God Is Disappointed in You

God Is Disappointed in You, by Mark Russell and Shannon Wheeler

This is a funny retelling of each of the books of the Bible, in a highly accessible, irreverent, and humorous way. If you're willing to flex the way the Bible is interpreted, and you have a great sense of humor, you'll enjoy this book. It's sort of like a Cliff's Notes told via Tina Fey...written by humorist Mark Russell with cartoons by the New Yorker cartoonist Shannon Wheeler.

Rapture Practice

Rapture Practice, by Aaron Hartzler

Aaron Hartzler grew up in an extremely conservative, religious home, where just disagreeing with his parents was tantamount to being seduced by Satan. For example, one day the young, fashion-conscious Aaron wanted to go to church without wearing socks with his Sperry Topsiders (because that's what you do). His father commanded him to put socks on, and Aaron resisted...and thus ensued a huge power struggle, with his father pouring on the guilt and shame...over a lack of socks.

I had to laugh when I read that Aaron got in trouble at his conservative Christian school for singing a Sandi Patty song! She was popular back when I hung out with some evangelical Christians in college, but apparently she fell from grace after she got divorced and had an affair.

Aaron is gay, but as a child he didn't know that. He felt himself drawn to fashion, theater, and music...and he also felt himself desperately torn between wanting to please his parents and wanting to express himself, in spite of his strict evangelical upbringing.

I found myself getting really annoyed with his parents, who on one occasion told Aaron he couldn't be in his school play because he had pop music tapes in his car (or some such extreme infringement of their rules). The book ends before Aaron comes out to his parents, so we don't learn how they reacted to the news...but follow-up research indicates he's still in touch with them, so that's good.

My book group enjoyed this book, and many commented on how Aaron deeply loved his parents in spite of their deep religiosity and their strict demands on him.

I'm curious to read Part 2 of his memoir!

The Meaning of Mary Magdalene: Discovering the Woman at the Heart of Christianity

The Meaning of Mary Magdalene: Discovering the Woman at the Heart of Christianity, by Cynthia Bourgeault

Mary Magdalene was a prophet, a seer, a disciple to disciples. Great historical reclaiming of this amazing woman. 

A Queer and Pleasant Danger

A Queer and Pleasant Danger: The True Story of a Nice Jewish Boy Who Joins the Church of Scientology and Leaves Twelve Years Later to Become the Lovely Lady She is Today, by Kate Bornstein 

What a wild ride Kate Bornstein's life has been. Born and raised as a man, Bornstein's journey through scientology--including her marriage and fatherhood--seems stranger than fiction. As another reviewer wrote, "In the first six pages we learn that Kate is an anorexic Jewish sadomasochist lesbian transsexual woman with chronic lymphocytic leukemia and lots of tattoos and a bionic knee and borderline personality disorder, who writes porn and used to be in a cult and wants to be cremated when she dies and managed to dodge the Vietnam war through a psychiatric deferment, all of which is considerably more than I know about the majority of my friends."

Bornstein reveals more than we really want to know about her, and she does it in an endearing, disarming way...but I have to laugh when she says she's writing this book for her (estranged) granddaughter! What person would want to read about his or her grandparent's S&M adventures? I thought the scientology bits were interesting and eye-opening, and I have to admire Kate's gutsy spirit. 

Pope Francis

Pope Francis: Untying the Knots, by Paul Vallely

As I wrote recently on my main blog, I recently heard journalist Paul Vallely at the Search for Meaning Book Festival in Seattle; he gave the keynote address. Pope Francis: Untying the Knots is the first in-depth book on Jorge Mario Bergoglio. Vallely wrote it after traveling to Argentina to interview those who knew him well and investigate the claims that the Pope did nothing to prevent the kidnapping and torture of two priests during the Dirty War.
I'm fascinated with Pope Francis' transformation as a young man: he began as an arrogant, dictatorial leader who was also extremely conservative.

Vallely gives great background and insights into the politics of Argentina and the Vatican. In his younger days, he spurned liberation theology (the attempt to interpret Scripture through the plight of the poor) and did indeed prevent the eventually kidnapped priests (who were working in the ghetto) from delivering communion. His detractors say this opened the door for the military junta to kidnap the priests. Vallely discovered that Francis worked valiantly to get them freed after they were kidnapped, and it seems that Francis now has regrets about what he did or did not do. And now not only has he embraced and celebrated liberation theology, but he has also made a huge step toward transparency: he's asked the Vatican to open up its archives on the Dirty War.

The key reason that Pope Francis is the first Jesuit to become Pope is that Jesuits are called to be servants, not leaders. The founder of the Jesuits, Ignatius of Loyala, didn't even want them to be bishops. So that explains why Pope Francis is tackling the job in such an unusual, servant-like way. Being the Pope is like being royalty! He has spurned most of the trappings of Pope royalty, as we've heard since the Council of Cardinals elected him. From paying his own hotel, thinking that his Vatican apartments were way too big, and refusing to wear the fancy robes or read shoes, to washing the feet of the poor, female, and underprivileged, he prefers to be a servant rather than a Catholic king.

Francis views God in a clearly different way than previous popes and many priests...that God is grounded in mercy:

"Mercy, this word changes everything. It is the best word we can hear: it changes the world. A little mercy makes the world less cold and more just... The Lord never gets tired of forgiving; it is we that get tired of asking forgiveness." 

Vallely explores why Bergoglio chose the papal name of Francis.

"Francis is more than a name--it's a plan," said Leonardo Boff, founding father of liberation theology. "It's a plan for a poor Church, one that is close to the people, gospel-centred, loving and protective towards nature which is being devastated today. Saint Francis is the archetype of that type of Church." 

In recent days, Pope Francis continues to promote justice, make waves, and anger conservatives by declaring the gender age gap "a scandal" and preparing to release an encyclical on climate change. Although today Frank Bruni wrote about the absurdity of the Pope's statement in the New York Times that the Vatican's "own kitchen is much too messy for them to call out the ketchup smudges in anybody else’s."

Bruni went on, "He left out the part about women in the Roman Catholic Church not even getting a shot at equal work. Pay isn’t the primary issue when you’re barred from certain positions and profoundly underrepresented in others...For all the remarkable service that the Catholic Church performs, it is one of the world’s dominant and most unshakable patriarchies, with tenets that don’t abet equality."

But still, it's progress given the glacial pace of the Catholic church, and it's angering conservatives who would vastly prefer the church to remain frozen to any kind of progression.

Human rights lawyer Alicia Oliveira, Pope Francis' close friend for 40 years (who died in 2014), said about the Pope:

"He tells me he's having a great time. Every time I speak to him I tell him, 'Be careful Jorge, because the Borgias are still there in the Vatican.' He laughs and says he knows. But he's very, very, very happy. He's having fun with all the people in the Vatican telling him he can't do things--and then doing them."

Talking Taboo: American Christian Women Get Frank About Faith

Talking Taboo: American Christian Women Get Frank About Faith, edited by Erin Lane and Enuma Okoro 

I discovered this book when Nadia Bolz-Weber (author of Pastrix) recommended it on her Facebook page. It's a collection of essays by female Christian leaders under the age of 40 (it's part of a series by young female spiritual leaders). The title immediately caught my attention. These women, many pastors and teachers, share their thoughts on a variety of topics that have been off limits in Christianity. 

Some of the essays by more conservative women wrestle with the teachings of men as the head of the household, women speaking in church or preaching, women as professionals, the decision to live with a partner before marriage, leaving an abusive marriage and being cast out by her church, choosing not to follow in parents' footsteps as a Christian missionary caring for the poor, choosing celibacy, being called to work with refugees, tattoos, freedom without makeup, recovery, dealing with dissatisfaction in one’s marriage, etc. Many of these are even greater taboo topics in conservative Christian circles. We all have our own taboos.

The following essays struck particular notes with me:

"The Gatherer-God: On Motherhood and Prayer," by Micha Boyett…who struggled to find time to pray with young children. She has found that her most contemplative time is when her mind is fuzzy and she has no book before her…when she was breastfeeding, for example. She takes her cue from Christ’s own mother, who twice is described as “pondering” at the work of God in her son. “Why else would such a prayer be mentioned in the Gospels unless to call us to such deep work?”

"Naughty by Nature, Hopeful by Grace," by Enuma Okoro, who confesses that she develops a crush on a close male friend, but through talking to her friends and wrestling with the issue, she comes to peace with it and finds a way to move on without disrupting their friendship (or his marriage). “I am beginning to realize how little the churches of which I have been a part have taught me about the beauty of boundaries and the reality of fine lines.” I admired Okoro's honesty on such a difficult topic.

"Married by Children," by Erin Lane. The author grapples with the decision not to have children, and how unusual that is in the church. We tend to be heavily focused on family and children in our churches.

"High Stakes Whack-a-Mole: Noticing and Naming Sexism in the Church," by Lara Blackwood Pickrel. Pickrel writes about being treated as “less than” as a woman, having comments directed about her appearance because she’s a woman, and being told she’s too sensitive when she notices sexism. That last one is a particularly strong pet peeve of mine!

"Crafting Bonds of Blood," by Patience Perry. The author writes about reclaiming the menstrual and labor rituals and our sensuality. Perry writes, "Imagine if ALL women were validated for their potential to create life as evident in their monthly cycle…I am seeking ways that we can strengthen and reinvigorate women through the common bonds of blood…I’d like to see our society embrace women’s rituals and reconcile our disconnection with creation.” Have you ever heard menstruation or women's reproductive organs mentioned in church?

"The God of Shit Times," by Rachel Marie Stone. This was definitely my favorite title. Stone reclaims the power of profanity after being raised in a family where Christian "ladies" don't swear. When Stone's friend was in cancer treatment, she acknowledged that profanity had a purpose: “In the midst of my frigid and tedious winter, I needed some good profanity to adequately describe how much it all sucked. Sometimes an f-bomb is the exact, right word.” After seeing several close friends through deep, dark times and experiencing them myself, I can relate. Our God is a God of shit times.

"Naming God for Ourselves Amidst Pain and Patriarchy," by Rahiel Tesfamarian. The author changed her imagery of God through her divinity studies. Tesfamarian writes, "The image of my Maker as a ‘soft, still voice’ or ‘gentle whisper’ found in 1 Kings 19 was comforting and reassuring…I have done the hard work of unpacking God for myself. But that responsibility should not fall solely on me as an individual. The church also has a lot of work to do. Will more churches rise to this occasion, commit to being cutting-edge on matters of gender equality, and go where women of faith dare to take them? IS the church ready for a generation of women who are determined to define God on their own terms?” I went through a similar journey myself when I studied feminist theology in college and discovered that God was so much bigger than one gender alone.

“The Silence Behind the Din: Domestic Violence and Homosexuality," by Rev. Sarah C. Jobe. As a chaplain who works with victims of sexual abuse, Jobe reflects that the church does not address sexual assault or domestic violence, even though 30 percent of women are victims. Instead the church condemns homosexuality while ignoring sexual assault and domestic violence. She raises the story of Sodom and Gomorrah and the fact that instead of addressing the issue of rape in the story, this story is used as a weapon against homosexuality. “Will we continue to read the Scriptures according to our taboos around homosexuality and domestic violence, accepting interpretations that maximize violence?”

"No Women Need Apply," by Gina Messina-Dysert. This essay is about the war on women being waged by the Catholic church. Messina-Dysert finds a way to identify as Catholic by realizing she is her own agent and will not allow anyone to tell her what her religious status is based on her refusal to accept discrimination. She is also raising a daughter who will fight for women’s ordination in the Catholic church. This essay is important to me because I am married to a Catholic and belong to a Lutheran-Catholic community. 

"The Pastor Has Breasts," by Rebecca Clark. Clark writes about pregnancy, body awareness, sexuality, and breastfeeding in a highly public environment that is church. This essay made me think about what the unique journey female pastors must take and how the standards can be very different for them. When I was breastfeeding my children, I did so in church during worship. I'm grateful no one ever questioned this. As a pastor, I no doubt would have been under a microscope and judged for doing this.

"Created for Pleasure," by Kate Ott. Ott became aware of masturbation as a blessing from God. She notes her "aha moment" of learning in a seminary sexual ethics class that the clitoris is the only body part created solely through pleasure. She asks, ”What would the world look like if every girl and woman knew exactly how her body worked? If it was respected and her enjoyment of sexual behaviors was as important as that of her partner…that would be the world God intended…God created us to experience pleasure for the sake of knowing and loving ourselves better, so that we can know and love others better, including God.” What a wonderful way to look at our bodies and sexuality...and a wake-up call for the church.

"Flesh and Blood," by Ashley-Anne Masters. As a chaplain caring for women who have experienced pregnancy loss, Masters writes about pregnancy loss not being openly addressed in the church. She also writes about her own loss conducting a baptism right after experiencing her own miscarriage and how she shared her own grief with strangers. I received some support from church friends when I experienced several miscarriages, but it wasn't something I felt comfortable talking about. 

"What Do Cinderella, Lilies, and the Cross Have in Common," by Carol Howard Merritt. Merritt had to ask for a salary raise at her first church and experienced condescension from church members about her husband being the stay-at-home dad. Money, especially needing to ask for it, is a huge taboo topic for pastors...especially female ones.

"My Secret Buddhist Life," by Mary Allison Cates. After Cates was told she didn't look like a minister, she rediscovered her body through yoga and nose piercing. She also wrote about how she is feeling more comfortable with her female pastor body now that she is older and her body attracts less attention.

I liked the wide variety of perspectives in this collection, and this book made me long to sit around a dinner table with all these women and get to hear their stories personally.

The Invisible Girls: A Memoir

The Invisible Girls: A Memoir, by Sarah Thebarge

Sarah Thebarge survived grueling breast cancer, and a recurrence within a year, before moving west to Portland, Oregon, my hometown. While on the MAX light rail train, she meets a Somali immigrant and her five young daughters, and a friendship begins.

Thebarge alternates her story between getting to know and helping Hadhi and the girls and her travails enduring breast cancer treatment. She was raised in a strict evangelical religion, but went onto earn a degree at Yale and was in the middle of earning a journalism degree at Columbia when cancer struck. She also had a serious boyfriend and was close to becoming engaged. Ian, the boyfriend, was too weak to stick it out and abandoned her. Her church community apparently also abandoned her. She felt alone and bereft, her faith severely tested, when she picked up stakes to move to the west coast. Given the fact that I've had several friends endure and survive Stage 3 breast cancer similar to Thebarge's, I most appreciated reading about her experience and her feelings about having cancer. I also always like reading books set in my hometown!

When she got to know and began to help Hadhi, who didn't speak much English, she seemed to relate to the "invisible girls" because of what she had endured. She too felt like a stranger in a strange land.

This book has been accused of the "white savior complex." At times I wondered whether she could teach Hadhi how to fend for herself and survive rather than just rescuing her (do they have a sustainable life in the U.S.?). I was touched that Thebarge went out of her way to make this family feel welcome in the United States...a feeling they had not experienced before they met her. So much of their lives was difficult, but Thebarge brought joy to their poor, struggling family.

I felt that she could have delved a bit more into how she broke away from her traditional religious upbringing, and her feelings of betrayal when very few were there for her through cancer. And during one of the last chapters of the book she mentions some kind of identity theft or fraud but never explains what happened. (It felt like a big loose end was not tied up...perhaps an editorial oversight?)

The final chapter made me squirm a bit, as Thebarge and her friend reach out to a prostitute and do some proselytizing...mostly because, as a Christian, I'd rather that people learn about Christianity through the way we live our lives and not because we hit them over their heads with it. So even though she felt completely oppressed growing up in such a strict Christian denomination--in which women were not allowed to hold any leadership roles in the church whatsoever--she seems to move back to it at the end. That was a bit confusing. 

But Thebarge did help this family in dire straits. She brought delight into their lives and she helped them muddle through, and she too was enriched by the experience. She decided to write this book so she could raise money for the girls to go to college. I hope she is successful in her goal. 

I love this tidbit I found on Thebarge's blog, which is the ultimate takeaway from this book:

"And I realized this morning that solving the problem of invisibility doesn’t require legislation or institutional intervention.  It’s simple, and it’s easy, and it’s free.  It just takes all of us walking through life with open eyes and softened hearts, taking the risk and the time to tell someone else, 'You’re not invisible any more.  I care that you exist.  I see that you’re suffering.  It matters that you’re here.' 

How would our world change if every day, each of us told one person — just one —'I see you.  So you’re not invisible any more.'”

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Jericho Books. I received a product sample to facilitate my review.

Jesus Boy: Gave up on it.

Jesus Boy, by Preston L. Allen
My rating: 1 out of 5 stars

This book wasn't horrible, but I'm giving it only 1 star because I gave up on it when I was a little more than halfway through. I just didn't care enough about the characters or what would happen to them, and I figured...life is too short to read a book you're just not that into. I've done it before and regretted it, so I put the book down.

Jesus Boy is about Elwyn Parker, an African-American teenager in Florida, who is a member of the Church of Our Blessed Redeemer Who Walked Upon the Waters. Elwyn is a devout Christian who, after the object of his affection marries someone else, takes up with Sister Morrisohn, a fellow churchgoer who is 26 years his senior. I have to wonder about the author's upbringing, because he seems to be writing about charismatic Christian culture as if he truly knows. But what's also clear is that he has a dark, deeply cynical view of such right-wing religious types.

One moment they are spouting about sin and the next moment they are going at it like rabbits...not only the 16-year-old and the 42-year-old, but just about everyone is having sex--whether it's incest or extramarital affairs. It just got old after awhile. The author writes a lot of erotica, and I think he was going for the shock value. I'm certainly no bible thumper myself, but Allen really goes overboard on the hypocrisy and shallowness of these characters.

Faith: A family torn in half by the Catholic church

Faith: A Novel, by Jennifer Haigh
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Sheila McGann, a lapsed Catholic daughter, returns to Boston to try to figure out what has happened to her fractured family. Her beloved older brother, Art, has been accused in the Boston archdiocese priest sex abuse scandal. Her younger brother, Mike, is convinced he's guilty, while her mother is in denial and her father is too far gone as an alcoholic to understand what is going on.

Faith is one of those books in which you do not necessarily identify with any of the characters, but you care what will happen to them. We know very little about Sheila, the narrator, except for the fact that she's a damaged soul and unable to form long-lasting attachments. She describes her entire family as detached and undemonstrative, perhaps because of her angry drunk dad and her detached, bitter, and stubbornly Catholic mother. None of these characters lead fulfilled, happy lives, and they are unable to reach out to embrace one another in their deep sadness and grief.

I am not a Catholic but am married to one. This book is soaked in the traditions and culture of the old American Catholic church. In that culture, priests were (are?) not to be questioned...they were to be revered.

Faith has all the complications I expect in a great book. None of the characters are inherently good or bad, and the truth is far more complex than one would expect. Haigh does an excellent job of peeling back layer by layer of Sheila's complicated family structure and exposing the grave weaknesses and loneliness inherent in the whole idea of Catholic priestly celibacy...and the underbelly of the Catholic church, which has continued to ignore the devastating acts done in its name.

The 19th Wife: Perfect combination of historical fiction and a modern-day mystery

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

I truly enjoyed this novel, which combined the tales of two people who fled polygamy. As a historical fiction fan, I especially liked reading those parts of the book.

Ann Eliza Young became the "19th wife" of Brigham Young when she was a 24-year-old divorcee and he was 67. Instead of #19, she was probably #52 (polygamists don't keep very specific records of their wives). She left Young and become an "apostate," fleeing Utah to lecture against polygamy in the late 19th century. I had never heard of her before I began to read this book. She also published an autobiography, The 19th Wife, and faced scorn and hatred from the LDS church. Ebershoff rewrites Young's story by including sections of The 19th Wife (which he has rewritten--the original was long, overly wordy, and extremely biased) and also featuring excerpts from people's diaries and other accounts. Although based in reality, this is historical FICTION at its best. (Many LDS members have taken issue with Ebershoff recounting of Ann Eliza's story as well as the way he presented Brigham Young's egotism and cruelty.) Judging from her own words and the recount of her estranged son, Ann Eliza was not a saint, but she was a victim.

Interspersed with Ann Eliza Young's story is a murder mystery set in modern-day Utah. Jordan Scott, who was thrown out of his fundamentalist LDS sect years before, tries to get to the bottom of a mystery: his mom has been accused of murdering his dad. Jordan also happens to be gay. He leaves his home in California to return to Utah, where he hopes to get to the truth. Jordan has been deeply damaged by his childhood in a polygamist family and community.

I believe that modern-day Mormons are presented in an objective light in this book, even though many reviewers disagree with this. Young BYU history scholar Kelly Dee, whose ancestor is Ann Eliza Young, is attempting to research Ann Eliza's story. She volunteers at the Ann Eliza Young House, a refuge for children trying to escape from polygamist communities. Maureen works for Jordan's mother's lawyer, and she goes out of her way to help Jordan. Jordan and his new boyfriend, Tom, visit a church in Las Vegas that reaches out to gay Mormons.

Reading this book, I was struck by the strange juxtaposition of polygamy with the uptight views about sexuality in the LDS church. Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and other prominent LDS pioneers used polygamy to justify their lust and lasciviousness in the name of their faith. They were sexual predators of very young girls who were too young to get married. When they were questioned about polygamy or when women tried to challenge this practice, they were told that their faith was weak. As we all know, polygamy continues today in fundamentalist LDS sects. What was most interesting about this book was the overlaps between early Mormonism and fundamentalist Mormonism today.

At the same time, Mormons wear sacred underwear and Brigham Young taught that a woman must never reveal her sacred underwear to a man, even her husband. I believe this has changed since Brigham Young's time, but the foundations remain (pardon the pun!). I had a former Mormon coworker who told me that he has never seen his wife naked. Seriously. They had three children and had been married all their adult lives. Another oddity is that until 2005, a secret temple ceremony involved naked touching (annointing of the body) (if this ex-Mormon Web site is to be believed).

The weakest part of the book was the modern-day Jordan story. Some of it I enjoyed, but some of it could have been tightened up. Some of the characterization I found to be a bit stereotypical (the gay young man with the dog...and his friend back home who calls him honey), and other times I felt it just brushed the surface on the many modern-day characters. One thing Ebershoff clearly wanted to emphasize is the collateral damage that polygamy does to its children.

As I was reading this book around the time when we watched "Elizabeth" and I found myself frustrated with its many historical inaccuracies, I've concluded that I like intepretations of history...the filling in the blanks, so to speak...instead of rewriting history. I might be able to handle rewriting history if I know that's what it is. Ebershoff makes it very clear that he is filling in the blanks and his novel is based on history, but it's not historical fact...a point that many of his LDS critics seem to disregard.

Ebershoff ends his book with an explanation of what was true and what was imagined, in addition to his thoughts on history. He believes it is subjective and invites interpretation. You can read his interesting thoughts on history and fiction on his Web site, which also has more information on Ann Eliza Young (including a PDF of her original memoir) and some resources about polygamy, the LDS church, and gay Mormons.

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress: A memoir about going home

Elizabeth Gilbert describes this memoir as "wincingly funny." To begin with, Rhoda Janzen came up with a wonderful, eye-catching title. Janzen left the Mennonite faith as a young woman and became an English professor. She married a bipolar, bisexual man who verbally abused her over the years and attempted suicide. In her early 40s, she experienced serious medical trauma from a botched hysterectomy, and her husband nursed her through her recovery before announcing to her that he was leaving her for a man he met on gay.com. That same week, she got in a serious car accident.

Janzen returns home to her Mennonite family to recuperate from life's upheavals. During this time, she writes funny e-mails to her friends, and one of them suggests she should write a memoir. This book is the result, and it reads more like a series of blog posts or e-mails than a straightforward memoir.

With that said, I did enjoy this book. Janzen has a funny, snarky writing style, and she colorfully describes a number of amusing situations and characters. She tries to shed light on the Mennonite lifestyle and offers a Mennonite primer as an appendix. I enjoyed reading about the Mennonite faith and history, but I wanted more.

The book fell short for me in several ways.

• Although she lovingly describes both her parents, I didn't get a clear sense of her father. Her mom seems like a real character, and I enjoyed the stories about her.
• She never really explains what made her leave the Mennonite church and when it happened. She described a Vacation Bible School experience as a child where she began to have doubts, but she went on to attend a Mennonite college. What made her decide to leave?
• She doesn't seem to be fond of children. With a few exceptions (her sister's daughter), she seems to view them as brats. On her Web site, she professes to love children. This does not ring true.
• The various chapters did not seem to be tied together in any logical way, reading more like independent e-mails or blog posts. (She apparently wrote this memoir in 1 month, because she had nothing else to do while she was staying with her parents.) Readers looking for chronological progression will be frustrated.
• Most glaringly, I could not help but wonder about her current relationship with her brothers and sisters-in-law. She writes scathingly of her brothers and meanly pokes fun at her sisters-in-law. Even their children are not free from attack. Did she care nothing of her relationship with them, to be so publicly honest about her feelings? This brutal honesty often surprises me when I read memoirs. It seems that many authors care more about fame and fortune (or writing success) than protecting other people's reputations and feelings.
  
  It's not just her brothers and sisters-in-law she pillories, but they are the closest to her. Then there's her sister's husband's sister's ex-husband, who must have cringed to see how she described him. Her ex-husband, understandably, does not come out well, either.
  
  This type of writing makes for interesting reading, but I wonder at Janzen's motives and her lack of sensitivity.
  
  Janzen has apparently remarried and now attends a Pentecostal church, which strikes me as odd. She is at work on another memoir, and I will probably read it. Am I encouraging this unkind behavior by reading her writing? Perhaps. That's something to ponder.

In subsequent interviews about the book, Janzen claims that she still cares for and respects her ex-husband and tried to portray the ups as well as downs of their relationship. I do not remember reading ANY ups, except for the very first time they met. I also wondered why none of her friends and family encouraged her to leave him for years, while she was experiencing such awful abuse.

Even with these criticisms, I did enjoy this book. I especially enjoyed Janzen's descriptions of her mom and her warm, close relationship with her sister, Hannah, who lives in Bend, Oregon. Their deep understanding of each other reminded me of my relationship with my own sister.

Jezebel: The Untold Story of the Bible's Harlot Queen

Jezebel: The Untold Story of the Bible's Harlot Queen by Lesley Hazleton

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Lesley Hazelton was a visiting professor at PLU when I was there--an expert in Israeli culture and history--so I was particularly interested in this book. I read one of her earlier books, Israeli Women, years ago.

Outstanding biography of the woman whose name has come to symbolize harlotry and idolatry. Through historical research and analysis, Hazleton proves that Jezebel represented tolerance and open-mindedness, and she was framed in the bible. And Elijah, who has come to be considered a hero in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, was no hero.

View all my reviews

Infidel: Violence perpetuated on women in the name of Allah

Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A friend loaned this book to me, and I'm anxious to discuss it with her. From the perspective of an open-minded, feminist Christian who tries hard to respect other people's religious beliefs, this book shook me up.

Hirsan Ali survived a horrible childhood in Somalia and Kenya and experienced a fraction of the horrors Islam can heap upon women in the name of Allah. I recognize that not all Muslims are abusive of women, and many Muslim women are happy and satisfied in their religion, but what is most distressing is the violence and abuse that is perpetuated on Muslim women and permissible, and even encouraged, in the Quran.

I find it intriguing that Hirsan Ali works for a neoconservative think tank in the U.S., and her belief that we are way too tolerant of Islam in the west is thought provoking. Perhaps as liberals we are too afraid of offending Muslims to stick up for the rights of oppressed women?

She is truly a hero and a very brave soul.



View all my reviews

Bleeding Kansas: Great novel about feuding priorities in modern-day Kansas

Bleeding Kansas by Sara Paretsky

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As a Sara Paretsky fan, I knew this book would diverge from her VI Warshawski novels. The title comes from the bloodshed that occurred in Kansas before the civil war, when Kansas was a free state and neighboring Missouri was a slavery state.

It's a sprawling story of a community near Lawrence, filled with conservative farmers, right-wing fundamentalists, visiting Wiccans, and hormone-ridden teenagers. The plot centers around a farm family, in which the history-obsessed mom gets involved in the anti-war movement, embarassing her oldest son, who eventually enlists and is killed in Iraq.

Paretsky is ambitious in this novel, packing the story with tons of characters (perhaps too many) and plot elements. Some reviewers have accused her of creating one-dimensional characters, which might be true. Nevertheless, I could not put the book down.

I would have liked to have had more resolution at the end of the novel (for the "bad guys" to get their comeuppance...), but I still enjoyed the book.

If you are interested in learning more about the conflict between Kansas and Missouri during the Civil War era, I highly recommend The All-True Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton, by Jane Smiley.



View all my reviews

Rapture Ready!: Insightful commentary on Christian pop culture

Rapture Ready!: Adventures in the Parallel Universe of Christian Pop Culture by Daniel Radosh

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Radosh is a self-described non-religious Jewish liberal, who decides he wants to explore the $7 billion industry that is Christan pop (sub)culture. He travels to 18 cities and towns in 13 states, interviewing a fascinating group of people, ranging from Bibleman, the Caped Christian; Rob Adonis, the founder and star of Ultimate Christian Wrestling; Ken Ham, the country's leading creationism prophet; and Jay Bakker, the son of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker and the pastor of a liberal, punk rock church.

Here are some excerpts from the pages that I dog-eared (much to my husband's dismay, as he hates it when I dog-ear books!):

--At a contemporary Christian music festival (which was relatively liberal in evangelical circles), Radosh meets author and professor Dan Howard, who talks about his fondness for "transformative" contemporary Christian music and rails against his own "counterculture's" rejection of key dominant values. He says "The only values that we're worried about are abortion and gay rights. That's it. Because those are sins we don't commit; those are sins other people commit. The Bible has more than 2,000 verses about poverty and maybe 5 or 10 that you can interpret as being about abortion, but we're all about aabortion. Those 2,000 verses about Christians' responsibility to widows and orphans and aliens and strangers and the poor? We manage to be blind to al; of that, but we can find those 5 verses about abortion." Amen, brother.

--Apparently "self-cutting" is a major issue among young Christians. "The creator of one self-injury support group told Christianity Today that the most important message to give a cutter is that "Jesus loves her as she is, and that his atonement is sufficient for her sins." However, how is that reconciled with the evangelical emphasis on sin and evil? Perhaps these teens are feeling awful about themselves, and that they are not worthy, and resort to cutting? It causes me to wonder...

--A liberal evangelical told Kadosh that he believes that the way for the fundamentalist churches to be transformed from within and to be more inclusive to those on the outside is for them to be grown, like bread rises, gradually and organically. "The problem is that mainstream liberal and moderate churches stagnated and lost their cultural relevance. The Lutherans, Anglicans, and Methodists, they were never the driving force behind the growth of the Christian music industry...the moderate voices never expressed themselves in a commercial way, so their voices are muted today. You don't hear them unless you're part of their flock." This is true--I have heard some wonderful, progressive Christian musical groups, but only within the Lutheran (or other mainstream) churches. The mainstream churches have not appealed to the masses, so most people think of Christian music in only one way.

--The most poignant part of the book for me was when Radosh discovered a pro-life group at a music festival with pamphlets damning not only abortion, but also assisted reproductive technologies. Because he and his wife had to resort to IVF to have their own twins, he understandably became angered by this group's assertions that they viewed his children as "objects" or "commodities"...or that "assisted reproduction violates marital integrity." This is one thing that angers me about the Catholic church, too: how can the church fight to keep people alive on life support, yet claim that assisted reproductive technology is evil? How is it any different? 100 years ago, there were no ventilators or IV fluids to keep people alive. If you're going to reject scientific methods of creating life, why not also reject scientific methods of sustaining life?

--Another liberalish recording artist talked to Radosh about his discomfort with the way evangelicals treat the issues of abortion and homosexuality. He talked about how bizarre it is to spend so much time focusing on abortion, while sanctioning killing in war or the death penalty. He also said "Jesus never mentioned homosexuality once. How has it become such an issue? Strange how all the things that Jesus actually did talk about fail to become issues...."

--Radosh devotes a chapter to the abstinence movement, and discusses how it casts "women as objects to be managed by men: first by fathers and then by husbands," and casts men as lustful creatures who women have the responsibility to protect against lust (by not wearing revealing clothing, etc.). Some in the abstinence movement even suggest refraining from kissing until marriage! Abstinence educators in the past talked about how difficult it is to use condoms, because they have to be inspected for leaks, and then after using them, the genital area have to be cleaned with rubbing alcohol or Lysol! And "premarital sex depletes a chemical necessary for forming permanent a bond with one's spouse (the doctor who came up with this theory was later appointed to run the Bush administration's women's health program!)."

--In one of the last chapters, Radosh talks about visiting a "hell house" with Jay Bakker (the liberal son of Jim and Tammy Faye), which is a Christian version of a haunted house, with depictions of evil in the world and the sinners here. Baker is suitably horrified at what his fellow Christians are implying about "nonbelievers" or "sinners," and says when he saw "Jesus" at the end of the hell house, he felt like saying "If you really love us, why is this the option--to serve you or torture us for eternity?" That describes how I feel when I read about or experience this perspective of Christianity. I believe in a loving God, not want who will damn us to hell if we don't behave in a certain way. I believe in grace and forgiveness.

Radosh actually forms a lot of positive bonds during his journey and finds much to appreciate in the evangelical movement, once he was able to find his way to the outskirts. There is much out there that is disappointing, horrifying, and just not very smart...but Radosh found some hope for the future.





View all my reviews

Mr. & Mrs. God in the Creation Kitchen: Retelling the story of creation

Mr. & Mrs. God in the Creation Kitchen by Nancy Wood

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Love this book!!! Finally, a gender-equitable retelling of the creation story!

View all my reviews

The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner's Semester at America's Holiest University

The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner's Semester at America's Holiest University by Kevin Roose

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I could not put this book down.

Kevin Roose, an Ivy League-educated liberal agnostic with a Quaker upbringing, decided that instead of doing a semester abroad like everyone else at Brown University, he would explore a different culture right here in the U.S.A., that of evangelical Christianity.

He spent a semester somewhat undercover at Liberty University, which was founded by Rev. Jerry Falwell. His parents and in particular, his lesbian aunts, were very worried about his decision to consort with the enemy. They worried that he would be outed as a liberal, or worse, become converted and change entirely.

Although Roose found much to trouble him (blatant homophobia, subtle and not-so-subtle racism, pure disregard for science and history, and sexist attitudes toward women, men, and marriage), he also found himself making friends. He realized that not all evangelical Christians are as conservative or straightforward as he had thought. He discovered that he actually envied their passion and the deeper meaning and purpose in their lives. He found that living a "cleaner" college life (without alcohol or partying) resulted in feeling a whole lot healthier. He actually enjoyed some of his religion classes, and found himself challenged by some of the curriculum (while other classes were hopelessly full of defenses of the bible vs. science and other academic truths). He made some great friends with people whose company he truly enjoyed, even though their backgrounds and beliefs were very different.

Beyond classes and university life, his adventures included going on a spring break trip to Daytona Beach to attempt to convert the partying heathens; going on dates with evangelical girls (one of whom he becomes very attached to, and decides to stop seeing because he realizes he's not being honest with her); singing in the massive choir at Jerry Falwell's enormous church; going to see a pastor/professor who specializes in helping gay men conquer their sexual orientation; interviewing Jerry Falwell for a university magazine article and finding that he could be charming as well as infuriating; and being actually moved by Falwell's death, when he saw the way the community reacted to the event. (Falwell died a few days before the end of the semester.)He also had a violently homophobic roommate who was convinced that Roose was gay (if only because he didn't join in the homophobic taunts), and Roose actually began fearing for his safety during his time there.

What I liked about this book is that it shows us that if everyone can find some common ground, perhaps we would all understand each other a little better. Roose did not get "born again" when he was at Liberty. His aunts, parents, and Brown friends were relieved when he left.

As of publication, Kevin Roose was a senior at Brown. The fact that he could write such a compelling, well-written book, combined with his ability to keep his mouth shut and stay somewhat undercover during his semester "abroad," means that he will be a much better journalist than I ever could be.

I will always remember sitting in a bible study during my freshman year at PLU (which attracted a lot of evangelical Christians because it was a Christian university), and the other girls were expressing worry that some of their friends would go to hell. I said that my best friend from high school was Jewish (and turned out to be gay, as well), and I didn't believe for one second that a loving God would send him to hell. We got into a heated debate, and I never went back. This was essential for my sanity and well-being...but perhaps not so good for the hope of everyone understanding each other's viewpoints better. I find that I do not have patience to get into heated debates with other people, especially if I sense that the other person does not respect my opinion.

Roose, however, was respectful and open to being changed by the experience. If every person could spend 3 to 4 months in another culture, religion, or environment, we would be a more peaceful world, because we would understand each other just a tiny bit more. And that would be a wonderful thing. I look forward to reading more of Kevin Roose in the future.



View all my reviews

Eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven: Women, Sexuality, and the Catholic Church; Dirty words on bathroom walls!

Eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven: Women, Sexuality and the Catholic Church by Uta Ranke-Heinemann

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book has been on our bookshelves for eons, and I finally picked it up and plowed my way through it until I began scanning sections toward the end.

It's a densely written tome--obviously very well researched and detailed. I already knew all too well that the Roman Catholic tradition is anti-sex, anti-women, and anti-contraception. Here's what I didn't know:

--Augustine (one of the fathers of the Catholic tradition of sex and woman hating) was married and also had several lovers before he became an avowed sex hater.

--Our eldest son must have been conceived on a Sunday, because he has epilepsy. (Yes, that's what can happen if you have sex at the wrong time.)

--Not only are Sundays forbidden for sex, but also when a woman is menstruating, during Lent, 20 days before Christmas, yada, yada, yada.

--The only time it's not a sin to have sex is to procreate (already knew that) or when one's partner demands it.

--Until modern times, not only were women not supposed to approach the altar, but they were also not supposed to even sing in the choir.

This is what I did know:

"All in all, considering the repression, defamation, and demonization of women, the whole of church history adds up to one long arbitrary, narrow-minded masculine depotism over the female sex. And this despotism continues today, uninterrupted...The male church has never understood that the reality of the church is based on the shared humanity of man and woman."

Throughout the book, Ranke-Heinemann gives us a dense history of the Catholic church and its hatred for wome and sexuality. I find it mind-boggling to ponder why the Catholic church is so completely obsessed with sex and how evil it is. And how much of this attitude remains to this day. This book certainly did not give me any more fondness for the Catholic church!

I initially gave this 2 stars, but after reading that New York's Cardinal O'Connor who, without reading it, likened it to "scrawling dirty words about the church on bathroom walls," I've upgraded it to 3 stars! This is a necessary piece of work--although it needs to be updated and the writing made a bit more readable.

View all my reviews