The Return

Review: Fasting: The Ancient Practices Series Scot McKnight Tomas Nelson 2009 Fasting from The Ancient Practices Series is another of the books that seeks to encourage the reader to consider a practice that most religious orders practiced regularly in the past. Fasting is one that has all but been forgotten in most Christian circles. The reasons for that are varied according to McKnight but primarily because of loss of the notion that the body and soul is an integrated unit. He opens with a discussion of body image, one that focuses on the link between the body and the spirit and develops the theme from there. One development from that is the reason an individual fasts at all. It is not as he points out repeatedly to obtain some favor from God. It is he thinks an expression that comes from a significant or as he calls it “grievous” (xviii) sacred moment. His definition works but it will take the reader a while to understand what he means by it. The book overall is gent...

Finding Our Way Again: The Return of the Ancient Practices Brian D. McLaren Thomas Nelson 2008 As stated in the forward written by Phyllis Tickle, this book is the first in The Ancient Practice Series. I had read some of McLaren’s work in the past so I was anxious to see what he had written here. His writings are engaging and persuasive, and this book is not different in those respects. What I did find interesting was a more settled, studied tone. He seems to have matured in some aspects. The ancient practices are the spiritual disciples that have been around for centuries but largely ignored in some regions of Christianity. This book constitutes a brief overview of the practices and some anecdotal tales of his attempts at translating them from the monasteries to general laity. Keeps the reading friendlier I think. His writings will rock your boat. You will not agree with some of what he says. You will see some areas that are in need of attention as well. While I tend...