Vintage Saints and Sinners

Luther, Augustine, O'Connor--Oh My!

VINTAGE SAINTS AND SINNERS is a serious read--but it's also a fun, inspiring read. I knew about many of the "saints" featured, such as C.S. Lewis, Tozer, and Augustine, but there were also some who were unfamiliar to me. I was only vaguely familiar with the name Julian of Norwich. I knew about Francis of Assisi, but who is "Clare" of Assisi?

Perhaps the most intriguing saint featured is Flannery O'Connor. The author raves about O'Connor, placing her "among the greatest American writers, and at the top of my English syllabus." She notes that "One cannot get through a Flannery O'Connor story without encountering the strangeness of God."

Wow! I admit I am now motivated to read Flannery O'Connor.

Of course, I was familiar with Mother Teresa, but after reading the chapter on her life, I realize how little I actually knew. Letters made public after her death show a soul who feared she had been abandoned by God: "I feel the terrible pain of loss, of God not wanting me. . . " This surprised me. Mother Teresa--feeling abandoned by God?

The author includes "Conversation Starters" at the end of each chapter. Just like it sounds, this section has some excellent discussion points. For example, "Dorothy Day said, 'Don't call me a saint. I don't want to be dismissed to easily.' What makes us bristle at the term saint?"

So all in all, I found VINTAGE SAINTS AND SINNERS" to be an inspiring book, full of wonderful, inspiring lives. After reading this book, I am motivated to research more on many of these figures.
So, whether you are Roman Catholic or Protestant, there is something to inspire everyone in this bright book.

This book is also part-autobiography, as the author recounts her own spiritual struggles. In the chapter on John Wesley, Karen admits, "Now I feel that I've stepped out from the spotlight of center stage and down into a living faith where God is breathing spiritual life into my soul."

Advance Review Copy courtesy of the publisher.

There have been men and women who marked the history of Christianity, but regardless of their achievements and advances, they were human like all of us. Weak, sad and worried, but who carried with them a desire for the glory of God and to know God more.

This book brings us closer to these characters, not in a detailed or biographical way, but in a practical way. The author contrasts her life with that of C.S. Lewis, Augustine, Martin Luther, leading us to self-reflection.

Let's meet 25 characters within christianity who were like us but who nevertheless could know the grace of God.

The book is divided into 2 parts:
The first deals with characters who excelled in christian thought and philosophy. The second part, considers characters that were more practical. Undoubtedly, both parts complement each other and are necessary to read.

I enjoyed reading about Augustine, C. S. Lewis, Bonhoeffer, Wesley.

Possibly you will think - as I do - that the author should have considered other characters such as Whitefield, Edwards, etc. But in general, these 25 characters are very useful for reflection and will motivate you to read more about them and their writings

This book will be part of my 50 favorite books of 2017

Thanks to IVP for the copy of the book to review

This is a lean, well-written book reflecting on saints of the past, distilling their teaching into bite-size pieces and using the author’s own life to integrate that learning into practice. The 25 saints include Augustine, Benedict, through to Martin Luther and John Wesley, plus more recent saints, including women and people of colour like Sophie Scholl who defied Hitler and American favourite Fanny Lou Hamer.
As a lecturer, she is well able to succinctly draw on the essentials of the teachings of the various saints she lists, and there’s a great variety of them, including people of colour. When she refers to her own life it doesn’t feel self-indulgent or a distraction but a helpful and thoughtful reflection on the relevance today. It also offers gentle critique where the ’saint’ (also a sinner) has allowed harmful beliefs from their own culture to distort the spiritual wisdom they offer.
It’s written in a literary and intelligent style which benefits from slow but smooth reading, and I’d say that the emphasis is slightly more on the saints’ teachings than their lives, so if you want a detailed history of the saints, it’s not the book for you. Neither is it a devotional that brings home fully to the reader the practice or impact of the saints’ lives. However, it makes a thoughtful and reflective reference book to dip in and out of and is a pleasure to read.
Its real strength lies in gently exposing the fact that the ‘saints’ of the past were still sinners: they struggled as we do, doubted as we do and were loved by God. In addition, the foreword by Lauren Winner is a beautiful essay in its own right. Highly recommended.