Who’s Reading What? is a monthly feature at Lifeway Pastors. We survey a few pastors, business leaders, theologians, professors, writers, and other culture shapers with these four questions:
What are you currently reading?
Who is the author?
Which genre is it?
Why are you reading it?
No reviews. No summaries. It is a quick list to help expand the borders of your intake.
Enjoy!
Thom Rainer, president and CEO, Lifeway Christian Resources
What: Modern Monopolies
Who: Alex Mazed and Nicholas L. Johnson
Which: Business/Leadership/Economics
Why: I am attempting to learn about the phenomenon of the rapid monopolies like Uber, Facebook, Instacart, and eBay. This book is insightful for leadership, economic theory, and application in my current organization.
Jackson Wu, professor of theology for Chinese pastors in East Asia
What: Honor Bound
Who: Ryan Brown
Which: Sociology/Psychology
Why: One of my specializations is honor-shame and I would like to continually learn how it manifests in Western culture.
What: UnSelfie: Why Empathetic Kids Succeed in Our All-About-Me World
Who: Michele Borba
Which: Psychology/Self-help
Why: I want to help my family and I continue to grow as people of empathy.
Mark Dance, director, Lifeway Pastors
What: Hiking Through
Who: Paul Stutzman
Which: Biography
Why: It is a new widower’s journey through grief on the Appalachian Trail and I and my wife are backpackers.
Sarah Pulliam Bailey, religion editor, The Washington Post
What: Getting Religion
Who: Kenneth Woodward
Which: History/Journalism
Why: Kenneth Woodward, a legend among religion journalists as Newsweek’s longtime religion editor, offers a journalist’s perspective how religion has evolved in America during the past century.
What: Born a Crime
Who: Trevor Noah
Which: Memoir
Why: This book came highly recommended to me by my editor. Born to a white father and a black mother during South Africa’s apartheid, Trevor Noah was born as living proof of a crime, punishable by five years in prison. Noah’s memoir includes comical stories of his mischievous childhood, highlights his deep relationship with his religious mother, and explains the complexities of race and class.
Jay Sanders, pastor, Towaliga Baptist Church
What: Making Sense of God
Who: Tim Keller
Which: Apologetics
Why: I’m reading this because, as a pastor, I always feel like I need to be more equipped to handle the questions of skeptics. In my opinion, no one addresses these questions with more grace, wisdom and intellect than Tim Keller.
Scott Slayton, pastor, Chelsea Village Baptist Church
What: Know the Creeds and Councils
Who: Justin Holcomb
Which: Church History
Why: We often forget that Christians have been engaged in the task of theology for 2,000 years. It’s important to familiarize ourselves with the formulations that the Christians who came before us produced in response to heresy and error.
What: Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller
Who: Ron Chernow
Which: American History
Why: A few years ago I started reading everything I could get my hands on that had to do with Theodore Roosevelt. It was through reading about TR that I became interested in the “Captains of Industry” who built the world that he entered into and confronted.
Marty Duren, executive editor, Lifeway Pastors
What: Star Struck: Seeing the Creator in the Wonder of Our Cosmos
Who: David Bradstreet and Steve Rabey
Which: Science & Religion
Why: I’m reviewing it for Lifeway Pastors.
What: The Marvelous Pigness of Pigs
Who: Joel Salatin
Which: Nature & Ecology/Agricultural Sciences
Why: I’m a Salatin fan generally and this is his latest book.
