All Articles For Book Reviews

Order in the Offices, Mark R. Brown, ed. Duncansville, PA: Classic Presbyterian Government Resources, 1993. 304 pp. N.p. (paper). [Reviewed by Prof. Herman Hanko.] Although I knew that the question of two offices or three offices in the church was often debated among Presbyterians, I had no idea of the extent of the disagreement and the divisive character of it. Presbyterians take it with great seriousness. The debate was more extensive in the last century, and involved basic disagreements between Charles Hodge on the one side and Thornwell and Dabney favoring the two-office idea. One of the great debates of...

Understanding the New Age, byRussel Chandler. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1993. 367 pp. $10.99 (paper). [Reviewed by Rev. Wilbur Bruinsma.] Scanning the shelf entitled “New Age” in the bookstore or library, one finds few books which serve as introduction to the broad scope of the New Age Movement. Most of the books, both those in favor of New Age thought and those against it, treat only a particular aspect of the movement. For one who is new to the study of this movement, this can be both confusing and frustrating.

Today’s Gospel and Apostolic Exhortations: A Study in the Presentation of the Gospel, by A. G. Randalls. Windmill Hill, East Sussex, England: The Huntingtonian Press, 1997. 103 pp. Price unknown (paper). [Reviewed by the editor.] Promising much, this book delivers little. It claims to be “the first book to set in order true principles regarding the way in which it is safe to address mixed congregations expounding those passages of Scripture which for too long have been misrepresented” (back cover). It intends to set forth the biblical mode of preaching, particularly the call of the gospel, against the error of...

The Last Things, Hope For This World and the Next, by Herman Bavinck. Ed. John Bolt, tr. John Vriend. Grand Rapids, MI.: Baker Book House Company, 1996. 205 pp. $14.95 (paper). [Reviewed by Pastor Arie den Hartog.] This book is the first production of a recently organized society of business people, professionals, pastors, and seminary professors which is sponsoring the translation into English and publication of classic Reformed theological and religious literature first published in the Dutch language. The first project of this society is to translate and publish the complete four-volume work of Herman Bavinck entitled Gereformeerde Dogmatiek (Reformed...

Paradigms in Polity: Classic Readings in Reformed and Presbyterian Church Governments by David. W. Hall, Joseph H. Hall, editors. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1994. pp. xiii-621. $29.99. (paper). [Reviewed by Prof. Robert D. Decker.] This book ought to be in every minister’s library. The two introductory essays by the editors are must reading especially in our day. David Hall writes, As most quickly recognize, unfortunately many of us are led to our positions in church government not with forethought but in a posture of reaction. We often learn government only when threatened. It would be much...

The Question of Woman: The Collected Writings of Charlotte von Kirschbaum. Tr. John Shepherd. Ed. and with an Introduction by Eleanor Jackson. Grand Rapids, MI/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, 1996. x + 202 pages. $16 (paper). [Reviewed by the editor.] Those who read Eberhard Busch’s biography of Karl Barth, Karl Barth: His Life from Letters and Autobiographical Texts, had to wonder about the relationship between Barth and his assistant and secretary, Charlotte von Kirschbaum. The young woman moved into the Barth home, spent the summer months alone with Barth in a chalet in the countryside, and was his sole traveling companion on...

The Mormon Missionaries: An Inside Look at Their Real Message and Methods, by Janis Hutchinson. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1995. 272 pp. $9.99 (softcover). [Reviewed by Agatha Lubbers.] Janis Hutchinson devoted thirty-four years of her life to activity in the Mormon Church during which time she filled two stake missions, married a returned missionary, and sent a daughter on a full-time mission. She writes, “I know the missionary mind-set, sincerity, and dedication. As a result, I may be guilty of rendering too sympathetic a portrayal of the two Mormon missionaries in this book.” The subjects covered in this book are...

Sermons on Election & Reprobation by John Calvin. Audubon, New Jersey: Old Paths Publications, 1996. 317 pp., plus subject and scriptural text indexes. $36.95 (hardcover). [Reviewed by the editor.] These sermons by John Calvin on God’s election of Jacob and reprobation of Esau were published in English for the first time in 1579. Never again reprinted until now, they have been unavailable to, and virtually unknown by, English-speaking people for more than 400 years. They were originally part of Calvin’s series on the book of Genesis. Calvin began the series in September, 1559. The sermons represent, therefore, the reformer’s well-developed...

The Guilt, Folly, and Sources of Suicide, by Samuel Miller. Dallas, Texas: Presbyterian Heritage Publications, 1994. 56pp. $3.50 (paper). [Reviewed by the Editor.] This reprint of two published sermons on the subject of suicide by the, Presbyterian theologian Samuel Miller is timely. Not only is our country presently moving toward societal approval and legal sanction of suicide, but also preachers fail to warn sharply against the sin of suicide. Some exert themselves to find excuses for the suicide and go out of their way to offer false comfort to grieving relatives. The serious effect is that those, particularly the young...

Always Obedient: Essays on the Teaching of Dr. Klaas Schilder, ed. J. Geertsema. Phillipsburg, New Jersey: Presbyterian & Reformed Publishing, 1995. vx + 137pages. n.p. (paper). [Reviewed by Prof. Herman Hanko.] If any one should want a brief overview of the teachings of Dr. Klaas Schilder, this is an excellent book to purchase. After a chapter describing Schilder’s life and work, five different authors deal with five aspects of Schilder’s thought. Treated are Schilder’s covenant view, his view of Christ and culture (with a comparison between A. Kuyper and Schilder), Schilder’s view of the church, a review and analysis of...