Nonviolence

This book by Mark Kurlansky is a history of the dangerous idea contained within its title. After a foreword from the Dalai Lama himself, Kurlansky explores the history of nonviolence & its sociopolitical impacts - from Jesus & Buddha to the American Revolution & the early Quakers to Gandhi & Martin Luther King Jr. As a relatively short book this is far from comprehensive, but it is expansive, and gives a profound & well-put portrait of this nonviolent ethic into historical & moral context. Well worth a read for anyone interested in the nature of power & how to resist it with a clear conscience.

Anarchy & Christianity

This book by Jacques Ellul is about as provocative as its title suggests. Ellul's goal however is not to simply proselytize anarchists into Christianity or Christians into anarchism, but to deeply & incisively explore how the perspectives & praxis of each can inform & support the other in remarkably fruitful ways - and I think he profoundly succeeds in this endeavour.

   After a very helpful introduction laying out his intent for the book, the contents go as follows. Part one examines anarchism from a Christian standpoint - firstly making the case rather cogently why anarchism is the most biblically consistent political (or antipolitical, in any case) philosophy, before going on to examine & answer some of the historical & metaphysical problems anarchists have with Christianity. Part two then delves into the Bible itself to unpack the anarchist tendencies either explicitly contained or latent within its subtext; from the Hebrew scriptures, to the teachings & ethics of Jesus, to the books of Revelation & 1st Peter, to the writings of Paul. Finally there are three appendices: summaries of Karl Barth's & Alphonse Maillot's commentaries on Romans 13:1-2; a consideration of the situation for conscientiously objecting Christians under Roman rule; and a personal testimony from Adrien Duchosal of why he finds such fruit in being both a priest and an anarchist.

   Overall this is a very thought-provoking book, both sociopolitically & theologically - and I would highly recommend it to Christians skeptical of that wackiest & most chaotically diverse of philosophical standpoints. You never know, you might see something new. I certainly did, and I've been a Christian anarchist since my teens. It's also very short & readable.

the Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents

This book by Terry Pratchett is one I've read already for this blog, hence the link going back to my prior post. But oh man, was it worth a re-read... Sardines, Darktan, Peaches, Dangerous Beans, the stupid-looking kid, and of course Maurice himself - these are just fantastic characters. This is a book that stays with you.

THIS ISN'T MECHANICAL & DOESN'T REALLY KILL ANYTHING PROPERLY [annotated personal version]

This is a book I wrote in 2017-8, so see prior post for a link to a free copy of it on my Google Drive - though this particular version of it is one that I made extensive annotations in during the course of a psychotic episode in the summer of 2020; about thirty pages have been ripped out & the margins on about two-thirds of the pages remaining have detailed (and mental, frankly) scribblings in them. Re-reading the fruits of my madness was somewhat embarrassingly illuminating as to what was going through my head at the time.

What?

Haven't I read this one before? So what if I have? Do I still find it hard to believe that the whole book (apart from the final word, which is "yes") is written entirely in questions? Do I?

The Hobbit

This book is J.R.R. Tolkien's famous children's adventure novel; I've read it on this blog before, hence that link going back to my original post - this time however I've been listening to it a chapter a week (more or less) on Tolkien Trash's streaming channel, which has been very entertaining.

the Church in the Power of the Spirit

This book is the third in Jürgen Moltmann's trilogy of general theological ruminations, and easily the most straightforward to read and most practical to apply. With the first book centred on the possibility & virtue of hope, and the second on the self-abandonment & suffering of Christ, this volume deals with us as Jesus's followers in the present here & now, living in history as the Church as we both struggle in our finitude & are aided by the ever-helpful Spirit.

   This volume covers a huge amount of ground so my summary of its contents will be more cursory. After defining the dimensions of a modern doctrine of the Church, we explore how that has manifested & changed throughout history & how God's fingerprints are all over this; we then examine the specific implications of what it means for Jesus Christ to be the head of the Church, and concomitantly their twin role in bringing about the promised Kingdom; the next two chapters focus on the role of the Holy Spirit, firstly by being present & active in the sacraments, then by being powerful & creative in generating new possibilities for human community. The final chapter goes back to basics in light of everything discussed and reviews what it means for the Church to be "one, holy, catholic and apostolic".

   I found this book an absolute pleasure to read (compare dates on the posts - I read this in less than half the time any of Moltmann's other books have taken me) and eminently spiritually and humanly practical. Any Christian, especially in a leadership role, would benefit enormously from digging deep into the wisdom of the reflections given here.

Theology of Hope

This book is Jürgen Moltmann's first* and probably his [second]-most famous. As it says on the tin, it is a deep-dive into the theology around hope as understood in a Christian sense.

   After an introduction meditating on the nature of Christian hope, we then plunge into a buttload of abstract theory. The first chapter is on the interrelations between eschatology and revelation, then relatedly the second on promise and history. The third chapter gets a bit more concrete by placing Christ front and centre - how his resurrection speaks into the future in a illimitably hopeful way. Chapter four applies this to real history - how God speaks in revelation & promise into humanly-percieved time to create a hopeful sense of direction. Then the final chapter considers what the church's role in all this is.

   Don't be surprised - this is a very academically and philosophically dense book. I feel I only understood long passages of it because I've already read Moltmann's later systematic theology series, which is where I'd recommend newcomers to this most ecumenical of theologians start rather than here with his actual first book. Nonetheless, an inspiring and edifying read, that given a lot of intellectual patience I'm sure almost every Christian would get a lot out of.

* Though I read (and linked to) an updated version for the 21st-century, which includes a lecture Moltmann gave on the book's themes in addressing the pressing issues that make modern life so often feel hopeless. If you're interested the lecture is available here.

(the Meaning of) The Glorious Qur'an

This book is Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall's attempt at conveying the meaning of the Qur'an.* I am saying very little about it here as I intend to soon re-read it in an arguably-better translation. But yeh, it's the Qur'an, more or less, in English.

* I say attempt because apparently the original Arabic text of the Qur'an is so purportedly divinely poetically dense that it is impossible for a true translation to be made.

The Double

This book by Fyodor Dostoyevsky (yes, I'm on something of a binge of him lately, can you blame me) is a sort of magical realist novel. By which I mean, its premise is essentially supernatural but its effect is utterly grounded.

   So. Yakov Petrovich Golyadkin is a mid-ranking bureaucrat in St Petersburg, and despite his largely ineffectual attempts to climb the ladders of social status, most things are going okay for him. Until someone else shows up; someone who looks exactly like him, has just got a job in the same office, and somehow is even also called Yakov Petrovich Golyadkin. Our original protagonist initially responds to the appearance of the doppelganger with horror & despair - as you would - but soon finds himself inviting him round for a few drinks & even, when learning of Golyadkin Jr's (as he comes to be called throughout the narration) prior impoverished situation invites him to stay in his flat. Only, when he wakes the next morning, Jr is gone, but turns up at work sure enough and seems to be undertaking some complex plot to entirely humiliate, ruin & supplant Golyadkin Sr. I won't ruin the ending but that's basically the premise.

   I thought this was an existentially interesting book, playing on themes of identity and authenticity to a genuinely painful degree. While in my opinion still no match to Notes from Underground, this work of Dostoyevsky's is sure to be thought-provoking and a thoroughly emotionally rollercoasterish ride of a read.

Notes from Underground

This book is one of the earlier works of renowned Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky, but boy is it a banger. Even being as it is essentially a novel, it manages to elucidate an existential philosophy more potent than anything I've read - its protagonist (unnamed, generally simply called "the Underground Man") striking an uncomfortable balance between the existentialisms of both Kierkegaard & Camus and the cyncism of Diogenes.

   So what's the book about? I'll hint at this startingly by quoting the opening lines: "I am a sick man. I am a spiteful man." The Underground Man is a person of insane degrees of self-absorption, utterly unlikeable & yet thoroughly compelling. He lives in squalour, obviously by choice as he is not unintelligent, and seems to revel in the humiliation he suffers passively at the hands of a society around him that seems to be able to simply get on with its business without thinking too much about it. Social status is a particular itch in the Underground Man's side; he resents those who have it for merely having it, and yet he also resents those who lack it for wanting it for the intellectual weakness of desiring something so vapid. He seems to revel in his own humiliation, and yet deeply hates those whom he has perceived to have humiliated him - at one point, a military officer bumps into him in a crowded room and seems not to notice; the Underground Man stews on this for two full years, before deciding to take his revenge - he buys an expensive suit, walks along a street he knows the officer often walks down, and deliberately fails to move out of the way when the man is about to bump into him.* Later in the story, he encounters Liza, a prostitute, with whom he has an authentically heartfelt conversation, then, realising the foolishness of his own vulnerability, he goes out of his way to monologue to her about how miserable her life will be, inevitably, with the narration-stated intention of causing her exquisite suffering so that she may become as enlightened as he. The whole relationship with Liza is what ties up the plot and leads to the murky, quavering note of reflective repentance at the end of the novel. But I don't want to spoil too much.

   This is the first Dostoyevsky I've ever read, and it's made me wonder what took me so long. Man was a psychological and philosophical genius. This book is not a mere novel - it's a mirror. As despicable as the Underground Man is, through his narration you can easily see parts of yourself reflected in him, and the prose is thorough enough that you can even glean practical clues as to how to avoid wasting your life in such ways through it. This book changed me. I would recommend anyone with a love of literature to come to this novel for what it is - and for anyone with an existential itch to come to this book for what it could be.

* In reality, this takes multiple attempts; every time the Underground Man is about to bump into the officer, he deferently moves out of the way, but eventually he plucks up the courage to carry the task through to fulfilment - and he is happy! For a few days or so.

Nature, Man and Woman

This book by Alan Watts is a holistic analysis of the nature of humankind in both its typical genders and their relation, using both Christian theology and Taoist philosophy. Part one deals with the relationship between man and nature, thus discussing much on the scientific worldview and the nature of purpose; part two the relationship between man and woman, thus sexuality and the metaphysics of love. Overall I think I expected more from this book than it delivered, but it was still a very thought-provoking and insightful read. Hazardly recommended reading for anyone interested in the totalities of human nature.

Leviathan

This book is a Warhammer 40k novel by Darius Hinks, and it's basically about the Ultramarines & the Cadia 401st defending the fortress-world Regium against a tyranid hive fleet invasion, and while on a superficial grimdark level that's exciting, I didn't feel it was particularly interesting to read about. Aesthetically I'm a big fan of tyranids - they were one of my armies back in my teenage days when I was still involved in the tabletop hobby rather than mere lore-reading - but lorewise I think their motivational simplicity makes them rather dull to tell stories about, unless you're an incredibly imaginative & skilled writer, which (sorry) I don't think Hinks is. If you're a tyranid mega-fan you might get a kick out of it, but if you're more into 40k for the complex lore then this book has very little to offer you, and if you simply enjoy good sci-fi you can certainly easily do better than this.

the Republic of Song

This book is a poetry collection by Kelvin Corcoran, kindly lent to me by my friend Nick (who is also a great poet). I really enjoyed this collection - Corcoran's style is very plain and readable, and yet also bristling with unexpected longish imagery; and the poems herein are sometimes dripping with the cynicism of politics, other times overflowing with the miasmic overwhelm of history, still others bursting with a raw unfettered love for nature or revelling in the florid glories of everyday life. A powerful book, worth a read if you're into modern free verse - I'm hoping having read it will trigger some inspiration in me, as it's been a while since I've written any good poetry.

Magnifica Humanitas

This book is the first papal encyclical from Pope Leo XIV, and it's a banger. Perhaps just as much so as Francis's Laudato Si'. It's concerned primarily with the human challenges that AI is going to (or is already) bring, situated firmly in a sociopolitical context informed by the Catholic Church's Social Doctrine. I'm by no means a Catholic but I found this a very Christian very compelling read - Leo says things like "A more moral AI is not enough if that morality is determined by a few. What is needed is a more active political involvement that is capable of slowing things down when everything is accelerating, and of protecting the opportunities for communities still to be able to participate and ask questions." and "To speak of justice requires questioning the global distribution of power that decides who in fact can train these models and who is merely subjected to them. Likewise, it means acknowledging that social justice is not only a goal to be safeguarded after technologies are deployed, but a condition that must shape their very design from the outset." Based as fuck.

   If you're a Catholic yourself I halfway imagine this may be compulsory reading, but even if you're not a Christian and are in any shape concerned about the trajectory of AI in our global economy, this is worth a read. It's online for free from my given link, you can read the whole thing in two or three hours.

the Fall of Cadia

This book by Robert Rath is the first Warhammer 40,000 novel I've read in a while. No spoilers except for the title itself - despite the propagandic Cadian refrain "Cadia stands", Cadia does indeed fall. We here witness the epic planet-scale battle between Lord Commander Ursarkar Creed and Warmaster Abbadon the Despoiler - with the raging war told from all manner of angles, from those of command to the slogging foot troops and everything inbetween. Oh, and Belisarius Cawl is here to help eventually (also for personal research) as is everyone's favourite immortal museum curator Trazyn, to watch (and collect exhibits). If you're new to 40k a lot of this might go over your head but you still might appreciate it as a stompingly action-packed sci-fi war novel; if you're anywhere even 10% deep into 40k lore, this is a must-read. Rath is a very skilled writer and despite the preliminary list of main characters spanning five pages in itself this is easy enough to follow. It is a long one, going for 651 pages, but its pace never lets up, nor its tension.

Gods of Sen

This book* is the first instalment of David Brookes's imagined mythology for ancient Britain.** I found this an astounding work of imagination: it genuinely reads like real mythology. From the prehistoric origins of the Bone Tree, finally bearing fruit to give birth to the supreme creator god Ah, to Ah's creation of the Old Gods Bet, Gon & Rif - Bet & Gon falling in love with each other & clocking out of conscious existence to become the sky & the land respectively, while Rif proves to be a troublesome character & is exiled but not before they create the beasts & monsters of the world; to the union of Bet & Gon spawning the nine Living Gods, who are nursed by Rif's creatures (these include Mhin-of-the-Mouse, Glim-of-the-Wolf, Ahma-of-the-Deer, etc); to the giants, the immortals, finally the humans; all of which are wrapped up in a nonlinear perplexing web of struggle. I particularly enjoyed L's epic five-part voyage & the chapter about Gedda the Blind - also the brief conflict involving Nask, King of the Newts (although he is far from the coolest monster in here).

   I read David's poetry & short stories last year but I sense that this was his magnum opus; I truly wish I'd ever had a chance to talk to him about it when he was alive. But if you like the literary texture of mythology & are interested in the modern capacity for inventing it, you'd love this book. I fully intend to read the next four instalments over the coming weeks.

* Unfortunately not available anywhere, hence no link. It was never published within David's lifetime & he committed suicide last year, leaving PDFs of all his work on his website, which since, given his death, has tragically been taken down. If you like the sound of what I describe here & would like to read it, comment your email address & I'll send you the PDF.

** The central conceit of this series is that in the 2010s there was a large earthquake in the English Lake District, which tore open a mountain - within which was discovered the remains of a Bronze Age civilization with advanced literary recording skills; the mythological texts discovered carved into the walls of that ancient ruined city are presented here, the mythos of the Sena people.