As those of you who’ve been in my office here at St. Andrew’s may have surmised, I am (and

have been from a young age) a voracious reader. All those volumes in the shelves here, by the

way, are only about half of my theological library – the rest remain on shelves in our basement at

home. In my years as a pastor, when questioned about “continuing education,” I’ve always

pointed to the forty or so books I manage to read every year whose themes are theology, Bible

study, church history, Christian living, or devotional. Yes, that’s on top of “pleasure reading” of

various types of literature. In fact, I got in the habit at Good Shepherd Baptist of submitting to

our church board at the end of every year a list of the books I’d read for continuing ed and have

continued to do the same here at St. Andrew’s.

I thought I’d share information about some of the books that I’ve particularly enjoyed or am

enjoying this year:

Some of the books I read are part of my devotional time each day. Usually, these are books with

short sections or chapters that I can read in a few minutes but ponder for the rest of the day.

Currently, I’m reading a modern translation of Showings, the visions experienced by the 14 th

century contemplative theologian, Julian of Norwich, most famous for her saying, “All shall be

well and all shall be well and all manner of things shall be well.” Sister Julian’s calm approach

and deep love for God encourage me in these tumultuous times. In the past year, I’ve also

enjoyed John Donne’s Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions and Death’s Duel, his meditations

upon his own illness and his final sermon before his death in 1631. Coincidentally, I read this

book as I was recovering from my heart surgery. I’ve also gotten a lot out of The Backwater

Sermons, a collection of poems from contemporary English Christian poet, Jay Hulme, and

retired local pastor Terry Minchow-Proffit’s poems, Pray Tell in the Key of Blue. Another book

of devotions I highly recommend is We Cry Justice: Reading the Bible with the Poor People’s

Campaign, edited by Rev. Liz Theoharis.

A Biblical studies book I can recommend from this past year is one on some of the lesser-known

books of the Old Testament, The Forgotten Books of the Bible: Recovering the Five Scrolls for

Today, by Robert Williamson, Jr. It covers Ruth, Esther, Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, and

Lamentations. As those participating in the Tuesday Bible Study know, I’m also enjoying R.T.

France’s commentary on Matthew. A good book on doing ministry in the local church is

Countercultural: Subversive Resistance and the Neighborhood Congregation by Methodist pastor

Gil Rendle, recommended to me by our former DS, Rev. Bruce Baxter.

Finally, if you’ve got a taste for more difficult books of contemporary theology, I’m currently

enjoying Theology in Many Voices: Baptist Vision and Intercontextual Practice, by my friend,

Rev. Dr. Amy Chilton. And, although it really was a tough read, I got a lot out of Catherine

Keller’s The Face of the Deep: A Theology of Becoming.

Please let me know if you read any of these and happy reading!                            

Rev. M. Christopher Boyer