It’s hard to believe that the end of November is so-o-o in sight. Predictions about the end of the world have come and gone … we’re still here. I guess there’s always 2012 to look forward to for apocalyse watchers. For the rest of us, the next thing in view is Christmas! And I’ve just begun browsing the Net for books to buy …

Of course, since I got my very handy iPad2, I’ve cut down on buying print books. Now I often resort to e-books. I was looking at some book sites, especially my favourite, which is www.christianbook.com. And I thought this year, I would highlight some e-books as part of my Christmas shopping list. It’s random–just some things I have loved reading, and would like to read soon.

1. At the Master’s Feet by Sadhu Sundar Singh. Free download from Christian Classics Ethereal Library as Word document. A classic must-read.

2. Boundaries by Dr. Cloud and Dr. Townsend. I would recommend this to everyone. We live in a messy world where relationships are messy and messed-up, and nobody respects anybody’s boundaries. Great read. The other books in this Boundaries “series” are also available as e-books.

3. Who Made God?: And Answers to 100 Other Tough Questions of Faith, ed by Ravi Zacharias and Norman Geisler. Not a new book either, but useful and interesting Apologetic read. I’ve always liked Norman Geisler, so another book I would recommend. And of course Ravi Zacharias is popular reading for many Christians too (though I prefer hearing him speak than reading his books).

4. Old Testament Exegesis, 4th ed.: A Handbook for Students and Pastors by Douglas Stuart. Definitely a must-read for those of us engaged in teaching and preaching. There’s just too much holey (no spelling error!) preaching nowadays. We’re masters at eisegesis, not exegesis! Shame, shame!

5. Flight to Heaven by Capt. Dale Black, Ken Gire. If you’re curious about the Afterlife, like me, this is one more book for your collection.

6. Celebrating Jesus in the Biblical Feasts by Richard Booker.

7. Transforming Discipleship: Making a Few Disciples at a Time by Greg Ogden. Written for those of us with a mega-programme and instant gratification complex …

8. A Passion for God: The Spiritual Journey of A.W. Tozer by Lyle W. Dorset. A biography of a great saint with feet of clay. Good reading, and wonderful reminder of the clayeyness of being human …

9. Breath for the Bones by Luci Shaw. An exploration of art, creativity, faith and imagination. I love Luci Shaw.

10. Living the Sabbath: Discovering the Rhythms of Rest and Delight by Norman Wirzba. I like the sound of this! Our Christian and church life is too reminiscent of the rat race. I often wonder if we take to heart what Christ said about the weary and heavy-laden coming to Him and finding rest. We pay lip service of course, but I don’t think we really understand what God’s Sabbath rest and delight means for the Christian. If we did, we wouldn’t whip people up into a guilty frenzy for not being as “involved” or “serving” in church as much as we would like.

That’s 1o e-books to consider for Christmas gifting. Visit www.christianbook.com and see the full list for yourself. (Just doing some free marketing for them …) Downside, though … some e-books are available only in the US.

There is such a flood of choice in Bibles these days. We’re thoroughly spoilt as a generation of Christians where literature is concerned. But sometimes, having too much of a choice is as bad as no choice at all because of the confusion that is generated. I was at my church camp a few weeks ago, and during one session, we were split into small groups for discussion. As it happened, the passages we had to look at were from Ephesians (!), which I happen to be glued to at the moment because I’m teaching it in my Sunday class. Anyway, in my group was a bunch of teens with their handphones. When we opened our Bibles, they scrolled their phones to fish out the passages. I was reading from the NIV, someone else had the NKJV. But these young chaps (two of them) were laboriously reading (from their phones) the American Standard Bible. I say laboriously because they read it badly, probably without understanding any word other than “the” and “and”! The reason was obvious …  they told me that the download for the ASB was free … Ahh pragmatism …

Sometimes we shoot ourselves in the foot. When it comes to the Bible, we seem to set ourselves up so that every occasion to read or study it will fail! And fail abysmally! Anyway, I love collecting Bibles in their different versions–which again underscores how spoilt we are as a generation … I have quite a few, and my one regret is that I didn’t keep my very first Bible, which was an RSV I bought for myself for a mere RM12. It had a garish orange-red cover and very small print. But I loved it so much and practically every sentence was underlined and highlighted. Those were the days when “commentary” was not yet a word in my vocabulary, and all I had to help me with the Bible were my eyes and a brain. Anyway, the day came when I decided to give it away … Today I wish I hadn’t. But the subsequent Bibles I bought gave me the same buzz that this one did.

I try to get new Bible translations when I can. Far from discouraging me, these different versions and translations are interesting to me for the different aspects they highlight, and the insights that surface. Some Bibles I like more than others. The one I use now, which I find most practical, for study and teaching purposes, is the NIV Study Bible. I’ve been thinking of making a change to the ESV, but I’m not decided yet. Anyway, here’s a list of Bibles I think are good.

RSV (Revised Standard Version)

Published in the 20th century and is the authorised revision of the American Standard Version of 1901. It was meant to be a readable and clear translation in modern English, and for its time, gave the KJV a run for its money. Eventually, even the RSV’s language became a tad too “difficult” for readers.

In 1989, there was a revision of the RSV, resulting in the New Revised Standard Version. Heavily criticised for a couple of things, like gender-neutral language. Eg., Isaiah 7: 14: “virgin” was translated “young woman” (which may or may not mean the same thing as “virgin”). But I like the NRSV too. It’s very readable, and has less of the ponderous and plodding prose that the NIV is sometimes guilty of.

ESV (English Standard Version)

As an alternative to the NRSV, in 2001, Crossway Publishers published the ESV, which is a revision of the 1971 RSV. It’s a very evangelical Bible indeed. J.I. Packer served as its General Editor, and it is gaining popularity among evangelical scholars and theologians. As a translation, it is more literal than the NIV, for instance, and less so than the New American Standard Bible (heavy and painfully picky …).

I have a copy, but I don’t know what it is … maybe it’s the font … maybe it’s the over-touted evangelicalism … I haven’t quite taken to it yet.

Good News Bible

Published by the American Bible Society as an English Language Bible in 1976. I remember that the New Testament was called Good News for Modern Man. One of our Malay translations is based on this (Berita Baik). This is a Bible that is really good for non-native English speakers and child learners. In fact, this Bible came about out of requests from Africa and Asia for an easily-understood English Language translation. Totally “thought-for-thought” rather than “word-for-word” translation. iPhone app available.

NLT (New Living Translation)

Started out as a revision of The Living Bible, but evolved into a new translation, using Hebrew and Greek texts. Definitely a good choice for younger readers and non-native speakers of English. Idiomatic, easily understood. There’s even an NLT Study Bible, but frankly, to me, anything that is too dynamic equivalent isn’t a good study bible choice, unless your grasp of English is problematic.

NIV (New International Version)

I’m still using the 1984 version. I like the NIV because it really is a team effort, involving more than 100 evangelical scholars from different disciplines. The translation is between word-for-word and thought-for-thought. In 2011, the revision was released. 95% of the stuff remains the same as the previous version. The NIV goes through pretty thorough reviews and revisions, and keeps updated on the latest findings about biblical languages. The number of manuscripts used for the NIV is also impressive.

TNIV (2001) received a lot of criticisms for its gender-inclusive language. The 2011 version takes both the 1984 and the 2001 versions into consideration. So it probably strikes a very good balance between the two.

I think I’ll be getting the 2011 version soon.

And the holiest of them all … the KJV (King James Version, 1611)!

I once had an elder who pronounced (many times over) that the KJV, being the AUTHORISED VERSION, came straight from God as nothing else ever could, and THEREFORE, was the ONLY Bible that could be called “Bible”! Don’t sully the pulpit with any other inferior chapbook ”translation”!

My comments? Wonderful literature if you want to read how Shakespeare wrote and spoke. Great for the poetry too. The KJV is always going to be beloved by all, and respected by all. iPad download is free. Translation-wise, though I think we all know there were mistakes and mistranslations … Hence,

NKJV (New King James Version)

An updated and modernised KJV, but keeps to its classic style and poetic beauty. I like this version to read, but can’t use it for my Bible Study. For that, something more prosaic like the NIV or ESV suits me better.

What I don’t particularly like are “one-man” jobs, like the J.B. Phillips Bible, and Eugene Peterson’s The Message. These are paraphrases, and the thoughts of one writer. The limitations are obvious. That’s why I like the NIV.

Today is Teacher’s Day. I almost forgot till an ex-student of mine wished me yesterday.  Everyone knows the kind of vocation that teaching is–it’s underrated, underpaid hard work. Some people do it because they can’t do anything else. Those of us who opted to teach because we wanted to, know that teaching yields rewards that go beyond the success ratings and over the top student enrolments prized too much today. I’ve always been on the lookout for good books on teaching as calling and vocation. Some years ago, I came across a writer whose name I think many will recognise: Parker J. Palmer. He is a teacher by nature and by calling, and writes pretty much on the subject itself. I thought I would mention some of his books here. They probably won’t be in the local bookstores … I may have bought all the only copies around KL and PJ. But hey, online shopping is the way to go!

To Know As We Are Known: A Spirituality of Education

If you think that teaching is just about conveying a bunch of facts to a bunch of people, think again. Parker examines the true nature of education, which is the search for a holistic and relational truth. As Christians, that focuses on Jesus, who is Truth enfleshed. For Palmer, “to teach is to create a space in which the community of truth is practiced.” He takes lessons from the teaching “methods” of fourth-century monastics (who were more communal than many of us imagine). All true learning and teaching are about community and koinonia, because to learn, as to teach, requires openness, acceptance, vulnerability and boundaries. A must-read for new teachers, old, seasoned teachers, and most of all, jaded “I’ve-had-it-up-to-here” teachers.

The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher’s Life

To Palmer, “good teaching cannot be reduced to technique; good teaching comes from the identity and integrity of the teacher.” This integrity can only come from the inner self of the teacher, and therefore, to teach truly and real-ly necessitates a questioning and probing into the recesses of our hearts. It is only when we discover that connection between our pulse and the “subject” that we teach that we will be able to teach in ways that inspire learning. In other words, we teach from the inside out. Another must-read book, but requires readers to be genuinely vulnerable and open. You won’t find fail-proof techniques (success guaranteed or your money back!) and magical formulae here. Only attempt if you wish to teach.

Written with Arthur Zajonc, professor of physics at Amherst College and director of the academic programme of the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society, and Megan Scribner. This book calls for a more integrated approach to teaching and learning at college and university level. What should be the focus of university learning but education that reaches the entire person. However, we often think of a college degree in terms of decent pay and decent job in the future. The “subject” we major in yields information we pay for in order to gain that facility to work and earn money. However, Palmer and Zajonc’s challenge is for a reformation and renewal of higher learning that does not only value intellectual vigour and curiosity, but also core values like compassion and love. Integrative education focuses on the inner lives of the educators and learners, and seeks to transform higher education by revisiting its roots and renewing its vision in terms of holistic learning.

A Hidden Wholeness: The Journey Toward an Undivided Life

I’ve ordered this but haven’t got it yet. It’s not strictly about education or teaching, but talks about Palmer’s obsession with the word, “integration.” It is about how many of us live lives that are fragmented. The world we find ourselves in is, in truth, a “broken” world. If our souls could be integrated and undivided, however, this broken world could well be transformed and healed. Change from the inside out is the only lasting change we can look for. “Hidden wholeness” was a phrase coined by Thomas Merton, trappist monk extraordinaire. Palmer uses this phrase to talk about harnessing human potential that would lead to personal transformation, community-building, education and nonviolent protest. Can’t wait to read it.

The Promise of Paradox: A celebration of contradictions in the Christian life

Another one I’ve ordered but not got yet. And also not directly on education, but bound to be a good read.  This is a reprint of a 1980s book. I’m quoting from the blurb:

“First published in 1980—and reissued here with a feisty new introductory essay—The Promise of Paradox launched Parker J. Palmer’s career as an author and his ongoing exploration of the contradictions that vex and enrich our lives. In this probing and heartfelt book, the distinguished writer, teacher, and activist examines some of the challenging questions at the core of Christian spirituality. How do we live with the apparent opposition between good and evil, scarcity and abundance, individuality and community, death and new life? We can hold them as paradoxes, not “either/ors,” allowing them to open our minds and hearts to new ways of seeing and being.”

And there you have it, my pick of Parker Palmer books.

Happy Teacher’s Day!