Reviewed Book: Long, Thomas G. Preaching in and out of season. Louisville, Ky: Westminster/John Knox Pr, 1990

Olsen, O. Donald

English

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Preaching in and out of season

Wilfrid Laurier University

ConsensusVolume 23Issue 1 Essays in the History of Interpretation Article 125-1-1997Preaching in and out of seasonO. Donald OlsenFollow this and additional works at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/consensusThis Book Reviews is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Consensus by anauthorized editor of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact scholarscommons@wlu.ca.Recommended CitationOlsen, O. Donald (1997) "Preaching in and out of season," Consensus: Vol. 23 : Iss. 1 , Article 12.Available at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/consensus/vol23/iss1/12Book Reviews 87truth—God reveals truth to humankind in millions of different ways. WhatChristians really needed was a strong dose of humility and to continuetheir philanthropic work without converting non-Christians. According toGandhi, this makes a Hindu a better Hindu; a Muslim a better Muslim; aChristian a better Christian.Harvard professor, Diana Eck, opens Part Two, “Christian Response”,by constructing an academic systematization of Gandhi’s thought and life.According to Eck, Gandhi’s dictum that all faiths are true and equal iscurrently instructive for all who live in pluralistic religious societies. Ecksees in Gandhi’s ashrams model communities of inclusivity for today’s re-ligiously plural world. The ashrams include people from every faith, age,and walk of life.For Indian Jesuit Ignatius Jesudasan, Gandhi’s Hindu faith and practicemay be described by employing Karl Rahner’s term, “anonymous Chris-tianity”. Jesudasan suggests that Christology is either “descriptive”, i.e.,involving worship and dogma, or “prescriptive”, i.e., involving the imitationof Christ “as manifesting the underlying truth of the spiritual unity of allhumankind” (p. 92). Gandhi epitomized the latter.For James W. Douglass, Jesus’ voluntary suffering love unites the faith-ful of every religion. This is one explanation why Gandhi discovered somuch meaning and inspiration in the crucifixion of Jesus.Bob McCahill, a missionary in Bangladesh for many years, was con-vinced by Gandhi that non-Christians love and value their faith as much ashe loves his Christian faith. He was most influenced by Gandhi’s teachingand lifestyle of loving service. As a Christian, he attempts to do the same—without the motivation of converting Muslims and Hindus to Christianity.Part One of this thin tome deserves to be read by a wide audience.Editor Robert Ellsberg has given us a veritable treasure-trove of Gandhianspirituality. Recommended reading for seminarians, professors, pastors andlaity.Garth Wehrfritz-HansonShepherd of the Hills Lutheran ChurchCalgary, AlbertaPreaching In and Out of SeasonThomas G. Long and Neely Dixon McCarter, EditorsLouisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1990129 pp.The purpose of the book is to be helpful to preachers by providingbackground articles for sermons on special occasions.The contention of the editors is that there are three calendars for thepreacher. The first is the lectionary. The other two calendars are those88 Consensus“occasions generated by the recurring program emphases of the church andby the holidays observed in our general culture” (p. 9).Each calendar is important to the parish. First, “the sequence of seasonsand festivals, each with its particular themes and special issues, servesas a comprehensive menu for the diet of preaching” (p. 14). Secondly,“Preaching that seeks to engage the world in which we live must address thereal forces at work on people’s lives [e.g.. Labour Day, Thanksgiving Day]or risk abstraction and irrelevance” (p. 14). And thirdly, “The programcalendar of the church is composed of those occasions and themes of ongoingimportance to a local church. . .[Sjuch programmatic emphases always riskturning worship into a utilitarian event, a support for a series of good andnoble causes, but in the best sense such occasions bring the commitmentsof the Christian community into sharper focus” (p. 14-15).This concept of three calendars is argued briefly and effectively in ashort introduction. The remainder of the book is a series of articles onthemes from the “cultural calendar” (Preaching about Giving Thanks,Preaching About the Family, Preaching about Church and Nation, Preach-ing about Race Relations, Preaching About Work), and the “denomi-national calendar” (Preaching about the Global Witness of the Church,Preaching About Evangelism, Preaching About the Ecumenical Church,and Preaching About Stewardship).The introduction is a thoughtful summation of the why and what ofpreaching—with a challenge that preaching the fullness of the Gospel de-mands planning. This means a preaching plan that offers opportunity fora variety of sermon themes. It is in planning that the preacher is able totake into consideration all three calendars.The articles are of different quality. Each of them gives informationand background. But some give provocative and stimulating insights thatare different from the usual perspectives.For example, the article on Stewardship argues there are many limita-tions (e.g., work righteousness) to the traditional view of the steward asan underling to God responsible for persons, goods, land and business andwho is in danger of punishment. Instead, R. J. Allen argues for a conceptof “Koinonia” in which Christians are partners with Christ and each otherin providing what is “theirs” to offer, in building up the church. Again, thearticle on “Preaching About Work” is unusual for it focuses on “Work” as“work righteousness” in terms of narcissism and co-dependency. It calls for“preaching under a comfortable yoke” as Jesus promised.Preaching In and Out of Season is a useful resource book that providesbackground articles for preaching on themes from the denominational andcultural calendars. The thesis of the book is a stimulating encouragementto plan preaching over a lengthy period in which preaching and liturgy takeinto account all three calendars in proclaiming the fullness of the Gospel.O. Donald OlsenEdmonton, Alberta

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