Christmas in Cambridge!

How to shop for books

There's always a niggling feeling that I'm missing some lovely book because I don't take the trouble to look properly. One of these days, I'm going to get my act together and order Farrar, Strauss, and Giroux's catalogue, as they consistently publish authors that I enjoy reading (Flannery O'Connor, Madeleine L'Engle, Marilynne Robinson). My friend Joni recently plugged for Bas Blue. In her brief review of a book that they sell, she writes:

Five for Sorrow, Ten for Joy has been reprinted by Loyola Press. I found it in Bas Blue, (bä blũ French, blue stocking, a literary woman; a bluestocking) bookseller-by-post. Bas Blue is the self-proclaimed "champion of the odd little book." This odd little book will make an indelible mark on you. For purchasing information: Five for Sorrow, Ten for Joy, I'd suggest that you patron Bas Blue, rather than Amazon, as it's a chance to promote a bookseller than hunts for good reads.

After a brief perusal of their site, I'm not sure they're really my thing, but I very much like the idea of a taste-driven bookseller. I am too accustomed to the smorgasbord that Amazon offers while trying to predict my buying habits based on my propensity for following other peoples' buying habits. Perhaps it all amounts to the same thing in the end, but there is something to be said for a discerning publisher or bookseller!

Any other good publishers to keep an eye on, let me know...

Update: Another Obstacle to Ethical Stem Cell Research Overcome

It worked in mice, and now in humans! The debate on stem cells has been turned on its head yet again, as Christians can now affirm even more strongly that they are for ethical stem cell research as three separate labs confirm that they can reprogram human skin cells to act like stem cells. No need to destroy embryos, not even to use human eggs - hooray! Sam Brownback has also written about this in First Things, so check it out...

Taking every Hallow's Eve Captive for Christ

One Reformed perspective on Halloween, one BBC Radio4 public-interest story, one mother (mine) who adores the silly-ness of Halloween, and one delightfully stimulating dinner conversation all add up to a question: is it good for our souls to celebrate all Hallow's Eve as a preparation for All Saints' by mocking the devil and showing the his powerlessness after the victory of Christ? Here's a snippet of the Reformed perspective mentioned above by James B. Jordan:

The concept, as dramatized in Christian custom, is quite simple: On October 31, the demonic realm tries one last time to achieve victory, but is banished by the joy of the Kingdom.

What is the means by which the demonic realm is vanquished? In a word: mockery. Satan’s great sin (and our great sin) is pride. Thus, to drive Satan from us we ridicule him. This is why the custom arose of portraying Satan in a ridiculous red suit with horns and a tail. Nobody thinks the devil really looks like this; the Bible teaches that he is the fallen Arch-Cherub. Rather, the idea is to ridicule him because he has lost the battle with Jesus and he no longer has power over us....

Similarly, on All Hallows’ Eve (Hallow-Even – Hallow-E’en – Halloween), the custom arose of mocking the demonic realm by dressing children in costumes. Because the power of Satan has been broken once and for all, our children can mock him by dressing up like ghosts, goblins, and witches. The fact that we can dress our children this way shows our supreme confidence in the utter defeat of Satan by Jesus Christ – we have NO FEAR!

When I first read this I thought that it would be a challenge to get this message across to small children, but the Radio4 story had little girls rattling off without any hesitation that the meaning of Halloween was "the victory of light over dark, which means we don't have to be afraid any more"!

Rather than a Frank-Peretti-style thriller pitching capable archangels against the swarthy powers of darkness, we have here holy laughter and the joy of the Spirit as the answer of Christ's people to the threats and scare-tactics of the devil. We spend many of the days of our year giving the devil more than his due; perhaps it is fitting to spend an evening remembering the joy of the kingdom, the powerless of evil to snatch us from Christ, and Christ's humiliation of Satan by the cross, resurrection, and ascension. Drawn up into the life and victory of Christ, is it not fitting that we too should scorn and deride the pride of the evil one?

This is a truth that can be taught to very young children, and perhaps is a better solution to the "Halloween problem" than harvest parties. I'm still thinking about it...but I have to say, I would love any little girl of mine to have the confidence in God's victory that I heard over the radio.

JMR on Rowling vs. Cooper

In case you're interested, John Mark Reynolds weighs in on Rowling versus Susan Cooper's Dark is Rising in a post (with different main concerns) on Scriptorium.