Cheerleading manual for politico-religious liberalism, by an N.Y.C. Unitarian minister. Church (Father and Son, 1985) loves the ``L word''; what's more, he believes that God loves it too: ``God, the most famous liberal of all, has a bleeding heart that never stops,'' he quips, and then tosses in some apple pie for good measure: ``every good mother and father is a liberal.'' Behind this jaunty sloganeering lies an instructive history exercise, an attempt to trace the roots of American liberalism back to the Bible and the Founding Fathers. Church finds a ``liberal social gospel,'' which he defines as ``love to God and love to neighbor,'' in the teachings of Jesus, in the free-worship statues of the colony of Rhode Island, in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, and in the words of both Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King. He does concede some liberal errors—overprotection of criminals, government paternalism—but the battle cry is sounded: faith, flag, family, and federal government—all these belong by right to the liberals. Amazing in its single-mindedness, amusing in its silliness (Church takes the time to argue that Jesus would have opposed prayer in public schools), finally poignant in its quixotism. Liberals will love it, but unless the political climate swerves to the left, conservatives will laugh all the way to next Inauguration Day.
Pub Date: Jan. 16, 1992
ISBN: 0-671-76120-X
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1991
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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