tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post8716061265428745851..comments2024-03-10T10:40:32.319-07:00Comments on Pyromaniacs: Against Term Papers as BooksPhil Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00649092052031518426noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-80106590690126694102012-07-10T17:15:49.754-07:002012-07-10T17:15:49.754-07:00I hesitate to quibble about the interpretation of ...I hesitate to quibble about the interpretation of one sentence in the book, but since it's the only part of the book other than the back cover that's actually quoted in the review, Frank seems to appreciate quibbling.<br /><br />The book's line "If there were a sexual arms race, evangelicals would be winning" is taken to mean "that we are somehow a superpower in the sexual arms race" without a trace of the irony that seems essential to the original statement. But surely winning an arms race (nuclear or otherwise) implies paranoia and insecurity on the part of the "winners," making it an apt metaphor for the escalation of sexual discourse in evangelical circles.<br /><br />Not sure if the sloppiness here is the book's failure to telegraph sarcasm when used or the reader's quaint assumption that winning an arms race is necessarily positive.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-59450393493661211872012-07-10T07:04:40.652-07:002012-07-10T07:04:40.652-07:00But three cheers for the guy who said he is going ...But three cheers for the guy who said he is going to now read the book, just to see if the review is right. That's the spirit! I'll admit I'm a bookseller and glad to see them being read.Byron Borgerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00434919452525975947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-53879973328069553302012-07-10T06:59:15.283-07:002012-07-10T06:59:15.283-07:00I hope you don't mind a guest adding a word he...I hope you don't mind a guest adding a word here---you guys seem to be having a good time, and its good to see. I was taken aback, though, by Dave; you congratulated Frank for calling out this Anderson author, and declared he's now not going to read new books for a while. This strikes me as odd, at best, for a couple of reasons. <br /><br />A guy is going to quit reading new books because he doesn't like some new books? And, in this case, because somebody else doesn't like a new book? I'd say, Dave, that it's fine to thank Frank for sharing his opinion, but it could be, you know, that's he's just wrong. Or overstated his case. Before you condemn the mediocrity of the book, maybe you should read it yourself. Or read some other views about it. I don't know, it just sounded a bit too trusting of this one cranky review. <br /><br />(I would say, further, that one can have a grand time reading and thinking about a less than perfect book, even a deeply flawed one. Life's too short to spend much time with truly bad ones, stupid or inane or terribly written messes. Anderson's surely is not that bad. It just isn't. Is it worth your time? I'd say so. despite the bad review here.)<br /><br />And, anyway, aren't there a lot of bad older books? Lewis was nearly wrong about that, I'd say. There are good books and bad books in every generation, and some good old books have gone out of print and some lesser ones have remained. And some were good, but are not so relevant today, and some current ones are less than ideal, but useful, still, for today. Choose old ones if you will, but it sounded weird to me, as if that will save the day and bring something (what?) back to your reading pleasures. Well, good luck with that.Byron Borgerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00434919452525975947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-64635773760259825152012-07-09T18:50:27.008-07:002012-07-09T18:50:27.008-07:00I think reading that book made you groggy.
:-)I think reading that book made you groggy.<br /><br />:-)FX Turkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16798420127955373559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-2240876790996817032012-07-09T07:30:47.169-07:002012-07-09T07:30:47.169-07:00Ugh. Sorry about that second paragraph. It could u...Ugh. Sorry about that second paragraph. It could use some more punctuation. It's been a long morning; perhaps I should have had more coffee?Chris Krychohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04987231458069231389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-78453202198661774472012-07-09T07:29:31.614-07:002012-07-09T07:29:31.614-07:00Uh... huh. Which book did you read, again? ;)
It&...Uh... huh. Which book did you read, again? ;)<br /><br />It's definitely not a piece of popular writing, I'll give you that. When I reviewed it myself, one of my comments was that it tends much more toward the academic than toward the conversation-starter with the normal crowd at church. (I didn't realize just how academic it was, though, until I gave it to a very sharp friend who doesn't read academic theology much at all, and discovered that he found it rough going.) But it was at least self-consistent. Matt's response highlights this, but you seriously misread Chapter 7, and I suspect therefore other parts of the book two. Evangelicals are triumphant, but our triumphalism damns us: we're winning the war of idolatry, not the war <em>against</em> idolatry (which was Matt's point, as I recall).<br /><br />I agree that we could use a good, biting, funny, popular, Lewisian book for the masses, and that this book wasn't that. It did, however, jump start some good thought for people along the way (people like me) who've been interested in the topic and found other "evangelical" approaches to it rather lacking in, well, evangel. I already know and basically agree with how you feel about Foster and Willard, and seeing as they're the closest any evangelical has come to touching this at a popular level in the last quarter century... maybe Matt's book will be the impetus for someone to write the book you're looking for, because it was cogent and on-target and thought-provoking in all the right places. And it had the gospel in spades.<br /><br />Also: what Rachael said. (Rachael, I'm always happy when I see one of your comments pop up anywhere on the interwebs. They always make me happy, and I nearly always agree with them.)<br /><br />Oh, and Frank, lest you poke around and find me to be something of a gushing Matt Anderson fan - which I must admit to being - you should know: I'm a gushing Matt Anderson fan because of this book, not a fan of the book because of my liking of Matt.<br /><br />Here's to more friendly curmudgeonly reviews, and also to curmudgeonly insistence that curmudgeonly reviews actually show evidence of understanding the book in question. God speed.Chris Krychohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04987231458069231389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-6542803876830963182012-07-07T18:31:14.132-07:002012-07-07T18:31:14.132-07:00After reading this article and these comments, thi...After reading this article and these comments, this is now my favorite website. I'm going to have to get this book now just to see what you are talking about. It's interesting that the article I originally read that got me here was titled <i>The Myth of “Preach the gospel at all times; when necessary, use words.”</i> I clicked on an add in the sidebar and am now I am blessed with these articles. Thank you guys, I was busting on the floor laughing.<br /><br />Pastor Anthony Rieke<br />Knox Butte "Batpist" Church<br />Albany, ORRiekeanthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06030666589336489818noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-62243021576360901832012-07-06T07:31:34.951-07:002012-07-06T07:31:34.951-07:00Well, sometimes the menace needs to be encouraged ...Well, sometimes the menace needs to be encouraged to be more menacing.Morris Brookshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18083884122271855154noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-87446949211723036242012-07-05T17:34:29.031-07:002012-07-05T17:34:29.031-07:00I am a menace and I must be stopped.
We hold thes...<i>I am a menace and I must be stopped.</i><br /><br />We hold these truths to be self-evident...James Scott Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07641370124346172648noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-14894900710581816972012-07-05T13:11:45.669-07:002012-07-05T13:11:45.669-07:00Morris --
I am a menace and I must be stopped.Morris --<br /><br />I am a menace and I must be stopped.FX Turkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16798420127955373559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-51897747810573953692012-07-05T10:15:32.907-07:002012-07-05T10:15:32.907-07:00I must admit I have a degree of envy for a guy who...I must admit I have a degree of envy for a guy who pastors the Spurgeon Heritage Church, and located in the TULIP capital of the world, Holland, MI!Kerry James Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06083436735702873300noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-67862706783551492662012-07-05T10:11:33.692-07:002012-07-05T10:11:33.692-07:00Frank,
In all seriousness, I can think of no one b...Frank,<br />In all seriousness, I can think of no one better to write "that" book than you. <br /> <br />MorrisMorris Brookshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18083884122271855154noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-39163060424884542832012-07-05T09:26:54.779-07:002012-07-05T09:26:54.779-07:00Just one obscure comment. I was struck by your ref...Just one obscure comment. I was struck by your reference to the fact that the Gospel is the Gospel even "when you are mowing the lawn." When I mow my lawn, I often contemplate the deep things of God, and sense His presence as I mow just as much as when I am in my study. <br /><br />Victor Edwards, Pastor<br />Spurgeon Heritage Church<br />Holland, MIVic Edwardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15400142786434949761noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-81910624616894825842012-07-05T09:21:19.582-07:002012-07-05T09:21:19.582-07:00Too many Scottish church potlucks?Too many Scottish church potlucks?Nash Equilibriumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06528684112014026512noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-62718508093126004192012-07-05T08:14:42.645-07:002012-07-05T08:14:42.645-07:00OK Frank, if that photo wasn't Doug Wilson, wa...OK Frank, if that photo wasn't Doug Wilson, was it Spurgeon from "The Buffet Years?"Kerry James Allenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06083436735702873300noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-57255046696311363292012-07-05T08:05:30.441-07:002012-07-05T08:05:30.441-07:00I'm compelled enough to want to line Matt'...I'm compelled enough to want to line Matt's pockets with a few pennies from Amazon. I'd like to be able to follow along as this conversation evolves. <br /><br />I do also want to be batpized by immersion.The Damerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08393936800227282813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-85633834049561219832012-07-05T06:48:09.858-07:002012-07-05T06:48:09.858-07:00The genre I want to see an end of:
"...how ...The genre I want to see an end of: <br /><br />"...how an ordinary wife, mother, and coupon-clipping blogger from the Bible belt learned to embrace her doubts, question her faith, and in the process fall in love with God all over again..." or similar.CGrimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03257084521984285384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-84140324997900956802012-07-05T06:40:15.301-07:002012-07-05T06:40:15.301-07:00Frank, maybe publishers are the problem! And the g...Frank, maybe publishers are the problem! And the gushy endorsers. I have had a string of bad reads lately so I'm sticking with "old" books for a while. The fresh winners have usually been recommended by trusted friends and bloggers. And your allusion to kids soccer is apt. I'm afraid that we might have to look above the 90th percentile for a good read in contemporary publishing. Selah.Dave ....https://www.blogger.com/profile/06340206720526412975noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-22710617068789566192012-07-05T06:39:18.668-07:002012-07-05T06:39:18.668-07:00In case it's not patently obvious, "batpi...In case it's not patently obvious, "batpism" is Johnny Dialectic's typo....not mine. <br /><br />But as Frank says, "play on." My reply will come next week.Matthew Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11475363484356386562noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-72740547710560804762012-07-05T06:05:42.640-07:002012-07-05T06:05:42.640-07:00Nash,
Don't you know? It is just another sli...Nash,<br /><br />Don't you know? It is just another slick advertising ploy for The Dark Night series. Surely you didn't think the pyros were exempt?<br /><br />As for the content of the post, I agree with Frank that somebody needs to deal with this topic in a manner that is fit for the layman and works through the complexity of the issues involved. I certainly hope that this can serve as encouragement for somebody to do just that. And really, it could just be done from the context of journalling through the daily life of a Christian over a length of time...at least if they are interacting with the world around them as lights shining in the world.Roberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13987985549747283669noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-88613688630095310592012-07-05T06:02:57.639-07:002012-07-05T06:02:57.639-07:00lollolNash Equilibriumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06528684112014026512noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-10998217752417690262012-07-05T05:34:29.005-07:002012-07-05T05:34:29.005-07:00Nash, you're a bad man. I thought it was kind ...Nash, you're a bad man. I thought it was kind of a cool word. It needs to mean <i>something.</i><br /><br />Though I can't deny your observation...DJPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16471042180904855578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-37654673595440436842012-07-05T05:21:58.312-07:002012-07-05T05:21:58.312-07:00Since everyone is waking up from their holiday tod...Since everyone is waking up from their holiday today, let me simply corral some of the reactionary stuff before it his the comment stream here:<br /><br />1. What is my personal opinion of Matt Anderson? I say it clearly in this piece, and if you can't quote that, you probably can't really grasp my criticism here.<br /><br />2. What is my key criticism of Matt's book? I also say that clearly at least twice, and if you can't at least paraphrase my criticism, you probably shouldn't tell me what a bad man I am.<br /><br />3. What is my understanding of my own reputation on the internet as stated in this article? Why did that hold me off from writing a review of Matt's book? Again: if you don't undertsand that, your opinion of my review or my opinion of Matt's book is underinformed, to say the least.<br /><br />As they say in Soccer, play on.FX Turkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16798420127955373559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-30344478341489426302012-07-05T05:15:55.880-07:002012-07-05T05:15:55.880-07:00Dave:
That's a thought-provoking comment. My...Dave:<br /><br />That's a thought-provoking comment. My view of it is that everyone who can write a book and wants to should go for it -- and if it gets published, super. <br /><br />The question I think I was covering here is what constitutes a great book -- one which is doing more than keeping the catalog of the publisher fresh.FX Turkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16798420127955373559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-7010331266202518432012-07-05T05:14:43.957-07:002012-07-05T05:14:43.957-07:00I don't even wqant to know what "batpism&...I don't even wqant to know what "batpism" is. It sure conjures up some bad images.Nash Equilibriumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06528684112014026512noreply@blogger.com