When I was working on my master’s degree (we’re talking some 40 years ago now), I took a graduate course entitled “History of the Early Christian Church.” I read a lot that semester; our texts weren’t so much history or theology books as they were original writings from the first two of three centuries of Christianity, stopping short of St. Augustine. The readings included some of the New Testament books, but we also read epistles and sermons by Polycarp and Clement, the epistle to Diognetus, The Shepherd of Hermas, and a whole slew of the group known as the “early Church fathers.” The New Testament sticks to the writings of the apostles: Michael Kruger asks what do we do with the non-apostolic New Testament books?
Serious literary writers are likely a little bit dumbfounded, but this year’s Booker Prize was awarded to M John Harrison for his novel The End of Everything. It is the first time the prize has ever been awarded to a science fiction novel. I can tell you that I have read some extraordinarily fine science fiction novels over the years.
More Good Reads
America 250
The Forgotten “Rabbi of the American Revolution” – Michael Fruend at Real Clear History.
The Sentinels of Freedom & Liberty: America 250 – Allen West at The Institute for Faith, Work, & Economics.
When Savannah Fell to the British – Jim Sanderlin at Real Clear History.
Art
New installation takes thematic approach to postwar, contemporary art collection – Ines Santos at St. Louis Art Museum.
Faith
Christianity Today and the Sin of Centrism – Nicholas McDonald at The Bard Owl.
Mission Impossible – Andrew Kerr at Gentle Reformation.
Writing and Literature
Being Before Seeing: Annie Dillard’s Real Frontier – Jody Benson at Mere Orthodoxy.
On the State of “The State of Literature” – Lincoln Michel at Counter Craft.
Writing Scams Are Reaching a Whole New Level of Awful – Jane Friedman.
British Stuff
Evensong at Southwell? – Tom Jones at The Critic Magazine.
Poetry
“The Harp Song of the Dane Women,” poem by Rudyard Kipling – Adam Roberts at Poems Ancient and Modern.
A Boy, Running – poem by Medha Singh at Literary Matters.
“The Pulley,” poem by George Herbert – Joseph Bottum at Poems Ancient and Modern.
Autumn Haunts – poem by Cynthia Erlandson at Society of Classical Poets.
Music
Vivaldi and the Human Passions in Music – Michael De Sapio at The Imaginative Conservative.
Life and Culture
The charges against Michel Houellebecq are absurd and dangerous – Ben Sixsmith at The Critic Magazine.
America Against America: Observations from the CCP’s Grey Eminence and Xi’s Consigliere – Yuro Bezemov at How to Subvert Subversion.
Come About May -- Zaggie
Painting: Portrait of St. Simon. 0il on canvas by El Greco (1541-1614).
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