This past Friday I presented a paper at Hannibal-Lagrange University as part of the Midwest regional meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS). The paper was entitled, “After Transformation, What? Reforming Evangelical Cultural Engagement.” ETS has been a useful organization to me since I became a member in 2007. Learn more here.
You Are What You Read…Not Really
Reading is a huge part of my life. I’ve loved to read ever since I was small child. My mom deserves much of the credit since she not only read to me, but bought me books and regularly took me to the public library in our neighboring town, Manning, South Carolina.
But more than a hobby, reading is a significant part of our discipleship. It’s obviously a prerequisite for studying, memorizing, and living God’s Word. I say this not to besmirch the generations and groups of Christians who depended on an oral tradition for their Scriptural intake. This also includes Christians in the world today who don’t have the Bible in their own language. Yet we find that even these believers overwhelmingly embrace a printed Bible with enthusiasm and gratitude when it finally comes to them.
While faithfully reading Scripture must remain primary, I would join the masses of Christians through the ages who have said that reading other books is also consequential and beneficial. Even the apostle Paul seemed to think so (2 Tim. 4:13).
When I completed my doctoral dissertation in 2018, I allowed myself much freedom in reading what I wanted to read for at least the next year or two. No longer constrained by research concerns, I caught up on the titles accumulating on my reading list. After this “break” of sorts, I’ve returned to a more strategic, intentional approach. Certainly I read some books for pleasure and to nurture my imagination, like the entire Harry Potter series in 2021. But I also continue to structure my book list to include (1) subjects and authors of interest, and (2) subjects related to current research interests.
When I launched this newsletter in January, I decided to include a feature that told readers what I was currently reading. In the last two newsletters, I’ve been reminded that in a hyper-political age, people might try to draw too much of a conclusion about “where my head is” based on what I’m reading. After all, there is some validity to the old adage, “you are what you read.” Last week I read a book about the women’s rights movement and feminism. This week features a book with a fairly radical claim in the subtitle. You know, how white evangelicals have ruined everything? That old chestnut.
While no one has sent me an email or text message questioning my loyalties, I’m often reminded when I’m in a coffee shop, library, or when church members chat with me in my study that my motives and interests could be misconstrued.
We increasingly find ourselves among people look more for affirmation than information. This is usually called confirmation bias, but let’s just keep it simple: sometimes we’re not interested in being challenged. Sometimes we’re not interested in new information. Sometimes we fear that we may be wrong about something. Or we’re not interested in the prospects of confronting problematic views when we encounter them. We know where we stand, and we see no obligation to try to persuade others to join us in that stand.
If that’s the way people feel, then I suppose it will reflect in what they read, whether it be books, articles, magazines, or blog posts. I don’t know, however, whether that will produce growth.
I read to grow. I read to know. I read to sharpen my ax. Sometimes I read to sympathize. Sometimes I read out of sheer curiosity. Am I sometimes disappointed by books? Absolutely. And I join the many readers out there who think constantly, “So many books, so little time!”
I intend to write more about reading, its virtues, its possibilities, and its limits. But I thought it important here not to leave readers with the notion that my reading list reflects what I think are the greatest hits, or which books sound all the right notes. I often return to something Darrell Holley, an exemplary literature professor, once taught me: “Even a broken clock is right twice a day.”
The notion that some degrees of truth and insight can be found even among those otherwise misguided is clearly compatible with the church’s teachings. We believe that reason is constitutive of how God made human beings. We believe common grace enables even unbelievers to discover truth in the face of human depravity. And even as redeemed people, we need discernment and wisdom as to how to select good books, evaluate misleading ones, and when to punt on ones that may be surrounded by a lot of buzz, but may not be essential reading.
Teaching about Temptation
For the last month or two I’ve been leading a study of The Screwtape Letters as part of our church’s midweek service. We’ve taken different approaches to our study time through the years. Prayer, of course, has been a constant (That’s why we still call it Prayer Meeting.) We typically spend the first half of the evening in sharing praise and prayer items and praying, then we follow with a study/discussion of a biblical theme, question, or Christian book. Of late, we’ve been enjoying C.S. Lewis’ classic work on temptation
I hesitated to pursue this study. This isn’t the easiest book for some, even for Lewis fans. I simply knew how beneficial the book had been to me in the past. Moreover, I find myself as a pastor talking to people often about temptation and Satan. It reminds me of Lewis’ famous quote in the book’s preface: “There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them.”
It's a small group who attend this service, but they’re very committed and interested. They see in these letters a thoughtful, creative, and all-too-real picture of what their own experience and others’ has been in the world.
I had forgotten how many letters referred to the “European war.” Of course, this work was published during World War II, so that’s understandable. But Lewis (as Uncle Screwtape) regularly reminds the reader (as his nephew Wormwood) that the Enemy (God) can accomplish much even in wartime. It’s obvious how people murdering others delights Satan. That’s especially the case for those entering eternity unprepared. It’s not always as obvious that God is at work in times of conflict.
Screwtape reminds Wormwood, “One of our best weapons, contented worldliness, is rendered useless. In wartime, not even a human can believe that he is going to live forever.” Insights like this have, I believe, helped our church members to view what is happening in Ukraine differently. Mind you, we’re all profoundly troubled by it. We pray about it constantly. But we’re working together to see the bigger picture of how God might work through the church in Ukraine.
Moreover, this insight about “contented worldliness” is so relevant to us American readers. Despite the September 11 attacks and the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, we’ve known a profound degree of peace on our continent. Could it be that amid all that’s going on in our lives, families, communities, and nation, we’re more bothered by rising gas prices than the destiny of souls? I would suggest that the answer—as revealed in our actual energies and words—might reveal too much contented worldliness in our lives.
Lewis has much more to say in The Screwtape Letters about Satan’s schemes versus God’s goals in wartime. I recommend you take a look.
Currently Reading:
Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation by Kristin Kobes Du Mez
Beyond Order: 12 More Rules for Life by Jordan Peterson
How do you develop your reading list? I’m opening the comment thread to hear any and all suggestions and strategies for selecting good books.