Recent Additions to the CGS Library – December 2023-March 2024

-      
 
    The titles below have been added to our CGS Library over the past few months and are now available in the Library. Those of you who were fortunate enough to attend Pastor Kris’ adult education classes on Christian Nationalism or the Apocrypha may find them useful for some additional reading. They may be found on the new book shelf (top shelf) of the book truck or are already on the book shelves. Please note that we use a modified form of the Dewey Decimal classification system, and the books are arranged on our shelves by that system. The numbers following each title (e.g. 277.3082 Alb) are the Dewey numbers you can use to locate the books on the shelves. If you need any help (what library? Where is the library?, what is a book truck?, etc.), your friendly librarian (that’s me) will be happy to show you his wicked plan.
 
 
 
    Alberta, Tim. The kingdom, the power, and the glory: American evangelicals in an age of extremism. N.Y. : Harper, 2023.  277.3082 Alb
   “Alberta adeptly illustrates how Christian nationalism is 'destroying the evangelical church' on a big-picture level, as well as how it’s justified individually, framed scripturally, and blared over pulpits in support of hyper-conservative political candidates. While he suggests a 'true Christianity' might still be salvageable, Alberta’s own evidence reveals how deep the rot has already spread. It’s an incisive, unsparing look at a movement in crisis" — Publishers Weekly
 
Brueggemann, Walter. A way other than our own : devotions for Lent / compiled by Richard Floyd. Louisville, KY : Westminster John Knox Press, 2017. 242.34 Bru
  “God has always called people out of their safe, walled cities into uncomfortable places, revealing paths they would never have chosen. Despite our culture of self-indulgence, we too are called to walk an alternative path – one of humility, justice, and peace. Walter Bruggemann’s thought-provoking reflections for the season of Lent invite us to consider the challenging, beautiful life that comes with walking the way of grace” – Back cover.
 
Chacour, Elias, with David Hazard; foreword by James Baker. Blood brothers: the dramatic story of a Palestinian Christian working for peace in Israel. Grand Rapids, MI : Baker Books, 2022, c1984.  956.945 Cha
   “From my perspective, both as a believer and as a diplomat, I take hope and comfort in knowing that amid all the hatred, destruction, and death, Father Chacour continues his patient work, softening one heart at a time”—James Baker III, U.S. Secretary of State, 1989-1992.
 
Curtice, Kaitlin B. Living resistance : an indigenous vision for seeking wholeness every day. Grand Rapids, MI : Brazos Press, 2023.  204.408 Cur
   “Curtice fiercely yet gently calls us home to care about our souls and our bodies, about each other and Mother Earth. It’s a timely and timeless call to live resistance every day as we build the world we want together”—Jacque Lewis, senior minister, Middle Church.
 
Gathercole, Simon, editor. The Apocryphal gospels. Harmondsworth : Penguin Books, 2022.
    229 Gat
   “In the early years of Christianity, several groups produced "hidden" or "apocryphal" gospels, alternative versions of the story of Christ. Sometimes these texts complemented the four canonical gospels, sometimes they subverted them and often they were completely different. Often kept secret by their readers and frequently attacked by their detractors, these gospels shine a fascinating light on the early Christian Church and its surprising manifestations”—Back cover
 
Gupta, Nijay. Strange religion: how the first Christians were weird, dangerous, and compelling. Grand Rapids, MI : Brazos Press, 2024.  270.1 Gup
   “In the 21st Century, when Christianity has been dominant for so long, it is hard to imagine a context in  which the Christian faith was viewed as out of the ordinary and in some respects dangerously weird. This book packs a punch and is well worth reading”—Paula Gooder, canon chancellor, St. Paul’s Cathedral, London.
  “Nijay paints vivid pictures of life in the ancient Roman world and identifies the beliefs and practices that made the earliest Christians stand out in contrast. It left me considering how the church today might recapture some of the weirdness and beauty that made such a mark on the ancient world. If you ever wondered how a tiny Jewish sect, worshipping a crucified Messiah, could ever turn the Roman empire upside down, then this book is for you”—Mike Erre, teaching pastor, Journey church.
 
Isaac, Munther. The other side of the wall: a Palestinian Christian narrative of lament and hope. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 2020.  275.694 Isa
   “Isaac’s deeply moving [book] tells his story as a Christian growing up in the Palestinian town of Bethlehem over decades of violence, war, and occupation. The reading of Isaac’s Palestinian narrative in no way negates Jewish ties to the land but rather tells an often unheard side of the story”—Mae Cannon, executive director of Churches for Middle East Peace.
 
Khalidi, Rashid. Hundred years’ war on Palestine. N.Y. : Picador, 2021.  956.9405 Kha
   "Informed and passionate . . . Khalidi's is an elegy for the Palestinians, for their dispossession, for their failure to resist conquest"―The Guardian
  "The Hundred Years’ War is one of the best-researched general surveys of 20th and early 21st century Palestinian life, but it’s also a deeply personal work.  . . . For a people whose history is all but criminalized, this act of retelling is itself a form of resistance"―The Nation
  "Rigorous and lucid . . . Rashid Khalidi, the intellectual heir to Edward Said, has written one of the great books on the Israeli-Palestinian question"―Financial Times
 
King, Karen. The Gospel of Mary of Magdala: Jesus and the first woman apostle. Polebridge Press, 2003. 229.75 King
   “This is a rich, rewarding, and eye-opening review of how the only gospel written in the name of a woman can reveal the depth and diversity of the early Christian community. Strongly recommended-- Library Journal
 
Leloup, Jean-Yves. The Gospel of Mary Magdalene. Inner Tradition, 2002. 229.75 Lel
   “Found in 1945 at Nag Hammadi in the Egyptian desert, it is a short but complex Coptic text that appears to render the voice of Mary Magdalene. This volume contains English translations of Leloup's French version of the original and Leloup's extensive commentary, which discloses the theology that inspired the lost gospel”--Booklist (American Library Association)
 
Mack, Burton. The lost gospel: the Book of Q and Christian origins. New York : Harper One, 1994. 226.066 Ma
  “A masterful analysis of the entire Q tradition.... Its scope is large and its argument compelling"-- Bible Review
  "Serious discussion of Q, a collection of Jesus' sayings, has taken place mostly in academic circles. There is nothing substandard about Mack's scholarship, but this treatment has the added advantage of being accessible to average readers. Mack's thesis is that Q is the best record available for the first forty years of the various Jesus movements"-- Booklist
 
Nittle, Nadra. bell hooks’ spiritual vision: Buddhist, Christian, and feminist. Minneapolis : Fortress Press, 2023.  305.42 Nit
   “This carefully researched and beautifully written look at the spiritual life of one of our finest writers and intellectuals is a complex and valuable addition to writing about the inimitable bell hooks”—Silas House, author of Lark Ascending.
 
Pagels, Elaine. The Gnostic gospels. New York : Vintage Books, 1989.  229 Pa
   “...[D]enounced as heretical by the early church, Gnosticism proposed a revealed knowledge of God held as a secret tradition of the apostles. Elaine Pagels suggests that Christianity could have developed quite differently if Gnostic texts had become part of the Christian canon. Without a doubt: Gnosticism celebrates God as both Mother and Father, shows a very human Jesus's relationship to Mary Magdalene, suggests the Resurrection is better understood symbolically, and speaks to self-knowledge as the route to union with God. Pagels argues that Christian orthodoxy grew out of the political considerations of the day, serving to legitimize and consolidate early church leadership. Her contrast of that developing orthodoxy with Gnostic teachings presents an intriguing trajectory on a world faith as it "might have become." The Gnostic Gospels provides engaging reading for those seeking a broader perspective on the early development of Christianity. --F. Hall (Amazon.com)
 
Robinson, James M., General Editor. The Nag Hammadi Library. 3rd rev. ed. Translated and introduced by members of the Coptic Gnostic Library Project of the Institute for Antiquity and Christianity. San Francisco : HarperOne, 1988. 299.932 Nag
   This revised, expanded, and updated edition of The Nag Hammadi Library is the only complete, one-volume, modern language version of the renowned library of fourth-century manuscripts discovered in Egypt in 1945.
 
Shanks, Hershel. The brother of Jesus : the dramatic story and meaning of the first archaeological link to Jesus and his family. N.Y. : HarperOne, 2003. 232.933 Sha
   “[In 2003] biblical archaeologists stunned the world with news that a limestone ossuary with the inscription "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus" had surfaced in Palestine and may have once contained the bones of James, the early church leader and brother of Jesus of Nazareth. … Numerous scholars who have examined the ossuary now vouch for its first-century origins, if not its theological significance. … The opening chapters tell of the box's discovery and authentication, while the later chapters discuss its potential relevance and describe what is at stake if the ossuary is genuine. Particularly interesting is the book's discussion of what the ossuary does for Jewish-Christian relations: James, the bishop of Jerusalem, was known for encouraging Christians to retain aspects of their Jewish heritage instead of jettisoning that heritage as Paul had. This engaging book invites readers to ponder the numerous questions and possibilities raised by the ossuary's discovery”--Publisher’s Weekly
 
Trobisch, David. On the origin of Christian scripture: the evolution of the New Testament canon in the second century. Minneapolis : Fortress Press, 2023.  225.1 Tro
   “Provocateur and poet, historian and hermeneut, Trobisch has drawn for us more a map than a monograph, and one that promises to guide future quests of an ancient history and help plot the tellings of this fascinating story of the Bible’s real beginnings”—Rob Wall, Seattle-Pacific University.
 
Wright, Jacob L. Why the Bible began: an alternative history of scripture and its origins. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2023.  220.9 Wri
   “By one of the brightest minds in the field, this is a book on the bible that all will want to read: an exquisitely written and innovative tribute to the nameless scribes who responded to destruction and defeat by building a powerful new form of community that no army could conquer. Venturing beyond the Bible’s religious teachings to its political and social dimensions, Wright’s tour de force demonstrated why this body of literature still matters for us today”—Tamara Cohn Eskenazi, Professor Emerita of Biblical Literature and History, Hebrew Union College.
 
 
 
Children’s books
 
Caruso, Joe. In the image of God: a story of identity and value. Caruso, 2021.  J 248.4 Car
  “Filled with rhymes of affirmation and charming illustrations, In the Image of God is a beautiful reminder that our identity of found in Him. Children will be inspired to see themselves just as God made them, full of creativity, wisdom, power and love”—Back cover.
- Paul T