalm 92 with an account of a family's Thanksgiving Day celebration. In rhyming text, a child recounts all the sounds, sights and smells of the November holiday, citing the joys of family, food and fun. Playing in piles of leaves, warming up with apple cider and settling on the couch post-feast with a full belly are among the experiences for which the child expresses thanks to God. Bates's wispy lined pencil-and-watercolor illustrations exude a warmth that is sure to be especially welcome on chilly autumn days, and a joyful spirit appreciated any time of year. Ages 4-8. (Sept.)
For more children's religion reviews, see the June 25 issue of Publishers Weekly.
Three Starred Reviews Coming in PW on Monday, June 25:
The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible
A.J. Jacobs. S&S, $25 (368p) ISBN 978-0-7432-9147-7
What would it require for a person to live all the commandments of the Bible for an entire year? That is the question that animates this hilarious, quixotic, thought-provoking memoir from Jacobs (The Know-It-All). He didn't just keep the Bible's better-known moral laws (being honest, tithing to charity and trying to curb his lust), but also the obscure and unfathomable ones: not mixing wool with linen in his clothing; calling the days of the week by their ordinal numbers to avoid voicing the names of pagan gods; trying his hand at a 10-string harp; growing a ZZ Top beard; eating crickets; and paying the babysitter in cash at the end of each work day. (He considered some rules, such as killing magicians, too legally questionable to uphold.) In his attempts at living the Bible to the letter, Jacobs hits the road in highly entertaining fashion to meet other literalists, including Samaritans in Israel, snake-handlers in Appalachia, Amish in Lancaster County, Pa., and biblical creationists in Kentucky. Throughout his journey, Jacobs comes across as a generous and thoughtful (and yes, slightly neurotic) participant observer, lacing his story with absurdly funny cultural commentary as well as nuanced insights into the impossible task of biblical literalism. (Oct.)
Lord or Legend? Wrestling with the Jesus Dilemma
Gregory A. Boyd and Paul Rhodes Eddy. Baker Books, $14.99 paper (192p) ISBN 978-0-8010-6505-7
Can we trust the Jesus narratives in the Gospels? Boyd and Eddy, who hold doctoral degrees from Princeton Theological Seminary and Marquette University, respectively, affirm that we can. Both have written widely on biblical and theological subjects. Their experience shows in this marvelous study of the historicity of the gospels and the reliability of the biblical narrative. At times this book reads like a good detective story: it lays out the clues and the methods of evaluating those clues, and then draws conclusions based on the best evidence. From the most ancient witnesses, like Josephus and Irenaeus, to contemporary critics like Burton Mack, the authors ably rebut the critics' claims of inconsistency and historical error. They further explore the value of the fantasy works of popular writers like C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. Although the authors are certainly capable of turning out an academic text, this book is intended for the general reader, the average churchgoer who may be struggling with difficult questions about the Jesus story. It's a fascinating and valuable work that merits a wide readership. (Sept.)
Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy
Donald B. Kraybill, Steven M. Nolt, and David L. Weaver-Zercher. Jossey-Bass, $24.95 (240p) ISBN 978-0-7879-9761-8
When a gunman killed five Amish children and injured five others last fall in a Nickel Mines, Penn., schoolhouse, media attention rapidly turned from the tragic events to the extraordinary forgiveness demonstrated by the Amish community. The authors, who teach at small colleges with Anabaptist roots and have published books on the Amish, were contacted repeatedly by the media after the shootings to interpret this subculture. In response to the questions "why—and how—did they forgive?" Kraybill and his colleagues present a compelling study of "Amish grace." After describing the heartbreaking attack and its aftermath, the authors establish that forgiveness is embedded in Amish society through five centuries of Anabaptist tradition, and grounded in the firm belief that forgiveness is required by the New Testament. The community's acts of forgiveness were not isolated decisions by saintly individuals, but hard-won "countercultural" practices supported by all aspects of Amish life. Common objections to Amish forgiveness are addressed in a chapter entitled, "What About Shunning?" The authors carefully distinguish between forgiveness, pardon and reconciliation, as well as analyze the complexities of mainstream America's response and the extent to which the Amish example can be applied elsewhere. This intelligent, compassionate, and hopeful book is a welcome addition to the growing literature on forgiveness. (Sept. 21)
