Brief Mention – August 2006
Featured this month: Dear God, They Say It’s Cancer: A Companion Guide for Women on the Breast Cancer JourneyA Student’s Guide to Textual Criticism of the Bible: Its History, Methods and ResultsThe Stained Glass Pickup: Glimpses of God’s Uncommon WisdomUnderstanding Matthew: The Early Christian Worldview of the First Gospel
WOMEN
Janet Thompson. Dear God, They Say It’s Cancer: A Companion Guide for Women on the Breast Cancer Journey. West Monroe, La.: Howard, 2006. ISBN 1-58229-575-1; 386 pages; $19.99; www.howard publishing.com or (800) 858-4109.
Each chapter of this encyclopedic handbook and devotional guide begins with a letter from Thompson, a breast cancer survivor. Chapters also include stories of other Christian survivors, mentoring insights, Scripture studies and prayers focused on the journey from diagnosis to survival. The appendices are plentiful and unique — from bibliographies to Web sites, worksheets to checklists.
Thompson is a member of the Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., and author of Woman to Woman Mentoring.
TEXTUAL CRITICISM
Paul D. Wegner. A Student’s Guide to Textual Criticism of the Bible: Its History, Methods and Results. Downer’s Grove, Il.: InterVarsity, 2006. ISBN 0-8308-2731-5; $17.00; (800) 843-7225.
In plain language and ample illustrations, this guide provides an overview of the history, methods, aims and results of biblical textual study, including both the Old and New Testament materials and critics. This book makes a great pairing with Neil Lightfoot’s standard How We Got the Bible as an introduction. Many illustrations, photographs and charts make the book particularly helpful to general Bible students who need an introduction to textual criticism. Wegner is professor of Old Testament at Phoenix Seminary in Phoenix, Ariz.
DEVOTIONAL
Cathy Messecar. The Stained Glass Pickup: Glimpses of God’s Uncommon Wisdom. Abilene, Texas: Leafwood, 2006. ISBN 0-9767790-3; $10.99; 128 pages; (877) 816-4455.
This beautiful little book offers 52 devotional thoughts that unexpectedly find God in familiar places and in the lives of ordinary people. Each of these brief stories or essays is linked with a Scripture and a prayer. The book’s title is taken from a story that will encourage parents to continue taking time to infuse a spiritual worldview into taheir children’s experiences, no matter the time or place. Some feature themes or places in Southwestern culture. All are relevant to Christian living in 2006. Messecar is a newspaper columnist, wife and grandmother. She is a member of the Church of Christ in Conroe, Texas.
BIBLE STUDY
Stephen Westerholm. Understanding Matthew: The Early Christian Worldview of the First Gospel. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker, 2006. ISBN978-0-8010-2783-3; $16.99; 160 pages; (800) 877-2665.
Matthew’s interest in discipleship — lived faith — is compellingly introduced when Westerholm opens his study with a discussion of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s experiences in Nazi Germany and human response to the Messiah. In the eight chapters that follow, Westerholm covers the major themes and structures of Matthew. The book is written for the lay reader, but includes documentation and index. Westerholm is professor of early Christian studies at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. He is author of a companion volume, Understanding Paul.
August 1, 2006
WOMEN
Janet Thompson. Dear God, They Say It’s Cancer: A Companion Guide for Women on the Breast Cancer Journey. West Monroe, La.: Howard, 2006. ISBN 1-58229-575-1; 386 pages; $19.99; www.howard publishing.com or (800) 858-4109.
Each chapter of this encyclopedic handbook and devotional guide begins with a letter from Thompson, a breast cancer survivor. Chapters also include stories of other Christian survivors, mentoring insights, Scripture studies and prayers focused on the journey from diagnosis to survival. The appendices are plentiful and unique — from bibliographies to Web sites, worksheets to checklists.
Thompson is a member of the Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., and author of Woman to Woman Mentoring.
TEXTUAL CRITICISM
Paul D. Wegner. A Student’s Guide to Textual Criticism of the Bible: Its History, Methods and Results. Downer’s Grove, Il.: InterVarsity, 2006. ISBN 0-8308-2731-5; $17.00; (800) 843-7225.
In plain language and ample illustrations, this guide provides an overview of the history, methods, aims and results of biblical textual study, including both the Old and New Testament materials and critics. This book makes a great pairing with Neil Lightfoot’s standard How We Got the Bible as an introduction. Many illustrations, photographs and charts make the book particularly helpful to general Bible students who need an introduction to textual criticism. Wegner is professor of Old Testament at Phoenix Seminary in Phoenix, Ariz.
DEVOTIONAL
Cathy Messecar. The Stained Glass Pickup: Glimpses of God’s Uncommon Wisdom. Abilene, Texas: Leafwood, 2006. ISBN 0-9767790-3; $10.99; 128 pages; (877) 816-4455.
This beautiful little book offers 52 devotional thoughts that unexpectedly find God in familiar places and in the lives of ordinary people. Each of these brief stories or essays is linked with a Scripture and a prayer. The book’s title is taken from a story that will encourage parents to continue taking time to infuse a spiritual worldview into taheir children’s experiences, no matter the time or place. Some feature themes or places in Southwestern culture. All are relevant to Christian living in 2006. Messecar is a newspaper columnist, wife and grandmother. She is a member of the Church of Christ in Conroe, Texas.
BIBLE STUDY
Stephen Westerholm. Understanding Matthew: The Early Christian Worldview of the First Gospel. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker, 2006. ISBN978-0-8010-2783-3; $16.99; 160 pages; (800) 877-2665.
Matthew’s interest in discipleship — lived faith — is compellingly introduced when Westerholm opens his study with a discussion of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s experiences in Nazi Germany and human response to the Messiah. In the eight chapters that follow, Westerholm covers the major themes and structures of Matthew. The book is written for the lay reader, but includes documentation and index. Westerholm is professor of early Christian studies at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. He is author of a companion volume, Understanding Paul.
August 1, 2006
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