Soul Food

I suppose every generation remembers people from its past differently.  When my grandfather who was a Methodist pastor died and I was blessed as a young preacher with some of the books from his library, I got a number of books written by preachers and writers who were obviously important to him, but I never really knew.  When I look back over my shelves, I realize the same is true about the books I have read and then kept.  Names like Hudson Taylor, George Mueller, Oswald Chambers, Charles Spurgeon, E. M. Bounds, and E. Stanley Jones show up.   Though I value their stories and am greatly inspired by how they lived, those coming after me will likely dismiss them as dead saints from the dark ages.  

Maybe those who peruse my shelves will be surprised by my reading more recent Roman Catholic writers like Richard Rohr, Thomas Merton, Henri Nouwen, and Thomas Keating.  Of course, those who know me know that I am an avid reader of writers like Esther de Waal,  John O'Donohue, John Phillip, and Christine Valters Paintner who write out of the Celtic spirituality tradition.   If I were asked for a suggested reading list, certainly some of these names would show up.  

It has always seemed like a good idea is to read a mixture of the old and the new.  Books that have endured through the centuries cannot be all bad.  Many of today's Christian writers focus on what is trendy and marketable which is one reason why book dollars should be squeezed more than once.  When browsing the religious books in the bookstore, look for those keepers that feed the soul.