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Theology: Jesus—God and Man by Wolfhart Pannenberg. It is always a pleasure when you read a book at exactly the right time. That was the case here. Over the past number of years my doctrinal interests have driven me into deeper exploration of biblical studies (my Transfiguration and Ascension books being the direct fruits thereof). But isn’t it odd that you can, and the academy and market both do, conceptualize doctrinal theology and biblical theology as entirely different fields? Which more often than not fail to communicate with each other? If the whole purpose of doctrine is to restate faithfully the gospel as known through the Scriptures, then something has gone badly wrong. That is why Pannenberg’s early work of christology was so timely and refreshing. He starts from the core insight of biblical studies: there is no gospel, no Scripture, and no church without the proclamation that Jesus has risen from the dead. Therefore, Pannenberg begins his doctrinal work at the Resurrection and attacks it from every angle to see if it holds up. Satisfied that it does, he works intuitively through all ensuing Christian claims about Jesus, from his divinity to his humanity to his Lordship. A demanding read, but it will leave you more strongly confirmed in your faith as well as understanding it all the better. Novel: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. You might think, by contrast, that here is a book needing no recommendation at all. But if Pannenberg’s work came at exactly the right time, my first encounter with Fitzgerald’s classic came at exactly the wrong time—namely, high school. Actually, now I kind of admire the ambitions of my high school English teachers for trying to expose us to great works of literature; I suspect today’s teachers wonder if they can persuade their pupils to read at all. Whatever may be their state of literacy, I doubt teenagers of any era have the life experience to make sense of Gatsby. At least, I sure didn’t. It wasn’t till my third read-through, in my thirties, that I really got it. Now I love it and think it is deservedly among the all-time greatest works of American literature. If you have bitter memories of struggling through it too soon in life, or only saw the uninspired Robert Redford movie version thereof, give it another try. Cookbook: Falling Cloudberries by Tessa Kiros. Last but not least on the theme of timeliness: I tried to lay my hands on this book for years. Possibly decades. I don’t even remember anymore how I first heard about it. At the time, it was so rare that no library had it and I could never justify the cost of buying a copy, to say nothing of the postage (it’s heavy, all glossy full-color photography paper). At some point, I just took it off my wish list and forgot all about it. And then, last fall, browsing in a used bookstore in Brisbane, Australia… I found it! I recognized the distinctive title at once, nabbed it, and couldn’t believe the amazing sale price. Some things really are worth waiting for. This highly personal and eclectic collection is essentially memoir in the form of recipes: from childhood in Finland through family heritage and moves to Greece, Cyprus, and South Africa, adulthood in Italy, and last of all a grab-bag from around the world. It’s beautiful, thoughtful, and worth years of waiting just for the Pork Fillet in Pastry with Wild Mushrooms and Cream Sauce.
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