Something Beautiful For God Book Report

Katharine once said, “Christ wishes the Christian Community to be a body that is perfect because we work together towards a single end, and the higher the motive which actuates this collaboration the higher, no doubt, will be the union. Now the end in question is supremely exalted: the continuous sanctification of the Body for the glory of God and the Lamb that was slain.” (A-Z Quotes). This quote describes Katharine’s way of working towards creating her orphanages and schools with her order. Despite overcoming many difficulties in her earlier life, Saint Katharine Drexel created her own religious order, donated generously to charities, and established schools to teach the faith the others; consequently, she is one of the most dynamic missionary saints from America.

Upon reading The Lesson, by Toni Cade Bambara, the reader cannot help but feel empathy towards the narrator Sylvia and her friends, as they are introduced to the realization of unfairness distribution of wealth in society, the diverse democracy. The lesson is taught by a lady named, Miss Moore, who moves into Sylvia’s neighborhood block. Miss Moore is a college educated women who shows the reality of the economic inequality to Sylvia and her friends by taking them on a field trip to a fancy toy store called, F.A.O. Schwartz. As the children look through the window of the toy store, children began to realize high prices of things, the difference between the fancy world and the slum world that they come from. At the end of the story, Sylvia

The idea behind the book The Great Commission To Worship by David Wheeler and Vernon Whaley is the combining of worship and evangelism, “Thus evangelism and worship have a unique relationship. … many times in Scripture it appears that while God is always our object of worship, the concept of obtaining salvation (evangelism) appears to be the motivation” (11). As stated by the authors this book is the result of an argument between them as to which was more important, worship or evangelism.

“even though she knew preaching is not a human invention but a gracious creation of God and a central part of His revealed will for caring and loving. “Betsie had dome my hair that morning, labouring for an hour with the curling iron until it was piled high on my head- and so far, for wonder, it had stayed” (Page 39) There is nothing more beautiful than someone who goes out of their way to make life beautiful for other.

Often times we are at a loss for words when it comes to talking about the person of the Holy Spirit. Beth Felker Jones in her work entitled “God the Spirit” serves as an introduction to the study of the Holy Spirit in a distinctly Wesleyan and Ecumenical Perspective. Jones is working against the notion that the doctrine of the Holy Spirit is often the most neglected of all Christian teachings (1). She recognizes her experience within the Wesleyan tradition as one that shapes her pneumatology and this book. She asserts that one of Wesleyan Christianity’s special gifts is it’s “leaning against any tendency to neglect the Spirit” (4). Even with this framework she aims to place the Wesleyan perspective in a larger ecumenical milieu that shows the continuity of a Wesleyan pneumatology with the Tradition of the Church. Overall, her approach is very accessible, as she assumes very little and writes in such a way that allows her to cover large dogmatic topics clearly and concisely. By merit of simply being an introduction only style book, there is the risk of glossing over topics and not providing enough in depth discussion to fully understand and comprehend the doctrine discussed. A reader should feel confident that Jones has indeed provided us with a solid introduction to Wesleyan pneumatology that has the ability to bear fruit and initiate growth in the life of the believer.

In Stanley Hauerwas’s article titled “Go with God” he presents a letter to students who are going off to attend college. It’s a guide that proposes certain expectations and helpful information for students heading off on this new endeavor. He makes a point that going to college means much more than a diploma and hopes of high paying job. “To worship God and live faithfully are necessary conditions if you are to survive college. But as a Christian you are called to do more than survive” (Hauerwas). The advice in the letter reinforce its main theme: to be a student is a calling. This challenges the reader to think beyond the normal expectations of why we go off to college.

God! A figure of love and forgiveness to many, a figure of fear to others. Pulitzer Prize winning essayist Annie Dillard illustrates the differences and similarities on how one feels about God in her essays “On a Hill Far Away” and “God in the Doorway”. Dillard explores children’s fear of God by comparing her portrayal of herself with the child on the hill, using common motifs, symbols, and differences of tone to contrast the two reactions.

While reading Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God, by Jonathan Edwards I came across some points that caught my attention. This story is based on how a pastor tries to persuade his congregation from the sins and make them to be fearful of the divine wrath, of God. I personally can relate to this story because of my religion. I am Pentecostal and I can see why Edwards would use such words towards his congregation so that they won’t perish and go to hell. My Pastor uses similar approaches like this when she preaches. In “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” Edwards uses frightening words and religious metaphors to divert people from the congregation from the sins and condemning them to hell if they provoke the wrath of God and to establish that everyone should be fearful of him.

Theresa was a good catholic girl. Her faith was important to her. She went to mass on Sundays, her mom was very involved in the community and her dad had a very important job. Her family was the normal American family. Her dad’s job required them to move around a lot and because of that she never had true friendships. One day her family moved to Birmingham and her life changed dramatically.

In the first chapter of “Christianity Rediscovered” by Vincent J. Donovan he is introducing us to the idea that missionaries now have a poor reputation due to their history. He says “History has offered the opportunity to deflect and distort the meaning of missionary work in every age”. For a long time a missionary was a person spreading the word of God and after years of doing so we have diminished many different beliefs, practices, cultures and history. At the time it was thought to be the right thing, to spread out and share the gospel to help people find meaning and acceptance. In today’s age a missionary is a lot of different things, in many cases it is more focused on the health and physical wellbeing of the people. Many people still share the gospel through missionary work, but in other cases it is more of a material aid. Donovan introduces the book as a voyage of discovery he wants us to put our normal beliefs aside to see his perspective of living a missionaries life and struggling with the fact of if you are helping or hurting.

“The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara is not just about a sassy, defiant, ungrateful poor girl that is out of place in an overpriced expensive toy store. “The Lesson” is a short story about a young black girl who is struggling with her increasing awareness of class inequality. When Sylvia’s new neighbor, Miss. Moore, a smart college educated woman introduces the reality of social inequality to Sylvia and her group of friends, they become cynical. Sylvia has always known in the back of her mind that she was poor, but never really let it bother her until she sees her disadvantages in glaring contrast with the luxuries of the wealthy.

It is an amazing gift to be alive, but many people don't see it that way. Most people actually live their lives without really living. They put their lives in other people's hands. They are afraid to really live, and without really living, they don't experience. Without experience, they don't learn and grow. When we really live, we have so much love to give to others. With all that love, we experience what it means to fully live. To be a loving individual is an incredible experience, and the time to start the journey to having a beautiful, fulfilling life would be right now.

Eliade, in his book “The Sacred and Profane,” poses an interesting conjecture that all people are inherently religious. What one does and the decision they make in their lives are all reflections on what they find sacred. Sacred in this context is an extension of one’s belief held up in high esteem to the point where what is deemed sacred is god like. Religion is the frame that interprets what is sacred and gives it a name and a face. Christians, for example, view Christmas as a sacred time as it is the season of the birth of their savior; Jews view the Passover as sacred as it represents a time in their religious history where God passed over the Jews while sending a message to their enemies. What is sacred can manifest itself in any shape, form, or time; truly entering the fourth dimension of space. If something sacred is god like, what is sacred to those who do not have a God? How can something be sacred if there is not a frame of reference for the thing to be sacred? How can every decision a person makes be reflect what they find sacred, if they do not have a religious language to reflect this phenomena?

Mother Teresa is one of the most written about and publicized women of the 20th century. She is the second most advertised religious celebrity after Pope John Paul II. Due to her fame, many people willingly step forward to offer their support and praise her work.

In the novel The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy, the reader notices the differences between the modern American view of politics and society between the politics and society in the novel. This novel takes place in the southwestern part of India in a town called Kerala and is focused on the wealthy family of the Syrian Christian Ipe family of Ayemenem. Within this family, many of them have problems in their lives and as a result, go to the house once their problems have taken a turn for the worse. A major theme of this story is the society of India and the caste system that is in place. Some characters that were majorly affected by the caste system are a woman named Ammu and her two children, Estha and Rahel along with an Untouchable named Velutha. Besides the caste system Ammu and her children must worry about the social system and the outcomes of actions that are not socially acceptable. Another recurring theme of this novel is the change in political stances in the country of India and how it affects the characters. Since the Ipe family is wealthy, they own a factory called “Paradise Pickles and Preserves” and some character struggles revolves around the fact that there is a motion for a change in politics. Although the novel can be understood on its own, it makes it more understandable if the reader learns about the political history of India and an understanding of the caste system. Besides the political history and caste system the view on gender in the country of