The hardcopy sold out in Hobart, apparently. Tasmania – The Tipping Point? an entire Griffith Review devoted to discussing the past and present character, and the consequential future of Australia’s small state. My home state. This Review edition is a mixture of academic essays, memoirs, historical narrative, and some fictional pieces. They are of inconsistent quality [...]
Archive for ‘Book Reviews’
Review: Hearing Her Voice: A Case for Women Giving Sermons
Thursday, February 7th, 2013Is there still a debate on whether, how and why women can, should be, and are in Christian ministry in Australian Anglicanism? Clearly there is still disagreement. Clearly there is still division on this topic. There is regularly yet another regurgitation of either rabid complementarianism or apopletic egalitarianism. But there hasn’t been much for a [...]
Review: Shoot Me First
Monday, October 8th, 2012It takes a special book to capture my imagination. There are plenty of books that stimulate my thinking or tickle me with trivia. The occasional epic novel moves me with allegory, symbolism, and a decent hit of adrenaline. But these are nothing when it comes to a decently written biography, particularly an autobiography. Grant Lock’s Shoot [...]
Review: The Evangelical Universalist
Saturday, October 6th, 2012“Evangelical Universalism” - an intriguing theological framework It’s “universalism” because it’s a belief that all will eventually be “saved.” It’s “evangelical” because unlike other forms of universalism it maintains that Christ is the one and only way to salvation, and does not deny the authority of Scripture. On the face of it, it seems to be [...]
Review: Finding Home
Saturday, June 9th, 2012My response to reading an autobiography is a binary condition – the book is either tedious or don’t-want-to-put-it-down fascinating. It is the latter condition that results from a read of Finding Home, the autobiography of the Gen-Xer Tasmanian Christian Environmentalist Activist, Erik Peacock. My fascination was not simply due to the fact that I know Erik [...]
Review: Trinitarian Self and Salvation
Friday, June 8th, 2012Can there be be such a thing as a novel and new work in the area of theology? I suspect not, but there are places where our current thought, practice and doctrine so intertwine with both modern ecclesiastical intellect and the real world, that the exploration perforce covers old ground in new ways and towards [...]
Review: The Hunger Games Trilogy
Monday, March 19th, 2012When a new fad of fiction hits the popular mind I make a habit of engaging with it. Twelve years ago I did it when Harry Potter arced up. More recently I engaged with Twilight (where by “engage” I mean forcing myself to complete the first book). After all, its from this sort of phenomenon that [...]
Review: Baptism – Its Purpose, Practice and Power
Thursday, March 15th, 2012This is one of those “an oldy but a goody” books. It’s by Michael Green and was first published in 1987. I had a reason for reading it. It was one of those awesome moments of messy missiology when gospel realities and ecclesiastical niceties don’t quite line up: My Bishop was leading a reaffirmation of [...]
Review: Sideshow – Dumbing Down Democracy
Monday, January 23rd, 2012I’ve been looking forward to reading former Federal Finance Minister, Lindsay Tanner’s Sideshow. Tanner always came across as a thoughtful politician when he was in public office – it was clear his book was going to be no Lathemesque tell-all whinge but a critique of our governance in our society from a unique perspective. But [...]
Review: Mud, Sweat, and Tears: Bear Grylls The Autobiography
Monday, January 2nd, 2012I’ve been known to say that (give or take the incarnation) the perfect man would be a cross between Bear Grylls and (ABC election analyst) Antony Green – perfect wildness, perfect geekiness. (I’ve since suggested that a seasoning of Jamie Oliver to the mix would improve even that perfection). Needless to say, I’m a big [...]
