Against Nothingness

Luke Timothy Johnson, Brother of Jesus Friend of God: Studies in the Letter of James . Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2004. 263 pgs. More studies in James, for the same reason as the last review I did of such a book. This time, however, I had a much better idea of what I was getting into. Johnson is an author I have read several times before. The first book I read by him was his commentary on Luke in the "Sacra Pagina" series. It was for an assignment in my introduction to Christianity course in my undergrad at UofA, and it was one of the books I used that was not on the recommended reading list. It was also the best commentary on Luke that I used, and remains so to this day. Next I came across his Writings of the New Testament . This turned out to be another excellent volume. To cut the story short, my history with reading Johnson meant that I was quite happy to find this book on James in the course of choosing material for this study. Brot...

Earl F. Palmer, The Book That James Wrote , Vancouver, B.C.: Regent College Publishing, 1997. 90pgs. I am currently doing a study in James with a friend, and so a couple weeks ago I dropped by the Regent bookstore and library to get some books on the subject. I decided to buy two, and then see what the library had to offer. Usually, when I am buying books on a subject, rather than getting specific books or specific authors, I talk to the people at the bookstore and get their recommendations. They tend to be good. And that is how I came to have, and read, Earl Palmer's The Book That James Wrote . This short book is a kind of commentary on, or exploration of, the book of James (I know, your shocked). Palmer approaches James as a book written by a pastor seeking to give sound advice and wisdom from within the Jesus tradition. Palmer pictures James as a man throwing stones into a lake, and watching as the waves ripple around the lake. James' themes interact, overlap, and re...