REVIEWS

VISIONS AND AUTHORITIES

Written by: Marjory MacLean

Price: £11.95

ISBN-13 979-8866723065

This is a superb study on the challenges facing the Church of Scotland today. I would even go as far as to call it exciting, despite the fact that Marjory takes a delightful pop at what she sees as the over use of the word in the Church. It will speak to all those who feel troubled and perhaps confused by the direction the Church has taken in recent years, particularly through the Presbytery Planning process.

This book was born out of a recent course at New College, Edinburgh and includes the lecture texts, four essays from guest contributors and two sermons at the end. It is not an academic work, but more one that sets out to cause a stir and create vigorous debate. Its title is a tribute to the Orcadian theologian John Oman whose book titles often expressed difficult tensions and included the book Vision and Authority.

The first section of the book focuses on how we define mission in the Church today and Marjory argues that as a Church our concept of mission is both vague and flawed. In particular, she points to a fundamental drawback of the Five Marks of Mission, used to undergird the Presbytery planning process, which is its failure to include worship in any of the Five Marks.

At a time when congregations are slowly getting to call ministers again, there is a brilliant section on the vacancy process and its many flaws, with some interesting suggestions on how it could be reformed. While we are all familiar with the problem of congregations seeking the perfect minister and applicants seeking flawless congregations, Marjory’s take on this is nevertheless the best summation I’ve ever read.

Marjory’s thoughts on the power games that are played out within congregations and the courts of the Church will resonate with many people. She asks the question as to how different the General Assembly and Presbyteries would be if everyone there treated everyone else as being good and godly, even when believing their arguments to be wrong. If only they would.

Marjory’s dry wit ensures that the book is never dull and it is peppered with stories from her experience as a naval chaplain, parish minister and Depute Clerk of the General Assembly.

The book speaks to the huge challenges facing the Kirk today and the fact that it must be Semper Reformanda, ‘Always Reforming’ (apart, says Marjory, from ditching the Latin….).

John Ferguson

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MY BIG STORY BIBLE

Written by: Tom Wright

Illustrated by Helen Perez Garcia

Published by: SPCK Price: £16.99

Renowned theologian and academic Tom Wright (a New Testament scholar and Research Professor Emeritus of New Testament and Early Christianity at the University of St Andrews and Senior Research Fellow at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford) is perhaps best known for his many respected volumes of accessible studies of the Bible.

With this, his latest work, however, he has turned to the challenge of engaging with a younger audience.

Aimed at an age group aged seven to 12, this colourful volume offers a retelling of the key Bible stories of the Old and New Testaments but also encourages young readers to consider the ways in which the stories might link together as part of a bigger plan by God.

Beautiful illustrations bring the stories to life.

Whilst the bible goes over many familiar stories, the unique feature of this new publication is the highlighting of Scripture including Psalms, Proverbs, prophets and the letters of Paul which help to show the ways in which the stories link together. 

HEAVEN ON EARTH:

The Lives and Legacies of the World’s Greatest Cathedrals

Written by: Emma J Wells

Published by: Bloomsbury Price: £14.99

First published in hardback in 2022, but now released in paperback, the author offers a fascinating history of not just the architecture, but the history of cathedrals by highlighting just sixteen of them across Europe, demonstrating how they each played a part in shaping the continent.

The book traces a thousand years of cathedral building and recounts the interwoven stories of both the architecture and the people responsible for their construction.

Sadly no Scottish cathedrals feature, but many famous cathedrals across the UK and Europe are highlighted, from the Sophia, the Christian cathedral of the eastern Roman empire, to such icons as Saint-Denis, Notre-Dame, Canterbury, Chartres, Salisbury, York Minster and Florence’s Duomo.

The author seeks to bring each cathedral to life but shows how cathedrals in general influenced not just faith but art and culture and remain powerful symbols of faith today.

This would be of particular interest for those with a passion for both church history and architecture.

Lynne McNeil