Andrew E. Steinmann, Lutheran Pastor at Lutheran Home in Westlake, OH and Adjunct Professor at Ashland University takes the reader through a detailed examination of the evidence for the 'canon' of the Old Testament, that is, what was included or excluded and when. Was it as early as 500BCE or as late as 200CE? and who were the people or institutions responsible for deciding this? Steinmann examines evidence in Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic from Jewish and Christian sources including the Talmud, Josephus, extant documents from the Qumran Caves and various Councils from 100 through 400 CE. The method of Steinmann's examination is to use this textual evidence to explain the organization of the Old Testament and to understand the books that were later grouped into the Apocrypha. The text is dense and intellectually challenging, requiring the layman and those unfamiliar with Hebrew and Greek to consult other sources when questioning the author's conclusions. Steinmann's conclusion speaks to a Christian scholarly audience, their scriptural tradition and religious acceptance of the Old Testament and its the Christian order of books. Some illustrations were printed upside down, otherwise, they are clear and readable.

Miriam Kahn, Columbus, OH

As someone who teaches in the area of canonization and textual history, I read Stienmann with great interest. He has shown, convincingly, that there was far less diversity with regard to the canon in the Greek and Roman periods that many have thought. The canon was in effect closed in the Persian period. This conclusion is scarely revolutionary. It is in fact very conservative. However, Steinmann arrives at it, not on doctrinaire grounds, but through a thorough examination of the evidence.

Several of Steinmann's suggestions are more novel, e.g., his understanding of the canon as a temple archive, and, his view that the Jewish canon was originally bipartate (law and prophets) and not tripartate (law, prophets, and writings).

The primary evidence is presented, in the original languages with accompanying translation. The book is well written in lucid style. The argument is presented in a compact but compelling way.

I can see I will have to adjust my teaching in the light of this presentation.

Canon put in a lot of empirical research and he is to be congratulated. I have seen more writings on this subject that I care to recall, but never as detailed account as one gets here of the deliberations within the North Carolina assembly that led to its infamous ink-blot-like districting map.

Also, Canon presents evidence of something that seems to have come as a surprise to him -- that on a wide range of issues black Americans are not significantly to the political left of white Americans even as a matter of statistical average. He gathered survey data on a wide range of issues he codes as non-racial, including health care, taxes, abortion, etc. He has plotted the results, broken down by race, on a scale from 0 (rightwardmost possible opinion) to 1 (leftwardmost possible opinion). The distribution of white and black opinions on this basket of issues was nearly identical. The "mean" black opinion on that scale was 0.4654. The "mean" white opinion was 0.4653!

Despite such interesting features, the book is marred by some special pleading for Canon's own political views.

David Canon's account of race and representation is an excellent one. His eclectic research methodology engages the reader; personal interviews with congressmen and their staffers complement other, more traditional, analyses very well. In sum, majority-minority districts promote the "politics of commonality," moderating racism and fear on all sides. While Canon's philosophical "pleading" disappointed the previous reviewer, I found his candor quite refreshing. Rare is the scholar who admits personal bias.

For a unique, well-argued, and persuasive study of racial politics, buy this book.

Honestly, I picked up this book because of gorgeous reproductions. And because it focuses on English institutions and art--not my strongest suite. But each chapter not only refreshed my basic knowledge of art history but reminded and educated me of the many factors that play into the shaping of the discipline, from royal schools to government decrees. Most interesting was the way the authors researched how museum collections are formed by not only taste and education but also politics and monetary factors. These should be obvious, but sometimes the cleaness of an exhibition wipes away the history of why an artwork was chosen, why it is displayed in a certain manner, and why a museum may, or may not, promote their collections.

This slim book provides a one-stop reference for those researching the work of (mostly) American canon lawyers between the end of Vatican II (1965) to just before the publication of the 1983 Code of Canon Law. The annotations are somewhat uneven in quality, but remain generally useful.

This is the second edition of a very good book on Marriage Annulments in the Code of Canon Law of the Roman Catholic Church, ten years after the latest Code of Canon Law of 1983, went into effect. If you are using this book to consider or take some sort of action in your personal life, go first to the small section in the first chapter entitled "The Tribunal as Pastoral Ministry." This sets the tone of this book, one that is both informational and pastoral. The author's examination of the types of questions a Tribunal will ask exhibit a good knowledge of the grounds the Church uses for examining an annulment case. He also uses some good forms that one might see during the annulment process. His discussion of witness forms is especially important. Witnesses are necessay to a case and they can sometimes be the deal breaker. The extremes are witnesses who try too hard to help you with their answers, to witnesses who tell you they sent their questionaire back, but it must have gotten lost in the mail. This part of the book gives a witness encouragemnet in the role and practical advice as well. The only fault I found with this book is two occasions of talking about a "failed marriage" and why a marriage "failed". I think such negative talk does not belong in today's world of no-fault divorce, let alone in the healing process of a Church annulment. In the next edition, and I hope there is one, that reference should be adjusted. Outside of that, this is a very good book.

The 2000 Book of Discipline presents the belief system and organizational structure of the third largest Christian denomination in the USA. It is a book for study and reference. Unfortunately has no pictures to liven up the text. Rewritten every four years by the top decision making body of the church, The Discipline reveals all the secrets of a large religious body. As the title implies, it takes some discipline to stay focused on the tightly written presentations. Get the truth on the Methodists - I read the Discipline daily in conjunction with reading the Bible and my journey of faith is enlivened.

Even for a non-believer, like myself, a very interesting book of the Bible. Indeed whether or not you are a Christian, surely the King James version of the Bible must rank as one of the glories of English literature.

I was struck when reading the Book of Job about how much I empathised with Job throughout - he gets a very rough deal. A good man, he is basically beset by trials and misfortunes at the hand of God all because Satan contends with God that Job's is a fair-weather faith.

Thereafter, Job bemoans his lot, despite the efforts of four of his friends to convince him that he should accept his misfortunes (for various unconvincing reasons). This goes to the root of a fundamental question of faith - how can we accept the existence of a benevolent deity when our own and others' existence is beset with woes, and when there is so much (unpunished) injustice in the world?

Part of the answer is belief in redress in the next world. The main counter-argument in the Book of Job, however, seems to be that we cannot possibly appreciate God's reasons for doing things - we are not capable of that. Therefore the answer is a stoical acceptance of our lot and faith that God is, overall, doing things for a good reason. This leap of faith is too much for many (see Camus's "The Myth of Sisyphus" for a critique).

In the Book of Job, God does not answer Job's lamentations at all well. Rather, in a bombastic passage at the end, He boasts about his achievements rather than addressing the philosophical problem - His argument is funadamentally that might equals right.

Fascinating.

Philosophy has an interesting reputation for being a very difficult class. I suppose this is because it combines the agonizing aspects of history with the frightening notion of critical thinking and argument analysis. However, "The Canon and its Critics" is an excellent step towards making philosophy clear to the average college student. The book is very concise and complete, as a reader could easily feel as if he's grounded himself in every aspect of philosophy. From metaphysics, artificial intelligence, epistemology, ethics, and political philosophy, The Canon and its Critics attacks the most pressing problems which plague today's perception of philosophy. This book is excellent for the intelligent student who wishes to learn philosophy as it should be learned: in a complete, detailed, historical and modern aspect.

The book can be difficult to read; but this is through no fault of the author. The styles of some of the great philosophers can be overwhelming at times, which is why the book may be difficult as a stand-alone source of knowledge. In a classroom setting, it is invaluable. A student can be content with his teacher's explanation from the book, or he may read further to truly grasp the material. The book has much depth, and much can be learned from it. I have had the pleasure of attending Dr. Furman's classes, and can assure anyone that the book was written by a very talented, intelligent man who seems to genuinely enjoy teaching and helping others to understand. I highly recommend this book as a teaching tool.

If I were in a position to change this book to better fit my tastes, I believe I would enjoy more writing from the authors, Furman and Avila. A lot of the book is necessary compilation; however, the authors are so talented that I would enjoy a fresh perspective on the information in the form of philisophical commentary. However, it stands that the book is excellent as is; no book can completely satisfy the thirst for philosophy. The Canon and its Critics acts as the first, crucial sip from the fountain of philosophical knowledge.

. . .once again available.

CR Gregory's work on the Canon and Text of the New Testament, although more than 100 years old, is still one of the classic secondary scholary sources in this field of interest.

My primary area of interest was the development of the NT Canon, which Gregory examines in minute detail, paying special attention to the history of the inclusion of the Pastoral Epistles, long a source of controversy in the Patristic Church.

Gregory's work is also less polemic, and therefore more valuable to the scholar than the similar work on the subject by BF Westcott.

NO student of the New Testament can afford to be without this volume. It is one of the key building-blocks upon which 20th century scholarship in the NT relies.

This Hove/Magic Lantern guide is a convenient encapsulation of everything in the Canon EOS II/e, 50/e guide book. It's well written and includes some backgrond infomation about the EOS system. It's well worth the investment!