Fuzzy Focus On Billy Graham
Billy Graham: Revivalist in a Secular Age, by William G. McLoughlin, Jr. (Ronald Press, 1960, 269 pp., $4.50), reviewed by Sherwood E. Wirt.
When the fashionable poet Southey projected his biography of John Wesley, he sought out an elderly minister who had known the great man. “Sir,” commented the old minister, “thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.”
Author McLoughlin has staked his reputation on this book, the third in a series of studies of American evangelists. It extends the contemporary effort to reduce Christianity to a naturalistic expression of man’s efforts to adjust to his environment. A veiled contempt showed through both previous works, Modern Revivalism (a study of evangelists from Finney to Graham) and Billy Sunday Was His Real Name, which makes over Sunday as a kind of Elmer Gantry.
In the present work McLoughlin removes the veil, and the historian turns sociologist-hatchet man. Prominent persons must expect to be appraised critically, and Billy Graham has his measure of fallibilities and limitations. However, when a work that contains errors on nearly every page is sprinkled in addition with biased implications and faulty conjectures, and then put forth as a work of scholarship, something must be said. Science is the impartial quest for truth, not the indexing of prejudices.
There was good reason for McLoughlin not interviewing Billy Sunday before attempting to destroy him (he concluded that Sunday was a complete failure) since the evangelist died in 1935. But Graham is very much alive; yet he was not interviewed except once “briefly.” The first law of research is to go to the original sources; this McLoughlin ignored. Research was confined to attendance at a few Crusade metings at Harringay and Madison Square Garden; a visit to the Minneapolis headquarters of the Graham organization; talks with a few team members (not including Grady Wilson, Beavan, Barrows or Shea); and a vast amount of digging in newspaper files of cities where Graham preached years ago. Everything reported in newspapers and magazines was published as good scholarship, providing (it seems) it was derogatory to Graham.
There are misspellings, errors of description, incorrect dates and places. Yet McLoughlin does not merely claim to be an accurate reporter, he essays also to be a scholar; and in this realm he stands or falls. What are we to say of a statement such as: Graham “angered all Africans” when he refused to comment on the French A-bomb test? Is this objective research? What about the claim that crowds in America use Graham’s meetings as “self-flagellation” because of their opulence? Does this also apply in non-opulent India?
The author accepts Max Weber’s thesis equating the “Protestant ethic” with the “spirit of capitalism,” but apparently never heard of Robertson’s corrective which makes an equal case for the Roman Catholic ethic—to say nothing of Tawney’s Anglican ethic. He discusses theology as a lay historian without an experiential grasp of the terminology. By a facile rearrangement of history he lumps Whitefield, Frelinghuysen, Tennent, and Edwards as “quite different in theory and practice” from Wesley, Dwight, Taylor, Lyman Beecher, Finney, and Graham. Why? Because one group held that “there is little or nothing one could do to effect his own salvation,” while the other believed that “if he (the sinner) really wants to save himself (!) he can do it quickly and easily.”
On page 15 we are told Graham is an Arminian; on page 211 he is labeled a Calvinist. Again, the author assails evangelistic work in India as “a form of Christion imperialism” (p. 217), and yet we are told, “the Christian churches can never forsake their evangelistic function.”
Apart from such “double-think,” the author paints Graham as a narrow, rural, dyed-in-the-wool reactionary fundamentalist (he uses the latter word as a whip throughout), and also an intolerant fanatic (p. 215), a McCarthyite and an opponent of social reform. He is off course on every count. Furthermore, quotations illustrating the evangelist’s social and political views were taken almost entirely from broadcasts made during or before 1952, before the significant London Crusade, before Graham’s meetings with world leaders. Any allowance for growth is given grudgingly.
We are speciously advised as to what Graham “probably” thinks about men (e.g., Rauschenbusch) and issues (e.g., morals in non-Christian cultures). The author even speculates about the youthful Graham’s baseball batting habits. All good fun, but it is not scholarship. One complimentary reference to Graham in the book is unhedged: he is “honest!”
Who is McLoughlin and what is his mission? In another field, under better discipline, he might do effective work, for he shows some historical ability and insight. On the subject of revival he is over his depth and miserable, for he is forced to bandy words he cannot fathom. The well is deep.
What we really have here is not a book about Graham at all; we have the existential controversy of a man with his Creator. In his own way, McLoughlin tries to come to terms with God by drawing a psychograph of him. He aims to prove that Christian faith, even if true, is a mistake; salvation is a false option; and those who preach the Gospel are engaged in a vast deception. But God’s love is even vaster, and our hearts go out to Brother McLoughlin. We hope he will keep on going to Graham meetings. Who knows?
SHERWOOD E. WIRT
Science And Religion
The Natural Sciences and the Christian Message, by Aldert Van Der Zeil (T. S. Denison and Co., 1960, 259 pp., $4.50), is reviewed by Edward John Carnell, Professor of Ethics and Philosophy of Religion, Fuller Theological Seminary.
This is a Lutheran sponsored book, though it defends nothing distinctively Lutheran. The author is Professor of Electrical Engineering at the University of Minnesota. His competence as a scientist is beyond dispute. He gently leads into his subject by a general definition of science (“a systematic investigation, interrelation and exposition of a certain field of human experience”). But before he is through, he escorts the reader into a dense jungle of technical symbols, a jungle that only an expert in science could hope to penetrate. His central argument is Barthian in substance: science and theology have nothing to do with each other, so why worry? “The Christian message and its systematic presentation, theology, are independent of science and thus cannot be supported by it or hampered by it.” If science should teach total evolution, a Christian should answer by witnessing to the faith-truth that God created the world.
While I envy this Barthian serenity, I suspect that sooner or later we must leave our castles of faith and engage scientists on the field of mutually accessible evidence. For example, when Freudians reconstruct the psyche on the analogy of natural determinism, I think a Christian must do a lot more than “witness to his faith.” Unless belief terminates in objective evidence, the witness of a Christian has no more claim on reality, and thus no more apologetical force, than the witness of a Hindu or a Moslem.
EDWARD JOHN CARNELL
Archaeological Survey
Prophets, Idols and Diggers, by John Elder (Bobbs-Merrill, 1960, 240 pp., $5), is reviewed by G. Douglas Young, Trinity Theological Seminary.
Here is a well-illustrated survey of archaeological data that bears on the time between Genesis and Revelation. The author establishes well the manner in which the science of archaeology enables us to reconstruct the life and times of the Bible world as a backdrop against which we can see the biblical details in a life situation. There is an emphasis on the contribution of archaeological science to the evaluation of the Bible as an historical record. The whole is a constructive work by an author whose viewpoint is in sympathy with the biblical material he surveys. Some corrections must be noted. Among them are the following: It will not take 50 years to translate the Scroll finds (p. 145); and the Waters of Merom no longer exist (p. 165). It is very readable, up to date, and geared for the layman rather than the specialist by a missionary-author who has lived in Iran since 1923.
G. DOUGLAS YOUNG
Peter’S Significance
Sermons on Simon Peter, by Clovis G. Chappell (Abingdon, 1960, 128 pp., $2), is reviewed by John R. Richardson, Minister, Westminster Presbyterian Church, Atlanta, Ga.
Peter played a leading role in the circle of the Twelve. Dr. Chappell undertakes to explain the significance of this Apostle for Christians today. The twelve studies throw the spotlight on the leading episodes in his career from his conversion to his latter days. The author holds to the idea that if a popularity contest were conducted even now, Peter would surely be selected as the best loved among the Apostles. The reason he gives is that Peter is so genuinely human.
For the special benefit of preachers, Dr. Chappell reminds his readers that Peter’s effectiveness was largely due to the fact that he spoke with compelling urgency. Says Chappell, “Peter was deadly in earnest. He believed in the importance of what he was saying. People have a way of listening to a man who is really in earnest.”
Dr. Chappell writes simply. It is not difficult to understand what he has to say. Each message is characterized by great plainness of speech. For years the author has excelled in lucid character sketches, and this latest volume, depicting Peter as a great human being and a great Christian, maintains the same high standards found in his earlier works.
The most valuable aspect of the book is the emphasis upon the power of the full-orbed Gospel of Christ to produce a strong and vigorous character.
JOHN R. RICHARDSON
On Thessalonians
The First and Second Epistles to the Thessalonians, by Leon Morris (Eerdmans, 1959, 274 pp., $4), is reviewed by Merrill C. Tenney, Dean of the Graduate School, Wheaton College.
Dr. Leon Morris is already well known to the Christian world through numerous magazine articles and through his Tyndale Commentary on Thessalonians. This volume, which is the eighth to be published in the series of the New International New Testament Commentaries, is an outgrowth of the smaller volume, and deals more fully with the problems of the underlying text.
The first impression that one receives upon perusing it is that it is both thorough and readable. Dr. Morris’ presentation of the results of his study deals minutely with the grammatical meaning of the Greek text without being obscure or pedantic. Technical details are made lucid by clear explanation, and discussion of disputed points is generally relegated to footnotes where scholars may find them when needed. The main exposition of the commentary is comprehensible by any intelligent Bible student, and provides ready reference for the casual reader.
The author carefully weighs textual problems with a statement of evidence for all alternate renderings and with a reasoned judgment for his choice of reading. On disputed eschatological points, he states fairly the possible alternatives of interpretation. While he does not make his commentary a vehicle for controversy, he does state his own position so that readers may know where he stands, and then succeeds in maintaining a firm but amiable objectivity.
There is no equivocation, however, on theological issues. In discussing the allusion to Christ’s death in 1 Thessalonians 5:10, he says: “It is impossible to argue that the failure to mention the cross more often means that as yet Paul had no theology of the atonement.… The references to the kerygma throughout the New Testament show that the cross was the central element in the proclamation of the gospel to those outside” (p. 161). Doctrinally this commentary is thoroughly evangelical and reliable.
The candid and reverent attitude of Dr. Morris appears at its best in his discussion of the difficult passage in 2 Thessalonians 2:1–12. He reviews completely all of the possible interpretations of “that which restraineth,” and finally says: “The plain fact is that Paul and his readers knew what he was talking about, and we do not.… It is best that we frankly acknowledge our ignorance.” He does dismiss as improbable the current interpretations that the “restrainer” is the Holy Spirit. According to him, “it is impossible to envisage Him as being ‘taken out of the way’ “(p. 228). He could have explained more fully the reason for the impossibility of this inference. God withdrew his spirit from Saul; why should He not do the same from a world that has persistently rejected him?
His references to other literature are carefully documented and up to date. This work should be useful not only in expounding the Thessalonian epistles but also in meeting the problems raised by advocates of neo-orthodoxy and of realized eschatology. To the evangelical theologian it affords strong exegetical support, and to the average Bible student a sane and constructive aid for his thinking.
MERRILL C. TENNEY
Bible Ornithology
All the Birds of the Bible, by Alice Parmelee (Harper, 1959, 279 pp., $4.95), is reviewed by John Leedy, Professor of Botany, Wheaton College (Illinois).
Authoritative, fascinating, profusely-illustrated in one volume, Alice Parmelee’s All the Birds of the Bible becomes a biblical ornithological Who’s Who.
The many never-before-told bird stories, so accurately, beautifully, often dramatically compounded with the spiritual message of Scripture passages, reveal in a new dimension the sweep of the entire biblical narrative … even “the clouds fly forth like birds.… He scatters the snow like birds flying down” (p. 158). Full of expert but not tedious or showy scientific asides, the book begins with Noah’s opening of the window of the ark and the launching of the raven, “the black dweller of the mountain crags” into the wind above “the floating wreckage of the flooded world” (pp. 54–55). From this dark beginning the reader is carried on multihued pinions from book to book to end with the exaltations of Revelation 4 and 5. “In the end as in the beginning God reigns.” … “Then the heavenly winged lion and the ox and the man and the flying eagle cried: ‘Amen’ ” (p. 266).
JOHN LEEDY
Position Of The Vatican
Vatican Diplomacy, by Robert A. Graham, S.J. (Princeton University Press, 1959, 442 pp., $7.50), is reviewed by W. Stanford Reid, Professor of History, McGill University.
Because of the political position of the United States, both domestically and internationally, the problem of the Vatican’s diplomacy is becoming of ever-increasing importance to Americans. Father Graham’s study of Vatican international relations should be of no little present interest. He writes in clear, concise English with few if any literary frills, and sets forth what he believes to be the rationale of the papacy’s position in the world of international diplomacy; and, what is of greatest moment, he does so in a way that though one may disagree one can understand him without any difficulty. The book, therefore, should be a significant one for Protestants.
Father Graham presents as his basic thesis the view that the pope enjoys a unique position in the field of international diplomacy, a fact demonstrated by the number of ambassadors representing even Protestant powers accredited to the Vatican. Such a position, he maintains, is perfectly correct diplomatically since the papacy, as a truly “sovereign” power, meets the requirements of being a proper participant in international diplomacy.
He then proceeds to present proofs of the pope’s sovereignty. One cannot enter into a detailed exposition of his argument, but in broad lines it is somewhat as follows. During the Middle Ages the rulers of Europe recognized the pope as a sovereign, and since that time many national governments have accepted his right to establish official diplomatic relations with them. The fact, however, would not necessarily establish the papacy’s claim to diplomatic recognition. Rather, it is derived from the pope’s position as head of the Roman Catholic church. “Ultimately, his authority is merely a function of the Church’s own authority” (p. 215). He is the sovereign over all Roman Catholics wherever they may be, so that in each country there is a “concurrence of two jurisdictions.” “The state deals with a religious authority located outside its territory, concerning institutions and persons who, civilly are within its jurisdiction” (p. 248). Thus the pope is freely sovereign in the ecclesiastical sphere over all Roman Catholics whatever their political allegiance.
It should be perfectly clear what Father Graham is at pains to emphasize repeatedly: the pope claims recognition as a sovereign, not by virtue of his sovereignty over Vatican City, but by virtue of his sovereignty over the Roman Catholic church. Such a position would seem to destroy the arguments of some Protestants who favor diplomatic relations with the Vatican on the ground that the pope is a political ruler. He claims recognition as a sovereign because he is lord over the consciences of the faithful (p. 395). Father Graham holds that this is the same position held by all other religions vis a vis the state. The uniqueness of the papacy rests in the fact that the earthly source of authority is outside all national sovereignty.
The argument sounds logical and to a considerable extent reasonable. One difficulty about it is, however, that Father Graham does not liken the claims of the papacy to diplomatic recognition with its assertion of superiority over all other sovereignties. Only once does he refer to it and then when quoting a letter of Pope Pius XI who spoke of “the absolute superiority of the church” over the sovereignty of the state. This doctrine of papal universal lordship, which goes back deep into the Middle Ages, was stated most clearly and concretely by Boniface VIII in his bull Unam Sanctam (1302). Thus the pope, an earthly though “spiritual” sovereign, would seem to make first claims on the faithful’s allegiance. This very fundamental aspect of the pope’s international position Father Graham has largely ignored.
Another matter which he might have discussed in order to make the issue perfectly clear is the church of Rome’s claim to be the sole church of Christ to the exclusion of all other bodies. This is implied in the Roman church’s claim to be the one “perfect society” which deals with that other “perfect society” known as the state. By the assumption of this uniqueness of the position of the Roman church, one may easily see how the Vatican on its own terms not only may but must use its diplomatic position to forward Roman Catholic projects by political as well as ordinary ecclesiastical means, if possible, to the exclusion of all other religious groups. Thus Vatican diplomacy can be a means of posing a serious threat to religious freedom whether government regards the pope as a ruler of equal status or as the first object of its allegiance.
Two chapters of this work are devoted to Vatican relations with the United States and the Soviet Union. Little or nothing is said about the papacy’s dealings with Falangist Spain or Nazi Germany. One cannot but feel that a study of Vatican relations with these two countries might have shed even more light on the subject. But Father Graham has perhaps set forth Rome’s position with sufficient precision, if we link it with her doctrine of the church, to show rather clearly the implications, both for political states and the Protestant churches, of the diplomatic claims of the papacy,
W. STANFORD REID
Dynamics Of Communism
Christianity and Communism Today, by John C. Bennett (Association Press, 1960, 168 pp., $3.50), is reviewed by Harold B. Kuhn, Professor of Philosophy of Religion, Asbury Theological Seminary.
The question, how the Christian ought to view communism, has for 40 years been a thorny one. One admires the courage of any writer who seeks to come to grips with the problem, since no writing on the subject can possibly please everyone. Dr. Bennett has this year offered a revision of his volume, Christianity and Communism, first published in 1948. The revision seeks to view the scene in the light of the events of the past decade, particularly in terms of the death of Stalin and the changes it may have made in the Soviet Russia, and in the light of the communizing of China.
The volume accepts as given the proposition that we will need to live for a long time in a world in which communism is a powerful factor in the lives of men. Dr. Bennett seeks to interpret for us the dynamics of the Communist movement and the inner workings of the minds of its leaders, particularly the fears which are such potent factors with them. In the light of this, our author seeks to outline what he considers to be a realistic national policy with reference to both Russia and China.
The question which perplexes all of us is whether the Western World may not need to reckon for a long time to come with a system whose seeming flexibilities and whose temporary smiles may not issue completely from tactical considerations—a system whose over-all strategy cannot change without destroying the system itself. Dr. Bennett is to be commended for his willingness to let optimism spring eternally in the breast. Certainly none of us would wish to become enmeshed in a total cynicism concerning a movement that embraces a third of the human race. At the same time, one cannot help wondering whether the major blunders which the West has made with respect to the Communist world have not been made upon the basis of a too-great trust that the Soviet masters, if treated as respectable human beings, would respond in decency and honor. The reply of the enslaved peoples of Eastern Europe might be instructive to us.
Dr. Bennett proposes that we attempt a new beginning with the Soviet masters: that we declare a “statute of limitations” with respect to their crimes against humanity. Certainly our Lord did prescribe a “seventy-times-seven” forgiveness toward enemies. But can such a crime as Hungary, and as China’s rape of Tibet be wiped from the slate with one stroke of forgetfulness? Is there hope for a new beginning with such unutterable boors as now make the public pronouncements for both Soviet Russia and China. So long as these lands maintain the stance of the total destruction of the non-Communist world, some means of self-defense may need to be taken against them, as against any predator.
The author has attempted to deal with a bafflingly complex question. He seeks to be fair in his attitude toward the Communist world. Some may feel that in so doing, he sells the free world a bit short and tends to confuse tactics with strategy at some points—a thing which is easy for any of us to do. He feels constrained to maintain the innocence of those who joined Communist “front” organizations in the “thirties,” and has a good deal of confidence in an inclusive United Nations. Whether he would alter some paragraphs in the light of Khrushchev’s brusque termination of the Summit Conference and his subsequent abuse of the free world, is a question. The book has merit as a stimulant to thought. It would be improved by an index.
HAROLD B. KUHN
Counselors’ Guide
The Psychology of Counseling, by Clyde M. Narramore (Zondervan, 1960, 303 pp., $3.95), is reviewed by Theodore J. Jansma, Chaplain, Christian Sanatorium, Wyckoff, New Jersey.
This is primarily a “How to” book; a better title would be “The Technique of Counseling.” It was “written to meet the needs of ministers and other Christian counselors.” The book has three parts, the first constituting the main body of the book and dealing with “Basic Concepts and Techniques of Counseling.” Part two discusses special areas of counseling, namely, teen-agers, the emotionally ill, marriage, and sex. The third part is an appendix on the use of Scripture, a glossary, and a list of books and recordings.
The book’s chief virtue is its simplicity. It is written in nontechnical language, the chapters are short, and the main points are numbered and italicized. Like other “How to” books, this one is dogmatic rather than scholarly. It does not discuss problems in the field of Christianity and psychology or psychiatry, it makes practically no reference to other works either in the body or footnotes, it has no bibliography other than a suggested list in the appendix of which a third are the author’s own works, and it has no index. The author’s evangelical faith is evident throughout.
THEODORE J. JANSMA
Anabaptist Ethic
The Way of the Cross in Human Relations, by Guy Franklin Hershberger (Herald Press, 1958, 424 pp., $5.50), is reviewed by Arthur H. De Kruyter, Pastor of the Western Springs Christian Reformed Church, Western Springs, Illinois.
The Anabaptist ethic has an able apologist in Dr. Guy Hershberger, professor of history and sociology at Goshen College. This book is the latest addition to an impressive list of titles which have come from his pen since 1940.
The first half of the book deals with the problem of war. After a chapter on “Foundations,” the author treats what he calls the dualistic ethic of the historic branches of the Christian church: Roman Catholicism, Lutheranism, Calvinism, liberalism, neo-orthodoxy, and fundamentalism. In each case an attempt is made to show that resistance through war is a second wrong seeking to right the first sin of self-interest and greed. Each system of theology fails to answer with consistency the basic ethical need of the world community.
There is only one right answer and there has been only one consistent approach to the problem, and that is the “way of the cross” found in the Anabaptist Christian ethic. Whether the abuse comes from a child, a neighbor, or a nation, there is only one true answer for it. The section closes with a series of examples of the “cross” ethic in action.
The second half of the volume probes the problems of establishing a Christian economic system (the relation of piety to riches), and points to a better foundation for all social relations. The discussion on race relations was very general and safe and rather disappointing in view of the author’s previously definitive stand on the issues treated.
ARTHUR H. DE KRUYTER
Twenty Years After
A Survey of Religious Education, by Price, Chapman, Carpenter and Yarborough (Ronald Press, 1959, 466 pp., $5.50), is reviewed by Charles G. Schauffele, Professor of Christian Education, Gordon College.
For a teacher in the north to review a Southern Baptist textbook is like asking a proper Bostonian what he thinks of grits and gravy. Like the Boston baked bean, there is plenty of substance to it. One encounters no naturalism here. “Public education is under the direction of the state and is therefore secular in nature, while religious education is under the control of the church … and is religious and moral” (p. 9). The revision did not have to go from liberalism of two decades ago to neo-orthodoxy in its pilgrimage of relativity, but remains constant in its devotion to evangelical convictions. From Price’s section on “Philosophy” to Chapman’s treatment of “Principles,” there is expressed the dynamism of epistemology which posits knowledge upon revelation rather than experience. Here are found those basics of Christian education which have made this denomination a leader in the field. If one is ever curious as to why there are more men directors of religious education in local Southern Baptist churches, this book will give the reason.
The local pastor interested in more than just his responsibilities in the pulpit will find the volume illustrating the best in Christian education. It stands beside another popular revision, Murch’s Christian Education in the Local Church. What the latter has been to schools and churches in the north, the present book has been in the south.
A Survey of Religious Education is a solid refresher course for the workers in any church, north or south!
CHARLES G. SCHAUFFELE
Sex In History
Sexual Relation in Christian Thought, by Derrick Sherwin Bailey (Harper, 1959, 312 pp., $4.50), is reviewed by F. F. Bruce, Rylands Professor of Biblical Criticism and Exegesis at the University of Manchester, England.
Dr. Bailey, who is Study Secretary of the Moral Welfare Council of the Church of England, has devoted special attention to the theology of sex, love and marriage, and has written a number of highly appreciated works in this field. The present work (published in Great Britain under the title The Man-Woman Relation in Christian Thought) takes the form of a historical survey of the subject in Christian thought from the teaching of Jesus to our own day.
Few subjects, Dr. Bailey points out, have exercised a more potent influence on the pattern of Western culture than the traditional teaching of the Church about sex; yet he has failed to find a systematic and sufficiently detailed account of the development of this teaching. Accordingly, he has set himself to make good this deficiency; the resultant book is a first-rate piece of research, interestingly written, and worthy to be recommended with confidence to all students of the subject.
It is good at an early stage in the book to see the appreciative evaluation of Paul’s “profound and realistic treatment of coitus and its significance in the first epistle to the Corinthians,” which “displays a psychological insight into human sexuality which is altogether exceptional by first-century standards” (pp. 9 f.). The unfortunate trend so evident in most patristic literature is examined in some detail: “while there was no denial that procreation is good in itself, there was nevertheless a general disposition to deplore the means appointed by the Creator to that end” (p. 45). Dr. Bailey points out that the oriental-hellenistic dualism in which the age was steeped infected Christian thought in this particular regard even when its heretical influence in other directions was condemned by the Church; besides, it can hardly be denied that the attitude of a number of the Fathers towards sex was adversely affected by their preconversion experiences.
There follow chapters on the thought of the medieval Church in the West, on the Reformation and seventeenth-century Anglicanism, and on the state of the tradition today. Among the factors which have influenced contemporary Christian thinking about sexual relation a high place is given to Martin Buber’s I and Thou, “which has, among many other things, profoundly illuminated our understanding of the metaphysical aspects of sexual love and marriage” (p. 247). Dr. Bailey pays attention also to the implications of biblical criticism, especially with regard to the Genesis narratives of the origin of mankind and our Lord’s words on marriage and divorce; and considers the significance of the inclusion of the Song of Songs in the canon of Scripture. His final chapter, “Towards a Theology of Sex,” concludes with an affirmation of the abiding validity of the analogy between marital love and the union of Christ with the Church, even if the husband be no longer regarded as the “head” of the wife: “rejection of the wife’s subordination does not invalidate the analogy, but simply requires a revision of the terms in which its ethical and personal implications are expressed” (p. 303). From which it will be seen that this important work does not shrink from challenging controversy.
F. F. BRUCE
Basic Stewardship
Stewardship in Contemporary Theology, edited by T. K. Thompson (Association Press, 1960, 251 pp., $5.50), is reviewed by Fred L. Fisher, Professor of New Testament Interpretation, Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary.
Jacket blurbs on newly published books are usually misleading—they often promise more than the book delivers. Not so this one. It says: “from a study of Old and New Testaments, a survey of stewardship in the history of the church, and a fresh look at current practices and problems—new understanding for the Christian and his church.”
The book consists of essays on stewardship principles and practice growing out of a conference sponsored by the National Council of Churches.
Each essay is written by a specialist. The book contains three biblical studies, one theological discussion, one historical study, and four studies of current practice. Naturally, there are variations in the quality of the essays. The chapters on the history of stewardship and the one of Paul’s philosophy are especially rewarding.
This is a book which will stimulate your thinking on basic principles which underlie the practice of stewardship.
FRED L. FISHER
Ecumenical Trends
The Ecumenical Era in Church and Society, edited by Edward J. Jurji (Macmillan, 1959, 238 pp., $5), reviewed by C. Gregg Singer, Professor of History at Catawba College.
This symposium in honor of Dr. John A. Mackay seeks to present the role and challenge of the ecumenical church in an ecumenical society. In the opinion of the reviewer, Dr. Mackay may well regard its dedication to him as a somewhat dubious honor. While there are a few good chapters in Part II, notably those dealing with the challenge to Protestantism in Latin America by G. Baez-Camargo, and renascent religions and religion in India by Paul David Devanadan, the work as a whole reveals the theological bankruptcy and the declining zeal of the ecumenical movement. Its theological weaknesses are startlingly apparent at the outset in George Hendry’s chapter on the theological context of the church today, in which he would seem to conclude that the most important question in theology today is the theory concerning the nature of the church.
Emile Cailliet’s attempt to set forth the role of the church in contemporary culture is quite disappointing in that he presents no theological foundations by which she may fulfill her cultural mission. But the crucial weakness of the ecumenical movement becomes even more apparent in Eugene Carson Blake’s chapter on the American church and the ecumenical mission. He insists that Protestantism will not be able to meet the challenge of our time unless it develops a world base for its world-wide mission, and such a base is not to be found in the historic theology of the Reformers (p. 76). It is to be found in the World Council of Churches and a theology which includes little more than an affirmation of the doctrine of the Trinity. Although Dr. Blake acknowledges the danger of seeking co-operation between churches on the basis of the lowest common doctrinal denominator, he actually has little more to offer as an ecumenical theology.
The concluding section on the communication of the Christian message fails to resolve any of the dilemmas raised in the preceding discussions.
It is clear that the Church must proclaim her message, but nowhere is her content clearly suited. There is no emphasis on the biblical doctrine of sin and redemption, justification by faith, and salvation by faith alone. Underlying much of the thinking of the book is an enervating existentialist approach that talks of estrangement rather than sin, and encounter rather than regeneration.
An ecumenical movement that rests upon the theology of this symposium has not long to live and little to offer to men who are dying in their sins.
C. GREGG SINGER
Orienting Buber
Martin Buber, by Malcolm L. Diamond (Oxford, 1960, 240 pp., $4.50), is reviewed by Paul K. Jewett, Professor of Systematic Theology, Fuller Theological Seminary.
Every student of contemporary theological thought is bound to ask such questions as, How is it that Buber being a Jew has so many dealings with us who are Christians? What does he really think of Jesus and Paul, and what do his Jewish brethren think of him? Flow did he come to embrace the “philosophy of dialogue” so commandingly stated in his I and Thou? These and many more interesting questions about this remarkable Jewish thinker are ably discussed and answered by Professor Diamond. The book is valuable not only because it helps a student to orient Buber’s place in the debate between Judaism and Christianity, but also for the sympathetic, careful, and well-documented synthesis of Buber’s thought. Buber’s mind has many facets, and it is no mean task to reduce these insights to a unity of brief compass. For these reasons the book is rewarding.
As a committed Christian, the reviewer read the book with an increased sense of the tragedy of the man. Buber has refused Paul’s interpretation of Jesus and substituted that of Albert Schweitzer and thereby for all practical purposes sided with the Pharisees against our Lord. He can therefore never have a really significant word for the Church, and yet at the same time without Jesus he can make no final sense for Judaism either, as is evidenced by the fact that he has had less influence on the thinking of his own people than on that of Christian theologians. These and lesser matters are brought into clear focus by this work, which is recommended to all students interested in the existentialist contribution to Christian theology.
PAUL K. JEWETT
Distinctively Lutheran
Worship: A Study of Corporate Devotion, by Luther D. Reed (Muhlenburg Press, 1959, 437 pp., $6.75), is reviewed by James C. Eelman, Professor of Practical Theology, New Brunswick Theological Seminary.
Dr. Luther D. Reed is president emeritus of the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. He has been seriously engaged in liturgical studies for the past 50 years. Worship may be considered as his greatest contribution to liturgical study in which he has been so vitally interested during his long ministry in the Lutheran Church.
This book is a study in the principles and forms of corporate worship but also contains numerous practical helps for the use of worship materials. It is, however, a distinctively Lutheran work which concerns itself primarily with the liturgy and hymnal of that ecclesiastical body.
The book is divided into four main sections: “The Spirit of Worship,” “The Form and Content of Worship,” “The Ministry of Music,” and “Leadership.” The first section is a short exposition on the nature of worship as “an experience and an institution.” The remainder of the book is mainly concerned to assist Lutherans in the use of their new Service Book and Hymnal in the worship of God. The section on the ministry of music is very helpful and shows that the author has a sensitive appreciation of the place which music has in the worship of God.
The fact that Dr. Reed has written primarily for the Lutherans does not rob the book of value for other Protestant communions. It is regrettable, however, that the book’s preoccupation with the Lutheran Church led the author to make some questionable statements about other communions of the Reformation.
For example, a careful comparative study of Luther and Calvin’s liturgical efforts seems to indicate that in spite of what the author says, Calvin preserved the ancient structure of liturgy better than Luther did. That a later “Calvinism” has at times shown nonliturgical tendencies is, of course, true of many other Protestant denominations.
JAMES C. EELMAN
Book Briefs
A Treasury of Books for Bible Study, by Wilbur M. Smith (W. A. Wilde, 1960, 289 pp., $3.95)—Hundreds of biblical libraries have been built around Dr. Smith’s biographical suggestions. In this mature work—confined to church history, theology and biblical interpretation—he directs the Bible student to the volumes essential for such a library. A work of great value.
Preaching, Confession, The Lord’s Supper, by Walter Luthi and Eduard Thumeysen (John Knox Press, 1960, 121 pp., $2.50)—A book by two Swiss theologians dealing with three areas in the life of the church. Gives insight into the strengths and weaknesses of European Protestantism.
Predestination and Other Papers, by Pierre Maury (John Knox Press, 1960, 109 pp., $2.50)—A French theologian’s bold interpretation of the central doctrine of Calvinism which will scarcely satisfy the orthodox, but will stimulate constructive thought.
The Concept of Newness in the New Testament, by Roy A. Harrisville (Augsburg, 1960, 126 pp., $1.95)—An interpretative study of New Testament ideas based on (1) the words and deeds of Christ in the synoptic gospels, (2) the kerygma of the New Testament and (3) Old Testament background.
Toward World Literacy, by Frank C. and Robert S. Laubach (Syracuse University Press, 1960, 335 pp., $4.75)—A sound and practical training volume which admirably implements the elder Laubach’s world-wide literacy program now so effective in 96 countries and 274 languages.
