The Books I Read in 2018

This year I gave myself a minor project of listing every book I read in 2018. As a voluminous reader I was curious about how many books I read in a given year - apparently about 126. Here is the list:

Vasily Aksenov (The Steel Bird)

Nathan Barnes (Read 1 Corinthians with Philosophically Educated Women)

Matthew W. Bates (Salvation by Allegiance Alone)

Richard Bauckham (God Crucified)

Alan Bennett (The Madness of King George)

Harold Bloom (Bloom’s Notes: Animal Farm; Bloom’s Notes: 1984)

Robert McAfee Brown (Liberation Theology)

Christopher R. Browning (Ordinary Men)

Walter Brueggeman (A Way Other Than Our Own)

William F. Buckley Jr. (Saving the Queen)

Wade Burleson (Hardball Religion; Fraudulent Authority)

Lewis Carroll (Through the Looking-glass)

Iris Chang (The Rape of Nanking)

Oscar Cullman (Baptism in the New Testament)

Will Eisner (A Contract with God)

T. S. Eliot (Coriolan; The Waste Land)

Kenneth Grahame (The Wind and the Willows)

Jennifer Grant and Cathleen Falsani, eds. (Disquiet Time)

Graham Greene (The Power and the Glory)

Donald Hagner (Hebrews [NIBC])

Megan D. Harding (The Fallen Series: Book I, Fallen)

Richard B. Hayes (Echoes of Scripture in the Letters of Paul)

Herge (Tintin in America; Cigars of the Pharaoh; The Blue Lotus; The Broken Ear; The Black Island; King Ottokar's Sceptre; The Crab with the Golden Claws; The Shooting Star; Secret of the Unicorn; Red Rackham’s Treasure; The Seven Crystal Balls; Prisoners of the Sun; Land of Black Gold; Destination Moon; Explorers on the Moon; The Calculus Affair; The Red Sea Sharks; Tintin in Tibet; The Castafiore Emerald; Flight 714 to Sydney; Tintin and the Picaros)

George Herriman (Krazy Kat & Ignatz: A Ragout of Raspberries, 1941-1942)

Irenaeus (Against Heresies; Fragments)

Aubrey Johnson (The Vitality of the Individual in the Thought of Ancient Israel; The One and the Many in the Israelite Conception of God)

Jerzy Kosinski (The Painted Bird)

Robert Lawson (Ben and Me)

Madeleine L’Engle (A Wrinkle in Time)

C.S. Lewis (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe; The Silver Chair)

Thomas Mann (Royal Highness)

Florentino Garcia Marquez (The Dead Sea Scrolls Translated)

Scott McCloud (Understanding Comics)

John L. McKenzie (Second Isaiah [The Anchor Bible Commentary])

J.J. Mearsheimer (The Tragedy of Great Power Politics)

Frank Miller (Batman: The Dark Knight Returns)

A. A. Milne (Winnie-the-Pooh)

Jürgen Moltmann (Theology of Hope)

Alan Moore (From Hell)

John Mortimer (Rumpole of the Bailey; Rumpole for the Defense; Rumpole and the Age of Miracles; Rumpole’s Last Case; Rumpole and the Golden Thread; Rumpole Rests His Case; Rumpole and the Angel of Death; Rumpole and the Penge Bungalow Murders)

Elmer Mould (Essentials of Bible History)

Mary Norton (The Magic Bed-knob; Bonfires and Broomsticks)

Michael Palin (Diaries 1969-1979: The Python Years; Diaries 1980-1988: Halfway to Hollywood)

Jordan Peterson (Maps of Meaning: The Architecture of Belief; 12 Rules for Life)

David Platt (Radical)

Marvin H. Pope (Job [Anchor Bible Commentary])

Karen Swallow Prior (On Reading Well [Advanced Copy])

A.T. Robertson (Word Pictures in the New Testament, Vols. IV-V)

H. Wheeler Robinson (Corporate Personality in Ancient Israel)

Don Rosa (The Don Rosa Collection, Vols. 1-10)

Georges Simenon (Monsieur Monde Vanishes)

Sang-Won Aaron Son (Corporate Elements in Pauline Theology)

Ed Stetzer (Christians in the Age of Outrage)

Tom Stoppard (Every Boy Deserves Favor; Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead; The Invention of Love; Shakespeare in Love; Parade’s End)

Jonathan Swift (Gulliver’s Travels, Book III)

Terry Teykl (Divine Strongholds)

Dylan Thomas (Under Milk Wood)

Bill Watterson (The Authoritative Calvin and Hobbes; The Essential Calvin and Hobbes; The Indispensable Calvin and Hobbes; Attack of the Deranged Mutant Killer Monster Snow Goons; The Days are Just Packed; Homicidal Psycho Jungle Cat; There’s Treasure Everywhere; It’s a Magical World)

Walter Wink (The Powers that Be)

Ben Witherington III (The Jesus Quest)

P.G. Wodehouse (Leave It to Psmith)

Miroslav Volf (Exclusion and Embrace)

N.T. Wright (Hebrews; The Challenge of Jesus; The Last Word; Justification; What Saint Paul Really Said; The Day the Revolution Began; Paul: A Biography)

The 15 Best Albums I Listened to in 2018

15.       Big Boat, by Phish (2016)

Phish is one of the better bands out there. They've been around since the late 80s and have been highly consistent in their songwriting and performances. Their albums Junta, Rift, and Billy Breathes are in my Top 50. This album is very good and probably their best since either Farmhouse or The Story of the Ghost. Top Songs: “Home”, “Tide Turns”, and “Waking Up Dead”.

14.       Muswell Hillbillies, by The Kinks (1971)

           

            Probably the most underrated pop band of all time. The Kinks are exceptional and have produced some amazing albums and wonderful songs. This particular album is quite good. Some good tunes. Top Songs: “20^th Century Man” and “Have a Cuppa Tea”.

13.       Song Cycle, by Van Dyke Parks (1967)

            Odd. A very odd, experimental album by a musical wunderkind. The album is an odd duck but quite enjoyable the more you listen to it. You can see the influence it had on Joanna Newsom. Top Songs: “Public Domain”, “Donovan’s Colours”, and “The Attic”.

12.       Happy Sad, by Tim Buckley (1969)

            I have been a fan of Jeff Buckley for a number of years, but his father’s early albums are quite good. Happy Sad is his best. It has a definite Astral Weeks feel to it. Very enjoyable. Top Songs: “Strange Feelin’” and “Buzzin’ Fly”.

11.       Solid Gold Heart, by Danielson (2014)

            I love Danielson! He is probably the most original Christian musician since Bach. Albums like Ships and Best of Gloucester County are phenomenal albums of eccentric originality. His most recent album, a collaboration with Jad Fair, continues his exceptional work. Just love it. Top Songs: “Go Ahead”, “Ready Steady”, “Solid Gold Heart”, and “You Got Me in a Spin”.

10.       Return to Olympus, by Malfunkshun (1995)

A great album for Seattle grunge fans. A good sound understandably like Mother Love Bone and other late 80s-early 90s Seattle bands. Top Songs: “My Only Fan”, “Jezebel Woman”, “Until the Ocean”, and “I Wanna Be Your Daddy”

9.         Stone Temple Pilots, by Stone Temple Pilots (2018)

STP is still my favorite 90s rock group and I’m happy to have seen them live twice. This is another excellent album to their oeuvre. "Thought She'd Be Mine" is one of the best songs they’ve ever done.

8.         The Psychedelic Swamp, by Dr. Dog (2016)

I discovered Dr. Dog about seven years ago. They were one of the more unique sounding bands of recent years. Their sound is like a combination of Abbey Road-era Beatles, Pet Sounds-era Beach Boys, Badfinger, and The Band. While perhaps other albums like Fate or We All Belong may have a couple of stronger songs on them, this album is more consistently good. It’s like their Exile on Main St. Probably their best album to date. Top Songs: “Golden Hind”, “Swampadelic Pop”, “Fire on My Back”, and “Good Grief”.

7.         The Desaturating Seven, by Primus (2017)

I’ve been a Primus fan for a long while. One of the more unique bands in rock history and with one the greatest bass players ever. Always fun, always experimental, this is definitely their best album since 1997s Brown Album. The album is really good prog-punk-rock. The sound of the album is like it could have come in between Pork Soda and Tales from the Punchbowl. Top Songs: “The Seven”, “The Trek”, and “The Scheme”.

6.         A Trick of the Tail, by Genesis (1976)

I’m a semi-fan on Genesis. I tend to like their post-Gabriel stuff (Invisible Touch and We Can’t Dance). I prefer their pop to their prog. However, this particular post-Gabriel prog rock album is excellent. Top Songs: “Dance on a Volcano”, “Entangled”, “Squonk”, and “A Trick of the Tail”.

5.         Rainier Fog, by Alice in Chains (2018)

AIC is another favorite band. They have been consistently good for decades now. They’ve always been a band that can carry the listener along in a flow with their vocals, instrumentation, and songwriting. This is even more the case with Rainier Fog. Naturally, the album sounds quite like their recent albums, but there are also many hints of their eponymous album. The songs seem a tad more complex, too. And while there is really one standout track (“Fly”) while the previous albums had several, Rainier Fog as a whole is far more consistently good and interesting than any other Alice in Chains album. In this regard, again, it’s like Exile on Main St., by the Rolling Stones. It’s just a great album to turn on from the beginning and allow to take you along for the ride. I seem to appreciate the album more with each listen. Top Songs: “The One You Know”, “Rainier Fog”, “Fly”, “Drone”, and “Maybe”.

4.         Chocolate & Cheese, by Ween (1994)

            I’m just discovering Ween. This is an absolutely fabulous album. I’ve listened to it numerous times this year. Great sound and great songs. Top Songs: “A Tear for Eddie”, “Roses are Free”, “Baby”, and “Buenas Tardes Amigo”.

3.          Anthem of the Peaceful Army, by Greta Van Fleet (2018)

A great album. The freshman outing of this new group (apart from their two EPs) is wonderful. Though often understandably compared to Led Zeppelin, this first album helps to shake them from that. Their sound is much like an early Aerosmith, blues-ish rock n’ roll with a hint of Queen and Rush prog rock. Top Songs: “Age of Man”, “When the Curtain Falls”, “Mountain of the Sun”, and “Brave New World”.

2.         Hardwired ... to Self-Destruct, by Metallica (2016)

Metallica is a classic group; one of the best ever. Even after the Lulu debacle, this latest album proves they still have it. This is one of their best if not the best. It’s definitely their best since Load in 1996. Top Songs: "Atlas, Rise!", “Now That We’re Dead”, “Halo on Fire”, “Confusion”, “Here Comes Revenge”, and “Murder One.”

1.         Coming Up, by Suede (1996)

            Picking a top album of the year wasn’t difficult. Hands down it was Coming Up, by Suede. This group is probably unknown to most people (they were unknown to me!), but they deserve more notice. Outside of Radiohead, if you look at 90s Britpop, the best albums are Oasis’ (What’s the Story) Morning Glory, Blur’s albums Blur and 13, and The Verve’s Urban Hymns.  Suede’s album tops them all. The sound is like a cross between Brian Eno’s Here Come the Warm Jets and David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust. I’ve listened to this album every week for months now and it just an album of fantastic songwriting and dazzling recorded performances. Start with the first song, “Trash”, and you are hooked. The second track, “Filmstar”, is shockingly good. By the time you get to the third song, “Lazy”, you have to admit this is one of the best Britpop albums ever. Just sublime. By the close of “Saturday Night” you know you are in the realm of Primus’ Tales from the Punchbowl and Alice in Chains’ eponymous album in terms of greatness. This one definitely goes into my Top 50.

The Twelve Reasons Why Die Hard is a Christmas Movie

1) Screenwriter Steven E. de Souza stated that Die Hard is a Christmas film. You can see how much this is stressed in the various screenplay drafts. 

2) Setting: The film takes place on Christmas Eve, specifically with those traveling on Christmas, those working on Christmas Eve, and those attending an office Christmas party. There are numerous verbal references to Christmas.

3) Die Hard 2 takes place on Christmas Eve.

 

4) Christmas is mentioned throughout movie: There are references to Christmas or cast members uttering the word "Christmas" at several points in the movie. When McClane enters the Christmas party at Nakatomi Plaza, there is a Christmas tree. When one of the terrorists is trying to unlock a large vault, the ringleader Hans Gruber tells him, "It's Christmas, Theo. It's the time of miracles. So be of good cheer and call me when you hit the last lock." Then there is Theo’s “Twas the night before Christmas..” riff. At the end of the movie, Argyle says, "If this is their idea of Christmas, I gotta be there for New Year's." The best is probably Hans dryly reading McClane’s famous taunt: “Now I have a machine gun, ho-ho-ho…”

5) Music: The movie opens with Run DMC's "Christmas in Hollis" and closes with "Let It, Snow." Sgt. Art Powell sings, "Winter Wonderland." The song used in the trailer and the closing credits is Beethoven's "Ode to Joy.” Furthermore, the author of Silent Night was Franz Gruber.

Additional: Michael Kamen's score is based around thematic variations on well-known pieces, a concept that Kamen previously used in Brazil which is also an unlikely Christmas film.

6) McClane’s wife’s name? That’s right. Holly. As in Christmas Holly.

7) Is Home Alone considered a Christmas Movie? Maybe it's just a movie set during Christmas. I mean, isn't it just a kiddie version of Die Hard? Think about it. If Home Alone is a Christmas movie then so is Die Hard. Q.E.D.

8) Hans Gruber. Hans means “warm” and Gruber means “pit” or “mine”. What do you take out of a mine to keep you warm? That’s right. Coal. Who gets coal in their stocking on Christmas? That’s right. Someone bad. A villain!

9) Hans Gruber is a greater Christmas villain than The Grinch. He tries to steal “Christmas” from the Nakatomi corporation.

10) There’s a “stuck in a chimney” scene. McClane is coming down the elevator shaft while trying to save Christmas (plus crawls through that air shaft). 

11) Nakatomi. The name originally was Naka-tsu-omi: “minister of the center”, denoting an ancient, hereditary office as intermediary between men & deities. This is like Christ being the mediator between God and Man. We celebrate Christ’s birth at Christmas.

12) It “snows” at the end.

First Peter and Fighting Oppressive Injustice

I recently read the following quote by a Christian leader:

 

“The Biblical response to oppression? Be holy, love one another, submit to one another, and if you are a pastor, shepherd your flock well (1 Peter 1-5). Not a word about fighting injustice.”

 

I found this quote disconcerting for two reasons: First, even a casual read of the Bible will show God’s interest in justice and how he wants believers to live. Leaving aside the plethora of commands about doing justice and the voluminous condemnations for not doing so, there are many specific commands telling believers to fight oppressive injustice (Jeremiah 22:3-5; Isaiah 1:17; 58:6; Proverbs 29:7). Second, the book of 1 Peter (along with Daniel, Ephesians, and Revelation) is one of the principle biblical books about how to battle against oppressive power. To say otherwise would be like stating that Paul’s letter to the Galatians hasn’t a word about justification by faith! Given this, why did this Christian leader make such a statement? His accompanying comments suggest a context in which he is reacting against Christians who encourage others to involve themselves in social activism, promote social justice, and engage oppressive powers. However, his reaction is just a symptom to a cause. I suspected that his real problem was that he has a severe reductionist conception of the Gospel and that this was coloring his reading of the Bible and prompting his misinterpretation of 1 Peter 1-5. After some research, I discovered that my suspicions were correct. This person had reduced the Gospel to “Jesus died for my sins so I can go to heaven.”

In truth, the Gospel is about the coming of the Kingdom of God (Matthew 9:35; 24:14; Mark 1:14-15; Luke 4:43; 8:1; 16:16; Acts 8:12; 20:25; 28:31), which is the rule, will, and reign of God on earth and heaven (Matthew 6:10). The good news of Jesus is that he is the King of that Kingdom of God. Thus, we get references to the “gospel of Christ” (Acts 5:42; Romans 15:19; 1 Corinthians 9:12; 2 Corinthians 2:12; 4:4; 9:13; Galatians 1:7; Philippians 1:27; 1 Thessalonians 3:2). The Greek word “Christ” (Christos) is the translation of the Hebrew word Messiah. The Messiah/Christ was the term used for the King of the Jews. When Jesus is identified as the Christ, he is being identified as the King of the Jews (Matthew 2:2; 21:5; 25:35, 40; 27:11, 29, 42; Mark 15:2, 9, 12, 18, 26, 32; Luke 19:38, 23:2-3, 37-38; John 1:49; 12:13, 15; 18:33, 37, 39; 19:3, 12, 14-15, 19, 21; Acts 17:7; 1 Timothy 6:15). One of the central beliefs of Christianity is that God enthroned Jesus the Christ, as King of the Jews, as King of the world, following his death and resurrection. Essentially, Jesus is currently ruling this world, sitting at the right hand of God (Mark 14:62; Matthew 22:44; 25:33-34; 26:64; Daniel 7:13; Acts 2:33; 7:55-56; Romans 8:34; Ephesians 1:20; Colossians 3:1; Hebrews 1:3; Hebrews 8:1; 10:12; 12:2; Revelation 3:21; Psalm 110). Having been made king over the world, all power and authority has been given to him (Matthew 28:18) and all powers and authorities have been subjected to him (Ephesians 1:20-22; Philippians 2:8-11; 1 Corinthians 15:24; Colossians 1:13; 2:10, 15; Jude 1:25; Revelation 2:26-27; 12:10; Matthew 9:8; 21:23; Mark 3:15; John 5:27; 17:2; Psalm 110).

Though anointed Christ the King at his Baptism (Matthew 3:26-17; Mark 1:10-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:32-34), it wasn’t until his crucifixion on the cross that Jesus was formally recognized as such and scandalously crowned and enthroned (Matthew 27:37; Mark 15:26; Luke 23:38; John 19:19). Yet, it was because of his sufferings on the cross that Jesus defeated evil, sin, death, idolatry, and the oppressive powers of this world (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11; Galatians 1:4; 1 Corinthians 10:13; Colossians 2:15; 2 Timothy 1:10; Hebrews 2:14; 1 John 3:8). It is specifically because of his suffering submissiveness that Jesus was able to defeat the dark powers that unjustly oppress humanity (Luke 24:25-26, 46; Acts 3:18; 17:3; Philippians 2:6-11; Colossians 2:12-15, 20).

What Jesus showed us in his life, ministry, and ultimate work on the cross is that proper engagement of the powers is not by violence, force, bullying, fear, oppression, coercive conformity, and the weapons of political posturing. Rather, we are called to model our engagement under the teaching and example of our King. It is a method which is counter-intuitive and counter-cultural. Instead of seizing power and bullying his way to the top, Jesus became a servant (Mark 10:42-45; Luke 22:25-27; Matthew 25:28; John 13:3-17; Philippians 2:7) in order to be exalted (Philippians 2:5-11). This is why we read the first shall be last and the last shall be first (Matthew 20:16, 26-27; Mark 10:31, 43-44; Luke 13:30; 22:26). This is why Christian leadership is about servant leadership (Mark 10:42-45; Luke 22:25-27; Matthew 25:28; 1 Peter 5:2-3). This is why being a pastor is about equipping other believers (Ephesians 4:11-12). While the world may be run by the aggressive use of force and while governments may have a monopoly on violence (see Romans 13:1-3), the Christian (both laity and minister) must pursue the Kingdom of God through humility, selflessness, submission, and sacrifice (Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23). It is through the poor, the mourners, the meek, the justice hungry, the merciful, the pure, the peacemakers, and the persecuted that the Kingdom of God will come to fruition. This is a complete redefinition of power and of what it means to be the people of God. Jesus taught an ethic where abuse, persecution, and violence are to be dealt with by love, forgiveness, and non-violence. Again, you can see this prominently in the Sermon on the Mount, but it is the ethic Jesus took all the way to the cross where he rejected violence (Matthew 26: 52-54; Luke 22:51) and proclaimed forgiveness (Luke 23:34). The power exhibited and unleashed on the cross is that of self-giving love and forgiveness. This is the heart of the Gospel. 

In 1 Peter, the apostle is addressing Christians living in Asia Minor (1:1) who are suffering under serious persecution (1:6; 2:4, 7, 11, 19; 3:13-14, 17; 4:4, 12-19; 5:10). Why are they being persecuted? They suffer because of their righteousness (3:14), good behavior (3:16-17; 4:4), and their association with Christ (4:14-16).

Peter addresses their circumstance by connecting their suffering with that of Christ’s (2:21; 3:18; 4:1) which led to glory (1:11, 21; 3:18-22; 5:1), rescue (1:10-11), redemption (1:18-19), and the subjugation of the Powers (3:22). Indeed, Peter states that their suffering is necessary (1:6) because it results in their rescue (1:9). He says that the prophets predicted this rescue (1:10), the time when Christ would suffer and become glorified (1:11). In this, Peter is stating that the sufferings of Christians are a participation in the sufferings of Christ which lead to glory and the subjugation of the Powers (3:22). Thus, just as Christ suffered, so too must they suffer (2:19-20; 3:17; 4:1). They need to model Christ’s suffering, because they are called to do so (2:21-3:1, 7, 18). Christ is to be their example (2:21-25; 3:18; 4:1), but, because they are incorporated into Christ, they share in his sufferings (4:13-14). Therefore, if the sufferings of Christ (1:11; 2:7, 21-24; 4:1; 5:1) lead to his glory (1:11, 21; 3:22; 4:13; 5:1, 4, 10) then their sufferings will also lead to glory in Christ (1:7-8; 2:5, 9-10; 4:13-14; 5:1, 4, 6, 10). Thus, the sufferings the recipients of the letter are currently experiencing will lead to glory in Christ. Peter, like Paul in Colossians 2:9-15, is attempting to connect the believers’ participation in Christ’s death and resurrection, symbolized in baptism (v. 21), with the subjugation of the powers that followed that death and resurrection.

Therefore, because believers are in Christ, their submissive suffering for the Kingdom of God is an active participation in the suffering of Christ on the cross that defeats evil and subjugates the oppressive powers. This is why Paul encourages Christians to model Christ’s submission and subjugation (Philippians 2:5-11). This is why Jesus tells his followers to take up their cross (Matthew 10:38; Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23; Luke 14:27).

So, yes, counter the initial quote, 1 Peter is very much about fighting the injustice of oppression. And like the ethic of Christ and his Kingdom, it is fought through submission, subjection, and turn-the-other cheek justice (2:13, 17-18; 3:1-2, 7; 3:8-9, 16; 5:2-3, 5-6). It is fought with obedience and good conduct (1:13-16, 22; 2:1, 12, 15; 3:1-11; 4:2-3, 7-11). The biblical response to oppression is fighting injustice through holiness, love, submission, and pastoring. Indeed, the audience of 1 Peter suffer because of it (3:14, 16-17; 4:4, 14-16). And, again, Peter tells them: “Keep it up! It has a purpose!” As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15, the resurrection establishes Christ as King over the world (v. 12) where he rules until he subjugates all the powers under him completely (vv. 24-28). Therefore, the work of the believer done for the Kingdom is not in vain (vv. 57-58).

I am a conservative evangelical who believes in the inerrancy of the Bible. Nevertheless, I find myself dismayed with fellow conservative Christians who have a poor conception of the Gospel and who vehemently reject fighting for social justice and engaging oppressive powers. Having said that, I am equally dismayed with my brothers and sisters within progressive Christianity who too often pursue false social justice causes with anti-gospel methodology. One side refuses to engage the Powers and the other side is unwittingly being used by the Powers! Yes, Christians are called to fight injustice and oppressive powers, but that justice is not an abstract concept with its content dependent upon the cultural and social desires of the individual. Biblical justice is defined as what is constituted as justice in the Bible. Similarly, such justice is effectively advanced by submission, suffering, holiness, love, non-violence, and good behavior. To attempt to accomplish the justice of the Kingdom without its ethical methodology is self-refuting and ends in failure.