Book Review: The Twible by Jana Riess. Add *this* to your gift list!

The Twible: All the Chapters of the Bible in 140 Characters or Less...Now with 68% More Humor!
Jana Riess
Paperback: 320 pages

Yes, there's a Kindle edition, but that means you'll miss the sidebars in the print edition (e.g., “WTF is Revelation?” and “Five Deuteronomic Laws We Really Hope You’re Not Observing.”). Plus, trust me, you really do want this displayed on your coffee table.

At one point in my life I had at least one Bible in every room; different translations to meet different needs. I also had the predictable stack of commentaries and concordances, although I basically used the Strong's Exhaustive Concordance as a doorstop. 

Over the years I've winnowed the collection way down and could probably do so even more now that I have The Twible by Jana Riess. I'm only semi-kidding.

What at first gawk and giggle looks like a goofy send-up is, in fact, a rigorous, comprehensive and blessedly brief synopsis of every freakin' chapter of every book within the agreed upon canon of Hebrew and Christian Scripture. (Note to Dr. Riess: get going on the Apocrypha). And no, I cannot provide examples because as I wander my way through The Twible, almost chapter supplants the previous as my favorite. Buy this book and discover your own!

In case you don't already know, Riess is the author of quite a few books, including one of my faves, Flunking Sainthood: A Year of Breaking the Sabbath, Forgetting to Pray, and Still Loving My Neighbor. A blogger for Religion News Service, her cred for taking on this project includes an M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary and a PhD from Columbia University. Even more significant: her love of scripture and astonishing ability to simplify texts that have been rendered obscure by earnest theologians and crazed Bible-thumpers. 

So why The Twible? As Riess explains, back in 2009 she was "struck, Old Testament lightning-style" by how much she actually hadn't read and didn't know. As an experiment, she decided to summarize a chapter a day on Twitter "but with humorous commentary." 

Humorous is an understatement. Much of The Twible is laugh-snort hilarious because of her strategic use of idioms and images from contemporary culture to clarify ancient texts. 

Riess wonders if she has now guaranteed herself a room reservation in hell. Doubtful, because God is a great kidder and, as people of deep faith know or damn well should, the most joyful noise to make unto the Lord is laughter. The Twible generates that abundantly, making it a welcomed, much-needed gateway to scripture in a traditional format and form.

         

The Essence of a Faith-Filled Life

Even for the WTF stuff . . .

Matthew 5: 13-16...Short Version

&

Christian Love Abiding. Not.

Which do I find more distressing, the various and sundry news releases generated by the United States Catholic Bishops? Online reportage about that news? Commentary posted by the so-called People of God? Forced to choose, I'd have to go with being disturbed by the continuing lack of civility. (Has The Catholic Civility Project folded?)

If you think I'm making this up, then please put on virtual HAZMAT gear and wade through what's posted in response to David Gibson's recent column at Politics Daily. Or don't. The title of his piece is, "New Catholic Sex Abuse Findings: Gay Priests Are Not the Problem," so it should be easy to imagine the range of comments. (By the way, ever notice how hatemongers stink at spelling? I hate that.)

So where, exactly, did Jesus command us to hate one another? Those of us who claim to be Christian really do need to stop behaving as if John 15:9-12 reads like this:

"As the Father has hated me, so I have hated you; abide in my hate. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my hate, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his hate.

I have said these things to you so that my anger may be in you, and that your anger may be complete. 'This is my commandment, that you hate one another as I have hated you.'"

Book Review: The Man Christ Jesus

The Man Christ Jesus: How the Lord Looked, Acted, Prayed, and Loved.
Giacomo Cardinal Biffi
Sophia Institute Press (2008)
Paperback: 120 pps., $10.95

This review was written as part of The Catholic Company product review program. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information about The Man Christ Jesus.

The Man Christ Jesus may not be a fun or particularly poetic read, but I found it a useful one. It may also be useful to you, especially if you're interested in how inspired texts can be "examined with the help of historical and literary controls." This slim book is divided into two main sections: 1) The Man Christ Jesus According to Those Who Knew Him; and 2) The Man Christ Jesus by the Light of Faith.

To craft these portraits, Cardinal Giacomo Biffi, archbishop emeritus of Bologna, Italy uses the Gospels and excerpts from Pauline letters. This approach will seem familiar if you've read Jesus of Nazareth by Pope Benedict XVI. (The promotional copy for Biffi's book mentions the friendship of these two men.) Their approach is similar; their style could not be more different. Where Benedict is lyrical and intellectually challenging, Biffi is didactically prosaic.

The somewhat stilted nature of Biffi's text in the first section may be a translation problem, although I wonder how Italian could ever lose its rich resonance. Or maybe Biffi opted for a straightforward yet passive voice to make the case for relying on scripture? He writes that he hopes "the results of our investigation will be largely acceptable to those without faith."

Those who already have faith will perk up in the second section where Biffi provides more theologically oriented musings about Jesus as Christ -- son of God, Savior of the World, and Head of the Body. And to be fair, you probably can't fully appreciate this section without making your way through the first section about Jesus' physical appearance and personality.

Yes, folks, you're reading what's known as a "mixed review" of this book. If you have a reference library and, as noted at the top, are interested in exegesis, The Man Christ Jesus would be a worthwhile addition to your reference library.

As you might already know, I have a major 'tude when it comes to book design, so I'm happy to note that Sophia Institute Press has produced a beautifully designed book. And thanks be to God for writer or editor or translator who decided to use scripture citations from The New Jerusalem Bible. (I have "issues" with the New American Bible translation.)

More Cool Tools & Widgets

At some point I'll write about bouncing from the 1st to the 21st centuries throughout the day. What's with the 1st century? I'm writing about it in my "engaging good humored" way for my next book about the Jewish roots of almost everything Christian. Quite the challenge on many levels, including internally for yours truly. But that's not what this post is about.

This post is about my 21st century adventures. Now that I'm on Twitter and following thought leaders and trend setters in the world of social media, I'm getting access to some very cool stuff. Here are two items you might want to use.

Stop watch: A fabulous and very cute but not cutesy count up and count down meter. I have it on my desktop screen, sized down to nearly unobtrusive, and set to manage my time at the computer. A bell rings when the time runs out. I reset it and keep going. Since I write/break in 45/15 minute rotations, this is very handy and keeps me on task.

Random Bible Verse: Take a look at my blog's sidebar. See the Scripture snippet? This widget was developed by Jason DelGuidice as SacredMint.com. Hit the "refresh" a bunch of times to see how it rotates verses. Now, go get the code and put it on your blog or website.

Not only may you choose among designs, but also from among 16 translations. As you can see, I've chosen the NIV translation. I have my reasons. In fact, I devote an entire chapter of my new book to explaining ways of reading Scripture as well as wassup with different translations. (I do this without using the word, "hermeneutic.")

Book Review: Hear My Voice (Children's Lectionary)

Hear My Voice: A Children's Translation of Gospel Readings of the Catholic Mass for 2009
123 p. 8.5" square
Hardcover: $18.95
Review pages at Prayer Press

A pre-publication copy of this marvelous book arrived over the weekend. Author Jonathan Stampf and illustrator Robert Conrad deserve glory, honor and praise for their fine contribution to liturgical resources.

Hear My Voice has everything I look for -- and hope others do, too. First, it's a gorgeous book, beautifully designed and illustrated in a user-friendly trim size. The full-color illustrations are charming without being mawkish. In fact, they abound with historically accurate details of buildings, clothing, terrain, and food. The colors are vibrant and sophisticated; no visual dumbing down with primary colors!

And the content? My guess is that parents will get as much out of reading this as kids. In fact, any adult could benefit from reading how Stampf interprets the Lectionary readings (included in a sidebar). He uses colloquial language without devolving into slang. Be very grateful: You won't find Jesus addressing the Apostles as "dudes." You'll find smart, vocabulary-building text that will benefit readers of all ages.

The best part: this finely nuanced text places Stampf well within the ancient Jewish tradition of Midrash, something Jesus himself would have known, appreciated, and probably used when he wasn't speaking in parables.

Hear My Voice will be available this November. Start the new liturgical year right by ordering it now! Also available through the Catholic Company.

Product Review: Faith Database

Faith Database
CD: $39.95
[1,646 MB]
Annual upgrades planned.

This review was written as part of The Catholic Company product reviewer program.
Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Faith Database CD-ROM.

Faith Database is the labor-of-love brain child of Tim Cooper who entered the Catholic Church in 2003. For five years, Cooper collected Catholic resources for his own study. Then, while leading a parish-based group on early church writings, he wrote a computer program linking doctrine to scripture and content in those early texts.

With encouragement and guidance from folks at Catholic Answers, the project evolved. Launched in August, Faith Database allows users to search through writings by the early Church fathers, Doctors of the Church, popes, and orthodox theologians (e.g., Chesterton, Newman); 10 different translations of scripture; Church Council documents; the Catechism of the Catholic Church, The Old Catholic Encyclopedia, the Baltimore Catechism, and the Code of Canon Law.

Via email I asked Tim to tell me more about his vision for the project. "My original intent was for all Catholics for wish to learn their faith better," he wrote. "As a former Protestant I can say with all sincerity that most Catholics don't know what they have and most Protestants don't know what they're missing." Yesterday I spent a lot of time wandering through Faith Database to see what was there and to evaluate the ease of navigation.

Mostly I used key words from research for my new book about the Jewish roots of Christian identity and religious practice. I greatly appreciated the convenience of having all church writings and scripture in one place. Normally I log on to several different websites to find this stuff. The database of art images and maps is a useful, inspiring addition.

While I didn't find everything I wanted, I did find material I needed and was pleased with that outcome. According to Cooper, he and business partner Jerry Suelzer plan to add approximately 10 new texts a month. Personally, I hope they either stick to agreed-upon classics or broaden their view of who is making important contributions to Catholic thought these days.

Technicalities: According to Tim, I'm not the only one who had installation troubles. He admits the install with Vista is very slow. They're working on a new installer program and encourage calls for technical support. I also found the navigation a bit cumbersome and hoping they add a spell check to their next iteration. I have every confidence these technical quirks will get worked out. Meanwhile, Faith Database is a good resource, one that does indeed introduce the Catholic faith.

"Tell no one..."

Had I been asked to "break open the Word" for today's Mass, I would've skipped right to the end of the gospel reading and focused on Matthew 16:20, "Then he strictly ordered his disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ."

Throughout the synoptic gospels, Jesus tells his disciples and other groupies to keep their yaps shut about who he is (the Christ) and what he has done (healed the sick and raised the dead). Do they? Doubtful. After all, they are human; forbidden fruit takes many forms. For all we know, Peter, James, and John raced down the mountain right back to Jesus Headquarters to blab about the Transfiguration.

So what was Jesus up to in these stories? Working a bit of reverse psychology? And if so, to what end? Was he being strategic? I think this is all worth pondering and plan to do so as I lay supine on the couch for the rest of my Sabbath afternoon.



Image snagged from: Jesus of the Week

Morning Prayer

Every day, Google Reader grabs the LOTH from Universalis and plunks it onto my iGoogle home page. Did you follow that sentence? It was kind of odd to write but I'm leaving it. Moving right along.

Having the LOTH on my desktop increases the probability that I will actually pray the readings. Truth to tell, I usually skim them. This morning's passage from Ephesians 4:29–32 stopped me dead and not quite resurrected in my tracks:

Guard against foul talk; let your words be for the improvement of others, as occasion offers, and do good to your listeners, otherwise you will only be grieving the Holy Spirit of God who has marked you with his seal for you to be set free when the day comes. Never have grudges against others, or lose your temper, or raise your voice to anybody, or call each other names, or allow any sort of spitefulness. Be friends with one another, and kind, forgiving each other as readily as God forgave you in Christ.

Wow, I thought, I am so screwed.

Is lectio divina a powerful practice or what?

Meanwhile, back at the Office

Office?

I'm referring to the Liturgy of the Hours, the readings for which are conveniently delivered daily to my igoogle home page via Google Reader. Given recent conversations I've been having about what it means to be catholic and Catholic, this afternoon's reading leapt from the computer screen right into my heart.

Here's the passage, 1 Corinthians 12:24-26, in a variety of translations. It's supposed to be prayed circa 3:00 PM but why wait?

"God has arranged the body and that there may not be disagreements inside the body, but that each part may be equally concerned for all the others. If one part is hurt, all parts are hurt with it. If one part is given special honor, all parts enjoy it. " Jerusalem Bible

"God has so composed the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior part, that there may be no discord in the body, but that the members may have the same care of one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together." Revised Standard Version

"God has so constructed the body as to give greater honor to the part that is without it, so that there may be no division in the body, but that the parts may have the same concern for one another. If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if one part is honored, all the parts share its joy." New American Bible

And the next verse? "Now you together are Christ's body; but each of you is a different part of it." Grateful to be reminded at this point in time.

Words to Live By

Micah 6:8

Jonathan Feinberg is the clever soul who created Wordle which he explains, "...is a toy for generating 'word clouds' from text that you provide." Very fun; right up there with Magnetic Poetry which still, after all these years, has the power to keep me transfixed in front of my refrigerator for hours. Not that there's much worth contemplating inside my refrigerator...just a boring assortment of condiments.

So *that* explains it! (Judaism's Legacy #2)

This morning's calendar post from Aish.com lets me know it's 15 Shevat, which is:

Tu B'Shvat, the New Year for the Trees....In Jewish law, this means that fruit which has blossomed prior to the 15th of Shevat could not be used as tithe for fruit which blossomed after that date. The custom on Tu B'Shvat is to eat fruits from the seven species for which the Land of Israel is praised: "...a land of wheat and barley and (grape) vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and (date) honey" (Deut. 8:8).

I believe this explains my sudden near-primal urge to haul the artificial Christmas tree up from the basement -- during Ordinary Time. It might also explain why I'm jonesing for a childhood lunch treat of cream cheese and green olives on date nut bread.

So *that* explains it! (Judaism's Legacy)

Thanks to Aish.com, I awake each morning to a post titled, "Today in Jewish History." I find these both illuminating and useful. Much of the content I add to the list of evidence I summon to explain Judaism's legacy to my sisters and brothers in Christ.

And then there's the stuff that helps me understand why certain distinctive features of my own Jewish identity remain so durable. This morning's post provides a great example of what I mean by this. Today is 1 Shevat:

On this date, as the Jewish people were completing 40 years of wandering in the desert, Moses gathered the entire nation and began his farewell address. Moses' speech would continue for 40 days until his death, as described in the Book of Deuteronomy....

Aha! Does this not fully explain why I have a primal dislike for hiking, a primal fear of boating, and a primal aversion to long-winded homilies? I believe it does.