Richard's Book Club #8
-"Mere Christianity" by C.S. Lewis (July 17th thru July 27th)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060652926/sr=8-1/qid=1154054800/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-4443756-4514543?ie=UTF8
My two-and-a-half cents:
Straying away from Harry was the most welcome thing I've encountered this summer. In trying to mix it up in what I read (one big fuckin' adult novel about the apocalypse and six children-fantasy novels so far), the next book I read was a non-fiction affair about Christianity.
"Mere Christianity" is a book complied of BBC addresses made during the onset of WW2 by that guy who wrote the Chronicles of Narnia series. "Considered a significant twentieth-century book by Christians of various traditions of faith," I thought why the fuck not? I needed something from my own faith before knocking into other religions, kind of like a foundation before venturing into uncharted waters.
A lot of reviews on Amazon.com are much more thought-out than anything I could add. So take a look if you want a complete analysis of the book.
In short, it is a great introduction to the Christian faith, and I applaud him for weeding out the specifics that divide so many denominations and hitting the core values in Christianity. He uses simple examples to show his points and writes as if he's talking to you (no shit Richard... it was spoken before it was written down).
Me being an argumentative son of a bitch by nature, I had problems with some of the book. For example, his stance on Sexuality in relation to Christianity had me in fits of mental rage. But the redemption in his stance, just like in the rest of the book and the reason as to which it is so good, is that his take on each subject is perfectly in line with Christian doctrine. Also, it makes jolly-good fuckin' sense in general. His tone is basically the opposite of those abortion-crazy fuckers outside Independence High: it's either you accept the faith fully or you don't. Not too many "you'll burn in hell" or "your way to God is complete bullshit" in the book. He's like the Christian friend I always wanted: he tells you whats up and then lets you decide. Take it, leave it, or get the fuck out of the way. This book is no where near perfect, but I dare you to find a more intellectually concise book on the subject.
By the way, it's also pretty fuckin' short for a book introducing Christianity (256 pages). Short, sweet, and to the point.
Killer Quote: "All that we call human history--money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery--[is] the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy."
Next: "Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers" by Mary Roach
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060652926/sr=8-1/qid=1154054800/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-4443756-4514543?ie=UTF8
My two-and-a-half cents:
Straying away from Harry was the most welcome thing I've encountered this summer. In trying to mix it up in what I read (one big fuckin' adult novel about the apocalypse and six children-fantasy novels so far), the next book I read was a non-fiction affair about Christianity.
"Mere Christianity" is a book complied of BBC addresses made during the onset of WW2 by that guy who wrote the Chronicles of Narnia series. "Considered a significant twentieth-century book by Christians of various traditions of faith," I thought why the fuck not? I needed something from my own faith before knocking into other religions, kind of like a foundation before venturing into uncharted waters.
A lot of reviews on Amazon.com are much more thought-out than anything I could add. So take a look if you want a complete analysis of the book.
In short, it is a great introduction to the Christian faith, and I applaud him for weeding out the specifics that divide so many denominations and hitting the core values in Christianity. He uses simple examples to show his points and writes as if he's talking to you (no shit Richard... it was spoken before it was written down).
Me being an argumentative son of a bitch by nature, I had problems with some of the book. For example, his stance on Sexuality in relation to Christianity had me in fits of mental rage. But the redemption in his stance, just like in the rest of the book and the reason as to which it is so good, is that his take on each subject is perfectly in line with Christian doctrine. Also, it makes jolly-good fuckin' sense in general. His tone is basically the opposite of those abortion-crazy fuckers outside Independence High: it's either you accept the faith fully or you don't. Not too many "you'll burn in hell" or "your way to God is complete bullshit" in the book. He's like the Christian friend I always wanted: he tells you whats up and then lets you decide. Take it, leave it, or get the fuck out of the way. This book is no where near perfect, but I dare you to find a more intellectually concise book on the subject.
By the way, it's also pretty fuckin' short for a book introducing Christianity (256 pages). Short, sweet, and to the point.
Killer Quote: "All that we call human history--money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery--[is] the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy."
Next: "Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers" by Mary Roach