Kristin, I am so grateful to have found you and because of finding you I have gone on to learn of so many other faithful Christ-following professionals writing about issues pertinent to the time we are in. I have a number of books mostly in Audible and have begun some of them…I have passed this email/Substack onto the adults of my 11 children and their spouses…I pray they can, like myself, undo/unlearn what I taught them as I homeschooled them in fundamentalism. Jesus and John Wayne described my world; I was beginning to put my finger on “how did I get caught into this iteration of ‘Christianity’?” and I stumbled upon that book. Just thank you, over and over again, for being faithful to Christ and speaking on all that you do. I know there are other sources out there to keep abreast of things, but you just keep seeming to be the main thermometer I go to. Your work, your efforts, your are important to this sister!
Hey Nora, I was caught up in the same trap as you. Thankfully my children rejected it and I repented. One thing that helped me was moving across the country 20 years ago and having my ideas challenged and realizing they didn't hold up. I'd be interested to hear more about your journey out of this particular "iteration of Christianity."
Great list! I've actually kept a running list of all the books rec'd on the Convocation - that's a pretty good little list too. Can't wait for Prof Taylor's first session Wednesday!
My homeschooled 11th grader is also reading They Thought They were Free (assigned by me), alongside The Hiding Place and other books. Looks like an interesting list.
Another small but powerful book that sits on my shelf next to other books of resistance is singer/writer Billy Braggs’ The Three Dimensions of Freedom.
I am so glad Mayer's They Thought They Were Free is on your list. His research strikes me as profound, probing into the lives of those ten very ordinary men, uncovering impulses that coalesced into The Third Reich. Impulses hidden even from ourselves, until a force, a voice arises that calls out and awakens them. And suddenly it's too late. We find ourselves swept up into undreamt of evil. Another book that had a similar effect on me is Mary Solberg's A Church Undone.
Thank you, Kristin! I have read the Snyder and Reichel books. The Mayer book is one I have not heard of before. I have Snyder's On Freedom sitting on my TBR pile for this year.
Walter Wink's The Powers That Be could be added to your list.
And as a former English teacher, I want to also encourage the reading of thought-provoking fiction as an act of resistance and for inspiration to resist. So I also recommend the nonfiction books Reading Dangerously: The Subversive Power of Literature in Troubled Times by Azar Nafisi and
An excellent source for fiction, and nonfiction, is the list of books that have won or been nominated for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize. Nominated books are ones “that have led readers to a better understanding of other cultures, people, religions, and political points of view.” The prize aims to promote peace between people, from two individuals to entire nations.
Mayer's book made a deep impression on me. A young friend in her 20s asked me to read it, and then we discussed it. Thx for the Walter Wink suggestion. Another friend just recommended Wink to me.
Thanks Kristin for the resources. I am trying to focus on mobilizing locally so have had to reduce my online and reading time lately...Saying a prayer for you with this note.
We're reading Howard Thurman's book for a Bible study right now. I have not read Havel or Mayer, and only a smattering of Bonhoeffer himself, unfortunately. Snyder and Reichel are on my bedstand.
These are 10/10
Kristin, I am so grateful to have found you and because of finding you I have gone on to learn of so many other faithful Christ-following professionals writing about issues pertinent to the time we are in. I have a number of books mostly in Audible and have begun some of them…I have passed this email/Substack onto the adults of my 11 children and their spouses…I pray they can, like myself, undo/unlearn what I taught them as I homeschooled them in fundamentalism. Jesus and John Wayne described my world; I was beginning to put my finger on “how did I get caught into this iteration of ‘Christianity’?” and I stumbled upon that book. Just thank you, over and over again, for being faithful to Christ and speaking on all that you do. I know there are other sources out there to keep abreast of things, but you just keep seeming to be the main thermometer I go to. Your work, your efforts, your are important to this sister!
Thank you! I’m very glad to be able to share things that bring me clarity and encouragement. And thank for sharing them with others!
Hey Nora, I was caught up in the same trap as you. Thankfully my children rejected it and I repented. One thing that helped me was moving across the country 20 years ago and having my ideas challenged and realizing they didn't hold up. I'd be interested to hear more about your journey out of this particular "iteration of Christianity."
Great list! I've actually kept a running list of all the books rec'd on the Convocation - that's a pretty good little list too. Can't wait for Prof Taylor's first session Wednesday!
Agree
My homeschooled 11th grader is also reading They Thought They were Free (assigned by me), alongside The Hiding Place and other books. Looks like an interesting list.
Another small but powerful book that sits on my shelf next to other books of resistance is singer/writer Billy Braggs’ The Three Dimensions of Freedom.
I haven’t read this one. Thanks!
He’s been songwriting and singing about love and resistance and freedom for over forty years. I ‘found’ him in the nineties.
I am so glad Mayer's They Thought They Were Free is on your list. His research strikes me as profound, probing into the lives of those ten very ordinary men, uncovering impulses that coalesced into The Third Reich. Impulses hidden even from ourselves, until a force, a voice arises that calls out and awakens them. And suddenly it's too late. We find ourselves swept up into undreamt of evil. Another book that had a similar effect on me is Mary Solberg's A Church Undone.
Thanks for the list, Kristin! Time to reread Jesus and the Disinherited. And become acquainted with the others.
Thank you, Kristin! I have read the Snyder and Reichel books. The Mayer book is one I have not heard of before. I have Snyder's On Freedom sitting on my TBR pile for this year.
Walter Wink's The Powers That Be could be added to your list.
And as a former English teacher, I want to also encourage the reading of thought-provoking fiction as an act of resistance and for inspiration to resist. So I also recommend the nonfiction books Reading Dangerously: The Subversive Power of Literature in Troubled Times by Azar Nafisi and
On Reading Well by Karen Swallow Prior.
Absolutely. Fiction can be more powerful than nonfiction in times like this.
An excellent source for fiction, and nonfiction, is the list of books that have won or been nominated for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize. Nominated books are ones “that have led readers to a better understanding of other cultures, people, religions, and political points of view.” The prize aims to promote peace between people, from two individuals to entire nations.
Mayer's book made a deep impression on me. A young friend in her 20s asked me to read it, and then we discussed it. Thx for the Walter Wink suggestion. Another friend just recommended Wink to me.
Thanks Kristin for the resources. I am trying to focus on mobilizing locally so have had to reduce my online and reading time lately...Saying a prayer for you with this note.
Good call.
Thank you , sounds good
Just signed up for Karen's class, thanks for the tip!
Thanks for the list. Wendell Berry's novella "Fidelity" would fit right in, I think.
Love Wendell Berry, thanks for mentioning, I intend to look this up.
I just purchased a copy of
formsuch a time as this two weeks ago. VERY timely
We're reading Howard Thurman's book for a Bible study right now. I have not read Havel or Mayer, and only a smattering of Bonhoeffer himself, unfortunately. Snyder and Reichel are on my bedstand.
At the end of the books the same lesson: Resist NOT evil.