Faith, Doubt, and Courage in 15 Great people of Faith
And What we can learn From Them
by John R.Tyson
Paperback
Price: £6.99
Publisher:Abingdon Press from Alban Books
Published:12 December 2008
ISBN:978-0-687-64726-2
GoodBookStall Review:
This short book (139 pages) contains brief biographies of 15 famous people of faith from every period of Christian history, starting with Vibia Perpetua in the 1st century and ending with Mother Teresa of Calcutta. The author approaches each of his subjects in an ecumenical, non-judgmental way and concentrates instead on drawing out positive lessons that we can learn from their lives and the choices that they made. He reinforces this approach by ending each chapter with a prayer and some questions for reflection.
While those who hold the traditional reformed position may have questions about some of the author’s choice of subjects, they will find that this book offers interesting insights into the lives of famous believers from other church traditions, as well as an overview of the development of Christian thought through the centuries.
The book could well be used to introduce an element of church history into a programme of study for a church fellowship or to extend the understanding of a well-taught youth group. Each chapter also has a bibliography at the end, so further research is facilitated. The main caveat for the Bible-believing Christian is that not all the subjects had a clear testimony and that some of them espoused beliefs that are not Biblical. Having said this, the book contains much that is interesting and challenging, and therefore provides a good resource.
Reviewer: Paula Hill (19/05/10)
This short book (139 pages) contains brief biographies of 15 famous people of faith from every period of Christian history, starting with Vibia Perpetua in the 1st century and ending with Mother Teresa of Calcutta. The author approaches each of his subjects in an ecumenical, non-judgmental way and concentrates instead on drawing out positive lessons that we can learn from their lives and the choices that they made. He reinforces this approach by ending each chapter with a prayer and some questions for reflection.
While those who hold the traditional reformed position may have questions about some of the author’s choice of subjects, they will find that this book offers interesting insights into the lives of famous believers from other church traditions, as well as an overview of the development of Christian thought through the centuries.
The book could well be used to introduce an element of church history into a programme of study for a church fellowship or to extend the understanding of a well-taught youth group. Each chapter also has a bibliography at the end, so further research is facilitated. The main caveat for the Bible-believing Christian is that not all the subjects had a clear testimony and that some of them espoused beliefs that are not Biblical. Having said this, the book contains much that is interesting and challenging, and therefore provides a good resource.
Reviewer: Paula Hill (19/05/10)
