Your BGLibrary has a couple new and exciting books that you should absolutely check out! The first is “Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Difference” by Dr. Joseph Mbele. Mbele is Professor of English and Director of African Studies at St. Olaf College in Minnesota. His book tackles differences between Americans and Africans—especially focusing on his Tanzanian homeland—and he does it in a practical—and amusing—way. If you have any interest in visiting Africa, this read is a great way to begin to understand why they’re sometimes amused by us, and we by them! Holy Trinity will be talking lots this coming year about our relationship with the Lutheran Church in Isimani, Tanzania. Reading Mbele’s book will help in making connections and understanding more about these wonderful Christians.
The second book I’d urge you to check out is “Why Peace and Prayers Are Not Enough: A Primer on Justice and Peace in Palestine and Israel” by (Lutheran) Rev. Julie Brenton Rowe. Rowe begins with history, explaining the conflicts in the Palestinian Region, from Biblical days, stretching through 2000 years after Christ, and into the present tensions. It’s a tough subject, but Rowe makes the reading of complicated issues possible to understand by using lots of imagery. There’re interviews from the people living in the present conflict, maps and charts which detail land ownership—and land grabbing on both sides—throughout, poetry, photos, and suggestions for further reading on all points. We might feel powerless to affect what’s going on in the Middle East now, but beginning to understand the complexity from folks actually living it will at least help us to know which directions to pray.
For now, neither of these books will be shelved but instead left on display so you can easily grab them before someone else! I’d like to suggest that after you have a chance to read one or both, you find another HT member and have a challenging and productive discussion.
—Dot Kasik