Deus Misereatur

Resurrecting the Idea of a Christian Society by R.R. Reno My rating: 5 of 5 stars Given the bombastic and melodramatic hotness of the past several months, a book promoting the resurgence of a Christian Society in the United States might well be taken as simply the dying gasps of a glum devotee. Yet R.R. Reno, editor of First Things magazine, past professor at Creighton University, and accomplished author, boldly jumps through the flames to present his 215 page hardback, “Resurrecting the Idea of a Christian Society”. It is a volume written to stimulate stability, arouse civility, and awaken creativity. The title of the book is a tipping-of-the-hat to T.S. Eliot’s “The Idea of a Christian Society” penned in the 1930’s as World War II and Nazism were looming large on the horizon. Reno’s reworking of Eliot’s theme, though, is written in a different era, with contemporary concerns. The author’s unease is that when “a culture of freedom becomes a cult of freedom, injustice, suffering...

The King's Justice: Two Novellas by Stephen R. Donaldson My rating: 5 of 5 stars Stephen Donaldson bundles together two unrelated, but artistic tales that go different directions in the 307 page paperback, “The King’s Justice.” Both novelettes are easy to read, engrossing, and propel the reader’s imagination toward the climactic finale. These short stories can be enjoyed by both younger and older adults. The title tale, from which the book gains its label, swirls around Black, Settle’s Crossways and the gruesome, heartbreaking murder of a young lad. As things unfold, Black, a veteran of the Balance Wars, takes on the role of detective in a township that doesn’t want to disclose the murder to this stranger. Yet it becomes rapidly clear that there are sinister forces at work and lurking in the woods, and circumstances are showing that Black needs to act quickly. As a major structure in the storyline, the author does delve into a deity-less perspective that seems to echo the Buddhi...

Drawn from the Heidelberg Catechism on the Lord’s Prayer Our Father Who art in heaven : we come to you trusting and rejoicing that you are our Father through Jesus Christ, and that you will answer us, as promised, with as much readiness as, and more readiness than, our earthly parents. And we trust that we may expect from your almighty power all things necessary for body and soul. Hear us, Father, as we pray. Hallowed be thy name : Enable us rightly to know, reverence, magnify, and praise you in all your works, through which shine forth your power, wisdom, goodness, justice, mercy, and truth; and likewise to so order our whole life, in thought, word, and work, that your name may never be blasphemed, but honored and praised on our account. Thy kingdom come : Preserve and increase your Church, to include this congregation and these churches in the greater OKC area: Korean First Presbyterian Church; Korean Nazarene Church; Lakehoma Church of Christ; Lakeside Church of God;...