Reviews for Disciplines for Christian Living

The average rating for Disciplines for Christian Living based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2013-04-19 00:00:00 Scott Lavelle 2.3. The title is misleading, as it is only tangential to the bulk of the book's treatment of internal dissensions or, rather, self-improving measures for modernization. There's a whole lot sandwiched between her clear conclusions of deterioration (3) or very little progress for Christians in the last century, such that they "live to this day in kind of ghetto surrounded by a diffuse, but nonetheless palpable, atmosphere of Muslim prejudices" (266). We do, however, get a clear glimpse of how even at this late date, it is a simple matter in Egypt to persecute Christians on the slightest provocation or whim (i.e., 114, 142-143, 182, 264). I have to agree that at certain times and places, perhaps even overall, Islam has been kinder to Christians than Christians have been to the Jews (21-22, 31, 38). (1948 was kind of a watershed year for the reversal in that trend.) Hasan is an intriguing and well-spoken individual, a Muslim woman (ix), who braved constant hostility from the authorities in her native Egypt (xi) through her studies'and publication arising therefrom'first of Hebrew and Israel, and then of Christianity (9). Her great-uncle was a member of the old aristocracy (261). She has quite a proclivity for big words. In its circuitous winding, this demonstrated that the "Sunday School movement" (3), from the 1950s onward, provided the Copts with almost exactly what they needed (237-238) to revitalize their faith (64), where Wakin left off in his previous description of the people. While reluctant to entirely Westernize in her thinking, Hasan unabashedly introduces those elements of our own culture (250) that would help Egypt move out of those problems which confront them culturally and, hence, religiously. Some of these problems pertain to their treatment of women (148, 155, 164-165, 190, 251-256). Apparently even the country's government has noted with dismay'and too late'that the extremism and soleness of its Islamization in the media and schools has created problems for themselves and the rest of the world (118, 174-176, 179-181, 264-266), problems which can hardly be corrected any faster than they were created. Coptic identification with Egyptian "culture," be it positive or negative (190, etc.) does little to help some of these unique difficulties. Hasan refers to Christian readiness to adopt superstitions and traditions, unquestioning of their source. Nonetheless, I'm still impressed by the severity of belief in some Copts, partaking freely of their monastic tradition of self-denial, to the extent that they actively point to their martyred predecessors, of which Egypt had not a few. There is no question that a surge in persecution would propel many more of such character to their deaths.

Review # 2 was written on 2017-07-12 00:00:00 Troy Pribnow About the Sunday School movement in Egypt, particularly the changes instituted by Baba Shenuda.