Tag Archives: Christianity

A Short History of Byzantium

Posted on November 8, 2014 by smellincoffee

A Short History of Byzantium, John Julius Norwich© 1997 John Julius Norwich431 pages             Rome fell in a.d. 474? Tell that to the Byzantines, who for centuries persisted in being an afterimage of the classical world, … Continue reading →

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Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist

Posted on October 23, 2014 by smellincoffee

Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist© 2011 Brad Pitre240 pages Communion, the eating of bread and wine regarded as the body and blood of Jesus, is the heart of liturgical worship. Its place in Christian history holds such … Continue reading →

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This week: airplanes with Jesus, Kurt Vonnegut, and Voltaire

Posted on September 29, 2014 by smellincoffee

            This past weekend I read through A Day with a Perfect Stranger, not a difficult task given that it’s less than 100 pages. A sequel to Dinner with a Perfect Stranger, which featured overworked businessman … Continue reading →

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The Crucified Rabbi

Posted on September 27, 2014 by smellincoffee

The Crucified Rabbi: Judaism and the Origins of Catholic Christianity© 2009 Taylor Marshall236 pages Take for granted Christianity’s inseparable connection to Judaism, but what does it mean, beyond knowing that Jesus was Jewish and died during Passover?  The Crucified Rabbi … Continue reading →

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Uncle Tom’s Cabin

Posted on July 8, 2014 by smellincoffee

Uncle Tom’s Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly© 1852 Harriet Beecher Stowe          500 pages Written as an indignant response to the 1850 Fugitive Slave Law, Uncle Tom’s Cabin shook the American landscape in the mid-19th century as few other novels … Continue reading →

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That Hideous Strength

Posted on June 13, 2014 by smellincoffee

That Hideous Strength: A Modern Fairy Tale for Grown Ups © 1945 C.S. Lewis 384 pages Mark Studdock is a newly married sociologist who has been given the opportunity of a lifetime; the chance to work with a promising and … Continue reading →

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Conscience

Posted on April 30, 2014 by smellincoffee

Conscience: Two Pacifists, Two Soldiers, One Family© 2012 Louisa Thomas336 pages How does a pious young Presbyterian minister become a six-time candidate for the Socialist party? Such is the story of Conscience,  the story of Norman Thomas and his younger … Continue reading →

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The Long Loneliness

Posted on March 28, 2014 by smellincoffee

The Long Loneliness© 1952 Dorothy Day288 pages (Harper Collins, 2009(             Dorothy Day came of age amid the Great War, a child of struggling parents whose labors to make ends meet stayed with her even after they had achieved some … Continue reading →

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On Desire

Posted on March 13, 2014 by smellincoffee

On Desire: Why We Want What We Want© 2007 William Irvine337 pages Why do we want what we want? William Irvine’s On Desire examines the nature of desire, exploring first how profoundly it affects our lives, then surveying psychological inquiries … Continue reading →

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What’s Wrong with the World

Posted on February 20, 2014 by smellincoffee

What’s Wrong with the World© 1910 G. K. Chesterton200 pages What’s wrong with the world? Too many people are proposing answers to the wrong questions.  What’s Wrong is a curious collection of thoughts, voiced at the turn of the 20thcentury, … Continue reading →

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