This is Not Dante's Purgatory

Birk and Sanders have adapted Dante's Purgatorio to bring a modern feel to it. Not only have they tried to add some modern references and expressions to Dante's comedy, but Birk has recreated the Dore woodcut drawings.

               While I like the idea of modernizing the text a bit and I did think that some of their attempts were at least somewhat creative, for example:

'Jeez', I thought to myself, 'look at those guys! They look like they could be Miriam during the siege of Jerusalem, or like something from Auschwitz.'

I thought that Birk and Sanders ultimately failed in their attempt. Beyond the addition of some modern expressions and the insertion of contemporary people, there were times when they inserted profanity into the text and while it wasn't overwhelming (See my review of Dante's Inferno by Birk and Sanders for a discussion of profanity in that work) it did distract me and ruin the overall experience. I simply don't need to have F bombs and the like being inserted into the text to try and make it feel modern.

               Many of the drawing were imaginative and impressive, but a few bothered me, especially the ones on pages 173, 179, and 186. The first was a depiction of Eden, which in the Comedy is found on top of Mount Purgatory, as a strip club; very inappropriate in my opinion. The other two were of women dressed and looking provocative, in fact there is a picture of a woman on a stripper pole with no shirt on page 179.

               The work is an interesting read and if you can get past the vulgarity and the unseemly pictures you might find it interesting. Obviously this is not a work for children and in my opinion, I would suggest you simply leave this work alone and read Dante's original.

If you simply have to read it you might find a copy HERE

Review: How Dante Can Save Your Life

How Dante Can Save Your Life is, in some ways, a cross between a spiritual self help book and an autobiography. The author traces his journey through family struggles, the loss of his beloved sister, and his own physical illness. What got him through all of his personal problems, he says, was reading Dante's Divine Comedy (along with a priest, confession, and a Christian counselor).

            If you are seeking a book that will help you understand the Comedy of Dante you will need to find another. The aim of this book is not to help one understand the finer points of the Comedy or the historical background, but rather to describe how one man was helped by reading this great poetic masterpiece. If you desire to read how one man's trip through Dante's Comedy helped him come to grips with his own shortcomings and understand things that were causing him great hardship, them this is certainly the book for you.
            While I enjoyed reading this book and was challenged by some of the spiritual insights that the author points out, there were some things that I did not like. One example is in chapter 19 (The Ghost In You) the author tells the story of a haunting that he was involved with. Supposedly his grandfather was haunting the house his parents lived in. He tells the story and how they had an exorcist come and cleanse the home. He then relates this to the idea of forgiving those that have passed on and "Letting them move on toward eternal peace, and allowing ourselves to progress toward love and healing".[1] While I think that we should forgive those who have sinned against us I do not believe that the ghosts of our friends and family members can haunt us and I also do not believe that the spirits who have passed on know what is happening on earth.
            Overall the book was well written, had some significant spiritual insights to share, and was fairly enjoyable to read. The book will at least give most people a desire to read or reread Dante's Divine Comedy and that, in my opinion, is a good enough reason to recommend it.

Get a copy HERE

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[1] Dreher, Rod. How Dante Can Save Your Life: The Life-Changing Wisdom of History's Greatest Poem (p. 214). Regan Arts.. Kindle Edition.

Book Review: The Romance Of Redemption by Dr. Warren Gage

Dr. Warren Gage has written a wonderfully powerful book, a devotional book that stirs the imagination and points the Christian to Jesus, the royal bridegroom. The book is called  The Romance Of redemption: Your Story As The Bride Of Christ. The book is 143 pages, broken up into six main sections including an introduction to the book (titled: The Romance of Redemption) and an Epilogue on Mary Magdalene. The stated theme of this work, Dr. Gage says, "... is about the romantic heart of the Redeemer God."[1] The book clearly depicts the love that Christ has for us and how the sovereign God has planned, from the beginning, to rescue us from sin, Satan, and death. .

            Dr. Gage opens the book with an introduction that reflects upon the fairy tales told to children. Those that involve a mistreated maiden who is rescued by a handsome prince. The two are married in a castle and live happily ever after. He goes on to say "So we must ask ourselves whether these folk tales point us towards some greater truth. Are they reflections of a grander story? Does their imaginative fiction point us towards a factual tale?"[2] Within the pages of The Romance Of Redemption Dr. Gage answers those questions.

            I have to mention that from the moment I began reading I couldn't stop. The way Dr. Gage exquisitely retells familiar biblical stories not only increases the enjoyment, but also depends the way we understand these texts. He is not only a biblical scholar, but also a master poet; weaving biblical theology and poetic beauty throughout this work, the end result is a wonderfully rich devotional that is easy and enjoyable to read.  
            Dr. Gage's insight is astonishing. He draws out many parallels and illuminates the biblical text masterfully. One parallel that caught my attention was on Page 30 where he discusses the similarities between Moses and figures like Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

"Like Noah, Moses was delivered from the waters of death by an ark daubed with pitch. Like Abraham, the Lord vindicated Moses by bringing plagues upon the house of  Pharaoh. Like Isaac and Jacob, Moses discovered the woman he was to marry at a well."

There are some connections that he makes that I am still not sure are true parallels, but there are only a very few and they may well turn out to be valid. These too are wonderful because they cause me to think long and hard about the biblical text and about Jesus.

            In the end let me say that this is a book well worth reading and rereading. Get a copy for yourself and one for a friend. You will be enriched and your friend will thank you.

You can get a copy HERE or HERE.

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Disclosure of Material: I received this book free from St. Andrews House Publishers/, LLC as part of the Book Crash review program, which requires an honest, though not necessarily positive, review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s CFR Title 16, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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[1] Dr. Warren Gage, The Romance Of Redemption. Saint Andrews House, LLC. Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. 2016. 6

[2] IBID, 4.

Using Logos Bible Software To Study The Classics

Here is a collection of video tutorials that I created to help Knox MACCS students. You may find these of use in your own study of the classics.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWTTEwGPtvjkfTAbPFItrCNRv5GLaBw4R

Book review: Aristotle's Children

            Aristotle's Children by Richard E. Rubenstein, is a 368 page book composed of eight main chapters. The basic premise of the book is how Aristotle's works were lost to the Western world and only rediscovered during the middle ages, in addition we are given some insight into how that discovery effected the scientific, philosophic, and theological views of that time.
            The author does a brilliant  job of not only relaying facts, but also of telling the story in an interesting and vibrant way. It was fascinating to read about Aristotle plus to trace this man's influence through the late classical period into the middle ages. I found it astonishing how Aristotle's works also influenced theology and was a major factor in various church conflicts.
            I think this book is worth reading.
Get a copy Here.

Book Review: Exegetical Guide To The Greek New Testament - Ephesians

B&H Academic has a collection of Exegetical commentaries called: Exegetical Guide To The Greek New Testament. I was privileged to receive a review copy of Ephesians and I have to say upfront, this is an amazing commentary. If the rest of the series is anything like the Ephesians version I'll be getting them all.

               The commentary is based on the Greek New Testament which means that for a person to get the most out of these guides they must have, at least, a working knowledge of the language. The guides will still be of some limited use to those who do not know the language, especially for the preacher because each section contains suggested Homiletical outlines. These outlines can be used to help prepare sermons or Bible studies.
               The commentary begins with a short introduction which discusses things like authorship and date. There is also an outline and a section of recommended commentaries. The introduction is not extensive but is simply a condensed summary. The person interested in more material covering those introductory topics will need to refer to one or more of the recommended commentaries or a Bible Dictionary/Encyclopedia.
               The main text dealing with the scriptures proper are composed of a number of sections: "structure", a grammatical diagram of the relevant verses being discussed followed by a verse by verse discussion of the Greek text. The body of the guide is devoted to the lexical, grammatical, and translational issues. At the end of each section there's a subsection called "For Further Study" which lists resources that are helpful for studying topics that have arisen in those verses just commented on followed by the "Homiletical" outline section.

               The guide is actually quite small in size, but is so dense. This book will be at my side as I study the book of Ephesians. It doesn't give me everything but does a great job summarizing the material and pointing me in the right direction for further study.
               If you are a preacher, I think you would do well picking these guides up, especially Ephesians. If you are not a minister but have a working knowledge of the language this too is a great resource for you. All others will more than likely find frustration and very little help due to the fact that these guides are extremely technical and deal with an ancient language.

 Get your copy Here or Here

 

A quick summary of some short books I've recently read

A Christmas Carol
• I've known the basic story from watching different versions of it on TV. The Disney cartoon version and other movie versions.
• I do have to say that the book was much more detailed especially when the ghost of Christmas present was on the scene
• I also think this is a great story of redemption. You have a man who has become bitter in his old age. He is rich but stingy and unhappy. After he is taken on a trip through Christmas past, present, and the future he has a major change of heart and sees how not only his life, but the lives of others are effected by how he lives.

She Stoops to Conquer
• An interesting play. The play is a comedy that all takes place in one evening.
• The characters are all, in some way, trying to get their own way while at the same time trying to trip up others.
• Different people are presented as other than who they really are. Some people are shocked by the way they are treated because they are misidentified. The father is thought to be an innkeeper and is treated as such. Demands are made of him as if he was simply a servant.
• One person wants to run away with another man's fiancé. The husband to be doesn't want to marry the woman and she doesn't want to marry him. This is an arranged marriage. They scheme and plot and plan in order to deceive those who are arranging this marriage.
• In the end after all the ups and downs and major errors and all the deception it all works out. How convenient.
• Certainly not a realistic story, but is comedic in the modern sense of causing laughter.

Bartleby, the scrivener
• Here is a story about a man who has three employees and ends up needing another because business is so good. So he hires Bartleby to help. Bartleby is a copyist. He copies boring law documents all day long. But after he gets hired it isn't long before he begins to act strange. Bartleby won't do anything but copy. He won't help check his work, go to the post office, nothing. He simply say "I prefer not to" do whatever he has been asked to do.
• Finally Bartleby stops working all together. He won't even copy. The employer doesn't know what to do with him. He tries to get him to work, to do something, anything. After a long time Bartleby still hasn't done anything and now the towns people begin to talk about this odd fellow. The employer finally tries to fire Bartleby, but he won't leave.
• Finally the employer just moves his office to another building. Bartleby stays behind, but the new occupants can't get him to do anything either and they can't get him to leave. Bartleby is, in the end, put in prison where he eventually dies.
• Some have suggested that this is a work discussing the idea of people becoming "Cogs" in the machine of life/business. One "Cog" simply stops working, quits and eventually dies. He is then replaced.
• What is the moral or proper interpretation of the story? I don't really know. It was an interesting little story that's for sure.

Metamorphosis
• This is a very strange story about a man who wakes up one day to find that he has been changed into a bug. He tries to figure out how he can continue to go about his daily life (work, ect.) and at the same time he has to adjust to being a bug (he can't move properly, ect.).
• Over time his family comes to cope with the change and they pretty much leave him along, keeping him locked in his room.
• More time passes and he becomes more bug like and accustomed to him new bug body. He is able to move around and eat, ect.
• The family has to all get jobs because the son, who is now a bug, was the sole bread winner.
• After a long period of time the bug man gets injured, stops eating, and then dies.
• The family takes the day off from work and goes for a nice ride in the sun. The bug is gone from the home, life goes on.
• When I first read this I thought it might be a way of discussing what happens when a member of the family gets sick with a terminal illness. At first everyone tries to do what they have always done and not make much fuss. Over time the family becomes burdened and the person who is sick has less and less interaction with the family.
• Finally the family has had enough of all the stress and desires the sick person to leave/get better/be less of a burden. Eventually the sick person dies. Everyone is now able to move on.
• But I have heard that this story is about being so much a part of the system that you wake up one day feeling like you're an animal (or bug), just going along with the flow.
• I have also heard one interpretation that it may have to do with going from puberty or adolescence to adulthood. Changes of your body and feeling misunderstood by parents, ect.
• Whatever the true interpretation, if there is one, it is a strange story.