The Seasonal Reading Challenge discussion
OLD TASK HELP THREADS
>
Julie KS's task - 20.1
Petra wrote: "Julie wrote: "....because it is demonstrating that a person who believes he is a servant of God is leading his life in that manner...."Thank you for this definition, Julie. It may help us in de..."
This would be okay.
I would accept this.
Julie - have you made a determination on the Mitford series by Jan Karon or the Harmony series by Philip Gulley? Thanks.
I have noticed that some of you are questioning why I would accept some books. The answer is simple. Just because you are a faithful Christian you will at time struggle and stumble in your walk with God. I do think that a book about David Koresh, Jim Jones or any other person that has used religion at a symbol of their lives is acceptable. Let it be known that not everyone goes overboard and thinks of themselves as God on Earth or something similar to that. Please notice that I did not specify certain denominations that you had to read about, nor did I define what the "faith centered life" meant either. I did this for a reason and that was to show that Christian fiction does not have to be "preachy" or a dry read. It can be entertaining.
Have a wonderful afternoon everyone.
Julie wrote: "Petra wrote: "Julie wrote: "....because it is demonstrating that a person who believes he is a servant of God is leading his life in that manner...."Thank you for this definition, Julie. It may..."
Thank you, Julie!
Julie wrote: "Let it be known that not everyone goes overboard and thinks of themselves as God on Earth or something similar to that."Understood and agreed.
But that is exactly the point in regards to The Poisonwood Bible. That is the exact definition of the father in that book, which is where the confusion is on that matter.
so i'm sorry i don't think the question was answered i tried looking, but is Something Wicked This Way Comes acceptable or not? :/
Sara wrote: "Nicole NC wrote: "Sara - You taught me something, I was never sure if Mormons officially fell into the Christian category, and I have actually done some reading on the religion. As you say, we get..."Thanks Sara, I'll check it out. I am would call myself spiritual, though never found a formal religion I wanted to be a part of, but I am curious about the different beliefs.
Amanda wrote: "My turn! What about Jane Eyre? There's a Christian lady with some faith if I ever did see one...and I would love to reread it. Not that that has anything to do with my question. Purely looking for ..."It's been a long time since I read Jane Eyre. Remind what kind of role this woman plays?
Amanda wrote: "Also, Mr Rochester is yummy."LMAO! Agreed, Amanda, agreed.
Amanda wrote: "***SPOILERS***Julie- Jane Eyre is a governess who falls in love with her employer, almost marries him, and then finds out he's already married to a crazy (literally) woman. He tries to persuade h..."
That would be fine because it is talking about someone living out their faith.
Okay, from reading the responses Julie has made in regards to everybody’s questions, I think the one thing we can take away from this is that so long as the character in the book is living out their personal definition of Christian faith (and you as the reader can make an argument for it), it will more than likely be accepted.
Actually I think people are losing sight of one thing listed in the challenge itself.... "Read a Christian fiction book". Maybe one determining factor should be, in the larger definition of how books are categorized, is the book considered Christian fiction? I am not sure Jane Eyre would fit-- at least I have never seen it classified as Christian fiction. Good Reads has a Christian Fiction section that is a good place to start. I approach the purpose of these challenges (other than getting me to read more) is to read books of other genres different than I might read and broaden my understanding of other things. To find a book I have read and see if it fits the category because I am more comfortable with that book, seems to defeat the purpose.
Branch out, try something different, you might be surprised by what you find hidden in genres you haven't been to.
Good work Julie!
Suzanne wrote: "Actually I think people are losing sight of one thing listed in the challenge itself.... "Read a Christian fiction book". Maybe one determining factor should be, in the larger definition of how bo..."Suzanne, I agree, but as Julie is moderator of this task and she herself made the rule that The Poisonwood Bible would fit the task, that's what is causing more of the confusion as that is also a book that would not be classified under Christian fiction.
This is exactly what I intended. I am sorry that so many people were confused by this task. The intent was to show people leading faithful life, sometimes that life takes many turns along the way. Even the individuals that we would consider extremists had intentions on pleasing God.
Amanda wrote: "I think everyone knows what she originally intended with the task, but since some people were uncomfortable with it or wanted to go over and over semantics to make some kind of point, it got expand..."This is the internet, so all we have are semantics. It might be obvious to some what Christian Fiction is, but it isn't obvious to everyone. We're all just trying to understand the task and what Julie means.
I checked the Christian fiction lists on Goodreads. More than one of them included The Lord of the Rings. That seems debatable. I'm still not sure where Julie stands on that.
Check out the scifi Christian list that was linked earlier. A LOT of those books are debatable.
Julie suggested The Poisonwood Bible. That is (as we've seen) debatable.
I don't think its unreasonable to ask for a clear definition of what Julie wants. And I thought we had one from Julie herself (message 252). Was that not her original intent, clarified for those of us who were confused about her language?
I feel like we're going around in circles.
Neigh!!!or Whinny!!!
or Whicker!!!
Or whatever it is that horses say. ;)
Andreea wrote: "The Gospels are a stand alone book, the Bible is a collection of stand alone books (that's why its smaller parts are called books- The Book of Job, The Book of Ezekiel, etc.). There is just one Gospel because gospel means "good news", the full title of its smaller parts have the form- "The Gospel according to ___", together they are a unitary book. Moreover, you don't have to read the whole Old Testament before reading the Gospels to understand their action (if you read them like a novel looking only to understand the action, its characters, etc.). Also, if you're not Christian you might think the Bible is fictional."I agree that each of the books in the Bible are stand-alone books that can be read in any order, really. The "Gospels" are 4 stand-alone books themselves. Although when reading the New Testament, I would suggest reading the Gospels before reading Acts and later books, because that just makes more sense, chronologically speaking.
As for whether the Bible is "fiction" or "folklore" or whatever... obviously the way you regard it and catagorize it will depend on what you believe. But I, personally, would be wary of calling anyone else's sacred texts "fiction," even if I didn't believe in them myself, out of respect for other people and their beliefs. Just because I'm not a Hindu doesn't mean I'm going to go around calling the Bhagavad Gita "fiction," etc.
Sara wrote: "But I, personally, would be wary of calling anyone else's sacred texts "fiction," even if I didn't believe in them myself, out of respect for other people and their beliefs. Just because I'm not a Hindu doesn't mean I'm going to go around calling the Bhagavad Gita fiction, etc."That's a good point, Sara.
Beth(MN) wrote: "Neigh!!!or Whinny!!!
or Whicker!!!
Or whatever it is that horses say. ;)"
LOL -- I have already selected my book for this task, but can't seem to tear myself away from watching this thread. It is fascinating to see it unfold!
I, myself, was surprised to find that I already have a lot of qualifying books on my TBR shelf. I wasn't so much worried about branching into a new genre, but finding something well-written and interesting to me without being familiar with it at all. I didn't really want the first book I read of a new genre to be crap...first impressions being important and all!Now, of course, I have too many choices...
Krista wrote: "LOL -- I have already selected my book for this task, but can't seem to tear myself away from watching this thread. It is fascinating to see it unfold! "Same here! And it would seem like we're not the only ones, tee-hee-hee!
Suzanne wrote: "Actually I think people are losing sight of one thing listed in the challenge itself.... "Read a Christian fiction book". Maybe one determining factor should be, in the larger definition of how bo..."This is why I am doing this challenge, I ONLY read mystery/thriller/medical or legal dramas. THis challenge is forcing me to read other books.
SO I think Julie has done a good job of describing what it is she is looking for at this point. If you have questions about a SPECIFIC BOOK that you want to read but are still unsure about it - feel free to ask her. But I do ask that people please not debate the validity of her decisions from now on. I'm officially taking the horse out back, shooting him, and then burying him under 10 tons of dirt...lol!
Can we please have a final decision on Something Wicked This Way Comes? Someone else asked specifically about that book, so an answer might help a few people out.
Are the Mitford books ok for the challenge? There still hasn't been a response for this one.
I am going to have to say no to Something Wicked This Way Comes. I am not seeing the faith centered life portion. Unless I am missing something.
I will accept the Mitford series. They look pretty good actually.
Julie - The Mitford series is really good. You should check them out. They are some of my favorite books ever.
Julie - sorry to bother, but did you ever let us know about Death Comes to the Archbishop? I was thinking of changing to that one, but didn't see if you had ok'd it. Thanks.
Julie, was the Anne of Green Gables series a go? Anne is a church-going Christian, as is pretty much every other character in the series. I'm also really interested to read a couple other books that have been OK'ed, but I just started a reread of Anne and probably won't be able to stop, so it would be nice to fit several of them into the challenge.
Leslie wrote: "Julie, was the Anne of Green Gables series a go? Anne is a church-going Christian, as is pretty much every other character in the series. I'm also really interested to read a couple other books tha..."I've fit the first six of the series in various places for this challenge...my plan's the first one in the plan thread.
Hey, thanks Sam! I had a couple of those tasks set aside for Anne as well, and the person/place part of the noun task should work well for it. Sorry, Story of Edgar Sawtelle, I might not be reading you this time around. Although hey, story is a thing, isn't it!Sorry, getting off topic.
I will say yes to Anne of Green Gables and to Death Comes to the Archbishop.
I was flummoxed when I read this challenge originally. I have a friend who loves Christian fiction, and although I think I realize the importance of faith in my own life, it's never something I was interested in reading about. That said, I have always loved The Chronicles of Narnia, and reading through these posts have seen plenty of books that I actually have wanted to read and just never considered to be "Christian fiction" like Ben Hur, The Robe, and Death Comes for the Archbishop. So, thanks for the task Julie, even though I thought it would put me way out of my comfort zone, I'm actually really excited about it now.
Megan wrote: "I was flummoxed when I read this challenge originally. I have a friend who loves Christian fiction, and although I think I realize the importance of faith in my own life, it's never something I wa..."Ditto to everything you said. Not my genre at all but I had numerous TBRs on my bookshelf at home.
Julie,Are any of the following acceptable for your task?
Life of Christ: part a religious novel, part a historical essay, and in part an exquisite example of dramatic literature, its overwhelming theme is the poetic plea for the human race to return to a simple religion of brotherly love.
Inferno of Dante A New Verse Translation Bilingual edition. A New Verse Translation
Paradise From the Divine Comedy
Paradise Lost
The Last Temptation of Christ
The Power and the Glory
I just wanted to say my MIL recommended Francine Rivers. I am reading Leota's Garden and I like it so far. I am about 40 pages in and do not find it too heavy handed.
I read Inferno of Dante A New Verse Translation Bilingual edition. A New Verse Translation last year, and I don't think it would qualify. The poet Virgil gives Dante a tour of hell. Julie seems to be looking for books where the character is trying to live out a life of faith.If you are looking for a classic, I think Pilgrim's Progress would qualify. Pilgrims Progress in Today's English is an easy to read version.
For those who prefer action or suspense novels, Safely Home is a novel about church persecution in China. The Chinese pastor is definately living out his faith. A Voice in the Wind by Francine Rivers is a historical fiction starting in AD 70. The main character is a Jewish Christian who becomes a slave in a Roman household. It is the beginning of the Mark of the Lion series (three books) and they were all hard to put down. I am going to try Deeper Water A Tides of Truth Novel, a legal fiction. The main character is a homeschooled Christian whose faith is challenged on her job. I haven't read anything by this author but did read a good review by a reviewer I trust.
Iris wrote: "I read Inferno of Dante A New Verse Translation Bilingual edition. A New Verse Translation last year, and I don't think it would qualify. The poet Virgil gives Dante a tour of he..."Virgil's tour of hell is to help Dante strengthen his faith as he is in a questionable place spiritually at the beginning of The Divine Comedy.
El wrote: "Virgil's tour of hell is to help Dante strengthen his faith as he is in a questionable place spiritually at the beginning of The Divine Comedy."Definitely...
The "straightforward pathway" that Dante says he has lost in the third line is "faith." Beatrice sends Virgil to help Dante get back on the path/restore his faith by taking him on a tour of the Inferno.
Sam wrote: "El wrote: "Virgil's tour of hell is to help Dante strengthen his faith as he is in a questionable place spiritually at the beginning of The Divine Comedy."Definitely...
The "straightforward path..."
I agree with both you and El that the Virgil is trying to help Dante strengthen his faith. Julie may approve the book for that reason. It definately centers on "the importance of living a faith centered life." The discussion seemed to be leaning toward books where the character lives out his/her faith. That was the direction I was coming from. Dante learns the value of a faith-centered life but he isn't trying to live it.
For anyone still looking for ideas for this task, A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving should work. It's one of my favorite books and I highly recommend it.
Cait wrote: "For anyone still looking for ideas for this task, A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving should work. It's one of my favorite books and I highly recommend it."Cait, this is one of my favorite books, too. I highly recommend it. I hadn't thought of it for this Task but it's a good choice.
Through Dante's tour with Virgil he recognizes and rejects sin which in itself is illustrative of living a faith-centered life.
I think Dante would be an excellent read. I guess I thought I had already approved the classics.
I'm a little late to the game, but I want to make it clear that I'm not debating particular decisions that Julie's making. I actually was happy to see, Julie, that you did approve a wide variety of books, many of which I didn't think would qualify under your original description of the task. Though I was a bit prickled by the juxtaposition of Christian fiction and the importance of a faith-centered life, like others, even if you had chosen to be very strict about that definition and only choose books that specifically were focused on the importance of living a Christian life, I would have read one of the books and hoped to get something else out of it, despite the fact that I don't happen to believe that it's important for everyone to live a Christian life. I would however, like to make a note about your comment:
Let me end with this, did anyone question any of the other tasks mainly the Halloween or the homosexual books that we are asked to read?
I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you had no intention of offending me (a lesbian) or any other queer readers in this group. Assuming this is the case, I would like to respectfully let you know that the term "homosexual" is painful for many LGBT people as it connotes a specific intolerant religious viewpoint (again, not saying that you have this viewpoint! I myself am religious) or alternatively a clinical perspective with origins in the previous understanding of homosexuality as a mental illness. For these reasons, "homosexual books" makes me and other queer folks a little jumpy. Some alternative terms include "LGBT," "queer," or even "gay" (less inclusive as it excludes bisexual and transgender fiction and to some means only relating to gay males).
Just wanted to let you know, because I'm assuming you didn't mean to hurt anyone with that comment, regardless of your religious beliefs on the subject, and I thought you might like to be aware of the distinction for the future!
I'm currently reading Pat Conroy's South of Broad and think it might qualify for this task - the main character and his mother are both dealing with living as Catholics in the South.
Susanna wrote: "I'm currently reading Pat Conroy's South of Broad and think it might qualify for this task - the main character and his mother are both dealing with living as Catholics in the South."As far as the Christian fiction part goes I believe it qualifies but I don't see how following a faithful life is apparent.
Judith wrote: "I'm a little late to the game, but I want to make it clear that I'm not debating particular decisions that Julie's making. I actually was happy to see, Julie, that you did approve a wide variety o..."Did you have a question about a specific book for this task?
The Seasonal Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
The Screwtape Letters (other topics)Arena (other topics)
Gilead (other topics)
Cry, the Beloved Country (other topics)
Cry, the Beloved Country (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Alan Paton (other topics)Alan Paton (other topics)
Mindy Starns Clark (other topics)
Mindy Starns Clark (other topics)
Francine Rivers (other topics)
More...
Thank you for this definition, Julie. It may help us in de..."
I would accept this.