Saturday, April 25, 2009

What Do YOU Read

Amber posted this and it got me to thinking about the books and other reading material that has most influenced me. I suppose the idea is to list specific books, but I can't think of particular books except a few. So below are some books, some of which I no longer possess and some which are categories or periodicals. There are more than what are listed.

  1. The Bible - I can go into great detail about the veracity of the Bible and the incredible history of the Bible. But the important thing is that all this goes to support the revelation of God to us in the written word. As such it has been a source of revelation to me as the Holy Spirit has opened my eyes to the truth therein.
  2. Various books detailing hermeneutical principles from different theological constructs - With the recognition that different theologians have developed different theologies with the same Bible, there stands to reason that some understanding of the rules by which they developed their theologies are in order and that some scrutiny of the same is required in order to discern the truth. This isn't always easy because theologians aren't always consistent with the application of and disclosure of their hermeneutics.
  3. Puzzle Books, logic textbook - My dad has always kept a subscription to the Dell Crossoword Puzzle magazine. When I was little he would warm up on the hard ones and move on to the Expert and Challenger puzzles. He often did some of the non-crossword puzzles, but left many undone, particularly the logic problems. He would then pass on the magazines so I could work any of the rest of the puzzles. I loved the logic problems and got good at them. I developed my first understanding of bivalent logic this way. Later, in college, I learned the clarity of well-established logic theories and methodologies.
  4. Various philosophy books, particularly containing analyses of philosophers and their philosophies from a Christian viewpoint. Also in college I studied philosophy. I had already developed my own unified philosophy in high school based on observations of bivalence in every aspect of life. This led to being temporarily afflicted with dualism. However, holding mere existential observations up to the revelation of scripture cured me of this and helped me develop my understanding of the foundational univalence of the Eternal God.
  5. Piano method book and sheet music with chord charts - When I was little, my mom would put me on her lap when she played the piano. I liked to play with the neighbor girls, but as little girls often do to little boys, they would often harangue me with rounhds of illogic. So I found that I enjoyed making sounds come out of the piano. I dug out my dad's old piano method book and taught myself the basics of written music and how to play the music on the piano. Then I dug out my dad's sheet music and developed a little repertoir. Later, I learned to decipher the chord symbols and taught myself music theory. I learned composition by studying the patterns of different composers.
  6. A library's worth of material detailing the origins debate - When I was a physics major the debate between evolution and creation became more of an issue. Determined to know the truth, I locked myself (figuratively) in the library and located ever book I could find covering foundational aspects of the debate. I knew this would in part inform my hermeneutical approach to the Bible. I'm pleased to say that I found the clarity of the Bible well-supported by the evidence although I must say that my presupposition was and is that the truth is absolute.
  7. Books of the occult, cult literature, and anti-Christian literature - These are my non-fiction "poison" books. It helps to know the enemy,
  8. The Hobbit and other classics - It helps to have a grasp on the self-referential literature of our culture. For example, when someone says "It's hanging over me like the sword of Damacles" I know what they're talking about. I mention The Hobbit because it's the first one I read on my own.
  9. Gor and other not-so-classics - Hey, stuff like this contributes to a healthy imagination.
  10. The Da Vinci Code and other anti-Christian fiction - More poison of the fictional sort. If you're going to criticize the present culture, it helps to have a working knowledge of the intentional propagation of its ills.

Tag, you're it if you want to be.

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