SUNDAY SCHOOL AND STAR WARS
September 18, 2019
Not long ago I was fortunate enough to receive a free advance copy of a new book that has just been released, and which I feel is worth your attention.
12 New Testament Passages That Changed the World by Joseph Bentz may well be the best book of its kind since Joseph Campbell’s The Power Of Myth. While writing from a deliberately Christian point of view, Bentz - like Campbell - delves into the deeper meaning behind these stories so many of us learned in Sunday school, and ably demonstrates how they have transcended their ecclesiastical origins to become part and parcel of our popular culture.
(In the interest of full disclosure, I feel obligated to point out that - in additional to being a talented writer - Bentz is also one of America’s finest educators. I should know; he was my advisor and my professor for several classes when I attended Olivet Nazarene University, where I also worked closely with him at the campus newspaper, the Glimmerglass.)
Bentz clearly states his thesis in the opening chapter: “It is hard to think of an area of life—art, music, law, film, literature, medicine, and many others—that has not been deeply influenced by the Bible.”
Starting with the familiar tale of the Prodigal Son - the parable at the heart of one of Bentz’s earlier books, his 1999 novel A Son Comes Home - the author time and again proves the veracity of that thesis, showing how these stories have influenced everything from books and movies to political discussions and sports reporting.
Along the way Bentz explains - in concise but easy-to-understand language - exactly why these stories have become such an important component of our modern society, why they are worth such scrutiny in the first place, and why we should take the lessons they provide to heart.
Scriptural notations go hand-in-hand with cultural references to everything from Star Wars, The Godfather and the Marvel Cinematic Universe to Wall Street, car commercials and the world of WWE wrestling. (And yes, that last one surprised me, too.)
The end result is a book that is both entertaining and educational - one part devotional, one part pop culture treatise - and proves the point that even the most vocal of non-believers know more about the Bible than they themselves realize.
As such, 12 New Testament Passages That Changed the World is a book that I believe can be enjoyed and appreciated by readers of any faith - or, I suspect, even by those who claim no faith at all but are willing to join Bentz for the ride.
Consider it strongly recommended.
(Review copyright © 2019 by John A. Small)
Posted by John Allen Small. Posted In : Review
John A. Small is an award-winning newspaper journalist, columnist and broadcaster whose work has been honored by the Oklahoma Press Association, the Society of Professional Journalists, the Associated Press, the National Newspaper Association, and the Oklahoma Education Association. He and his wife Melissa were married in 1986; they have two sons, Joshua Orrin (born 1991) and William Ian (born 1996).
Mr. Small is the News Editor and columnist for the Johnston County Capital-Democrat, a weekly newspaper headquartered in Tishomingo, OK. He obtained his nickname, "Bard of the Lesser Boulevards," from a journalism colleague - the late Phil Byrum - in recognition of the success of his popular newspaper column, "Small Talk." (In addition to the many awards the column itself has received over the years, a radio version of "Small Talk" earned an award for "Best Small Market Commentary" from the Society of Professional Journalists in 1998.)
John was born in Oklahoma City in 1963; lived in the Bradley-Bourbonnais-Kankakee area of Illinois for most of the next 28 years (with brief sojourns in Texas and Athens, Greece, thrown in to break up the monotony); then returned to his native state in 1991, where he currently resides in the Tishomingo/Ravia area. He graduated from Bradley-Bourbonnais Community High School in 1981, and received his bachelor's degree in journalism from Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais in 1991. The years between high school and college were a period frought with numerous exploits and misadventures, some of which have become the stuff of legend; nobody was hurt along the way, however, which should count for something.
In addition to his professional career as a journalist he has published two short story collections: "Days Gone By: Legends And Tales Of Sipokni West" (2007), a collection of western stories; and "Something In The Air" (2011), a more eclectic collection. He was also a contributor to the 2005 Locus Award-nominated science fiction anthology "Myths For The Modern Age: Philip Jose Farmer's Wold Newton Universe," edited by Win Scott Eckert. In additon he has written a stage play and a self-published cookbook; served as project editor for a book about the JFK assassination entitled "The Men On The Sixth Floor"; and has either published or posted on the Internet a number of essays, stories and poems.
He has also won writing awards from the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the National Library of Poetry. He is a past president of the Johnston County Chamber of Commerce in Tishomingo; was a charter member and past president of the Johnston County Reading Council, the local literacy advocacy and "friends of the library" organization; served as Johnston County's first-ever Americans with Disabilities Act coordinator in 1994-95; served two terms as chairman of the Johnston County (OK) Democratic Party; and has taught journalism classes for local Boy Scout Merit Badge Fairs. He is a member of the New Wold Newton Meteorics Society.
