Oct 29

Life Trilogy of Paul Helm

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The Beginnings, the Callings, The Last Things, by Paul Helm?????

This is actually three books being reviewed, and the cover of only the first book is shown. It is a series that was written by Paul Helm for Banner of Truth Publishers, each book written in sequence and published separately, though they should all be read together. Paul Helm is like many authors, who read better than they speak. Some authors, like Martyn Lloyd-Jones speaks better than he writes; Helm is just the opposite. This is a delightful series that is essentially a systematic theological look at conversion, the living of the Christian life, and the finality of all things. Helm remains solidly reformed, but discussing the nature of conversion, our callings and work in life, and the final judgment in late 20th century terms. Being primarily a philosopher, he tends to think through theological problems on a systematic level, discussing alternative views, philosophical offshoots and encounters with the doctrine in question, and then settles matters with a conservative summary of doctrinal positions. These are a valuable set of books to read, which should be considered by anybody thinking deeply about the faith.

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Oct 27

Shostakovich String Quartets

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Shostakovich String Quartets, Borodin String Quartets ?????

I have four versions of the Shostakovich String Quartets, including those by the Borodin, Fitzwilliam, Shostakovich, and Emerson Quartets. The Borodin was my first purchase, and still my favorite, though I would be reluctant to give any of the renditions anything less than 5 stars, as they are all well done. This recording is slightly more recessive than the others, as though it was recorded in a large hall, giving it a sense of the mysterious depth than seems to be written into this music. The performers seem to have a feel for the great angst and depression that Shostakovich was experiencing as he wrote his most intimate and private works, many of these quartets not being performed or published until after his death. They are creative, soulful, brilliant in their composition, and reflective of the greatest of the greatest composer of the 20th century. Included in this set is the most delightful piano quintet. I will offer special mention to the 15th string quartet, Shostakovich’s last. It begins with an elegy, immediately followed by the screech quartet, a funeral march, and finally a very active ending. It is the composer at his greatest, and in this quartet, Shostakovich says more than most 20th century composers in their lifetime of compositional output. This is truly a set of string quartets worth owning.

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Oct 22

The Marketing of Evil

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The Marketing of Evil, by David Kupelian ?????

I’ve been rare on 5-star reviews, but this book is well-written, reads well, and well researched. The author is Armenian, and appears as a rather homely person on the back flap of the book. He is everything but that. Rather, he is an articulate tiger, writing a book that was nearly impossible to put down. He serially attacks the homosexual agenda, the governmental confusion of separation of church and state, the wholesale sale of pornography, toleration and the false effort at multiculturalism, the destruction of marriage, the sex revolution, the sabotage of the school system, the extreme bias of the news media, the problem of abortion, and the problem of accommodation within the Christian church itself. He ends with quotes from two of my heros, Francis Schaeffer and David Wells, both men acutely seeing Western culture far better than the rest of us. Altogether, the book is precise in identifying the problem of what went wrong with America. The solution presented are for Christians to speak out, but even more than that, for Christians to truly live lives consistent with their Biblical calling. I’d highly recommend this book to all Americans to read as the best description was “what’s going on”. Brother Dennis wrote a book entitled “What’s going On”, detailing the conspiracies and secret societies that control America. Yet, though Dennis is correct, Kupelian does a better job of identifying the precise problems that have led to America’s downfall, which is the loss of faith of its citizens. To that we weep.

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Oct 20

Calvin-A Guide for the Perplexed

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Calvin-A Guide for the Perplexed, by Paul Helm ????

This book is written by one of the up-coming stars in the world of Christian philosophy, being both reformed in his thinking, and a philosopher by trade. He currently teaches at Regent College in Vancouver, B.C. This book is rather short for the task that Paul Helm attempts, in that he tries to show who the “real” Calvin really is. No attempts at historical revisionism is made. Most the time, Helm discusses Calvin’s thought regarding God, the trinity, the person and nature of Christ, delving only shortly into those items most commonly associated with Calvin, i.e, predestination and particular redemption. All in all, Helm points out the Calvin tends to not be as harsh around the edges as many in Reformed thinking make him out to be. It is amazing how many sects of Reformed thought readily quote Calvin, without trying to understand the nature and character of Calvin. It is true that Calvin’s theology underwent further development following his death, as would be expected. The question of whether the typical characature of Calvin described by TULIP would hold. It is Helm’s thinking that such theology does follow from Calvin, though Calvin never fully developed the theology named after him. Interesting discussion about Covenant theology was also engaged, again without absolute certainty that Calvin’s approval would be forthcoming. A final conclusion of the most important characteristic of Calvin’s thought, that of the majesty and sovereignty of God, were emphasized. Although the book ready in a somewhat thick and stodgy fashion, it reflected excellent thought of the writer, and helped me see Calvin in a moderately “mellower” light.

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Oct 17

First Days in Cameroon

Adventure, FeuchtBlog, Travel 1 Comment »

Betsy and I left home on 26SEPT. Dr. King took us to the airport, and we flew out on Air France to Paris, with an eight hour stopover and then on to N’dJemena, Chad. Adama picked us up at the airport, and drove us to the guest house, that had not quite prepared for our arrival. We made do, and was able leave by road to Meskine the next day, driven by Adama. The roads had multiple large potholes, yet Adama still drove at roughly 60-80 mph, the exact speed not known since the speedometer constantly read “0”.  One of our four boxes had not arrived, though we were assured that it would be in in several days, and promptly delivered to us. On 30SEPT, I started working in the OR. It is much different than in Bangladesh, in that the surgeon does very little ward care, but spends most of his time in the OR suite, or seeing consults. It will take me a few days to get used to things. The workers all speak a little English, and I spent much of my time speaking German with the other Surgeon, Carsten, who is from Leipzig.

02OCT, our final box arrived, missing only a few items, such as clorox wipes, which we can survive without. Surgery has been busy, with a few very odd cases. One was a 12 yo boy, gored by a bull, coming in several days later (how many, we don’t know), and his only injury was a complete division of his common bile duct. We did a Roux-en-Y reconstruction, but he died later that night. There are too many other cases to talk about, and I’m sure you’re not interested, so, we’ll let it slide.

10OCT, we had a fairly busy week at the hospital, but able to relax on the weekend. All is going well. I haven’t taken too many photographs, and I am not getting out of the compound too often. The US State Dept. informed us of a cholera epidemic in town, though we will still to go in to eat tonight. It is a bit harder than Bangladesh to acclimatize to the heat, and I’m not sure exactly why. Otherwise, save for a bout of travelers’ diarrhea which resolved quickly in both Betsy and myself, all is going well.  A few days later, we spent with Carsten and Annette on the river flowing through Moroua. This river is now just a stream, but will fill its banks at some times of the year, and in a month, will be completely dry.

The main church in Meskine has about 100 adult members, and though church starts at 8 o’clock and lasts until 10:30 AM, most people arrive between 8 and 9 am, filtering in slowly, and sitting with their own people group. The various groups are then invited sequentially to sing a song for the remainder of the folk, including a time for us white people, who usually sing in French some hymn.

Notice, the Christmas decorations remain, like in Bangladesh. Our house is quite nice, and here are some photos.

Yes. The bed has mosquito netting. No mosquito bites at night. The main crop in this area is Millet, which looks a bit like corn.

Firewood also is in huge demand, as they prefer firewood over natural gas, even though firewood is more expensive than gas!  Getting photos in the community has been a serious problem, because, unlike Bangladesh where everybody fought to have you take their photo, the natives will turn and run if you get out your camera. Both situations below witnessed this happen…

Here is the whole missionary group at Annette’s birthday party, with real ice cream made from powdered milk!!!! …

We’re having a good time, and feeling like we are contributing a bit to the entire effort. More to follow…

P.S. Aren’t you glad I didn’t include any political discussion. Though we’ve stayed in touch with American and World news, and watched the Stalk Market (sic!) and price of gold fluctuate, it seems a touch removed from us, where our patients simply are wondering if they will have food for the next day. We have much to be thankful for, in spite of our national distresses. The next few years are going to be time to re-think the real battles that face us, and hopefully they are not simply battles for peace, security, and prosperity, as the end result will probably be the opposite of what we seek. Fortunately, Betsy and I have had time to read and think (see Bookblog) and talk, and it has helped in keeping us on track together about our goals for the coming few years, as I return to work.

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