Interdisciplinary Book and Film Reviews

  Living, Loving, and Learning By Leo Buscaglia 1982 We gathered around an old black and white TV. Someone had a videotape of the charismatic Leo Buscaglia talking about love. We were graduate students in counseling at the University of Missouri. And it was the 1970s when love was exploding after the Vietnam War ended. Leo touched many lives then and his ideas are still worth considering. The Author Leo Buscaglia was born 31 March 1924 in Los Angeles, California. During WWII, he served in the US Navy. He earned his PhD in 1963 and was a professor of Special Education at the University of Southern California. He was widely known as Dr. Love. Leo died 12 June 1998 from a heart attack. He was a popular motivational speaker and his works were so popular that five books were on the New York Times Bestseller List at the same time! Book Summary Living, Loving & Learning   by  Leo F. Buscaglia  is an inspirational collection of his informative and entertaining lectures, deli

  Living Well 10 Big Ideas of Faith and      a Meaningful Life   By       Geoffrey W. Sutton Reviewed by    Various Quotes from reviewers of:   Living Well: 10 Big Ideas ofFaith and a Meaningful Life “As a Christian and a psychological professional, it’s rare to find resources which address the interaction of my beliefs and scholarly knowledge. I’m encouraged by Geoff Sutton’s, Living Well , as it offers a unique perspective on Biblical virtues from multiple, complementary views. In a time where many want to divide faith and science, a harmonious combination is found in this book.”    — Chelsea L. Greer, Ph.D ., Assistant Professor, Counseling Psychologist, USA  ***** “In the long and noble tradition of virtue ethics, Geoffrey Sutton provides a valuable resource for living the good life. Bible study meets scientific inquiry meets practical how-to, this is a helpful tool for congregation and classroom alike.”     — Dr. Howard N. Kenyon , Vice President, Ecumenical Mi

Catch the Fire:  Soaking Prayer       and  Charismatic Renewal         By Michael Wilkinson  &  Peter Althouse Reviewed by    Geoffrey W. Sutton,  Soaking prayer is claimed by charismatics to facilitate and expand the reception of divine love in order to give it away in acts of forgiveness, reconciliation, compassion, and benevolence. Soaking is a metaphor that supports charismatic spirituality and practices like resting in the Spirit, prayer for spiritual gifts, healing, prophecy, and impartation, which we describe and explain in this book (p. 4). The authors offer readers an integrated sociological and theological perspective on soaking prayer as practiced by charismatic Christians associated with Catch the Fire (CTF), a church in Toronto, Canada and a worldwide movement. Wilkinson and Althouse contextualize soaking prayer in two primary ways.  1. Dramatic presentations of praying were documented among the adherents of the modern Pentecost