The Elizabeth Esther Book Club!

Posted on January 5, 2010 by elizabeth

Several of you expressed interest in reading Evangelical Is Not Enough by Thomas Howard. And since this was my favorite book of 2009, I'm happy to read it again and host a discussion here on my blog!

So, here's the official launch of…

The Elizabeth Esther Book Club!

Here's why you should join us: This is an excellent book for anyone struggling with the divisive
misunderstandings that plague Christianity. Howard writes with fond reverence for his evangelical upbringing
while providing a reasonable, gracious explanation for how his
faith was deepened by discovering worship of God through liturgy and
sacrament. 

It's easily readable, too. Howard's prose is accessible to Christians of every denomination…or non-denomination.

Here's how to get the book: Just click on the Amazon button above and once you've purchased it, come back here so I can tell ya how we're gonna rock this thang! Ready? OK! GO!

Here's how to participate: I will review one chapter per week, beginning on Wednesday, January 27th! I'll post my thoughts and analysis each Wednesday and you are welcome to join the discussion in the comment box. Hopefully, I've given you enough time to purchase the book and read the first chapter.

Got questions? I'll answer 'em in this comment box. Thanks!
 I'm looking forward to our little bloggy book club!

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  • http://www.heidijowhatdoyouknow.blogspot.com Heidi Jo

    i think i’m in. (don’t you love that non-committal, commitment?) just gotta check out some other books there first.

  • GrammaMack

    Elizabeth, you left out important information that potential readers/book club members should know:

    “He soon afterward became a Roman Catholic… Non-Catholics will gain an appreciation of the formal and liturgical side of Catholicism. Catholics will see with fresh eyes the beauty of their tradition. Worship, prayer, the Blessed Virgin, the Mass, and the liturgical year are taken one after the other, and what may have seemed routine and repetitive suddenly comes to life under the enchanting wand of Howard’s beautiful prose. Howard unfolds for us just what occurs in the vision and imagination of a Christian who, nurtured in the earnestness of Protestant Evangelicalism, finds himself yearning for “whatever-it-is” that has been there in the Church for 2000 years” (from amazon.com).

  • http://www.elizabethesther.com Elizabeth Esther

    Gramma Mack: thanks for the input. Readers don’t have to agree with Howard’s conclusions in order to enjoy or come to a better understanding of the subject matter. And if readers disagree, that’s fine by me–better discussion, right? :)

  • http://MeditativeMeanderings.blogspot.com Susanne Barrett

    Looking very much forward to the discussion, chapter by chapter, of this book, the book that propelled me into worshiping in the Anglican Church as well as the evangelical church.

    Thanks, EE, for hosting the discussion! Can’t wait!!!

  • velinka

    Love the idea… just don’t know that I could be a part of it this time (meaning: I hope you do this again. :) )
    …a little too much on my plate right now.

  • GrammaMack

    “And if readers disagree, that’s fine by me–better discussion, right?”

    Agreed! :-)

  • Deborah L

    Hmmm… I think I’d like to do this. Besides the Bible, I almost never read non-fiction books. (Yes, I should branch out more.) However, it seems like it might be an interesting and enlightening read. Now, I should go and visit Amazon…

  • Sarah O.

    I’m all in Elizabeth! Ordered the book today. I think my hubby’s going to join us too, he’s a seminary student and has to choose a few optional reads to pick through for a class…this one sounds interesting to him. I was raised in the Southern Baptist tradition and my hubs will soon be an ordained minister in the Presbyterian (USA) tradition. As if our dinnertime conversation weren’t lively *enough* this will be fun! ;)

  • Mollycar

    I’ve made the opposite journey, I came out of an extreme version of catholicism, would you like my opinion on this book?

  • http://heart-and-home.net Ashleigh (Heart and Home)

    If I can swing it along with a big move, I’m totally in. I wanted to get the book anyway. :)

  • http://ifmeadowsspeak.blogspot.com/ Tammy@If Meadows Speak….

    Lining things up with scripture and seeing where it stands would be interesting….

  • http://www.boudreauxsplace.blogspot.com Jamie

    Is this still an open invite? I just might join in…

  • http://www.blessedisthekingdom.com Fr Christian Mathis

    Just received the book….I’m in!

  • Martha

    Count me in! I remember Thomas Howard from Park Street Church in Boston (many of the Gordon Conwell faculty were Park Streeters) during the 1970s and 1980s. His section “The Bibical Base” is on target. I remember telling one of the ministers that I was reading a book of writings by the early Church Fathers. His reply was that I didn’t “need” to read the Fathers — the Bible was all that I needed. I left the evangelical church in the 1987 and became Episcopalian but my spiritual nourishment largely comes from the saints and fathers.