Book Reviews

by First Church

          ADULT EDUCATION WEB EXCLUSIVE! 

The Adult Education Committee encourages you to check out two new additions to the church library! 

Reading Jesus: A Writer’s Encounter with the Gospels

by Mary Gordon

In Reading Jesus, fiction writer and memoirist Mary Gordon reflects personally and thoughtfully on Mark, Matthew, Luke, and John’s accounts of the life of Christ.  Turning her novelist’s eye on such familiar topics as the Prodigal Son and the Beatitudes, Gordon approaches the New Testament with the curiosity, open mind, and skepticism of a non-scholar.  As she grapples with the mysteries and contradictions in the gospel stories, Gordon raises questions to intrigue and challenge any believer: what does it mean to be perfect?  What exactly is a miracle?  And what might people of faith make of the troubling images of Jesus that arise in opposition to the benign Santa-Claus image of Jesus?” 

Read web exclusive book review of this book by the Rev. James Speer!

Don’t miss Mary Gordon at First Presbyterian Church! Mark your calendars now to join us on June 6 at 12:30pm. For more information see: http://www.fpcnyc.org/first-notes/spring-2010-adult-education-brochure

People of the Book

by Geraldine Brooks

People of the Book tells the story of rare-book restorer Hanna Heath and her encounter with the Sarajevo Haggadah, an illuminated Hebrew manuscript from 15th century Spain.  We follow Hanna as she traces the origins of the book—all the way from the present, through Sarajevo in 1940, to Seville in 1480—and meets its savior, a Muslim librarian named Karaman.  The history of anti-Semitism, the struggle for women’s independence, and the transcendent power of art and love all figure into this tale of how a sacred text came to be made, lost, and found. 

Read web exclusive book review of this book by FPC Adult Education Committee Member Janet Harris!