Postcards From Myself

Note: This review was published in the November 29, 2009 issue of The Post & Courier. The reviewer the Rev. Robert M. Knight, pastor of First Christian Church of Charleston.

Mitch Carnell, a lay leader at Charleston’s historic First Baptist Church, is concerned about a lack of civility in public affairs and church life. His concern has led him to edit an insightful book called “Christian Civility in an Uncivil World.”

The essays are written by notable church leaders representing various Christian traditions. John Gehring and Alexia Kelley are Roman Catholic laypersons who write about mediating and modulating too much inflammatory rhetoric and negotiating the politics of the church they know and love.

The Rev. Sally Dyck, bishop of the United Methodist Church, Minnesota Conference, draws on a distinctive Wesleyan tradition she terms “Holy Conferencing.” Dyck outlines an approach to negotiating and problem-solving designed to minimize the unfortunate consequences of a church life reduced to “winners” and “losers.” She has adapted this approach from Methodism’s founder John Wesley.

Another bishop, the Rev. Stacy Sauls of the Episcopal Diocese of Lexington, Ky., who is also an attorney, writes with notable pastoral sensitivity concerning the conflict in the church he loves and serves surrounding the matter of one’s sexual orientation.
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The Hole in Our Gospel: What does God expect of Us? The Answer that Changed my Life and Might Just Change the World is not so much about a hole in the gospel or the Bible as it is about a hole in the way people live their lives. People today are caught up in the trappings and appearances of being good. They worry about what other people are doing and what modern entertainment might be doing to the morality of our youth. But what these people aren’t doing is letting their lives serve as their example.

Richard Stearns was a man who seemingly had it all. He was a successful businessman, community leader and family man. He had the big house, the Jaguar, and the country club membership. But just at the time he was at the peak of his career, he was called upon to do something more. Something much harder. He had to face the real evil in the world – he had to face the hunger, need, and want of the forgotten.

Too many of us would rather concentrate on our lives, write the occasional check to charity, and forget about the real calling of all moral people – Christian or otherwise. What Stearns calls our attention to in this book is that we are all called upon to lift up each other. We do not succeed in making the world a better place by memorizing verses, patting ourselves on the backs, or isolating ourselves from problems. It is only by putting our lives, not just our money, where our mouths are that we can perform the duties that we were put on this earth to perform.

To fill the hole in the gospel, we must fill the hole in our hearts and in our world. We must go out and make the world a better place. This is the message that has often been missing and the message that Stearns delivers powerfully through this book. Whether you are a Christian, member of another religion, or a member of no religion, this book is important and moving. The hole exists for us all, no matter what gospel we follow, and it is our duty and privilege to work on filling in that hole.

Building A WordPress Blog People Want To Read by Scott McNulty is a new book on setting up and running a successful blog. McNulty has written an easy to understand and at times amusing introduction to getting started with what is currently one of the most popular social media platforms.

Both well written and well illustrated, the book covers everything from downloading and installing the software, to setting up the database, defining system parameters, and selecting a template. What is really excellent about these explanations is that McNulty tells you not only what are the best choices, but what impact those choices will have on your blog in the future. There are many selections you can make when setting up a new WordPress installation that can seriously affect how your blog operates in a year or two when it is getting lots of hits, and McNulty helps you to make well informed decisions.


While the book was written based on version 2.6 of the WordPress software and version 2.7 has now been released, there is very little other than administrative interface that does not apply. Most of the setup choices and database decisions are still the same. It would be great to see a physical or on-line update of the book for WordPress version 2.7, but I think that is just me being greedy.
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OK, I don’t know how I missed it, but the best RSS news readers for Mac and PC are now free! Honestly I can’t say a lot about the Windows software, but NetNewsWire for the Mac is, in my opinion, the best way to stay up-to-date with your news feeds. And now NewsGator has made all this software available for free. No more need for me to use the “lite” version of their products, these are the full blown versions that have been unleashed.

One of the best things about their products is that when you use them in conjunction with their on-line account, which is free, your readers on different computers can stay in sync. That means that I don’t have to reread at work what I read at home. Also, if I am totally away from my machines, I can just use their web-based version which also stays in sync. So all my subscriptions and the associated info go with me wherever I go. For free.

Does it get any better than that?

OK, total change of gears here. If you haven’t already, and if you are into quality reading at all, you need to pick up something by Neil Gaiman. Niel Gaiman is the mind behind the recent movies “Stardust” and “Beowulf“. He is also the author of such great books as Neverwhere: A Novel, Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch, and American Gods: A Novel.

I have been on something of a Gaiman kick recently. I have read two of his book and am into a third with a fourth waiting. I have also watched “Stardust” as well as the two DVD set of the BBC mini-series of Neverwhere, and the movie “Mirrormask” that he did with Henson Studios. (Side note, Jim Henson is one of my all time heroes.) I think there was something else in there as well, but I can’t remember what. simply put, Gaiman’s combination of vivid imagination, humor, and keen human insight have me hooked. As soon as I get a chance I am also going to go back and try to get the graphic novel series of The Absolute Sandman, Vol. 2.

Trust me, if you haven’t seen or read any of these check them out. Get them from your local library, order them from Amazon, or support your local book and video store. Whatever you do, just give them a try. And please, let me know what you think of Gaiman’s stuff. I sure hope I am not the only one who thinks this is the best stuff I have come across in years.