Reading!!!

I am going to spend much of this summer reading. I am a bit burnt out from academic reading- cramming complex information into my brain in order to write papers, take tests, and get A's. It has been a while since I've truly read and given words the respect and honor they deserve. True reading means receptivity, the willingness to be available to the voice behind the words, "a voice to be believed and loved and adored in workplace and playground, on the streets and in the kitchen" (Eugene Peterson, Eat This Book 62). True reading means imagination, not the storing of information but the entering into the world of the author and his words, seeing the familiar as unfamiliar and finding new depths of humanity and life in it. True reading means participation, asking for my own part in stories and responding appropriately, letting words form my life and my life yearn for words. 

1. The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander: This children's series of five books--The Book of Three, The Black Cauldron, The Castle of Llyr, Taran Wanderer, and The High King-- follows the character Taran, Assistant-Pig-Keeper, on his journey into manhood. Accompanied by the saucy and proverbial Princess Eilonwy, the exuberant Fflewddur Fflam, and the loyal Gurgi--among others-- Taran's adventures and journey have welcomed me back to the world of fiction after a long vacation in the world of academia. I am in Colorado to learn more about my vocational calling and grow in maturity; Taran's growth in a way helps me understand my own. I am in the first few chapters of book five.
2. The Contemplative Pastor by Eugene Peterson: The best book on pastoral ministry I have ever read--not that I've read many. I was captivated by every page. His words convey such truth and wisdom. He is a thinking-Pastor, a poet-Pastor, a praying-Pastor, a joyful-Pastor. His words make me excited and confident again about my calling.
3. Eat this Book by Eugene Peterson: Ironically, as a student of the Bible I often forget to read the Bible with receptivity, imagination, and participation. I am trained to ask "What does this mean?" rather than "What should I obey?" I forget that the Bible is God's self-revelation to us humans, that his voice can be heard in its words, that the Bible should be prayed. Peterson, again, delivers. I don't want to neglect my Bible this summer; in fact, I want this summer to be shaped and guided by the Bible. 
4. Evangelical Theology by Karl Barth: One of the best introductory texts on theology I've ever read. I am trying to take it slow and digest it. I'm thankful for Zach Aument, my best-friend-roommate-and-fellow-pastor-theologian, who got interested in Barth under John Drury and then led me to the richness of Barth's theology. This book rocks. 
5. Einstein by Walter Isaacson: I listened to this biography of Albert Einstein as an audiobook during my drive to Colorado. Okay, Einstein is a freaking genius! And I have so many questions about physics, and so many hunches that physics has a lot to offer to the mysteries of the Christian faith. I have a good friend back home, Jasen Scaramazza. Jasen is going to get his PhD in Physics; how cool is that! I get giddy when he talks about physics and have to try and appear composed when he talks about what he is learning. 

Up on deck: Watership Down, Church Dogmatics III/1, the Fabric of the Cosmos, Working the Angles.

Want a good book? These are some of my lifetime favorites:

Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann.

Fire Bringer by David Clement-Davies

1000 Gifts by Ann Voskamp