Interdisciplinary Book and Film Reviews

The Science and Theology of Godly Love   By Matthew Lee & Amos Yong Reviewed  by Geoffrey W. Sutton The interest in godly love has been inspired by social scientists affiliated with the Institute for Research on Unlimited love. These scientists and affiliated colleagues trace at least part of their heritage to work on altruism by former Harvard University sociologist, Pitirim Sorokin. The Science and Theology of Godly Love includes an Introduction by Lee, Poloma, and Post followed by ten chapters. The first five chapters were written by theologians. Each presents challenges to dimensions of godly love. Stephen Post discusses universality; Michael McClymond explores mutuality and self-sacrifice; Peter Althouse proposes the importance of a Christological focus to understanding godly love; Paul Alexander critiques theologies that support violence and asserts that understanding godly love entails an active nonviolence. Finally, Thomas Oord offers two contributions: Consid

Testing Prayer:  Science and Healing   By Candy Gunther Brown Reviewed  by Geoffrey W. Sutton I'm posting this review in the early stages of the 2020 Coronavirus. China has quarantined large portions of their population. Italy has been shut down. Europe is preparing for trouble. The US health agencies have issued warnings. Europeans are banned from entering the USA.  On social media, some Christians are minimizing the problem to temper reports they see as exaggeration. Others are talking about God's protection and still others remind people of God's healing power. Meanwhile, people are engaged in panic buying of cleaning agents and toilet paper. Panic is in the air. "It's a pandemic," we are told. Do you believe in God’s power to heal?  I have lived with and studied Pentecostals for most of my life so, I am interested in the scientific study of their beliefs, practices, and experiences. Pentecostals are not alone in believing in div

THE BETTER ANGELS OF OUR NATURE:     WHY VIOLENCE HAS DECLINED.       By Steven Pinker  Reviewed by    Kayla Jordan*  & Geoffrey W. Sutton There's a shooting in a mall, a restaurant, a school. Christians or Muslims are being killed here or there. It looks like things are getting worse. But Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker doesn't think so as he explains in, The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined. Kayla Jordan was one of my research students interested in moral psychology. We decided to read The Better Angels of Our Nature and write a review, which was published in 2012. I'm drawing on our joint review for this blog post. I listed her name above because she was the lead author in the published book review. I'll give the reference to the academic review below. ***** Steven Pinker combines historical and psychological research to argue the case for a decline in global violence. Pinker observes that many people think

Ravensbrück : Life and Death  in Hitler’s Concentration Camp      by Sarah Helm Reviewed by Geoffrey W. Sutton, Ph.D. Ravensbrück  offers an organized collection of women’s voices documenting the diverse ways individuals and tribal groups of European women responded to Nazi enslavement, violence, and murder. The collection of stories is organized chronologically. But themes emerge because policies and war events change.   Changes in policy sometimes mean changes in leaders. But changes in policy also reflect changes in the war, which in turn, result in changes in the size and character of the camp’s victims. We have heard stories of the brutality of Nazi leaders in the death camps focused on the extermination of Jews. But at   Ravensbrück  we learn that Nazis, governed by superiority myths and emboldened by conquest, systematically destroyed the lives of European women after extracting every ounce of strength as they labored for the Reich on the trail

Handbook of Forgiveness Second Edition Edited by Everett L. Worthington, Jr. &     Nathaniel G. Wade (Eds.) Reviewed by Geoffrey W. Sutton, Ph.D. Let me state at the outset, I recommend the Handbook of Forgiveness, Second Edition to anyone interested in forgiveness studies. And, it belongs on the shelves of university and seminary libraries around the world. ***** I began following forgiveness studies in 2001. I had returned to academia after a full-time career as a psychologist. I naively thought all professors ought to conduct and publish research. As I was searching for research ideas, I came across a few forgiveness studies. I recognized the name, Ev Worthington—we had become friends as new graduate students at the University of Missouri. After contacting him, I received a massive packet of forgiveness articles. Now my task was to find something that had not been done. Meanwhile, I met Nathaniel Wade—not in person, mind you, but by his conne

I liked the movie 1917 because the focus is on what look like ordinary young English lads tasked with an extraordinary mission at a crucial time in the history of the Great War. Lance Corporals Schofield and Blake must cross several miles of dangerous terrain to warn others not to attack a faux German retreat. If successful, they could save over 1,000 soldiers, including Blake's older brother. 1917 is a Homeric odyssey for our time. And the historical context is rich with meaning. The story begins on 6 April 1917--the day when the United States enters the war. Of course it will take some time before Americans arrive. Meanwhile, the Germans feign retreat, but it's a trap to draw British troops into the open. The plot is simple and familiar. But the movie engages us in a realism that could only be enhanced by giving us uncomfortable cold wet muddy seats and a whiff of the overwhelming stench confronting the two messengers. As with any such terror plot, there is a race a