Reviewed by Casey
This book may be my new favorite book. Shane is a good ol’ boy from East Tennessee that is now living in a new kind of community in a poor section of Philly. He shares much of his experience there in Philly, working with Mother Theresa in Calcutta, serving the war-affected people in Iraq, and other initiatives he was a part of as a student at Eastern University and Wheaton. He really challenges you to come close to the poor and to experience life with them as your friends and neighbors, not just your charity. This book inspired me to consider how we could live our lives differently. Shane really takes the scriptures seriously, as they were written, not the American-contextualized versions that we believe now.
The only parts I thought were weak was when he got pretty political about the war in Iraq. I appreciated him sharing his thoughts, especially because he has been there and seen how the war affects the normal people there. But he basically just talked about opposing the war without ever proposing an alternative way to free the oppressed people of Iraq. Whatever you think about the war, complaining about it doesn’t make it go away. Instead, we need to think of ways to free and assist oppressed people. I just thought he got off base a little there.
Overall, it’s such a fantastic book. Please read it and let us know what you are thinking, what parts are hard for you, and what inspires you.
Overall grade: A
1 comment:
Casey,
It is so interesting to see how God is working in the lives of other people, how it unfolds and presents itself in this world. Shane's experiences have developed his own thoughts about God's will for us, and in sharing that with others, we may learn our own journey. I do agree about presenting a different plan for the people of Iraq or immigration reform but it needs to be a country and world effort. Starting w/ you and me.
I will pick it up and read!
love you, Mother
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