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Walther Library
N E W S L E T T E R S
Title:What is My Flock Reading?What Is My Flock Reading?AS A PASTOR, ONE MUST BE AWARE OF WHAT PEOPLE ARE READING, BECAUSE THIS IS PART OF THE CULTURE THAT ONE ADDRESSES AS A PASTORDo you know what the people in your (future) congregation are reading? You will probably not know exactly what each person is reading, but you should be aware of what people in general are reading. A walk through the local bookstore can show you what people are buying. Even if you don't care to buy and read the books yourself, knowing what others are reading will help you be a shepherd to the flock God has given you. The March 18, 2002, issue of Publishers Weekly listed hundreds of bestsellers in the order of numbers sold. What is most interesting for us as Lutherans is that both the number 1 fiction and the number 1 nonfiction books were of a religious nature. You have undoubtedly heard of both of these books. The number 1 fiction for 2001 was Desecration, by Jerry B. Jenkins and Tim LaHaye (book number nine in the Left Behind series). Almost three million copies were sold in 2001. The number 1 nonfiction book had an even more astonishing sale. Publishers Weekly noted that this book "recorded the highest annual total ever for these end-of-the-year charts" with almost eight-and-a-half million copies sold. The book? The Prayer of Jabez, by Bruce Wilkinson. Since neither of these titles presents a Biblical (Lutheran) view of the world (or of its end), it is important to know that many people are reading them—including probably a few people in your pews. You should be ready to address the situations presented in the books in a pastoral, Lutheran manner. This doesn't mean that you have to buy and read the books for yourselves (although that probably isn't a bad idea; you can also certainly find them for reading at your local public library). Just go to the FAQs on the LCMS web site (http://www.lcms.org/) to find out that the Left Behind series is based on a false dispensational, premillenial view of eschatology, and that The Prayer of Jabez and its related titles are based on a false understanding of how God answers prayer. Because these books are a part of the culture in which your congregation lives, individual members are undoubtedly influenced by them. Good catechesis will make your people more immune to bad theology; however, it must be ongoing catechesis, since all the bad theology "out there" in our culture can eventually influence even good Lutherans. Not so incidentally, the hardcover frontlist for children listed The Prayer of Jabez for Kids and The Prayer of Jabez for Little Ones as number 1 and 2, respectively. The hardcover backlist (books published before 2001) for children listed two Harry Potter books as number 1 and 2. The two Jabez books have the same problems as the adult version. There has been plenty of heated debate about the Harry Potter books; for a discussion that looks at both the good and bad points, see What's a Christian to Do With Harry Potter?, available in Walther Library. My personal opinion is that the Harry Potter books are very good, offering a morality that isn't often found in modern fiction. Characters have to make choices and live with the consequences. Besides, if Harry Potter is Satanic, as some say, and he is opposed to Lord Voldemort, who is also obviously Satanic, isn't Satan divided against himself? Anyway you look at it, the world you are beginning to serve as you leave the seminary is an interesting one. Knowing what the culture reads will help you respond as a faithful shepherd of God's flock. |
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