We have been working hard on the Reclaiming the Mind Bookstore and have produced new categories that I think will be helpful.

Among the categories, we have “The Essential Christian Library.” This is a list of suggested basic study books that we think every Christian should have. They range from Bible commentaries and backgrounds to theological books. We tried to make it economical.

Remember, all purchases support our ministry, so buy two of everything

We also have the categories broken down. When you click on “Systematic Theology” you will find subcategories of every discipline. As well, we have reserved a special section for all our Converse with Scholars guests so that you can find their books easily.

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Ken Samples did a great job on Converse with Scholars. We interviewed him about the subject of worldviews. We spent much time speaking about need for logical reasoning and consistency in our worldview. I end by asking Ken, “Why do you believe that Christianity presents the best option?” Ken is a great guy and handles himself very well. His passion for truth is evident, but I especially appreciated what he had to say about being intellectually honest in all our apologetics.

You can listen to the broadcast here or download it. Visit Ken’s site and take a look at his book.

brought to you by Converse with Scholars . Visit the site to see all our scholars.

 

 Ken Samples on Worldviews - Converse with Scholars [1:30m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1683)

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[Note: This entry is subject to updating and revision. Current revision date 12/11/07.] 

Philip Pullman’s trilogy, known as His Dark Materials, consists of three books: The Golden Compass (first published in 1995 in the United Kingdom as Northern Lights), The Subtle Knife (1997), and The Amber Spyglass (2000). By 2007 these three books had sold over 14 million copies. New Line Cinema is producing film versions of the three books, beginning with The Golden Compass, which premiered in most cities today. The film is clearly riding the wave of interest in movie versions of fantasy literature, especially the Lord of the Rings trilogy, the Harry Potter books and films, and the recent first film installment of C. S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia. (One of the coming attractions trailers shown before The Golden Compass in my theater was for Prince Caspian, the second Narnia film, due out next summer.)

Pullman has described the trilogy as “Paradise Lost for teenagers.” Ironically, he considers the books to be works of “realism, not fantasy,” and rejects comparisons to the novels of Tolkien, Rowling, or other fantasy writers. The trilogy’s title, His Dark Materials, comes from a line in John Milton’s Paradise Lost, in which the conflicting elements of nature are called God’s “dark materials” from which he may “create more worlds” (Book II, line 916). Continue Reading »

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In my previous post to this blog, I presented my review of Robert Millet and Gerald McDermott’s book Claiming Christ: A Mormon—Evangelical Debate. As I noted, this was a review originally written for Christianity Today, which rejected the review. The history behind this event is perhaps even more interesting—and troubling—than the book itself. Continue Reading »

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I am honored that Reclaiming the Mind Ministries has asked me to join its list of bloggers here at the Parchment and Pen.

On October 8, I submitted to Christianity Today a review article on Robert Millet and Gerald McDermott’s new book, Claiming Christ: A Mormon—Evangelical Debate (Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2007). On November 20, the magazine informed me that they were not accepting the article. According to the book review editor, an unnamed editor at the magazine “decided that some of [my] opinions weren’t accurately based on what the book actually says.” The editor gave no specific examples and offered no further elaboration.

There is a history behind this decision, which I will review in a subsequent blog entry. Here I will simply present the review that Christianity Today rejected. I have made only formatting changes to the review. The three asterisks after the title of the book indicate that the review rates the book as deserving three stars out of five. Continue Reading »

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I’ve been reading J.P. Moreland’s superb book Kingdom Triangle, which was recently released by Zondervan. He begins with this true story by the missionary doctor to Zaire, Africa—Helen Roseveare. Though it’s a bit long for a blog, it is very inspiring.

One night, in Central Africa, I had worked hard to help a mother in the labor ward; but in spite of all that we could do, she died leaving us with a tiny, premature baby and a crying, two-year-old daughter.

     

We would have difficulty keeping the baby alive. We had no incubator. We had no electricity to run an incubator, and no special feeding facilities. Although we lived on the equator, nights were often chilly with treacherous drafts.

     Continue Reading »

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You may be familiar with a book called 90 Minutes in Heaven: A True Story of Death & Life written by Don Piper (not to be confused with John Piper) and Cecil Murphey. It has been on the New York Times and Amazon best seller list since its release in 2004. In the book, Don Piper describes his experience of being in a car wreck where he was pronounced dead by the paramedics. During his death Piper describes the details of his “90 minutes in heaven.”

It is not my intention here to evaluate the validity of near-death experiences in general, but to ask some questions concerning this on in particular. This is not an easy thing for me to do as I believe Don Piper probably sincerely trusts the Lord and truly believes that his experience that evening was a miracle where the God showed him a glimpse of heaven.   Continue Reading »

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Our culture is changing rapidly, and many Christians aren’t keeping up. The old formulas that have worked for decades won’t work with the emerging generation. If there’s one lesson that the modern, successful evangelical church needs to learn it is this. We need a fresh perspective on what our world is like today from someone who has escaped the Christian subculture and ventured into the heart and hearts of non-Christians.

Enter Dan Kimball. His book, They Like Jesus, but not the Church, gives the perspective that is badly needed. Continue Reading »

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Fred Sanders and Klaus Issler have recently edited an important book on the relationship of Jesus to the Father and the Holy Spirit. Jesus in Trinitarian Perspective: An Introductory Christology will be an outstanding follow-up volume for those of you who study the evidence for the deity of Christ that Rob Bowman and I have amassed in Putting Jesus in His Place: The Case for the Deity of Christ. Once you’ve got a solid grasp on the fact of Jesus’ divine identity, you’ll want to spend some time wrestling with how that fact fits into a larger Trinitarian framework. Continue Reading »

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