and re-view films such as american...

USELESS BEAUTY: ECCLESIASTESTHROUGH THE LENS OF CONTEM-PORARY FILM, by Robert K. Johnston.Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic,2004. Pp. 208. $17.99 (paper).

Like other scholars who hold that film isan important conversation partner with theperspectives of faith, Robert K. Johnstonproposes to put film and Christian Scrip-ture—and, specifically, Ecclesiastes—in acreative two-way dialogue. What makesUseless Beauty notable and well worth read-ing, however, is Johnston’s effort to resistthe usual methods of Christian movie cri-tique. Frequently, he claims, films areviewed principally through the filter of bib-lical standards of truth, a procedure that in-evitably relegates film to a second order ofanalytical reflection. Rather than followingthis worn path that grants the biblical wit-ness or theology epistemological priority,Johnston intends to reverse the “hermeneu-tical flow,” moving quite intentionally fromcinema to scripture. He maintains that thisapproach, beginning as it does with themoviemaker’s cameras, will give fresh in-sight to the message of Qoheleth. In short,this book intends to “take Ecclesiastes to themovies” (11).

Because Johnston aims to provide a sortof reader/reviewer criticism that sees Eccle-siastes through the lens of film, it followsthat the bulk of the book is devoted to acareful review and analysis of important re-cent movies. Indeed, Johnston’s sensitiveand insightful discussion of films is the chiefstrength of this book. One need not haveseen all the movies he treats in order tobenefit from the volume, although the bookdoes provide a compelling incentive to rent

and re-view films such as American Beauty,Monster’s Ball, About Schmidt, Signs, andmany more. In each instance, Johnston’sdescriptions reveal important aspects of thefilmmaker’s art and message before bring-ing them into alignment with the insights ofEcclesiastes. A genuine side-benefit of thebook is that it helps the reader to become amore sensitive and informed viewer of thefilm genre even as Johnston prompts thereader to consider, in new ways, the inter-face of culture and faith.

Given this goal, the author pays littleheed either to historical-critical concerns orto the history of the interpretation of Eccle-siastes. For example, alternative interpreta-tions of Ecclesiastes are barely mentioned inthe three pages that comprise the first of thebook’s appendices, and there they are sim-ply dismissed as being too “undialectical” todo justice to a biblical book that resists be-ing understood as a constructed whole(181). Elsewhere, in a five-page section ofthe final chapter titled “Let the ‘Preacher’Respond,” Johnston outlines his under-standing of Qoheleth’s message, again withno attention to alternative interpretationsof Ecclesiastes. This is unfortunate because,of course, reversing the usual “hermeneuti-cal flow” does not dissolve the reader/re-viewer’s role in the interpretive process. The“flow” remains a hermeneutical circle re-gardless of the starting point and, conse-quently, the way in which film providesinsight into Ecclesiastes remains depend-ent, at least in part, on what one under-stands the message of a film and the messageof Ecclesiastes to be. For example, Johnstonjudges Woody Allen’s existential Crimesand Misdemeanors, with that film’s stress onthe importance of creating one’s own

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meaning amid life’s ultimate meaningless-ness, to be antonymous to Qoheleth’s coun-sel that his readers, in the absence of anyfinal wisdom, ought simply to enjoy the giftof life (56). Nevertheless, it appears quitelikely that scholars such as James Crenshaw,Douglas Stuart, and (perhaps especially)Michael Fox would discover in Crimes andMisdemeanors a quite different, more con-gruent, insight into the message of Ecclesia-stes.

Unfortunately, the book also excludesQoheleth’s full participation in the prom-ised two-way dialogue between film andscripture. Johnston maintains that many ofthe films he reviews portray an authentichuman life as one that is lived in the delicatebalance between an individual’s recogni-tion of life’s ephemeral character, on theone hand, and the discovery of deep joy inlife, on the other. Life lived in this balance,he avers, is also Ecclesiastes’ message. Butbeyond the aforementioned five pages, Qo-heleth’s participation in the dialogue—andthus the reader’s chance to see a movie asQoheleth might view it—is largely limitedto brief quotations that appear as prooftexts that reaffirm the insights of the film’scharacters and of their directors. For exam-ple, Johnston describes how Graham Hess(Mel Gibson’s character in Signs) comes tounderstand that God is in charge of even theapparently random suffering that befalls allhuman beings. He writes, “Graham’s pain-ful yet liberating insight echoes that ofQoheleth,” and then straightaway citesEcclesiastes 3:1 and 7:13–14 (144). Thisprocedure establishes Johnston’s under-standing of Qoheleth as a validation of thework of Signs director M. Night Shyamalan,but it does little to further the reader’s un-derstanding of Qoheleth’s message.

The book’s shortcomings notwithstand-ing, this volume will be a useful tool in the li-brary of pastors and youth workers. First,there is an interpretation of Qoheleth here,if not the only one possible. Second, films—far more than the Bible—have become thecommon “texts” of our society. Under-standing these powerful expressions of con-temporary culture is therefore a crucial task

for any who would bear the message of thecross into our culture. Johnston’s sensitiveinterpretation of movies serves to equippastors and others who seek to find waysthat movies might converse with the biblicalwitness. Finally, preachers seeking somepertinent connection with the lives of theirparishioners in the Sunday sermon arelikely to find an inspirational model inJohnston’s approach. And that is no smallaccomplishment!

Walter C. BouzardWartburg CollegeDubuque, Iowa

PERSPECTIVES OLD AND NEW ONPAUL: THE “LUTHERAN” PAUL ANDHIS CRITICS, by Stephen Westerholm.Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2004. Pp.488. $35.00 (paper).

Like Gaul, this volume is divided intothree parts, and like Gaul, it should give itscritics pause before they plan another at-tack, though like Rome, perhaps, they maynever give up trying.

In this discursive, lengthy, but excellentbook Stephen Westerholm of McMasterUniversity, Ontario, examines contempo-rary studies on Paul bent on refuting a “Lu-theran” reading. At issue, writes Westerholm,is whether or not justification by faith apartfrom works of the law or Gentile admissionto the people of God is at the heart of theapostle’s thought. The old Paul, the “Lu-theran” Paul, current critics argue, has beensaddled with the scheme of Luther’s spiri-tual quest for a gracious God, resulting in acaricature of Judaism as championing sal-vation by works. In his Paul and PalestinianJudaism (Fortress, 1977), watershed of theold and new perspectives, E. P. Sanders in-sists that Paul was not concerned withwhether one earned salvation by works butwith on what terms Gentiles could get in,and as for Judaism, its unifying concept wasnot law and an absence of grace, but rather“covenantal monism,” membership in Is-rael. Sanders’s position has been seconded

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or nuanced by a host of others, among themthe Durham scholar James D. G. Dunn,who describes the thrust of Paul’s attack asthe restrictiveness implicit in Jewish em-phasis on the law.

First, Westerholm espies a “curious anom-aly” in Sanders’s linking texts dealing withjustification to a process by which outsidersmake it in. In none of these, he adds, is thecontext “covenantal.” And as for Dunn’snuance, Paul’s point is skewed when ap-plied merely to the law’s perversion. All inall, the notion of recent scholarship accord-ing to which Paul is at pains to show thatGentiles needn’t become Jews is short-sighted; more, it obviates the necessity ofChrist’s death. Following what had to be atedious reexamination of the pertinenttexts, and reminiscent of Carsten Colpe’srehearsal of materials on which members ofthe history-of-religions school once pastedthe figure of the “Redeemed Redeemer,”Westerholm concludes that, according toPaul, Jews, in essence, did not differ fromGentiles, for which reason there can be norighteousness based on law. Thus, he adds,all the essential features of the “Lutheran”Paul are supported by the relevant texts.

However much the “Lutheran” Paul mayhave transgressed historical occasions, ithas rightly captured Paul’s rationale and ba-sic point and, after all, it’s the point that’scrucial. In a puckish reflection on the chutz-pah of Paul’s current interpreters, to rightor left, Westerholm writes, “As the assump-tions that governed Paul’s thinking becomemore and more remote from our own, theassurance with which we pronounce on thedirection and deficiencies of his reasoningseems only to increase. Isn’t America won-derful?” (214).

This is not to say that the recent crowdhas gotten nothing right. In fact, Sanders’sconviction that Paul did not begin histhinking about sin or redemption by ana-lyzing the human condition, or in otherwords his interpretation of Paul as movingfrom solution to plight and not the otherway around, is eminently correct. (Thanksare due Werner Georg Kümmel for chal-lenging that old canard regarding Paul’spsychic shipwreck prior to his conversion.)More’s the pity that while Sanders deservesappreciation for getting Paul back on hisfeet or sympathetically depicting Judaism,neither he, Stendahl, and all their tribe have

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Reviews

You are invited toThe 13th Annual Word & World Lecture:

GAIL R. O’DAY

“Biblical Authority Today”

10:00 , Monday, October 24, 2005

Chapel of the Incarnation, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minnesota

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ever gotten beyond the portrait so dear tothe heart of Roland Bainton and every otherromantic of an introspective Augustinian,whose anguish prepared for a skewed read-ing of Paul that has ended in a travesty of Ju-daism and in the midst of a mountain ofevidence for the Reformer’s insistence thatthe confession of Jesus Christ is prior, notanterior, to knowledge of sin and law. ButLuther himself is to blame for it, with thatzusammengeschrümpft “biography” of his inthe 1545 preface to the Romans.

In all this discussion, of course, the“negative” complement of Paul’s gospel hasgotten the lion’s share, and no wonder,given the occasions for his letters. But thereare hints at the “positive” complement, andby both sides. Let Jürgen Becker speak forthem all: Paul’s “pressing concern is how hecan let the Christ who is near in the gospeldetermine and value everything” (248).

Once this complement enters the pic-ture, once it is acknowledged that Paul pro-ceeds from solution to plight, everything infact needs revaluing. As for the law, absentof or replete with grace, it is clear now that itwas never intended to be the ultimate ex-pression of the divine will. It rather leanedtoward an event in which the Creator wouldnot merely draw near to his creatures butbecome one with them. Again, if recent in-terpreters had gotten past their kindergar-ten Luther or troubled to consult someoneoutside their discipline, they would havelearned that for the Reformer “justifica-tion” was no mere moratorium but achristological statement that promised thepresence of the giver in the gift. This “inva-sion,” as J. Louis Martyn put it, explainswhy “the human path to blessedness” couldnever be an issue or a possibility for Paul,and why any other route spells “religion”(240). Too bad Lou and his teacher, ErnstKäsemann, didn’t get more space in thisbook. But I give it an “A” all the same.

Roy A. HarrisvilleLuther SeminarySt. Paul, Minnesota

APOSTLE OF THE CRUCIFIED LORD:A THEOLOGICAL INTRODUCTIONTO PAUL AND HIS LETTERS, by Mi-chael J. Gorman. Grand Rapids, MI:Eerdmans,2004.Pp.610.$39.00 (paper).

This book is not simply another memberof the “Introduction to Paul” mob. Gormanhas included several unusual features thatare so well conceived and carried out thatthis text stands apart from the crowd. Gor-man’s stated aim for this book is to help thereaders “engag[e] Paul and his letters as thepastoral, spiritual, and theological chal-lenge they were intended to be” (xi). For themost part, Gorman succeeds admirably inthis.

The book begins with six chapters onPaul’s life and thought. Notable here is thatGorman includes not only a chapter onPaul’s theology, but also one on Paul’s spiri-tuality. By “spirituality” Gorman means theshape of life in Christ, and he finds six adjec-tives to describe that life according to Paul:(1) It is covenantal, i.e., it has to do with theactivity of the faithful God of Israel. (2) It iscruciform, in that the cross of Jesus is notonly the source, but is also the shape of thislife. (3) It is charismatic, lived by the powerof the Spirit. These first three characteristicsalso point to an insistent and recurringclaim Gorman makes about Paul’s thoughtand spirituality: though Paul did not for-mulate a fully developed theology of theTrinity, Gorman finds that “Paul’s experi-ence of God can best be described as trini-tarian—he knows one God in three realities:Abba/Father, Messiah/Son of God/Lord Je-sus, and Holy Spirit/Spirit of God/Spirit ofChrist” (139). Gorman finds that from thesaving activity of this God come three fur-ther characteristics of the life of faith: (4) Itis communal, (5) it is countercultural, and(6) it is (new-)creational.

Next, Gorman includes a chapter oneach of the Pauline letters. In this discus-sion, Gorman treats authorship as a ratherbroad continuum ranging from Paul com-posing the letters himself (including 2Thessalonians), to his authorization of anassociate’s composition (Colossians and

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Ephesians), to an editing together of genu-ine pieces from Paul (2 Timothy), and thusfinds that Paul is more or less responsiblefor all of the New Testament letters thatbear his name except 1 Timothy and Titus.Gorman sees these last two letters as lackingin Paul’s own spirit, though Gorman stillsuggests that the best approach is to be ag-nostic about the authorship of these two let-ters.

Each chapter on one of the letters is aminiature commentary, and this is a greatstrength of the book. These chapters are or-ganized around three discussions. First,there is the “story behind the letter,” the his-torical and cultural background for thisparticular letter. In these discussions, Gor-man finds the account of Acts to be alargely accurate guide. Then comes thelargest part of these chapters, “the storywithin the letter,” a section-by-sectioncommentary. Here Gorman is careful tonote where there is scholarly disagreementabout the interpretation, especially for themost notoriously problematic passages. Heis clear about his own reading of the text,though he seldom argues at length to provethat he is right, and even less frequentlynames authors and works that would dis-agree with his reading. The Greek wordsthat Gorman mentions are always translit-erated and translated, making the book ac-cessible for those who do not know Greek.Throughout these discussions, Gormannotes significant features of three Englishtranslations: New Revised Standard Ver-sion, New International Version, and NewAmerican Bible, a useful inclusion of whatprobably are the most widely used transla-tions in mainline Protestant, Evangelical,and Roman Catholic settings, respectively.After the commentary section of thesechapters, Gorman includes a brief sectiontermed “the story in front of the letter,” a se-lection of quotations from church leadersand scholars with heavy representationfrom the last few decades of scholarly work,though including a good number of ancientvoices as well. This is a helpful way to bringthe reader into the larger conversation ofthe church regarding these letters, though

of course the voices included are selected byGorman.

Every chapter in the book concludeswith two very useful pieces. First, Gormanhas included a set of provocative and open-ended discussion questions. These ques-tions open up new possibilities for how thetexts are read and lived whether in one’sown thinking about these issues or in aclassroom setting. In the chapters on indi-vidual letters, the final question is always thesame, and reflects the core of Gorman’sreading of Paul: “In sum, what does this let-ter urge the church to believe, to hope for,and to do?” This question grows out of whatGorman sees as the fundamental shape ofthe cruciform life according to Paul: faith,hope, and love. “That is the question, infact, that drives the book” (xi). The finalpart of each chapter is a very helpful an-notated bibliography, divided between“general” works and those that are more“technical.”

As Gorman notes regarding Paul’s lettersat the beginning of his book, “The interpre-tation of every verse, nearly every word, isdisputed” (x). Thus, there will of course beplenty of opportunities to argue with Gor-man’s interpretations. His broad attribu-tion of Pauline authorship will mean, forsome readers, a softening of themes thatwould otherwise distinguish the “genuine”Paul from the Paul of the disputed epistles.However, Gorman’s treatment of the textsas a whole is careful and reasonable. Hereads Paul’s letters with penetrating theo-logical insight, and always with an eye onwhat these texts mean for the life of thechurch. Gorman has produced a rare andwelcome book: a clear and unencumberedintroduction to, or review of, Paul’s theol-ogy and letters.

Brian PetersonLutheran Theological Southern

SeminaryColumbia, South Carolina

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THE CHURCH COMES FROM ALL NA-TIONS: LUTHER TEXTS ON MIS-SION, compiled by Volker Stolle,translated by Klaus Detlev Schulz andDaniel Thies. St. Louis: Concordia, 2003.Pp. 111. $16.99 (paper).

Whether the Reformers were indifferentor even hostile to mission has been dis-cussed for a long time. The Lutheran failureto reach out to overseas territories duringthe sixteenth and seventeenth centuries hadbeen observed by Catholic opponents of theReformation such as Cardinal Bellarmini,who claimed in 1586 that the spread of thechurch over the whole world was a mark oftrue Catholicity absent among the Lutheranheretics. This lack of missionary impetus inthe emerging Lutheran churches is also evi-dent within Lutheran orthodoxy. In theWittenberg Opinion of 1652, the Theologi-cal Faculty of Wittenberg advised againstpreaching throughout the world, advocat-ing service at home instead. Some scholarsprojected this negative attitude back to Lu-ther and the early reformers. Among themwas Gustav Warneck, Professor at Halle andthe doyen of German missiology, whomissed in the Reformation “even the idea ofmissions, in the sense in which we under-stand them today” and concluded that Lu-ther was not “a man of missions in our senseof the word.” In rebuttal, Werner Elert sar-castically replied: “The poor man! Insteadof founding a missionary society, accompa-nying Cortez to Mexico, or at least assuringfor himself a professorship of missiology, hedevoted himself, of all things, to the refor-mation of the church!” Elert pointed outthat if one rejects the idea of missions as atheory that engages in an undertaking, un-derstanding it, rather, on the basis of the im-pact of the gospel, then it is clear thatLuther’s theology was missionary in nature:“[H]ow could Luther, who expounded thePsalms, the Prophets, and Paul, have over-looked or doubted the universal purpose ofthe mission of Christ and of his Gospel?”

This interpretation of Luther coincideswith a new understanding of mission as itemerged in the period of decolonization.

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Reviews

Gerhard O. Forde1927–2005

BY FAITH ALONE:ESSAYS ON JUSTIFICATION

IN HONOR OFGERHARD O. FORDE

edited by Joseph A. Burgessand Marc Kolden

350 pp. • Eerdmans, 2004

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Mission is no longer understood as one partof the world evangelizing another but as amovement from the fellowship of faith allover the world to all who stand outside thisfellowship. Since the World MissionaryConference at Willingen (1952) it has alsobeen stressed that God, not human agen-cies, lies behind this movement. If missionmeans being sent by God to witness to whathe has done in Jesus Christ, then there aremany relevant texts in Luther’s writings,and we thank Volker Stolle for compilingsome of them.

The book, an enlarged version of an ear-lier German publication, is divided intothree main chapters: biblical foundationsfor mission, practical realization of mission,and the history of mission. Each chapter be-gins with a brief introduction, followed bythe texts, presented with headings intendedto summarize key messages. The book alsoincludes an epilogue, biblical references,and a select bibliography.

A number of familiar themes appear,such as the priesthood of all believers (21),law and gospel (28–29, but also 31!), mis-sionary forms of liturgy as in the GermanMass and Order of Service (43), and, ofcourse, Luther’s famous illustration of themovement of the gospel: “as if one throwsa stone into the water” (24). Less familiarare Luther’s admonishments concerningthe war against the Turks (69), statementsabout the role of outsiders in the Old Testa-ment (17), and recognition that the gospelis always on the move: “The Gospel was inEgypt, then it was gone; furthermore, it hasbeen in Greece, in Italy, in France, and inother lands. Now it is in the land of Ger-many, for who knows how long?” (82). Thisis indeed a relevant message for us as weobserve that the gravity of Christianity isshifting once more—now from North toSouth, to Asia and especially Africa, wherewe find the most vibrant and fastest-growing churches.

The Church Comes from All Nationstherefore offers many useful glimpses intoLuther’s missionary thinking, for congrega-tions and seminaries alike. However, somecritical comments have to be made. First of

all, an annotated apparatus would helpidentify such obscure references as the Jewat the court of Emperor Sigismund (38).

More importantly, however, it is impos-sible to deal with an extremely complextopic such as Luther’s approaches towardsother religions by selecting twelve rathersmall extracts. We know, for example, thatLuther changed his attitude towards theJews between the 1520s and the early1540s.His earlier writings were friendly and open,while the later publications, such as TheJews and their Lies (1543), were hostile andanti-Semitic. These are beyond defense. Butwe have to face the fact that Luther wrotethem. Simply to omit them, or to refer tothem only in passing, cannot be a solution.

Similarly, in regard to Islam, one missesLuther’s interpretation of some Bible textsthat help in understanding his view of Islamin its historic context. Referring to Revela-tion 9 and 10, Luther saw the rise of theTurkish empire as a sign of the end timesand regarded Mohammed as “the secondwoe” (after Arius). He understood Islam asa Christian heresy. The view that there werealso strong parallels with the Roman Catho-lic Church derived from his interpretationof the book of Daniel, in which Luther sawboth Islam and papacy predicted. In thetwenty years between the German and theEnglish publication of The Church Comesfrom All Nations (in 1983 and 2003, respec-tively), some important contributions onLuther’s view of Islam appeared, such asPaul Rajashekar’s studies in English (Lutherand Islam: An Asian Perspective, Göttingen,1990) and Hartmut Bobzin’s research inGerman (Der Koran im Zeitalter der Refor-mation, Beirut, 1995). There are also majornew works on Luther and Judaism, amongthem Heinz Kremers, ed., Die Juden undMartin Luther—Martin Luther und die Ju-den (Neukirchen, 1985), and Peter von derOsten-Sacken, Martin Luther und die Juden(Stuttgart, 2002). There are no references tothese books in Stolle’s bibliography.

Finally, if we understand mission in thewider sense of God’s mission in which weparticipate by witnessing and proclama-tion, the question of other important con-

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tributions by Luther arises. The “simuliustus et peccator” (righteous and sinner atthe same time) principle is as relevant formissions as texts on the theology of thecross, which emphasize the reevaluation ofall things and God’s solidarity with the poorand marginalized. In this context, one couldrefer not only to the Heidelberg Disputa-tion (especially thesis 20), but also toLuther’s interpretation of Psalm 121, inwhich he explains that the word of Godmeans “to believe in invisible things and tobelieve [that there is] in poverty richness, insadness joy, in loneliness help and in expul-sion sure and eternal grace.” This perspec-tive is also emphasized by Asian and Africantheologians such as Paul Devanandan andZephania Kameeta. Last, but not least, thereis Luther’s immense contribution in“Translating the Message.” His German Bi-ble is widely regarded as the greatest literaryevent of the sixteenth century. However,Luther’s main objective with his Bible wasto communicate the gospel as good news tothe people. He started in his own family andgladly referred to the immediate impact ofhis translation: “Now my Katie understandsthe psalms better than all the papists didthen.”

Frieder LudwigLuther SeminarySaint Paul, Minnesota

CHRIST CRUCIFIED: A 21ST CENTURYMISSIOLOGY OF THE CROSS, byMark W. Thomsen. Minneapolis: Lu-theran University Press, 2004. Pp. 121.$16.00 (paper).

In this suggestive work, Mark Thomsenboldly proceeds to articulate a missiologyfor the twenty-first century that, for him as aLutheran, necessarily is grounded in Lu-ther’s theology of the cross. Thomsen bothculls out decisive missiological implicationsof Luther’s theology of the cross for thechurch’s witness in the twenty-first centuryand rejects the overriding individualisticthrust in Luther’s theology and in the inter-

pretations of Luther and Lutheran theolo-gies, especially Lutheran orthodoxy of thesixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Con-vinced that Luther’s theology of the cross iscosmic and creation-centered in scope,Thomsen places the doctrine of justificationwithin the more inclusive vision of the the-ology of the cross. This assumption ought tochallenge the reader to pursue and examinefurther.

Thomsen builds his argument upon thepivotal Reformation principle of salvationby grace alone, through faith alone, inChrist alone. But, he places this principlenot in an abstract world of theological argu-ments concerning what is orthodox; rather,he places it in the world of religious diver-sity, Western colonialism and imperialism,poverty and exploitation and other forms ofhuman suffering that have been and are stilloften ignored and/or even justified and pro-moted in the name of the cross of JesusChrist. In this regard, the author opens hiswork with a terse description of the haunt-ing reality that historically hosts of people ofother faiths (and ethnic and racial back-grounds)—such as Muslims, Jews, Hindus,Buddhists, and Confucians—experienced,and thus came to associate the cross, “a uni-versal symbol for Christianity” (9), withwidespread and sustained oppression, theholocaust, and dehumanization. At thesame time, he rightly observes, “[A] multi-tude of Christians inhabiting the poor re-gions of the third world have seen thecross as a hope-filled symbol of Christ’ssolidarity with their pain and oppression”(10). Thomsen finds that it is preciselynon-contextual readings of Luther thathave played such a demonic role in the his-tory of Lutheran and other interpretationsof Luther.

Thomsen calls for a theology of the crossin which the priesthood of all believers isprimary in the missiological vision of MissioDei (mission of God) and the approaches tothe Missio Dei that are called forth in today’sworld are commensurate with that vision.The pervasive and variegated presence ofthe laity in God’s world needs to be at thecenter of all strategies for cruciform mission

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and servanthood living. Thomsen corrobo-rates his accent on the primacy of the laityfor the Missio Dei by drawing attention tothe fact that “Lutheran theology is moldedby its radical critique of the medieval Ro-man Church embodied in a priestly hierar-chy which claimed that the church throughthe sacraments validated by the priesthoodenabled all of Christendom to participate ineternal salvation” (13).

He insists that “the proclamation of thecrucified Jesus” must be seen “within thecontext of four other Lutheran theologi-cal emphases” (12): “salvation is sheergift: justification by grace through faith”(12f.); “the Church is a gospel-created andgospel-proclaiming community” (13–15);“creation is good and is the arena of God’spresence and mission” (15f.); and “hold toChrist and for the rest be totally uncommit-ted” (16f.).

In his pursuit of a theology of missioncentered in a theology of the cross, Thom-sen draws on some valuable sources that heengages and critiques with care and re-spect. Thomsen’s analysis and use of Lu-ther’s theology, including Gerhard Forde’sexposition of Luther, show Thomsen’s in-debtedness to Luther, and they call for ex-ploration of the missiological dimensions ofLuther’s theology beyond the focus on thesinful individual self. Thomsen writes:

Luther’s thought, rooted in a 16th-century medieval piety which has con-tributed richly to the evangelical mes-sage, is so centered upon the self that itfails to see the theology of the cross as amissiological resource beyond preachingjustification by faith. The preaching ofjustification is a powerful dimension ofthe theology of the cross; however, it is amuch richer resource for mission thanthat which is articulated by Luther. (18)

He acknowledges Forde’s “challengingvoice” that “has continually called thechurch to a gospel that focuses on grace,justification and forgiveness as sheer gift”(65). But, Thomsen argues, Forde’s worklacks the vital and necessary groundings incontextual realities. Drawing on the cri-

tique of feminist and liberation theologians,who assert that sin “is the devaluation of theself” (43), Thomsen candidly says: “Whatdisturbs me about Forde’s exposition is notso much his own exposition of Luther’s the-ology of the cross, but his incapacity to un-derstand what is being affirmed by histheological adversar ies , thesentimentalizers of the cross” (43–44).

Thomsen critically evaluates variousworks that posit a pluralist approach or of-fer an alternative to such an approach,showing their theological and missiologicalstrengths and shortcomings. His own inclu-sivist approach, rooted in Luther’s theologyof the cross, is a timely call for the churchand individual Christians not to be shy orashamed, through a cruciform, servant wayof being, to share the gospel of God’s in-credible offer of forgiveness through thesuffering, death, and resurrection of JesusChrist.

Thomsen’s work defies the ideologicalcategories and pitfalls of liberal and conser-vative, precisely because its premise is thatlanguage about God is necessarily languagethat is christologically and pneumatologi-cally trinitarian and missional. Here thereader is given a splendid, insightful, attimes poignant, missiological vision cen-tered in God’s work in the crucified andrisen Jesus Christ. Thomsen’s conversationpartners and sources are wide and varied,which offers the reader some insightful re-sources for further reading. I highly recom-mend this work to a wide audience, lay andordained, to read, ponder, discuss, and en-gage in word and action. This would be aninvaluable resource to be read in conversa-tion with the Lutheran Confessions andwith the Joint Declaration on the Doctrineof Justification (31 October 1999). We owemuch to Mark Thomsen for providing uswith such a provocative work, one that trulydeserves to be described as dialectical.

Winston D. PersaudWartburg Theological SeminaryDubuque, Iowa

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TREASURE IN CLAY JARS: PATTERNSIN MISSIONAL FAITHFULNESS, byLois Y. Barrett et al. Grand Rapids, MI:Eerdmans,2004.Pp.172.$18.00 (paper).

Treasure in Clay Jars is a collaborativelywritten book that tells the story of eight con-gregations and one cluster of congregationsin becoming missional communities offaith. One of the first collaborative bookscoming out of the Gospel and Our CultureNetwork (GOCN) was Missional Church: AVision for the Sending of the Church in NorthAmerica (Eerdmans, 1998). Its purpose wasto lay down the theological vision of con-gregations in mission. In its aftermath,many questions were raised: “How wouldyou know a missional church if you sawone?” “What indicates that a congregationis missional?” “How can our congregationfind enough encouragement to continue tomove toward becoming missional?” SinceMissional Church was a study of the charac-ter and activities of the church, Treasure inClay Jars builds on this work and gives somereal-life examples of congregations in theUnited States and Canada that were judgedas being “missional” according to specific“patterns.”

A research team of seven was put to-gether in 1998 to look at diverse congrega-tional models of the missional church. Thisecumenical team included scholars, con-sultants, pastors, and church administra-tors. Twelve “indicators” of a missionalchurch were devised by the team, drawingheavily from the book Missional Church andfrom the research team’s own experience.The twelve “indicators” were later trans-formed into eight “patterns.” The shift re-flects a major component of the research.Nominations of congregations were thencollected from around North America froma wide range of people. The final eight con-gregations and one cluster of congregationsstudied for this book were among thosenominated. It is important to note that theauthors make no claims that these congre-gations are the most missional in NorthAmerica. Nor did they discover in their re-search a one-size-fits-all approach to reviv-

ing congregations. The congregations stud-ied were diverse in terms of geography, tra-dition, ethnicity, and size. The authors doclaim, however, that each of these congre-gations “exhibits some missional character-istics and is seeking to move in a missionaldirection” (x). The hope of the book is toencourage congregations in their journey tobecome missional.

The reader will discover at least two fas-cinating dimensions of this book that couldbe used for private reflection, seminary in-struction, and/or congregational study; thatis, the rich congregational sketches and thedescription and application of the eight pat-terns of missional faithfulness. The congre-gational sketches, although not exhaustive,are detailed and skillfully written. Storiesfrom these congregations pepper everychapter. These congregations include Men-nonite, non-denominational, two Presby-terian, two Baptist, a cluster of Reformedcongregations, United Methodist, and Ro-man Catholic.

The eight patterns of missional faithful-ness around which the book is organized in-clude:Pattern 1: Mission Vocation

The congregation is discovering togetherthe missional vocation of the community. Itredefines “success” and “vitality” in terms offaithful to God’s calling and sending. It isseeking to discern God’s specific missionalvocation (“charism”) for the entire commu-nity and for all of its members.Pattern 2: Biblical Formation andDiscipleship

The missional church is a community inwhich all members are involved in learningwhat it means to be disciples of Jesus. TheBible is normative in this church’s life. Bib-lical formation and discipline are essentialfor members of the congregation.Pattern 3: Taking Risks as a ContrastCommunity

The missional church is learning to takerisks for the sake of the gospel. It under-stands itself as different from the world be-cause of its participation in the life, death,and resurrection of its Lord. It is raisingquestions, often threatening ones, about

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the church’s cultural captivity, and it isgrappling with the ethical and structuralimplications of its mission vocation.Pattern 4: Practices that Demonstrate God’sIntent for the World

The pattern of the church’s life as commu-nity is a demonstration of what God intendsfor the life of the whole world. The practices ofthe church embody mutual care, reconcilia-tion, loving accountability, and hospitality. Amissional church is indicated by how Chris-tians behave toward one another.Pattern 5: Worship as Public Witness

Worship is the central act by which thecommunity celebrates with joy and thanks-giving both God’s presence and God’spromised future. The community’s vitalpublic witness flows out of its worship.Pattern 6: Dependence on the Holy Spirit

The missional community confesses itsdependence upon the Holy Spirit, shownin particular in its practices of corporateprayer.Pattern 7: Pointing toward the Reign of God

The missional church understands itscalling as witness to the gospel of the in-breaking reign of God, and strives to be aninstrument, agent, and sign of that reign.Pattern 8: Missional Authority

The Holy Spirit gives the missionalchurch a community of persons who, in avariety of ways and with a diversity of func-tional roles and titles, together practice themissional authority that cultivates withinthe community the discernment of mis-sional vocation and is intentional about thepractices that embed that vocation in thecommunity’s life.

The authors are: George R. Hunsberger,Darrell Guder, Lois Barrett, Dale Ziemer,Linford Stutzman, Walter Hobbs, and JeffVan Kooten. Their work represents morethan a sociological study of congregations.Their purpose is to allow a specific theologyof mission to penetrate every dimension ofthe book itself and help create a grid for un-derstanding healthy congregations. Readerswill want to compare the missiologicalthrust of this book, and the development ofthe eight missional patterns, with similarvocabularies that are emerging in a lot of

theological literature today; for example,“marks of discipleship,” “congregationalpatterns of faithfulness,” “indicators ofhealthy congregations,” “signs of organicchurch development,” and “Christian prac-tices” in vital congregations.

Treasure in Clay Jars is a book about thestories of real congregations, stories thatwitness to the missional character of thesecommunities. The book is well written, pro-vocative, concrete, and will certainly be use-ful for real communities around NorthAmerica as they struggle with their owncalls to missional faithfulness.

Richard BlieseLuther SeminarySt. Paul, Minnesota

LA LUCHA CONTINUES: MUJERISTATHEOLOGY, by Ada María Isasi-Díaz.Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 2004. Pp. 270.$24.00 (paper).

This past year has blessed us with both aten-year anniversary edition of Ada MaríaIsasi-Díaz’s seminal work, En la Lucha/Inthe Struggle: Elaborating a Mujerista Theol-ogy (Fortress, 2004), and a new collection ofarticles more recently written by Isasi-Díaz.In the latter, the struggle to raise up thehopes and voices of Hispanas/Latinas hascontinued to unfold. Readers familiar withIsasi-Díaz’s style of theo-ethics will recog-nize the themes that she raises in this vol-ume. Yet this book has a personal tone thatwas not as pronounced in her early work. InEn la Lucha she laid out a methodology forher ethnographic conversations with grass-roots Latinas. In the middle of that volume arecord of the actual voices of those womenbubbled up, providing the readers with di-rect contact with the witness of these reflec-tive women. In her commitment to raise upthe experiences of these other women, shesaid little about her own narrative. Shenever denied that it was present, but she re-fused to allow her story to overshadow thatof the others.

A compelling element in this new book isher autobiographical reflection. One learns

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of how her early struggles as a woman in theRoman Catholic Church shaped her endur-ing commitments to liberation. She speaksof her own sense of spirituality, forged whileshe was on a picket line. She talks about herlonging for the place she had left in heryouth but also of how La Habana still in-habits her. She shares the experience of wea-riness in the movement for justice, and howthe poetry of Julia de Burgos brought thepassion back to her life in la lucha. She re-flects on her “anguish, pain, fright and loss”as one who lives and works in the place mostimpacted by 9/11; she laments the attemptto co-opt these emotions and transformthem into anger and vengeance by those inour nation who had already decided on war.These personal reflections were deeplymoving and left me hoping that Isasi-Díazmight find the time to write an autobiogra-phy. These personal elements helped me tohear the connections between her narrativeand those of the other women she hashelped us to hear in the past.

Isasi-Díaz has several themes that runthroughout the essays. She draws uponher community to envision the proyectohistórico, or historical project that mostlikely will offer them hope. Unlike many lib-erationists who make a clear distinction be-tween reflection and action, she insists thatgathering women together to reflect ontheir lives and their desired futures is itself apraxis. In a world where the thought and ex-periences of these women are consistentlydiscounted or ignored, to gather and re-spectfully find their voices together is inand of itself a practice of resistance, not aprelude or postlude to resistance. Speakingand listening to each other in a respectfulsetting enhances their own sense of agencyin the world and offers those of us wiseenough to listen a more expansive way ofunderstanding the world we share.

What I missed most in this book were theconcrete voices that inhabited the center ofher earlier work. There is no doubt thatthe communities with whom she gathershave definitively shaped her own ethical-theological claims. Yet their actual voices inthe earlier work functioned well in many

ways. First of all, they helped the readers seethe multiple dimensions from which His-panas/Latinas approach a particular con-cern. One could note similarities in the waysthat Julieta, Caridad, and Marta exercisedmoral agency, but one could also see thespecific diversity that exists in their testimo-nies and approaches. Since in this book weonly hear these voices through the analyticfilter of Isasi-Díaz, no way to explore this di-versity through primary sources is possiblewithin the confines of the book.

The concrete voices and narratives of theparticular women also might have clarifiedthe breadth and limitations of this work.Isasi-Díaz is well aware that neither she norher groups speak for all Hispanas/Latinas.She warns the reader of this. Yet as one readsstatement after statement that begins with“Hispanas/Latinas’ sense of familia,” orother such generalizations, one may forgetthe confession of limitations that begins thebook. I found myself asking which Latinavoices do not appear in this book? In par-ticular I wonder about the presence or ab-sence of the growing number of Protestantor Evangelical Hispanas/Latinas. Wouldthey be comfortable with formulating theirproyecto histórico with such scant referenceto the Bible? Would they conceive of Jesu-cristo as one among many christs in thesearch for justice? Would they see the ethi-cal dimensions of spiritual life as the mostappropriate place to begin each discussion?

Of course, no book can do everything.Isasi-Díaz and the people she represents can-not speak for everyone, not even for all His-pana/Latina women. Yet they will speak afundamentally important word for everyonewith ears to hear. And given the sense of hos-pitality that pervades this book, one wouldexpect Isasi-Díaz herself to respond to theabove concern, “Verdad! It’s true! So go andlisten to those other important voices, iden-tify with them, and next time we get together,you be sure to bring them along!”

Philip Ruge-JonesTexas Lutheran UniversitySeguin, Texas

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