Category: Reviews (Page 1 of 2)

Interesting Interviews with Drew Holcomb

March 27, 2025 / Joseph Ginder

I have recently come to appreciate Lee C. Camp and his No Small Endeavor podcast (among other endeavors of his). His most recent podcast episode (as of March 27, 2025) was with Drew Holcomb. Drew Holcomb, Ellie Holcomb, and those Neighbors of theirs are some of my favorite musicians, so I decided to give it a listen. I’m glad I did.

Prior to this, my awareness of the Holcombs was primarily because I appreciated their music. They both have music careers of their own and often work together, which is the music of theirs I appreciate the most. I learned that Drew Holcomb has a masters in theology from St. Andrews University. I learned that there is such a genre of music as Americana – I’d never heard of it before. (I suppose that says more about my awareness of the music world than anything else.) I learned some things about Drew Holcomb’s backstory that deepened my appreciation of his music quite a lot. I note that Lee C. Camp is a hospitable interviewer who opens the way to deeper conversation than is the norm. All in all, it was an interview that made my morning. Quite encouraging!

There’s an earlier interview of Drew Holcomb on this same podcast that is, shall we say, a bit more emotionally intense. It addresses the subject of vulnerability in art. I listened to it earlier. Of course, that led me to listening to the more recent interview this morning. A second portion of this earlier episode is an interview with Audrey Assad.

The triggering event for all of this was Lee C. Camp being interviewed by Skye Jethani on the Holy Post podcast (at about the 56 minute mark). That interview was also quite good, motivating me to connect with No Small Endeavor, where I noticed Lee C. Camp had interviewed Drew Holcomb, among many others I find intriguing.

Maybe my note here will trigger your interest in No Small Endeavor, Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors, or Ellie Holcomb. All are worth checking out. The Holcombs have topped my music listening list for two or three years now.

I was Blessed by Joshua Luke Smith!

February 28, 2025 / Joseph Ginder

I don’t know Joshua Luke Smith. Never heard of him before today. I just read a brief article about him (he’s an MK). He’s a poet and rapper who works in prisons. That’s all I know except for the experience of hearing him read a couple of his poems.

What shoved me towards his work was Brian Bakke posting on social media a link to a recent reading of one of his poems which I think is entitled Sunflowers in Babylon. (Either that or Uncle Terry’s Legacy. I’m not sure.) Brian’s advice is serious business for me, so I decided to check it out. I’m not one who is much for poetry, but for eight minutes and twenty-eight seconds Joshua Luke Smith had my full, rapt attention. After he finished, I wanted to read the words of the poem and ponder a bit. I found a transcript here. Wow.

Then, I wanted to find out more about this guy. He’s got a website. The first video on the page “My Work” was a blessing. Would that I could bless like that! And he’s all over the common social media.

Then my granddaughter Malea arrived, walking to our house from her nearby elementary school. I told her I just saw a great video on YouTube. She wanted to see it. It held her attention for all eight minutes and twenty-eight seconds, too. She wanted to know why he wrote it. “Did he write that for a funeral?” I said perhaps it was inspired by his uncle’s passing, but that it was not performed for a funeral. She said she liked it a lot. Then her Dad picked her up to go home.

So this note is my recommendation to pursue some of his poetry for yourself. Planting a sunflower seed? It’s me, one who was deeply encouraged pointing to the source of the blessing. We need some blessing, some hope, some direction just now. The other events in the news out of DC today… Well, I’m not going to go there. Joshua Luke Smith. I’m going to recommend some time with his readings.

Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.”

June 8, 2024 / Joseph Ginder

I finished reading The Sparrow and Children of God by Mary Doria Russell yesterday. I very much appreciated these two books, which I really recommend reading as one work. Let’s just say for now that the story told herein deeply challenges the tropes that permeate pop-christianity. Mary Doria Russell is a deep thinker who converted to Judaism as she wrote these books. I don’t particularly agree with her views on the distinctions between Christianity and Judaism or the significance of these views, philosophically and theologically speaking. Nevertheless, the story told is told well and very much worth the emotional toll it takes as it roils through devotion, good intentions, evil, unintended consequences, suffering, injustice, and…. well, perhaps you get the point that this is a serious work of fiction.

I found myself thinking, at times, “But this is all made up!” as I was pushed into considering extremely uncomfortable situations and themes. And yet, history is replete with events that parallel the events in the story Russell creates. How does one interpret those events in the light of God? Theodicy, indeed. But that’s not really why I’m writing. It is what pours out as a preface to what I intend to focus on, which is a really interesting interpretation of Exodus 33.18-23 that I had not heard before.

Perhaps you recall that Exodus 33 records the conversation between Moses and Yahweh immediately after the golden calf incident in the wilderness at the foot of Mount Sinai. Moses insists that as Yahweh sends him and the people to the land Yahweh has promised them that Yahweh himself come with them – not just an angel. Yahweh agrees, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

The “conversation” continues…

¹⁸Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.”
¹⁹And the LORD said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. ²⁰But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”
²¹Then the LORD said, “There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. ²²When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. ²³Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.”
Exodus 33.18.23, New International Version

I’ve always heard this interpreted in light of God’s holiness and overwhelming glory and so on. I’m not disagreeing with those interpretations; but perhaps there is more? Deeper? One of the characters, Father John Candiotti, at the end of Children of God suggests that this passage is about the passage of time…

“There’s a passage in Exodus – God tells Moses, ‘No one can see My face, but I will protect you with My hand until I have passed by you, and then I will remove My hand and you will see my back.’ Remember that?…”

“Well, I always thought that was a physical metaphor,” John said, “but, you know – I wonder now if it isn’t really about time? Maybe that was God’s way of telling us that we can never know His intentions, but as time goes on… we’ll understand. We’ll see where He was: we’ll see His back.”
Mary Doria Russell, writing as Father John Candiotti (a fictional character in Children of God)

I suppose I think Father Candiotti’s “we’ll understand” is a bit optimistic. But his reinterpretation of the metaphor of seeing God’s face vs. seeing God’s back as a about time…. That’s sticking with me. The preparation for, and that thought alone was worth the reading of the two books!

And there was another, related quote near the end of Children of God.

In all the shrouded heavens anywhere
Not a whisper in the air
Of any living voice but one so far
That I can hear it only as a bar
Of lost, imperial music

Edward Arlington Robinson, from his poem Credo

Recommending Two Books by Esau McCaulley

September 22, 2023 / Joseph Ginder

I just finished reading How Far to the Promised Land: One Black Family’s Story of Hope and Survival in the American South by Esau McCaulley. It is a deeply redemptive American story that our culture sorely needs. I can’t recommend it highly enough. It is not only the narrative that we need today in our culture and church; it is superbly well-written. It is the best thing I’ve read this year. McCaulley writes in the form of a memoir provoked by his need to give the eulogy at his father’s funeral, and also by his desire to pass on a true family history to his children. Along the way, his commentary on American culture is compelling, with fine illustrative examples.

Some time ago, I also read McCaulley’s Reading While Black: African American Biblical Interpretation as an Exercise in Hope. I also had an extremely positive reaction to this book. At the time, I wrote to a friend that Chapter 6 was the finest piece of Christian writing and thinking that I’ve read in a long, long time. It was profound, biblical, encouraging, and powerful – a really fine example of Christian thinking and communication for today. As a Quaker Christian, I found his perspectives resonating strongly – his title is apropos. It convinced me, at the time, that I’d want to read pretty much anything McCaulley writes! (I should have written this recommendation years ago. Better late than never.)

I am finding Esau McCaulley to be one of the most gifted writers of our time. His writing is a gift God gives particularly to the American church of our day, and to American culture more generally. Highest recommendation.

Tuchman’s Law

April 13, 2023 / Joseph Ginder

I (finally) read Barbara Tuchman’s A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century”. I received it in hard cover decades ago as a gift from my Uncle Joseph Pike and it has been on my stack of books to read “soon” ever since! I obtained an unabridged spoken audio version and listened while gardening.

In the introduction, Tuchman amusingly names a phenomenon she observes as she studies “deplorable developments” in history. She terms it “Tuchman’s Law”, herein quoted:

Disaster is rarely as pervasive as it seems from recorded accounts. The fact of being on the record makes it appear continuous and ubiquitous whereas it is more likely to have been sporadic both in time and place. Besides, persistence of the normal is usually greater than the effect of the disturbance, as we know from our own times. After absorbing the news of today, one expects to face a world consisting entirely of strikes, crimes, power failures, broken water mains, stalled trains, school shutdowns, muggers, drug addicts, neo-Nazis, and rapists. The fact is that one can come home in the evening—on a lucky day—without having encountered more than one or two of these phenomena. This has led me to formulate Tuchman’s Law, as follows: “The fact of being reported multiplies the apparent extent of any deplorable development by five- to tenfold” (or any figure the reader would care to supply).
Tuchman, Barbara. A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1978; p. xviii.

It took me a moment to identify the spirit of the comment. Then I laughed out loud. The time it took me to identify her intentions with the comment one might consider a deplorable development in my history. I think this was the highlight of the entire book for me. One can extend her observation to social media and the 24-hour news cycle of our time. People have to talk about something. All the time. Amplifying the deplorable is par.

Overall, let’s just say that the 14th century was a time in which the kingdoms of this world and the kingdom of Jesus were rarely, if ever, in spiritual alignment. But what’s unexpected about that? I did gain in my appreciation for how pre-modern folk used numbers as generic amplifying adjectives rather than precise mathematical quantities. I suppose that’s a valuable talent for reading ancient texts.

As for recommending the book? I appreciated it, but had expected somewhat more scholarly depth from a famous scholar. I suppose she wrote for a more popular audience. I found it somewhat repetitive; however, I suppose that is an observation of the human condition and the times more than her writing about it. It is a worthwhile investment of casual reading time.

A new podcast from The Atlantic

March 23, 2023 / Joseph Ginder

I listened to a new podcast from The Atlantic recently called Holy Week. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968, just before Holy Week of 1968 leading up to Easter on April 14 that year. The podcast is about the fallout from King’s assassination, reviewing some of the events and personalities of the times. It considers some of what his assassination meant to those for whom Martin Luther King Jr. represented hope… or weakness! And more…

I remember the week after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. In my mind I can picture the burning cities and clashes between protesters and police or soldiers that I saw on the evening TV news as a boy. Traumatic times, indeed.

To make it even more interesting, read Alan Jacob’s essay The Blues Idiom at Church in Comment for more insight and an interesting application.

I think perhaps this is all related to why I so appreciated Esau McCaulley’s Reading While Black! The perspective he presents has much in common with what I learned from the Quaker side of my family (particularly my grandfather, Albert Pike), who also taught me to appreciate Martin Luther King Jr. as a boy.

All of these are well worth your time.

Jesus and John Wayne by Kristen Kobes Du Mez

July 19, 2021 / Joseph Ginder

Jesus and John Wayne is the eye-catching title of a book by Kristen Kobes Du Mez. The subtitle is even more provocative: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation. It’s a fine historical account written for a general audience detailing exactly what the subtitle says, with extensive documentation of sources. I lived through much of it what she is writing about. It is troubling, indeed, and helpfully contextualizes much that is troubling in the church today.

To learn more about the author, one can find a set of four interviews Skye Jethani did with Kristen Kobes Du Mez on The Holy Post podcast. These interviews summarize some of the points covered in the book:

Lastly, Jim Lyon did a really fine, more personal, interview with the author on the All That to Say podcast. He interviews Kristen Kobes Du Mez about her background and faith in a very wholesome and helpful manner. I found this interview quite helpful.

This is a book that many are talking about, and rightfully so. Kristen Kobes Du Mez will take some heat for this work – just like her Lord did, when He told the truth.

Dr. Michael Osterholm’s Covid-19 Podcast

October 14, 2020 / Joseph Ginder

Dr. Michael Osterholm runs CIDRAP, the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, at the University of Minnesota. He has a Covid-19 podcast that is full of good information and… surprise… even encouragement!

I listened to his latest episode today as I walked this morning. It was entitled COVID in the Capital. Dr. Osterholm starts out with a sentimental story about a cat (!) and then starts talking about the best science and medical information regarding the Covid-19 outbreak in the Whitehouse without getting political. He is very kind and encouraging, but straightforwardly tells the truth from his perspective as an expert in epidemiology who strictly follows where the data leads.

So, in this episode, expect a sentimental encouraging story, a clear-headed non-partisan outlook on Covid-19 with practical advice, and kindness. You can find the podcast at CIDRAP’s website. Or you can find it on your favorite source for podcasts. I used Pocket Casts on Android.

Lectio 365 – An App Recommendation

July 24, 2020 / Joseph Ginder

A number of us at Long Beach Friends Church have been using the Lectio 365 app for a few months. We really appreciate how it leads us through a 10 minute prayer and scripture devotional each day. I found today that they have a promotional video on Youtube.

Check out the video and get it from the Google play store or the iPhone app store. (That is, it’s available on both Android and Apple phones and tablets.)

It’s free. No ads. God’s people did something very good for the wider church here!

The Lost Letters of Pergamum

July 1, 2020 / Joseph Ginder

On my day off this week I read The Lost Letters of Pergamum by Bruce W. Longenecker as an audiobook. I appreciated it quite a lot. It’s one of those books I’ve had on my list to read for at least a decade but never got around to until now.

The Lost Letters of Pergamum is historical fiction set in the first century, presented as a set of letters between a fictional character named Antipas and others, including Luke, as Antipas reads Luke’s first volume and learns about Christianity. It’s a great way to learn what life was like in the early church and Roman empire of Domitian. It functions almost as a broad contextual commentary for the Gospel of Luke, and serves as a good introduction to the first century Roman context of Acts, Paul’s letters, and Revelation.

I think it would be appropriate for anyone wanting a good introduction to the context of the New Testament Roman world. Highly recommended!