Some of my favorite books from 2 years of Regent

It's been a while since I've contributed so I thought I'd offer a list of some of the best books I've read from my 2 years so far. Keep in mind that many of my classes have had books like Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics, Philosophy for Understanding Theology, and A Handbook of New Testament Exegesis. While these are great books for very specific tasks they aren't great reads. I'd rather offer a few books that YOU would want to read.

1. Till He Come by C. H. Spurgeon. A collection of homilies, many of which Spurgeon gave during more intimate ecumenical Eucharist celebrations in his house. Each one is only a couple of pages and serve as good devotional reading.

2. Pia Desideria by Philipp J. Spener. This is THE book that started German Pietism. While that doesn't sound very exciting, what this guy wrote and did as a pastor had a tremendous impact on the church, including advocating for lay led small groups in the 1600's. It is written to pastors frustrated with the lack of transforming faith evident in their churches.

3. For the Life of the World by Alexander Schmemann. An Orthodox priest and scholar writing about the Eucharist. Obviously not all of it can or should be accepted by protestants, especially those with a memorialist view of the Lord's Supper. But he offers a compelling argument for why the Eucharist matters.

4. The Voice of Jesus by Gordon T. Smith. This is a book about spiritual discernment drawing from Ignatius Loyola, John Wesley, and Jonathan Edwards. It is simply a must read. Smith tends to say the same thing 3-4 different ways to help make his point clear so don't get too bogged down in particulars.

5. In the Name of Jesus by Henri Nouwen. I've read this short book twice. It is a great semi-autobiographical book about Nouwen's reflections on three temptations of leadership and the spiritual disciplines to combat them.

6. Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. He wrote this after the Nazi’s broke up his underground seminary as a way to outline what he was trying to do with Finkenwalde Seminary and the Brothers’ House. Bonhoeffer in his preface notes that this is simply one contribution to the questions raised by the church regarding the function and practice of community. I found this book helpful primarily as a resource for justifying Christian practice rather than as a handbook of practices.

7. The Other Six Days by R. Paul Stevens. Stevens is a tireless advocate for pastors equipping the whole people of God to do ministry. This book is a great introduction to his arguments.

There are so many more good books, articles, etc which I've read but this is a good start. Maybe before I graduate I'll make a list of the more academic books I've enjoyed. As I'm looking back at my list, I've noticed that the only books by living authors are both Regent Profs. I'd say that's a good sign.


 

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