Why, you may ask, do I like to read? Opportunity. I enjoy the opportunity of sitting at the feet of the best Storytellers, Theologians, Historians, Philosophers, and Thinkers to hear why the believe what they believe and learn about the times that they lived in. There is a level of interaction that happens when you read a book that is fascinating to me. I can, for a stolen moment, step into another person’s life or even their mind. Spending a day hiking with Bilbo in The Hobbit, sitting in on one of Walther’s evening lectures on Law and Gospel, considering the impact finding Christ’s corpse would be with Dr. Weber in Paul Maier’s A Skeleton in God’s Closet, being Catechized by Martin Luther in his Large Catechism, learning about the cloud of witnesses that I have in the Early Church with Eusebius in his Church History, and considering the depths of my own sin with Augustine in his Confessions.
I especially enjoy reading books by dead people because they lived in a different time. Their assumptions and philosophies can help me take a step back and evaluate my own. We are very good at assuming that because we are the most recent humans, with our smartphones and Wi-fi, therefore we are the most intelligent. This is false. We are simply a generation that is reaping the benefits of past generation’s technological advances. And I like to learn about how we got here. Right here, with so many toys and so little joy. I can learn about suffering by people who lived before antibiotics or anesthesia. Happiness from people who didn’t have all the junk that should make me happy. And most importantly I enjoy being strengthened in my faith by the sainted members of the Church who have gone before me to be with the Lord.
Read a book. I dare you. Then thank a teacher that you can read ;)
Here are a couple summer recommended reads:
- Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis, A classic. ‘Nuff said.
- Church History by Eusebius, I love the Paul Maier translation, which has commentary, maps, and pictures:)
- The Heidelberg Disputation by Martin Luther, one of Luther’s major first writings, it is on the Gospel, free will, sin, law and gospel, theologians of the cross and of glory… very good read. It is contained in Martin Luther’s Basic Theological Writings edited by Timothy Lull and William Russell. It can also be found online for free.
- God at Work by Gene Veith, I am currently digging through this gem on Christian Vocation
- A Skeleton in God’s Closet by Paul Maier, a trilling archaeological mystery involving the discovery of Jesus’s bones and the repercussions of such a find on Christendom. Amazing work of Fiction by a Professor of Ancient History. Part of a trilogy.