Book Briefs: April 24, 1981

Traditional Roles Defended

Man and Woman in Christ, by Stephen E. Clark (Servant, 1980, 753 pp., $15.95), is reviewed by Donald G. Bloesch, professor of theology, University of Dubuque Theological Seminary, Dubuque, Iowa.

Stephen Clark, a Catholic layman, has given us a highly relevant and controversial treatise on past and present man-woman roles. Clark is a theologian of the Word of God community, a bold ecumenical venture in Christian living located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. In opposition to current feminism, he strongly argues for the retention of male-female roles as outlined in Holy Scripture. He believes there is a biblical basis for the traditional patriarchal notion that the husband is intended to be ruler and provider-protector of the family, and the wife organizer and maintainer of the household.

This book brings together in a remarkable way sociological, theological, and biblical scholarship. Clark provides ample documentation from the social sciences to support his contention that men and women differ significantly in their emotional, intellectual, and social responses. He ably shows that much feminist exegesis of Scripture is strained and that the feminist attempt to deny the principle of subordination simply lacks biblical foundation. The ideal in Scripture, he points out, is neither domination nor independence, but community. His complaint that the feminist movement has provided much of the active support today for abortion, homosexuality, sexual freedom, and legislation destructive of family life may not be wholly justified. But it should be taken seriously by all sides in this controversy.

Clark is especially perceptive in describing the devastating consequences of the technological society on the modern family. Equally revealing is his treatment of the ideologies that both shape and are shaped by the technological society. He gives a timely warning of the temptation they pose to the Christian community today. Among those reviewed are classical liberalism, welfare liberalism, socialism, and feminism. He shows that much of the discussion today on equality and freedom is ideologically motivated, that the understanding of these terms in avant garde feminist circles is radically different from the biblical understanding.

Although Clark has given a convincing critique of modern egalitarianism, especially as this has surfaced in the feminist movement, what is missing is a comparable critique of patriarchalism. For example, it can be shown that patriarchalism, even of the kind that existed in biblical times, can be an obstacle to the spiritual unity of a family as well as to Christian liberty. Although acknowledging certain deficiencies in traditional patriarchy, particularly in the area of interaction between men and women, he does not develop this into a critique.

While he underlines the natural alliance between feminism and socialism, it also would have been helpful to explore the natural affinity of modern patriarchalism to fascism. He considers fascism an aberrant form of socialism and holds that the differences are not relevant to the question of men’s and women’s roles. Yet modern fascism has been manifestly profamily and blatantly patriarchal, whereas socialism is egalitarian.

Sometimes Clark too easily assumes that the biblical position is a variation of patriarchalism, but a case could be made that even though patriarchal imagery was used in the Bible in portraying God’s relationship to humanity and people’s relationships to one another, this imagery was radically transformed in the light of God’s self-revelation in Jesus Christ. The principle of headship is reinterpreted in the New Testament to mean servanthood, just as subordination is now seen as loving support rather than servile submission. Clark acknowledges that subordination in the biblical sense does not denote inferiority, but he does not sufficiently perceive that the whole idea of subordination is placed in a new context, especially in the New Testament where Christ’s love for his church is the paradigm of the man-woman relationship within marriage.

The author appeals to the church fathers to reinforce the view that women must be in subordinate roles in church and home. Yet he does not consider that the church fathers, heavily influenced by the patriarchal bias of both Hellenistic and Hebraic cultures, are not altogether reliable guides in this area.

This book is a welcome antidote to the barrage of propaganda from the egalitarian left that blurs the distinction between the sexes and denies the biblical teaching of hierarchy in the order of creation. Yet some of the author’s conclusions reflect an accommodation to traditional patriarchal thinking rather than a fresh reappropriation of the abiding insights of biblical revelation. The reader sometimes gets the impression that Clark places too much weight on cultural customs that belong to another era. At the same time, much of his scriptural exegesis is exceedingly helpful and is often (but not always) more persuasive than that of his feminist opponents.

This is one of the most significant books of the past year; not only evangelicals, but liberals and Catholics as well will find it worth pondering. Even though certain of Clark’s alternatives can be questioned by those who stand in a biblical or evangelical tradition, his analysis of modern movements is illuminating and refreshing. His sociological insights are, in my opinion, more substantial than his theological reflections, but we can still learn from him in both areas.

True Communication

God Still Speaks, a Biblical View of Christian Communication, by Robert E. Webber (Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1980, 221 pp., $10.95), is reviewed by Charles Twombly, English teacher, Washington County High School, Sandersville, Georgia.

Here is a book that fills a real gap. Dozens of how-to books pour forth offering one technique or another for preaching or evangelism. But few really come to terms with the theological basis of communication. As a result, the focus of such books is frequently too narrow and the theological undergirding is all too often of secondary importance to the main thrust. Webber realizes that a theology of communication (or of anything else, for that matter) must first of all involve serious reflection on the classical dogmas of the faith.

Working within such a perspective, Webber comes naturally to the insight that communication is ultimately grounded in the Trinity (God’s own inner life) and in the Incarnation (the ultimate meeting point of God and man). He relates this understanding to the redemptive drama, beginning with Creation and moving through history from the Fall to the final consummation.

Much more than merely verbal proclamation is brought into view in this book. Webber offers a vision in which the whole of life, the entire created cosmos, is seen as both the medium through which God communicates to us and the object of ultimate redemption. God’s involvement in the world is far more than a model for us to copy; we are called to share in the divine life (2 Peter 1:4) through our union with Christ.

Splendid chapters covering such matters as symbolism, worship, nurture, and mission help to ground the insights of the earlier chapters in the concrete realities that make up our existence. Here, as in other books (Common Roots; The Secular Saint), Webber reveals the life-giving power of ancient doctrine when it is approached from an understanding in which theological reflection, the life of the church, and involvement in the world are seen as integrally related.

The Church’S Teaching Ministry

Teaching Today: The Church’s First Ministry, by Locke E. Bowman, Jr. (Westminster Press, 1980, 212 pp., $8.95), is reviewed by Scott Hawkins, director of Christian education, Blacknall Memorial Presbyterian Church, Durham, North Carolina.

Dr. Locke Bowman, executive director of the National Teacher Education Project and publisher of Church Teachers magazine, has aided scores of Sunday school teachers and leaders (pastors, too) in becoming better teachers. He continues to do so in his latest book, Teaching Today. The title states his theme clearly: teaching should be the church’s “primary ministry worthy of our focused and unrelenting attention.”

To help the reader focus, the author has integrated three problem areas (shall we label them possibilities?) into a concise, at times a too-brief treatment, urging us to work for a renewal of church education. An investigation of these three areas—learning, teaching, education—reveals his perceptive and promising prescriptions for readers’ use in beginning to practice in their own congregational settings.

First, Bowman reviews learning theories from both behaviorists’ and humanists’ points of view. He ruefully observes that many adopt one or both theories in churches today, often without evaluation of their merits. On the other hand, Bowman suggests that we define learning as “creating”—the active making and building of something new and useful—a concept worthy of the Christian tradition. With this theme Bowman builds successive chapter discussions on the nature of learning, especially with relation to the important need for openness in church school settings. One can only agree with the author that to achieve quality teaching we need to throw ourselves into the training and making of teachers (activators, facilitators, fellow learners) more than we need attractively published materials. The latter are useful only as teachers can adapt them to their personal class settings.

The second section of the book is given to an examination of the “indefinable”: teaching. Here Bowman warms to his task. He helps us sort through our understandings of the teaching ministry and preaches its priority (“all Christians are in some degree teachers”). The concept of the teacher as activator of learning is well developed. Attention is given to vital concerns such as open classrooms, memorization, Bible translations, and teaching through conversation. A slightly technical though commendable chapter on the “generative” power of language to assist in Christian formation concludes this section.

One may not agree with all that Bowman argues. But certainly everyone can agree with the basic thrust of his book: to improve the quality of teaching in our church school settings; to develop a biblically based theory of learning and the teacher’s role in that process; to urge overt measurable student response; to appreciate and develop the possibilities for Christian nurture in worship gatherings; to evaluate use of language and foster special respect for the power of words.

I recommend Teaching Today for those who are serious about the church’s task of educating its young and old. Certainly Christian education committees can benefit from a study and discussion of carefully selected portions.

The Malaise Of The Modern World

Solzhenitsyn at Harvard: The Address, Twelve Early Responses, and Six Later Reflections, edited by Ronald Berman (Ethics and Public Policy Center, Washington, D.C., 1980, 143 pp., $9.50), is reviewed by Carl F. H. Henry, Arlington, Virginia, lecturer at large, World Vision International.

This symposium seeks mature perspective on Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s 1978 commencement address at Harvard. That remarkable deliverance, which Michael Novak considers “the most important religious document of our time,” was applauded by the immediate audience, then praised, caricatured, and condemned by a wide band of public commentators. Readers will recall that Solzhenitsyn’s remarks particularly offended humanist intellectuals, since the author of The Gulag Archipeligo charged that the currently reigning intellectual elite lack moral courage to confront the crucial issues. Some promptly declared him a false prophet (as if humanism allows fixed true-false distinctions) or a Russian religionist (shades of national or cultural determinism?) who would reinstate religious despots to repress the noblest instincts of society. The New York Times called him an “enthusiast” (or fanatic) in contrast with the enlightened. Most religious journals hailed him as a modern prophet.

This volume translates the Harvard address, reprints the most pointed newspaper and magazine comments, and adds six brief, analytical essays. The essays are by Ronald Berman, Sidney Hook, Harold J. Berman, Richard Pipes, William H. McNeill, and Michael Novak.

Solzhenitsyn addresses “the malaise of the whole modern world” in an unsparing spiritual and moral critique, and pleads with Augustinian overtones for a new religious vision of life and society. He voices deep doubts about pluralistic political democracies—they are built on Renaissance misconceptions, he insists—and criticizes both capitalism and Marxism as part of the cultural spirit of modernity.

Most analysts agree that Solzhenitsyn voiced excessive criticisms of democratic processes and of a free press, and that he understated American benevolence. Yet they share Ronald Berman’s insistence that Solzhenitsyn’s emphasis on the preconditions of a truly free society must be heard. The reflective essays deal with truth, morality, freedom, salvation, and other themes by way of individual commentary rather than in a comprehensively organized way.

Sharpest dissent from Solzhenitsyn’s views comes from Hook and McNeill. Hook wishes to retain a morally valid challenge to the West but would wholly separate ethics from theology and connect it with an “enlightened” majority and with the intrinsic character and consequences of ethical claims. McNeill goes further. He considers Solzhenitsyn’s appraisal of society a caricature, rejects his vision of salvation, and believes that “sufficient unanimity can be achieved within the pluralistic framework of Western society to keep us strong enough to survive.” McNeill ridicules “the straightjacket of one Truth and one Duty to defend that truth” and holds that “Russian communists and Russian Orthodox Christians share this kind of logic”—as if McNeill himself has no single line that excludes contraries. It is views like those of McNeill and Hook that Solzhenitsyn considers part of the weakness of the West with its loss of a framework for assuredly accrediting the enduring good and true.

Harold Berman holds that Solzhenitsyn fails to emphasize a proper reverence for law, probably because Soviet legal institutions have so much repressed freedom and justice. Pipes contends that we must tolerate diverse conceptions, as does political pluralism, because moral growth is attainable only in an environment in which individuals are free to choose the right path. But surely such freedom can exist also in other political frameworks.

Novak offers concluding comments on “God and Man.” Although God gets only passing mention, a timely warning against the baneful consequences of moral relativism and indifference is sounded, and Novak notes that religious institutions themselves often obscure the very soteric message that could rescue civilization from self-destruction.

The volume’s value lies in pointed, pithy comments on the present cultural crisis, made from diverse viewpoints. On freedom, for example, the essayists note that liberty vanishes when it is unqualified, that it is grounded in spiritual and moral values, and that the isolated pursuit of political freedom soon defeats itself. The book is well worth the reading, even if it leaves aside the larger concern of identifying public policies that might set society on a more hopeful course of survival and does not face the question—obscure in Solzhenitsyn’s own address—of the relation between the church and the world.

Recent Books On Church Ministry, Part I

The minister’s task and the ministry of the church are becoming increasingly complex. This is evidenced by the numerous volumes being produced in these areas, slicing the categories ever thinnner. In most respects, this is a good thing, for we are now able to examine the subjects more carefully. Four such categories will be considered.

The Church. Books that take the church as their topic are found here. John Balchin looks at it comprehensively and doctrinally in What the Bible Teaches About the Church (Tyndale). Douglas John Hall asks, Has the Church a Future? (Westminster). His answer is, Yes, but in a very different shape than today—perhaps as a small group of believers. C. Norman Kraus says the church must be The Authentic Witness (Eerdmans), recapturing the dynamic of the early church. All in God’s Family (Brethren Press), by Fred W. Swartz, argues for the unity of the church and the place of the Brethren in it. Hans Küng’s theological meditation, The Church: Maintained in Truth (Seabury), makes interesting reading, containing as it does his postcensure statement, “Why I Remain a Catholic.”

Basic Ministry. A variety of answers were given to the question of what should be the church’s basic function. Ministry in America (Harper & Row), edited by David S. Schuller, Merton P. Strommen, and Milo L. Brekke, is perhaps the most exhaustive study of the ministry undertaken in this century. It discusses models of ministry, isolating some 64 categories people use to describe what they expect of the minister. It groups 47 denominations into 13 categories; each is analyzed by an expert in that area. David Hubbard looks at evangelical churches and Harold S. Songer at Southern Baptists, to name two. Some surprising results emerge; some could have been predicted. Any study of the ministry will certainly want to begin here. Michael Griffiths in Shaking the Sleeping Beauty (InterVarsity, 38 De Montfort St., Leicester LEI 7GP, England) strikes a nice balance between the personal and the social elements in a very perceptive book. The Christian Parish (Fides/Claretian), by Fr. William Bausch, makes the case that the local parish should reach out to the neighborhood injustice and mercy. The Festschrift for Charles W. Conn, president of Lee College, The Promise and the Power (Pathway Press), edited by Donald N. Bowdle, is essays on the motivations, developments, and prospects of the ministries of the Church of God. New Life in the Church, revised edition (Harper & Row), by Robert A. Raines, argues for the necessity of conversion for the church to fulfill its ministry. No Church Is an Island (Pilgrim Press), by David S. King, sees local outreach as a key to church vitality. Dial 911; Peaceful Christians and Urban Violence (Herald), by Dave Jackson, tells how one church, (Reba Place Fellowship in Evanston, Ill.) put its faith into practice in actual ministry. Roots of a Black Future (Westminster), by J. Deotis Roberts, is a look at the history, nature, and mission of the black family and the black church today. Towards a Church of the Poor (WCC), edited by Julio De Santa Ana, is a statement of how the World Council of Churches views the struggle of the church against unjust socioeconomic conditions and the path toward liberation of the poor.

Church Growth. A fully revised Understanding Church Growth (Eerdmans), by Donald McGavran, has appeared in an “Americanized” version so that growth strategies may be more easily applied at home. Other books dealing with this topic are: The Living Church: A Guide for Revitalization (Great Commission), by Donald J. MacNair; Organize to Evangelize: A Manual for Church Growth (Victor), by Larry L. Lewis; Secrets for Growing Churches (Harper & Row), by Charles Nylander, a book highly endorsed by Donald McGavran; and Missions, Evangelism, and Church Growth (Herald), edited by C. Norman Kraus.

Evangelism/Revivalism.Evangelism and Your Church (Presbyterian and Reformed), by C. John Miller, is a practical look at witnessing from a Reformed point of view. Richard G. Korthals discusses motives and methods in Agape Evangelism (Tyndale). Joy to the World (John Knox), by Robert T. Henderson, is an excellent theological treatment of kingdom evangelism that considers both the individual and the Christian community. How to Share Your Faith Without Being Offensive (Seabury), by Joyce Neville, accomplishes what the title implies. The Psychology of Witnessing (Word), by Jard DeVille, is a sensitive psychotherapist’s look at the process of sharing one’s faith and how it does or does not work. Revivalism is examined by John J. Hancock in a planning book for church revival meetings, The Joy of Revival (Beacon Hill of Kansas City), and by Stephen Olford in Lord, Open the Heavens (Harold Shaw), an exposition of the who, what, when, where, and how of revivals.

BRIEFLY NOTED

The general area of aesthetics is receiving increasing attention these days, perhaps under the influence of a holistic approach to life. Whatever the reason, the relation of Christianity to the arts is being seriously evaluated.

Art and the Christian.Symbol and Art (T & T Clark/Seabury), edited by Luis Maldonado and David Power, is a series of advanced essays primarily on contemporary problems. Nicholas Wolterstorff has written a brilliant Christian introduction to art theory in Art in Action (Eerdmans). Rainbows for the Fallen World (Toronto Tuppence Press), by Calvin Seerveld, is a penetrating study of the Christian and aesthetic experience. Art and Religion in Conflict (Fortress), by Samuel Laeuchli, is an attempt to resolve the conflict by working through the historical and conceptual difficulties. The Great Pendulum of Becoming (Christian University Press/Eerdmans), by Nelvin Vos, is a look at contemporary drama as expressive of an unsettled state of “becoming” rather than a settled state of “being.” Signs of Our Times (Eerdmans), by George S. Heyer, is a challenging set of theological essays on art in the twentieth century.

Literary Studies. Nancy M. Tischler takes a look at spiritual pilgrimage in Dorothy L. Sayers: A Pilgrim Soul (John Knox). Trevor H. Hall analyzes some specific topics in Dorothy L. Sayers: Nine Literary Essays (Archon); the essays are highly informative. George Hunt admirably handles John Updike and the Three Great Secret Things: Sex, Religion, and Art (Eerdmans). The Renaissance of Wonder (Harper & Row), by Marion Lochhead, is a refreshing look at fantasy worlds, particularly as seen in Tolkien, Lewis, MacDonald, and Nesbit.

As always, C. S. Lewis captures the imagination. The following all relate to him in one way or another: C. S. Lewis: Speaker and Teacher (Zondervan), edited by Carolyn Keefe, now in paperback; The Achievement of C. S. Lewis (Shaw), by Thomas Howard—as always, absolutely first-rate; Reading with the Heart: The Way into Narnia (Eerdmans), by Peter J. Schakel, a reliable guide to the literary aspects of the chronicles; Companion to Narnia (Harper & Row), by Paul F. Ford, a complete, illustrated dictionary of the themes, characters, and events of Narnia; and C. S. Lewis; Spinner of Tales (Christian University Press/Eerdmans), by Evan K. Gibson, a study of Lewis as a fiction writer.

Music.The Songs of Zion (Crown and Covenant Publications, 800 Wood St., Pittsburgh, Pa.), by Michael Bushell, is a well-argued plea for exclusive psalmnody in our Christian worship; The Illustrated Family Hymn Book (Seabury), edited by Tony Jaspers, is a beautifully illustrated volume of Christian inspiration. American Hymns, Old and New (Columbia Univ. Press), Volume 1, edited by Albert Christ-Janer, Charles W. Hughes, and Carleton Spraghe Smith; Volume 2, by Charles W. Hughes, is a collection of over 800 representative American hymns, along with a companion volume of notes on the hymns and biographies of the authors and composers. It is certain to be a definitive work.

George MacDonald. Long out-of-print short stories by George MacDonald have been made available again by Eerdmans in four new paperback volumes: The Light Princess and Other Fantasy Stories; The Wise Man and Other Fantasy Stories; The Gray Wolf and Other Fantasy Stories; and The Golden Key and Other Fantasy Stories. They are nicely illustrated by Craig Yoe. Zondervan has new editions of two MacDonald favorites, delightfully illustrated by Peter Wane: The Princess and Curdie; and The Princess and the Goblin.

Original Works.Love’s Enduring Promise (Bethany Fellowship), by Janette Oke, is a home-spun pioneer adventure and sequel to Love Comes Softly. Unfinished Tales (Houghton Mifflin) by J. R. R. Tolkien will certainly delight fans of Middle-Earth, adding as it does to the saga. Ladder of Angels (Penguin), by Madeleine L’Engle, is scenes from the Bible illustrated by children of the world, with moving text by L’Engle. Feeding Fire: A Journey of the Heart (Morehouse-Barlow), by John B. Coburn, is a collection of intimate poems about life and God. Coburn’s well-received story of death, Ann and the Sand Dobbies (Seabury), is available now in paperback. Bethany Fellowship concludes the Canaan Trilogy with the fast-paced Jordan Intercept, by J. Alexander McKenzie. Joy Gems (Nortex Press), by L. Foster Bate, is a collection of simple spiritual poems aimed at the heart.

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