Book Reviews

Confessions by Saint Augustine

Essentially one of the first autobiographical Christian “testimonies,” Confessions, is Saint Augustine’s literal confession to God, as he reflects upon his conversion to the Christian faith. Starting very much at the beginning, Augustine records the events of his childhood, making particular note of the enormous influence that his mother’s love and prayers had upon him in his formative years. Nevertheless, as he grows up, his early adult life is marked by a radical departure from his mother’s values. Augustine attributes this shift to an increasing skepticism of the truth of Christianity, and a repetitive struggle with lust and gluttony. Though at the time, Augustine delights in his folly, and only half-heartedly desires to change his behavior, he nonetheless realizes that his pursuit of “happiness” is an inevitable dead end. Once he can no longer bear the pressing weight of such a fact, he famously declares that the human soul is restless until it rests in God. Realizing that he can no longer run from the God that relentlessly pursues him, he decides to sacrifice his life of lower pleasures for that of a higher One. After the initial point of his conversion, Augustine recounts the painful tension of being unable to master his own sin while desiring to be free of it. He concludes that he is ultimately weak, and that without divine empowerment, is unable to perform God’s commands. This section of the book is relatively simple to read, as it is heavily infused with scripture and personal meditation. Augustine goes on after this however, to essentially write philosophy about the nature of time, happiness, the created order, divine wisdom, and the Biblical interpretation in Genesis. This second, seemingly misplaced section is significantly more difficult to digest if one is not previously familiar with such material. Nevertheless, Augustine’s broader synthesis that man is most happy when he finds his happiness in God, is a refreshingly authentic account, and indeed an important reminder. His insights into God’s character and the human condition should prompt the reader to reflect on his or her own life, and ask the probing question, “From what do I derive my greatest happiness?”

                                                                                              J. Barak Wright, Grade 11 2006

Safely Home  by Randy Alcorn

 Imagine if one day you woke up and it was illegal to have a Bible or teach children about God. Well, good morning!  It is that day, in China.  Randy Alcorn has researched and written a book about the church in China and the daily persecution there.
  
The story is about a man (whose name was Ben) who went on a simple business trip to China. He decided to stay in the home of his old Chinese college roommate (his friend’s name was Chan); who had become a Christian, unbeknownst to Ben; in the years since they had lost contact. Because Chan was an active Christian (i.e. attending illegal churches, having a Bible, etc.) he was taken to prison, and then was transported to a factory for forced labor. The book is based on actual true-life experiences of persecuted Christians in China.

I found the book very moving; it painted a vivid picture about what is really happening behind the scenes in China.  It has caused me to pray more for the persecuted church.  The thing that makes the book interesting is when the author includes what could possibly be the heavenly perspective of Christian persecution.

In conclusion, I would highly recommend this book.  I could not put it down while I was reading it. I believe the author accomplished his goal in writing this novel: making people aware of the persecuted church in China.  Let me leave you with this quote from the book, “real gold fears no fire”.

From Tyndale House Publishers, inc., Wheaton, Illinois. A novel. Copyright 2001.

                                                                                              Hannah Straub, age 10