Resources

Reading the Word

The Darkend Room

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02 Editor’s Note03 Dialogue16 On the Web

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Travis Scott finds Donald Miller’s new book, To Own a Dragon, to be an insightful book on a topic of increasing importance in our fragmented world.

04David John Seel reviews a horror film, The Exorcism of Emily Rose. It’s designedto raise vital questions, for both Christians and non-Christians.

CritiqueHelping Christians Develop Skill in Discernment

Issue #6 - 2006A Publication of Ransom Fellowship

Table Grace

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The IVP Atlas of Bible History is an excellent new resource, with maps, charts, and artist’s renderings, to have at hand when reading Scripture.

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In the first of a series, Karen and Stephen Baldwin help us reflect on how a simple meal of corn bread and soup reveals grace.

Out of Their Minds 15Quotes from Anthony Hoekema, John Stott, Tom Hodgkinson, and the Chief Rabbi of London.

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Editor’s Note

~Denis Haack

Two new

Long time read-ers of Critiquemight notice

something new inthis issue. Two newthings importantenough to mentionhere: a new genreand a new column.

The newgenre appears in

The Darkened Room, our column on film.Movies have had a prominent emphasis inCritique. Film is a lively creative art, andseems to be the visual art which has the great-est reach in, and the greatest impact on, ourglobalized world. Some films are merelyescapist entertainment, many are carefullycrafted, thoughtful art. Nevertheless, filmsboth reflect and shape our world. Movies con-tain the stories of the postmodern generation,and thus are central to an ongoing conversa-tion in our culture about the hopes, fears,ideas, and values that matter most. We wantto be part of that conversation.

The thing that is new is that for the firsttime we review a horror film. John Seel asksus to reflect on Scott Derrickson’s TheExorcism of Emily Rose. He argues that thefilm identifies an important aspect of theChristian world view that most Christianshave ceased to believe. That we have been somolded by our culture that, contrary to whatwe claim in our creeds, we tend to see and livelife from a secular rather than a supernaturalperspective. Seel’s challenge is one I hopeevery reader will take to heart.

The new column we have decided to callTable Grace. It’s about food, the delight ofcooking, meals, and hospitality. It’s where wewill reflect on these essential aspects of com-munity, family, and life, and provide practicalinsight—like recipes, menus, and cooking

tips—so we can get past theory and intoeveryday faithfulness. I thought of beginningthis column when Margie and I were speakingin Concord, NC, hosted by our dear friends,Karen and Stephen Baldwin. They don’t justeat for nutrition, but because food is a goodgrace of God and because hospitality is a formof radical Christian faithfulness in our frag-mented world. They demonstrate how ourtable can be a grace extended to people wholive fast-food lives and often come from bro-ken families where cooking together and eat-ing together rarely occurs.

Rachel, Stephen and Karen’s daughter,mentioned that when she was in highschoolher friends loved to hang out at the Baldwinhome. Often they just happened to show upin time for dinner. They were made welcome,swept into the meal preparation and a livelyconversation which would be allowed tounfold naturally, often touching on what wasin the hearts of those who were there. TheBaldwin’s continue that same practice withthose God naturally brings into their lives,their table and kitchen made into a placewhere people meet grace. Not everyone canlive like that, day by day, and since we havedifferent callings to pursue, we should not try.But meals are a part of everyone’s life, andhospitality is a gift we can all offer to friends,co-workers, and neighbors who may not shareour deepest values and convictions. So, I hopethat Table Grace will help us all to seriouslyconsider how we can grow ever more faithfulin offering the grace of food, unhurried time,and conversation to a hungry and lonelyworld. The postmodern generation will notcome to church, but it will come to our table.I’m delighted Steve and Karen have consentedto become Contributing Editors.

~Denis Haack

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DialogueRe: It wasn’t Chesterton, breaths of fresh air, & Narnia

To the editor:

I noticed in Critique #3-2006 (“Life,Love, Lust & Love: a review of Match

Point) that you attributed the quote, “Everyman who knocks on the door of a brothel islooking for God” to G. K. Chesterton.However, he didn’t write it. It is from theauthor Bruce Marshall in the book The World,the Flesh, and Father Smith published in 1945.The actual line is: “I still prefer to believe thatsex is a substitute for religion and that theyoung man who rings the bell at the brothel isunconsciously looking for God.” I don’t sharethis to nitpick. I know you are concerned foraccuracy and when I was doing research for oneof my books I had planned to use the samequote but the President of The ChestertonSociety was kind enough to correct me.

Peace and Prayers,Steven James

via email

Denis Haack responds:

Thanks for the correction. I supposeone of the reasons this has so often been

attributed to Chesterton is that it sounds likesomething he could have said, complete withwit and a level of insight into life that comesonly with deeply honed wisdom. I’m glad toget it right in the future.

To the editor:

I will graduate from TrinityEvangelical Divinity School next week

with an MDiv, the fruit of 3+ years of laboringin God’s word. As I face graduation and myfirst full-time children’s ministry position I real-ized how Ransom Fellowship has been animportant part of this season of my life. Everytime I received Critique it was like a breath offresh air—a reality check in the midst ofexegetical and ultra-technical academia. The

music you have guided me to has been a won-derful experience that has helped me get intouch with my humanity. It is so encouragingto know that you and others have committedyour lives to faithful, thoughtful, and refreshingcultural engagement. I look forward to yourministry in my life and in the lives of those Imeet in the next chapter of my life. Thank youfor everything, and may God bless you.

Stacy KimFairfax, VA

To the editor:

For the past year, I have receivedissues of Critique and Notes from Toad

Hall and have enjoyed them thoroughly. I par-ticularly find the book and movie reviews help-ful, especially as I am going off to UNC-CHnext year. My friends and I will get together,watch a recommended movie (last week wewatched Match Point) and usually discuss themovie afterwards.

In Critique #9-2005, the Editor’s Note(titled “An Unseemly Cheer”) talked aboutreactions to the film, The Lion, the Witch andthe Wardrobe. I cannot help but heartily agreewith you in letting the film, book, (and gospel)stand on its own. As a little girl, my motherwould read the Narnia books to us, and at theend I would always ask if Aslan was Jesus—justto be sure. But she would never answer medirectly, which was very wise. At that time, Icould not reconcile the God I found in churchto the God of these (and in these) stories. Yearslater, He delighted me with Himself, but onlyafter that point could I love Aslan as I didJesus.

Thank you for your refreshing and win-some articles. They are a delight.

Natalie J. Moorevia email

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The Exorcism of Emily Rose

Starring: Laura Linney (Erin Bruner) Tom Wilkinson (Father Moore) Campbell Scott (Ethan Thomas) Jennifer Carpenter (Emily Rose) Colm Feore (Karl Gunderson) Joshua Close (Jason) Kenneth Welsh (Dr. Mueller) Duncan Fraser (Dr. Cartwright) Mary Beth Hurt (Judge Brewster) Henry Czerny (Dr. Briggs) Shohreh Aghdashloo (Dr. Adani)

Director:Scott Derrickson

Producers:Paul Harris Boardman, Beau Flynn.

Writers:Paul Harris Boardman &Scott Derrickson.

Cinematographer:Tom Stern

Original Music:Christopher Young

Runtime: 119 minutes

Release: Sony Pictures, U. S. A., 2005.

Rated: PG-13 (for intense disturbing scenes.)

b y D a v i d J o h n S e e l , J r.

A review ofThe Exorcism of Emily Rose

Credits:

(122 minutes unrated version)

When Jesus says to his disciples,“He who has ears to hear, lethim hear,” he is pointing out

the simple but sobering fact that we tendto see what we want to see, hear what wewant to hear, understand what we wantto understand. Facts don’t speak forthemselves. They are only meaningfulwithin a given framework and the choiceof an interpretive framework will deter-mine which facts are important and whatthey mean. More often than not, inter-pretive frameworks are culturally derived.The zeitgeist dictates the boundaries ofcognitive plausibility—what is thinkable,say-able, and doable.

For example, to be modern is toaccept the premise that public life is tobe governed by science and reason, notby religion or revelation. Religion andrevelation is the province of a supposedlybackward medievalism—or worse,Islamic fundamentalism. Really? We maydecry the inherent violenceof Islamic fundamentalism,but we must respect theircommitment to viewing allof life from within the dic-tates of theism. TheIslamic critique of the Westshould resonate with reflec-tive orthodox Christianswho should also decry theglobal crusade of individu-alistic, hedonistic, nihilistic

consumerism. They have a point worthacknowledging, even if we disagree withtheir means and ends. To the extent thatwe accept the modern dualism that lim-its religious conviction to the private and

personal, we have made reli-gious conviction subjectiveand irrelevant—a harmlesssideshow to things that real-ly matter.

This divide between amodern and pre-modernoutlook on life is powerfullydepicted in the 2005 film,The Exorcism of Emily Rose.This is a deeply challengingfilm adapted from an equal-

Confronting the Paradigms of Plausibility

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ly troubling true story. Few films more successfully pit a modern nat-uralistic explanation of reality against its ancient supernatural alter-native. Few raise honest questions about both more fairly.

The film is an adaptation of the book, The Exorcism of AnnelieseMichel, written by reli-gious anthropologistand Denison Universityprofessor FelicitasGoodman. The story isabout a 19-year-oldpious Catholic Germangirl who is allegedlypossessed by demons.After prolonged med-ical and psychiatric intervention, Anneliese and her parents turn totheir local church for help. After receiving permission from theCatholic bishop, a local priest conducted exorcisms from September1975 to July 1, 1976, the day Anneliese died. Local authorities thenarrested the priest and parents and put them on trial for negligenthomicide.

Thirty years later, writer Paul Boardman and writer/directorScott Derrickson took the essence of this true story and turned itinto a compelling courtroom drama. The philosophical divide is fur-ther heightened in the film by the juxtaposition of a reluctant agnos-tic defense attorney and a determined Protestant churchgoing prose-cutor. Mick LaSalle writes in the San Francisco Chronicle, “Based ona true story, Emily Rose is the thinking person’s demon possessionmovie, which presents a chilling case history that’shard to explain away.”

Scott Derrickson is an open, articulateChristian, a graduate of Biola University’s film pro-gram. Emily Rose cost $19 million and as of July2006 has grossed $144 million worldwide. At atime when the average film costs $96 million andis deemed a success if it makes a three-fold return,Emily Rose is a triumph. The release of Derrickson’snext film, Paradise Lost, is due next year.

In an interview with Response, Derrickson explained the purposeof Emily Rose, “A lot of Hollywood films are escapist in their nature.They offer the audience a temporary denial of the difficult realitiesof life and the darkness that exists in the world. In the horror genre,the great potential of it is that it forces us to reckon with what weare afraid of. It forces us to admit an experience—that there is evil inthe world, and in ourselves. There’s evil in nature. We’re not in con-

trol. I think it’sthe genre ofnon-denial….I didn’t wantto make amorallyinstructivemovie, and Ididn’t want tomake a moviethat was benton providingreligious answers for the audience, because I am so resistant to thatkind of propaganda myself. But I felt that this was the opportunityto help provoke the audience into asking the right spiritual ques-tions.”

Some have questioned the film’s preoccupation with demons. Inthe film, Father Moore states, “People say God is dead, but how canthey think that if I show them the Devil?” While it is true that beliefin demons is a long way from belief in God, it is even a longer wayfrom belief in naturalism. For many moderns, the first step towardbiblical belief is a renewed openness to spiritual reality of whateverkind—New Age, Gnostic Gospels, pop Kabala or Neo-paganism.Such “re-enchantment” is a step in the right direction. For nothing isdeader than the stilted mind that reduces reality to scientific proof.Science has its place, but not as the ultimate arbiter of all reality.Scientism is not science anymore than pornography is sexuality.

In the modern world, seeing is believingand believing is dependent on empirical proof.Anything that does not meet these criteria isdeemed irrational or non-existent. This creates,in the words of Peter Berger, “a world withoutwindows.”

Not so the ancient world. In the medievalmind, the taken-for-granted assumptions werejust the reverse of the modern mind. The incor-

poreal was more real that the corporeal, the soul of greater impor-tance than the body, the unseen more significant than the seen.Historian Carolly Erickson writes, “Medieval perception was charac-terized by an all-inclusive awareness of simultaneous realities. Thebounds of reality were bent to embrace—and often to localize—theunseen, and determining all perception was a mutually held worldview which found in religious truths the ultimate logic of existence.”It was, in effect, a “windowed world.”

Few films more successfully pita modern naturalistic expla-nation of reality against itsancient supernatural alterna-tive. Few raise honest ques-tions about both more fairly.

For many moderns, the firststep toward biblical belief is arenewed openness to spiritualreality of whatever kind. Such“re-enchantment” is a step inthe right direction.

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Insert pull quote text here. Insert pull quote text here. Insert pull quote text here. Insert pull quote text here. Insert

Which perspective is more biblical?Which is the richer understanding ofreality?

Many Christians are quasi-natural-ists in practice. The unseen world haslittle impact on their daily lives.Heaven is a distant place, not theirimmediate environment. Demons are ametaphor for whatever they dislike, nota personal presence as real as theirneighbor. Possession is mental illness,the soul an illusion of DNA.Naturalism has become the lensthrough which they filter all of life.Dallas Willard warns, “We have heardof psychological ‘projections,’ and ourheads are full of pseudoscientific viewsthat reject a spiritual world and insistthat space is empty and matter the onlyreality. So we are prepared to treat all ofthis long historical record as a matter of‘visions’ that are ‘only imagination,’ oras outright delusions, not as perceptions

of reality. And we slumpback into those materialis-tic mythologies of our cul-ture that are automaticallyimparted to us by ‘normal’life as what ‘everyoneknows.’”

The priest in EmilyRose warns his warydefense attorney, “Demonsexist whether you believein them or not.” Film crit-ic Roger Ebert counters in

his skeptical review, “Yes, and youcould also saythat demons donot existwhether youbelieve in themor not because‘belief ’ by defi-nition standsoutside ofproof. If youcan prove it,you don’t need to believe it.”

The prosecuting attorney in EmilyRose challenges a defense witness, theprofessor who plays the role of the reli-gious anthropologist who later wrotethe book on which the film is based,“I’m looking at your list of publishedarticles doctor. You’ve beenquite busy, prolific. So,based on your time spentwith holy rollers, snake han-dlers, Voodoo priestesses andIndians tripping on peyotebuds, based on your observ-ing these bizarre individualsyou’ve concluded that pos-session is a basic typicalhuman experience?”

She retorts, “I must saycounselor, that’s quite a

laundry list of disdain and one thatthoroughly mischaracterizes myresearch.”

This sarcastic critique comes fromthe Protestant churchgoing prosecutor.For him and for many Christians likehim, God is relegated to Sunday school,but strictly quarantined by naive secu-larism from the boardroom, classroom,or courtroom. In Madness andCivilization: A History of Insanity in theAge of Reason, Michel Foucault suggeststhat madness is a social rather than amedical diagnosis merely reflecting the

boundaries of socialplausibility. Nodoubt, Foucaultwould see demonpossession in thesame light.

When Christiansallow social plausibili-ty to become the per-spective by which weinterpret reality, we

have become blinded by these assump-tions and are no longer biblically mind-ed. (This is the adult version of “peerpressure.”) If a film like Emily Rose canserve to remind us that “We wrestle notwith flesh and blood, but against therulers, against the authorities, against

When Christians allow socialplausibility to become the per-spective by which we interpretreality, we have become blindedby these assumptions and are nolonger biblically minded.

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the powers of this dark world and againstspiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realm”(Ephesians 6:12), then it has provided avaluable service in awakening us to theUnseen Real. As Christians we are called tochallenge the paradigms of plausibility—least we be taken “captive through hollowand deceptive philosophies, which depend

on human tradition and thebasic principles of this worldrather than Christ” (Colos-sians 1:8). Some may thinkabout demons today, butrarely with godly seriousness.They are domesticated by J.K. Rowling and used as amarketing ploy by PirelliTires (see www.pirellifilm.com/thefilm/index.html). Wewould be wise to heed thepriest’s warning, “Demonsexist whether you believe in

them or not.” ~David John Seel, Jr.

John Seel is a writer, educator, and culturalanalyst. He is currently working as a con-sultant to Walden Media. He lives inCohasset, Massachusetts with is wife,Kathryn. He can be reached at djsjr@earth-link.net.

Further ReadingAmorth, G. An Exorcist Tells His Story.

(Ignatius Press; 1999).Chattaway, P. “Horror: The Perfect

Christian Genre.” Christianity Today(August 30, 2005).

Foucault, M. Madness and Civilization:A History of Insanity in the Age of Reason.(Vintage; 1988).

Goodman, F. The Exorcism of AnnelieseMichel. (Resource Publications; 1981).

Overstreet, J. “Do You Believe inDemons? Response (Summer 2005).

Copyright © 2006 David John Seel, Jr.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION AND DISCUSSION

1. Seel suggests that “The zeistgeist dictates the boundaries of cognitive plausibility.” What is cognitive plausibility? Does plausibilitymake something true? Does majority opinion make something true? Does majority opinion make something more believable? Howdoes this work in day-to-day life?

2. What are the two world views depicted in Emily Rose? How are they reinforced throughout the film?

3. Derrickson is a Christian, but the other screenwriter, Paul Boardman is not. Is the film successful in maintaining a fair depiction ofthe two world views portrayed?

4. Does the film successfully raise questions about the possibility of a spiritual world without preaching?

5. What questions were you left with at the end of the film?

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My daughter, Rachel and I satdown the other night to watchTV. She had been following

The Next Top Chef, so we flipped to thechannel to see who was still hangingon.

The challenge for the day involvedblack truffles and a Schafer wine. Theingredients were introduced as “thefood at the top of the food chain;”expensive truffles to go with a winethat is “untouchable at any price.” Thecompeting chefs were to prepare a dishthat used the truffles and complement-ed the wine. Each was given $250 toprepare the dish, which would bejudged by world class chefs and Mr.Schafer himself. They would evaluateon taste, presentation, creativity, andcompatibility with the wine.

Drama and stress followed as theshow unfolded. I turned to Rachel at acommercial and told her that I wouldhate that kind of pressure in thekitchen.

We live in a community where fastfood is abundant. There are few fastfood chains not represented within a 5mile radius around our house. Thelines at drive-through windows arebacked up eachday. I wonderwhat childrenare growing upthinking as theyfuel up withpaper wrappedfood often eaten in the car on the waysomewhere.

These two images of food—TheNext Top Chef and fast-food chains—and the purpose food serves, are a sadreflection of where we are as a societytoday. They fail to reflect what I love somuch, and gain so much joy from,

when I am cooking and feeding people.I can appreciate the skill and gifts

of the person who is able to preparefood in such a dramatic way in such astressful setting. It tantalizes and wowsthe senses but it reduces eating to asensual self-serving experience in whichonly a few can participate. One leavesthe table unsatisfied, looking for thenext, grander experience. Food in thisinstance has become like a drug, andonly a very small percentage of thepopulation will ever participate in thislevel of gourmandize.

And most ofus have spenttime in that linefor fast food forall kinds of goodreasons. We’retraveling, rushing to or from work, orwe’re just too tired to prepare a meal.But when mealtime becomes a throw-away experience, we lose touch with awhole host of meaningful encountersthat seem at first to have little to dowith the basic act of eating.

We have come to believe that thereis infinite value in moving quicklythrough every task with as little effort

and time as wepossibly can. Wehave one-stopsupermarkets;internet/online billpayments; drivethrough every-

thing-under-the-sun. Meal time, too,has become for many just one morething to get through with as little trou-ble as possible; another task in analready hectic life.

I want to challenge this trend inour culture about how we think aboutfood.

And yet we are always hungry.Hungry to be full, to be satisfied. Justfilling our stomachs doesn’t completelydo it for us. We want more, we needsomething else—comfort, community,fulfillment, and we often trade one foranother. We think we are cutting cor-ners for all the right reasons, but whatare we sacrificing in the process?

When we don’t understand thecare, for example, that goes into thegrowing of produce, the crafting ofwines, beers, and cheeses, the raising oflivestock, we fail to appreciate that

there is a person,a craftsperson orartisan, or a wiseearthy farmerwho has put somuch into what

we only see as a final product. We losesight of the fact that there is an indi-vidual whose life and life’s work are allwrapped up in what we so quickly con-sume. Even in losing sight of such sim-ple things as setting the table, andteaching our little ones how to do it,we lose touch with something of ourhumanity.

Where and how we eat is impor-tant, as well. The back seat of a car, thecouch in front of the TV, a tablestacked with papers, books, and bags,each speaks of chaos and confusion.Our children’s first job around thehouse focused on the proper way toprepare the table for dinner. A tablecarefully set speaks of thoughtfulpreparation, anticipation of a time ofshared enjoyment and connecting.They learned that mealtime was a timethat required effort and planning andwhich created an environment wheresomething real and authentic occurred.Scraped knees, name-calling by neigh-

These two images of food—TheNext Top Chef and fast-foodchains—are a sad reflection ofwhere we are as a society today.

We should bless the God whocreated the food, rather thanasking God to bless the food wecooked.

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borhood kids, and broken toys wererehearsed, laughed over, comfort was given,perspective gained—we created a safe envi-ronment where our kids could begin toslough-off the burdens of the day. We redis-covered our center as a family. As our chil-dren became teenagers this was a vital timeand helped them navigate those dangerousyears.

Preparing food can and should be lookedat as a gift we can give to others. God madeus to need food and need it several timeseach and every day. And if you think aboutit, not only has he given us the ability totaste different flavors but he has created forus a countless variety of foods to eat andenjoy. What a gift. He also made us for fel-lowship; made us connoisseurs of one anoth-er, enjoying one another’s gifts, cultures,facial expressions. All this requires intention-ality. It takes care and thought to feed others,it takes interest and time to pursue relation-ships.

When our children were born I thoughta lot about what and how I was going to feedthem. Breast milk... yeah. That seemedhealthy and natural. When it came to solidfood, Stephen and I resonated with the factthat what we prepared ourselves was best forour growing babies, so I took care to buy thebest we could afford, seasoned it appropriate-ly, mashed it for them, and that was howthey learned to eat. It was work; it took timeand lots of planning and a commitment fromus—but our children were worth it, and they(eventually) knew it.

An addendum (#1): Blessing the God ofthe food

We have a tendency to elevate the foodrather than the Giver of food. Butreflect on Psalm 104: 1, 14-15:

Bless the Lord O my soulO Lord my God you are very great

You cause the grass to grow for the livestock

and plants for man to cultivate,that he may bring forth food from

the earthand wine to gladden the heart of man,oil to make his face shineand bread to strengthen man's heart.

The traditional Hebrew blessing for foodand wine are based on language such as isfound in the Psalm: “Blessed are You, God,King of the Universe, Creator of the fruit ofthe vine.” (Others respond: “Amen”)

Even if we avoid making an idol of food,we can err in another, subtler way by askingGod to “bless the food” and us and the mis-sionaries, rather than blessing God—thegiver of food and of every grace, and of everygood. We are not suggesting that we cease topray God’s blessing upon missionaries, or

upon ourselves. But we are drawn to theGod-centeredness of this ancient attitude ofblessing God, as the psalmist did. So, it isgood to think about varying our habit byblessing the God who created the food,rather than asking God to bless the food wecooked.

— Karen Baldwin

Copyright © 2006 Karen Baldwin

An addendum (#2): an alluring effect

When Karen was nineteen, she told meone night that she would cook forme. She invited me to her mother’s

house and prepared a meal. Until then I hadonly observed her briefly in my own mother’skitchen when we had a group of high schoolstudents out for the day in the country. Eventhat glimpse afforded an alluring realizationthat Karen was confident and at home in thekitchen. My mother was an excellent cook,

Karen makes bread

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and of the three brothers I guess Ishowed the most interest in food, so Iwas given jobs in the kitchen from ayoung age. My big debut was as ateenager being given the job of prepar-ing the Caesar Salad for a dinner partymy parents gave for their friends. And Iloved it. Thus my heightened interestwhen I realized that this young womanwith the long wavy brown hair liked tocook, too.

But I was not prepared for the effectthat her cooking would have on me.The fare was simple, but it spoke elo-quently of the gift and blessing thatmaking a meal can be. She made a sim-ple meal of potato soup and southerncornbread—both from scratch. It wasnot fancy, but the care that went into itspreparation, our enjoyment of the tastesand textures was more than just an expe-rience of the senses. The food was themedium of a greater thing: a personal,human interaction. It was also one ofthe first in a long succession of timeswhen we, and our children and friendsconnect at a table over food.

— Stephen Baldwin

Copyright @ 2006 Stephen Baldwin

Potato Soup (Serves 4)1/2 stick butter3 cups peeled diced potatoes

(Yukon Gold)1 cup diced onions1/2 cup diced celery (optional)1 teaspoon saltfreshly ground pepper3 1/2 cups chicken stock 1/2 cup half & half or cream2 tablespoons chopped parsley

or thyme

Melt the butter in a medium sizedheavy saucepan. When the butterfoams, add the potatoes, onions andcelery. Toss them in the butter untilwell coated. Sprinkle with salt and pep-per. Cover and sweat on a gentle heatfor 10 minutes (do not allow the veg-etables to color), add the stock andcook until the vegetables are soft. Pureethe soup with a stick blender, or mashwith a potato masher. Next add thechopped herbs. Taste and adjust theseasoning. Thin with half & half orcream to desired consistency. Servetopped with grated cheddar cheese.

Old Fashion Southern Cornbread1 cup of cornmeal1 teaspoon baking powder1 teaspoon salt1/4 teaspoon baking soda1 cup buttermilk1 egg1-2 tablespoons of bacon

grease or olive oil

Preheat oven to 450°. When theoven is up to temperature place a 7 to 8inch iron skillet in the oven to heat.

Mix the dry ingredients together ina medium sized bowl. Mix the butter-milk and the egg together in smallbowl, then add this mixture to the drycornmeal mixture and beat well with awooden spoon.

Add the grease or oil to the hot panand swirl to coat the bottom—use apot holder—the skillet will be reallyhot. Pour the cornbread batter into thehot pan and return to the oven.

Bake for 20 minutes until nicelybrowned on top and no longer soft inthe center.

Invert on a warm plate, cut intowedges and serve warm. Serve withhoney and butter if desired.

Stephen and Karen Baldwin anddaughter Rachel are living in Concord,North Carolina where they cook togeth-er often and where Stephen is involvedin planting a church that aims toencourage and recover artistry of allkinds, including food, as an act of wor-ship. After years as a pastor/churchplanter’s wife, Karen received her culi-nary training from the BallymaloeCookery School in County Cork,Ireland. She currently teaches cookingclasses for Williams-Sonoma inHuntersville, NC.

“If you can learn to make soup and bread, you will never starve.”

Most people have potatoes and onions in the house, so this is a simple anddelicious soup that doesn’t require expensive ingredients or a lot of time to pre-pare. While the vegetables are “sweating” there is time to mix up a pan of corn-bread.

Reading the Word

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he revelation of God in Scripture is notmerely a collection of holy sayings, it isa story set in history, in real space and

time. So, when we read the story of Abra-ham, for example, we are not face-to-facewith the figment of someone’s imagination,but a real man who as a nomad traveled toreal places. Places like Ur (which God calledhim to leave, which he did), a city calledHaran and then, after a brief unsatisfyingvisit to Egypt, eventually to a place calledKiriath Arba, where hisbeloved wife, Sarah, died.This story—and the Bible—is full of such detail, whichmeans that unless you knowthe geography of the ancientworld far better than mostpeople, you will want accessto a good atlas.

Thankfully, a good atlasis available. The IVP Atlas ofBible History traces in briefnarrative form an overviewof the biblical story, provid-ing a rich set of resources tohelp us make sense of thegeographical, chronological, cultural, climat-ic, commercial, historical, and archeologicaldetails that are embedded in the Bible’spages.

The IVP Atlas includes:3 Photographs of archeological artifacts,

such as the image on this page, of theChester Beatty Papyrus (dated AD 200)which is the opening pages of St Paul’s letterto Ephesus (though the words, “in Ephesus”are not included, leading scholars to con-clude the letter was intended to be sent to anumber of churches).

3 Chronological charts, including onefor the various kings of Israel and Judah, andanother charting out the major events ofScripture and the ancient Near East (stretch-

ing from 3100 BC with the beginning ofwriting to the persecution of the churchunder the Roman emperor Domitian in 96AD).

3 Almost 100 maps, including the onereproduced on this page, which traces thegeography covered by Abraham in his wan-dering as a nomad.

3 Insight into the latest findings andtheories of historians and archeologists in

relation to the biblical story.3 Numerous instructive

charts, such as the one includ-ed here which compares theaverage annual rainfall for foursites in Canaan important inthe biblical story.

3 Information on trade,languages, and campaigns ofwarfare.

3 Artist’s reconstructionsof such things as the city ofBabylon when Daniel livedthere, the city of Capernaumin Jesus’ day, the IsraeliteTabernacle and Temple, and

the one reproduced here, of a ziggurat ortemple-tower found in Mesopotamia (datingto 2113-2096 BC). By the way, this zigguratwas a famous landmark in Ur in Abraham’sday.

Most resource books are good asresources, for looking up data when you needit, but dry to read. The IVP Atlas of BibleHistory is an excellent resource, but it is morethan that. When my copy first arrived, Ifound myself reading it, fascinated by what Iwas learning.

So, it shouldn’t be a surprise that we rec-ommend The IVP Atlas of Bible History toyou.

Source: The IVP Atlas of Bible History, pp.23, 25, 52, 165.

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Ihave a confession to make: I’m not afan of Donald Miller. Many peopletold me I had to read his book Blue

Like Jazz. They told me it was a new andrefreshing approach to the subject ofChristian spirituality. I don’t know if itwas because of all the hype surroundingBlue Like Jazz, but I was decidedlyunderwhelmed by it. It’s not that thebook wasn’t good, it was. It just wasn’t asgreat as I had been told. While Millerput forth some interesting insights andappealing human stories, it didn’t seemthat the book was really saying anythingtruly new, andso I didn’t findit particularlyrefreshing.

When sev-eral friends dis-covered that Iwasn’timpressed withBlue Like Jazzthey told me Ineeded to readMiller’s followup book,Searching forGod KnowsWhat. Theyassured me itwas much bet-ter than BlueLike Jazz. So Itried to read it.Maybe I had abad attitude, or maybe I suffered from afocused flare up of ADD, but I could notget into Searching for God and put itdown after the first few chapters. Ihaven’t picked it up since. When peopleask me what I think of Donald Miller’swriting and I answer honestly, sometimes

I receive subdued agreement, but moreoften people have been mildly outraged.

I don’t makethis confessionto bias youagainst the worksof DonaldMiller. I make itso that when Itell you his latest book, To Own aDragon, is one of the best books I’ve readin recent years, you’ll know I’m not justspeaking as a member of the DonaldMiller fan club. To Own a Dragon was

written with JohnMacMurray, afriend and mentorof Miller’s whoalso served as aninspiration for thebook. Dragon is acollection ofMiller’s reflectionson growing upwithout a father.While Millertouches on thesubject of hisabsentee father insome of his earlierbooks, this workdeals exclusivelywith the impactgrowing up with-out his dad hashad on his life. Hespends time

exploring the relational, psychological,emotional, social and spiritual implica-tions the lack of a father creates in thelife of an adult male.

My prior disappointment withMiller’s work made me a bit reluctant tospend time and money on Dragon. The

topic is what finally made me read it.My parents divorced before I was a year

old and my fatherhas been prettymuch a ghostever since. I wascurious to findout whetherMiller’s experi-

ence was anything like my own. What Ifound was that while situations sur-rounding the absence of our fathers weredifferent, our experience was shockinglysimilar. I say shockingly because therewere times while reading through Dragonthat Miller’s words were almost the exactwords I have used to described my expe-rience of fatherlessness. Through hisprose Miller taps into the heart of aban-donment. The appeal of the book isn’tlimited to guys whose dads left them. Afriend whose father died when he was aboy told me that he also connected withmuch in the book despite the differentcircumstances. Whether Miller is dis-cussing the inherent sense of inferioritymany fatherless men feel when they seeother sons with their fathers, and explor-ing the feeling of being an outsider tothe world of men with their father-sonclubs; or whether he is exploring thesometimes unknowing search of thefatherless for a surrogate father and dis-cussing their unsurprising frustrationthat those surrogates can only ever besurrogates who don’t completely make upfor the real thing; Miller broaches thesubject with a rare blend of painful hon-esty and gentle tactfulness.

Miller encourages young men whohave lost a father not take it out on themen around them:

Here is the real truth I am stammering

Deep relationships with fathers inthe faith is the salve that God willuse to heal the insult and wound ofthe fatherless.

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toward. John MacMurray isn’t my father.My boss isn’t my father. The cop on thestreet isn’t my father. My father split, andthat stinks, and none of these guys are goingto replace him. And what that means isthat they aren’t responsible to love meunconditionally, and they aren’t responsibleto tell me I am a man. Any love or affirma-tion they give is a gift, but holding themresponsible for the insult my father castdown is inappropriate. The wound I haveisn’t there because of them.

Miller calls those of us whose fathershave left us to move beyond cynicism andbitterness while at the same time revealingthe truth that our society often hides: grow-ing up without a father is an insult and awound. These two words encapsulate theexperience of the fatherless.

One of the sections where I heard myown voice in Miller’s words was in his expla-nation of the title of the book. Miller talksabout how the librarian at his elementaryschool used to read stories to his class. Thesestories would include imaginary creaturessuch as trolls and fairies. Sometimes thelibrarian would show the children pictures inthe books. One of the pictures that stood outto young Donald Miller was one of a littleboy riding on the back of a dragon. This pic-ture caused him to wonder what it would belike to have your very own dragon and flythrough the clouds on the back of such awonderful and powerful creature. Miller thentells us the point of this trip down memorylane:

I bring this up because in writing somethoughts about a father, or not having afather, I feel as though I am writing a bookabout a dragon or a troll under a bridge.For me a father is nothing more than acharacter in a fairy tale. And I know

fathers are not like dragons in that fathersactually exist, but I don’t remember feelingthat a father existed for me. I know they arereal people. I have seen them on television,and sliding their arms around their womenin grocery stores, and I have seen them inmalls and incoffee shops,but thesewere charac-ters in otherpeople’s sto-ries, and Ineverstopped toquestion whyone of these characters wasn’t living in ourhouse. I don’t say this out of self-pity,because in a way I don’t miss having afather any more than I miss having a drag-on. But in another way, I find myself won-dering if I missed out on something impor-tant.

These words are on the second page of thesecond chapter, but have been etched acrossthe pages of my life for the past thirty years.From that point on Millerhad me hooked.

A strength of Miller’sbook is that he doesn’t wastethe reader’s time by wallow-ing in self-pity, which is aflaw of many works dealingwith this topic on a personallevel. While much of Dragonis a lament, it isn’t a senti-mentalized complaint. Milleris more focused on wrestling through therealities of life without a father and theeffects it has even on his adult life. His viewson work, education, women, sex, integrity,authority and even basic decision-making arerealistically connected to his experience of

not having a father. Instead of spending histime belaboring how much he’s missed outon in life he takes the time to critique him-self. Miller analyzes his skewed perspectiveon life developed partly due to the absence ofhis father. He spends the bulk of the book

identifying and correctinghis own erroneous beliefsand practices.

Another strength ofMiller’s work is that hemoves past the superficialChristian responses thatare often heaped uponthose who experience lossof any kind. As one who

has had clichés handed to him instead of realanswers, Miller attempts to deal with theseissues in a sensitive, winsome and straightfor-ward manner. One of the superficial respons-es often heard by people in Miller’s and mysituation is, “Even though your dad left youhave a heavenly father who cares for youmore than you can even imagine.” The prob-lem isn’t with the truthfulness of such a state-ment, but rather what it conveys to the per-son on the receiving end. The person making

the statementisn’t interestedin enteringinto our lifeor walkingwith usthrough ourpain. It isabsolutelytrue that Godis a father to

the fatherless, but this in itself does notremove the insult and wound of abandon-ment.

Miller gives another reason why such aformulaic response, while technically true, isnot ultimately helpful. Trying to grasp the

Conservative Christians decry thepoor state of the family in our socie-ty. I wonder how many of thesesame Christians are actively step-ping into the midst of the broken-ness to be redemptive agents.

Miller calls those of us whosefathers have left us to move beyondcynicism and bitterness while at thesame time revealing the truth thatour society often hides: growing upwithout a father is an insult and awound.

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concept of God as father is nearlyimpossible when you have no properparadigm to put that term into.Obviously, everybody knows what afather is, but, as mentioned above, thelived reality of a father for many of us isabout as real as the presence of a dragon.When this is the case it influences theway we view God in his fatherhood.

Miller writes that people whose earthlyfathers have been interested in anythingbut them find it hard to believe thatGod is truly interested in their life, eventhough they may cognitively know it istrue. When you grow up experiencingeverybody else’s father at a distance it ishard to imagine God as a father of yourvery own. “There are times when I don’tsee God as much different from myfriends’ fathers when I was a kid,” Millersays. “In the end, He has a family of Hisown to deal with. He’s like a good men-tor, and I see Him at church.” Thesewords are true to my own experienceand, I think, to the experience of a largenumber of men living all around us.

There is a sore need for a betteranswer to this situation. ThroughoutDragon Miller gives some statistics con-cerning fatherless men. These statisticsare compiled in short form at the backof the book. The stats are as follows:

63% of youth suicides are fromfatherless homes—5 times the aver-age.

85% of all children who showbehavior disorders come from father-

less homes—20 times the average.80% of rapists with anger

problems come from fatherlesshomes—14 times the average.

71% of all high schooldropouts come from fatherlesshomes—9 times the average.

75% of all adolescent patientsin chemical abuse centers come fromfatherless homes—10 times the aver-age.

70% of youth in state-operatedinstitutions come from fatherlesshomes—9 times the average.

85% of all youths in prisoncome from fatherless homes—20times the average.

These statistics are sobering. I thinkthey also painfully reveal a failure on thepart of the church of Jesus Christ. Manyconservative Christians decry the poorstate of the family in our society. I won-der how many of these same Christiansare actively stepping into the midst ofthis brokenness to be redemptive agents.The numbers seem to suggest that suchaction is not taking place.

Miller dedicates Dragon to men whoare mentoring younger men. His booktells the story of several men like JohnMacMurray who have been faithful indiscipling him. This is the answer that afatherless generation needs. We don’tneed more empty statements, no matterhow true they are. We need men in thechurch to step up and embody the truthof those statements. Proactive disciple-ship, older men seeking out youngermen, is a better answer to the situation.Deep relationship with fathers in thefaith is the salve that God will use toheal the insult and wound of the father-less.

To Learn More See the Following:http://www.donaldmillerwords.com/http://www.donaldmillerwords.com/ownadragon.php

The Belmont Foundation is a not-for-profit organization founded by DonaldMiller that “exists to provide role modelsfor children growing up withoutfathers.” Visit them at www.belmont-foundation.org.

—Travis Scott

Copyright © 2006 Travis Scott

Book Recommended: To Own aDragon: Reflections on Growing UpWithout a Father by Donald Miller andJohn MacMurray (Colorado Springs,CO: NavPress; 2006) 201 pp.

Travis Scott is a contributing editor toCritique. He is a graduate of CovenantTheological Seminary and a formerintern at the Francis Schaeffer Institute.He and his wife Brooke are currentlypursuing full-time Christian service inNew Zealand.

To Own a Dragon is one ofthe best books I’ve read inrecent years.

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Out of their Minds

Critique #6 - 2006

Evangelism’s purpose“Our concern in evangelizing people is

not just to ‘save their souls,’ but to restore theimage of God to its proper functioning in allof life, to the greater glory of God.”

Excerpted from Created in God’s Imageby Anthony A. Hoekema (Grand Rapids, MI:Eerdmans; 1986) p. 99.

Demonstrating GodQ: Do you have concerns about the

church in the West?A: My main concern for the church

everywhere is that we often do not look likewhat we are talking about. We make greatclaims for Christ, but there is often a credibility gap between our words and ouractions.

For example, consider the implications of1 John 4:12: “No one has ever seen God; butif we love one another, God lives in us and hislove is made complete in us.” The invisibilityof God is a great problem. It was already aproblem to God’s people in Old Testamentdays. Their pagan neighbors would tauntthem, saying, “where is now your God?” Theirgods were visible and tangible, but Israel’sGod was neither. Today in our scientific culture young people are taught not to believein anything which is not open to empiricalinvestigation.

How then has God solved the problem ofhis own invisibility? The first answer is ofcourse “in Christ.” Jesus Christ is the visibleimage of the invisible God. John 1:18: “Noone has ever seen God, but God the only Sonhas made him known.”

“That's wonderful,” people say, “but itwas 2,000 years ago. Is there no way by whichthe invisible God makes himself visibletoday?”

There is. We return to 1 John 4:12: “Noone has ever seen God.” It is precisely the

same introductory statement. But instead ofcontinuing with reference to the Son of God,it continues: “If we love one another, Goddwells in us.” In other words, the invisibleGod, who once made himself visible inChrist, now makes himself visible inChristians, if we love one another. It is abreathtaking claim. The local church cannotevangelize, proclaiming the gospel of love, if itis not itself a community of love.

Excerpted from “Why Don’t TheyListen?” an interview with John R. W. Stottby Gary Barnes in Christianity Today(September 2003) p. 52.

Napping in paradiseI count it as an absolute certainty that in

paradise, everyone naps. A nap is a perfectpleasure and it’s useful, too. It splits the dayinto two halves, making each half more manageable and enjoyable. How much easierit is to work in the morning if we know wehave a nap to look forward to after lunch; andhow much more pleasant the late afternoonand evening become after a little sleep. If youknow there is a nap to come later in the day,then you can banish for ever that terriblesense of doom one feels at 9 A.M. with eighthours of straight toil ahead.

Excerpted from How to be Idle by TomHodgkinson (HarperCollins; 2005).

Thinking Jewishly about tsunamiEarthquakes and tidal waves were known

to the ancients. They spoke of them in awe.Job himself said: “The pillars of the heavensquake, aghast at his rebuke; by His power hechurned up the sea.” David used them as ametaphor for fear itself: “The waves of deathswirled about me... The Earth trembled andquaked, the foundations of the heavensshook... The valleys of the sea were exposed,and the foundations of the Earth laid bare.”

In the midst of a storm at sea, Jonah prayed:“Your wrath lies heavily upon me; You haveoverwhelmed me with all Your waves.” YetGod taught Elijah that He was not in theearthquake or the whirlwind that destroys, butin the still, small voice that heals.

What distinguished the biblical prophetsfrom their pagan predecessors was their refusalto see natural catastrophe as an independentforce of evil, proof that at least some of thegods are hostile to mankind. In the ancientBabylonian creation myth, the Enuma Elish,for example, the goddess of the oceans Tiamatdeclares war on the rest of creation and is onlydefeated after prolonged struggle by theyounger god, Marduk. Essential to monothe-ism is that conflict is not written into the fab-ric of the Universe. That is what redeemstragedy and creates hope.

The simplest explanation is that of the12th-century sage, Moses Maimonides.Natural disasters, he said, have no explanationother than that God, by placing us in a physi-cal world, set life within the parameters of thephysical. Planets are formed, tectonic platesshift, earthquakes occur, and sometimes inno-cent people die. To wish it were otherwise isin essence to wish that we were not physicalbeings at all. Then we would not know pleas-ure, desire, achievement, freedom, virtue, cre-ativity, vulnerability and love. We would beangels—God’s computers, programmed tosing His praise.

The religious question is, therefore, not:“Why did this happen?” But “What then shallwe do?”

Excerpted from “Why does God allowterrible things to happen to His people?” inThe (London) Times (January 1, 2005) byJonathan Sacks, the Chief Rabbi of the UnitedHebrew Congregations of the BritishCommonwealth of Nations.

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“When Love Comes to Town” an article on U2, music & faith by Denis Haack, published originally in by Faith magazine

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