I got onto a serious fiction kick in June and July. And that's ok. What I am discovering about fiction is that it doesn't all have to be a fantasy that serves no purpose but to quench your desire for adventure and excitement amidst the mundane: rather it can serve a specific function that addresses and serious issue in society or tackle a taboo topic through a series of convoluted plot twists and character development.
And sometimes a fiction book is just for fun.
And that is what Rainbow 6 was. "6" is a call sign that designates the commanding officer of different units/commands. The group "Rainbow" was formed by John Clark (or, Rainbow 6) formerly of the CIA, to be a counter terrorist operations group that responds to various threats around the world. Based in England, Clark and his team of the best warriors from special forces units around the world train under the guise of secrecy to be an autonomous cohesive group that surpasses even the elite.
There are several storylines that occur that don't make sense at first in this book and becomes clearer as it progresses. There is a story arch about a ex-KGB intelligence officer that recruits terrorists for certain missions in Europe; the selection and training of Rainbow is a story in itself; a group of scientists gather bums off the street for some secret tests in New York; a mysterious pharmaceutical company is planning something interesting among others. Without giving away too much of the plot, these more informative sections are interlaced between the response of Rainbow to a terrorist threat where they kick some serious tush.
All in all, this is a pretty good read for those who just need an escapist fantasy read. I enjoyed the intertwining of the stories (even though it might have been a little confusing at first) that climaxed into an intelligent conclusion that was really quite satisfying. I suppose you can't go wrong with Tom Clancy
Friday, August 8, 2014
15 - First to Fight: An Inside View of the U.S. Marine Corps, Victor Krulak, 272 pages
I remember at the School of Music during my training early on in my Marine Corps career, this guy in the Army asked me why we needed a Marine Corps. He said something like, "We [the Army] can do everything the Marine Corps does.." First to Fight is an inside look at the reason we have a Marine Corps.
At the end of World War II, there was a downsize of the military and with good reason: the over-burgeoning weight of men and women who joined the war efforts was staggering; as it came to a close, there was no need to continue the excessive size that ballooned during the global conflict. I suppose that the Marine Corps mission has been different throughout history: in it's early days, Marines would hang from the rigging of ships and distinguished themselves as expert marksman as they protected against the assault of men onto their ship; In the 1920's and 30's, the Marine Corps adopted a doctrine on beach landings and assaults that drastically changed their purpose and intent. With the onset of WWII and the island hopping campaigns, this provided the Marine Corps with a lot of work. But during those years of excess directly after the war the Marines did nothing extraordinary, in the eyes of congress and top military leaders, that the Army could not do also. And thus the battle for the Marine Corps' life had again come into jeopardy.
The first half of this book is, frankly, a dry read. The author, retired Major General Krulak discusses those early years after WWII and the struggle to get the Commandant in on the board of the Joint Chief of Staff, which includes the top Generals from the Army, Navy and what was to become the Air Force. He talks about court hearings and a lot of legal mantra that I just didn't understand. I got the point though: saving the Marine Corps was tough and a lot of people were against it.
He then breaks down the Marine Corps from specific angles that isolate it's strengths and how it is different and unique from other services. Examples from these chapters (the most interesting, by the way) are things like how thrifty and inventive Marines are. He uses anecdotes from his many years of service as illustrations of these traits that make Marines superior and builds an argument of why we need a Marine Corps.
Ultimately, he concludes that the purpose of the todays Marine Corps is a response force that can amass a great deal of proficient warriors in little time in order to "police" the world and it's atrocities. It is because of this reason that Marines need to be ready to fight at any time. I remember hearing a story of the 31st MEU in Okinawa, Japan that was told to prepare during a typhoon to board a ship soon after it had passed in response to the 9/11 attacks. The Marine Corps survives today because it's mission is made flexible to suit the needs of this great nation and we will continue in this manner until the fight for the Marine Corps life is put on the chopping block again.
At the end of World War II, there was a downsize of the military and with good reason: the over-burgeoning weight of men and women who joined the war efforts was staggering; as it came to a close, there was no need to continue the excessive size that ballooned during the global conflict. I suppose that the Marine Corps mission has been different throughout history: in it's early days, Marines would hang from the rigging of ships and distinguished themselves as expert marksman as they protected against the assault of men onto their ship; In the 1920's and 30's, the Marine Corps adopted a doctrine on beach landings and assaults that drastically changed their purpose and intent. With the onset of WWII and the island hopping campaigns, this provided the Marine Corps with a lot of work. But during those years of excess directly after the war the Marines did nothing extraordinary, in the eyes of congress and top military leaders, that the Army could not do also. And thus the battle for the Marine Corps' life had again come into jeopardy.
The first half of this book is, frankly, a dry read. The author, retired Major General Krulak discusses those early years after WWII and the struggle to get the Commandant in on the board of the Joint Chief of Staff, which includes the top Generals from the Army, Navy and what was to become the Air Force. He talks about court hearings and a lot of legal mantra that I just didn't understand. I got the point though: saving the Marine Corps was tough and a lot of people were against it.
He then breaks down the Marine Corps from specific angles that isolate it's strengths and how it is different and unique from other services. Examples from these chapters (the most interesting, by the way) are things like how thrifty and inventive Marines are. He uses anecdotes from his many years of service as illustrations of these traits that make Marines superior and builds an argument of why we need a Marine Corps.
Ultimately, he concludes that the purpose of the todays Marine Corps is a response force that can amass a great deal of proficient warriors in little time in order to "police" the world and it's atrocities. It is because of this reason that Marines need to be ready to fight at any time. I remember hearing a story of the 31st MEU in Okinawa, Japan that was told to prepare during a typhoon to board a ship soon after it had passed in response to the 9/11 attacks. The Marine Corps survives today because it's mission is made flexible to suit the needs of this great nation and we will continue in this manner until the fight for the Marine Corps life is put on the chopping block again.
14 - The Japanese and Christianity: Why is Christianity not widely believed in Japan?, Samuel Lee, 294 pages
I was introduced to some startling statistics while I was in Japan. Here is one for you: there are about 500,000-1,000,000 Protestant Christians in Japan. In the greater Tokyo-Metropolitan area, there are over 13 million people. This is shocking to me. I quickly learned that Japan is the most secular nation that is open to Christianity in the world. So the question we must ask is why? What is it about Japanese culture that does not allow Christianity to thrive as it is in the East in places like South Korea and China?
That is the question Samuel Lee asks in his book, "The Japanese and Christianity." The are a plethora of reasons why, maybe too many to answer here, but I will highlight a few. In Japan, there is something called the "wa." The "wa" is the harmony of everything around you but in this case, it is the harmony of social dynamics. In this way, the idea is to not let ripples interrupt the harmony of social relationships by introducing tension or nonconformity. This poses a huge problem to the spread of Christianity because Jesus talks very frequently about the truth being divisive and the division it will cause within your family and friends.
The Japanese are also incredibly tolerant of spiritual ideas but less thrilled about organized religion or commitment. It seems that what is attractive is an amalgamation of several different religious ideas combined into a unique melting pot instead of a verified pronunciation of one particular belief. For example, it is said that the Japanese have Shinto births, Christian weddings, and Buddhist deaths.
One of the sharpest points of contention to the author in the book is about ancestor worship. The Japanese have a very high view of their ancestors and in some cases worship them. When Christian missionaries (as the author explains) have come to Japan and told the people about Christianity, they are sometimes willing to change their ways… until they mention they must give up the worship of their ancestors. The author brings up an interesting (although perhaps misguided) point about cultural Christianity. Cultural Christianity reflects that in any system of Christianity, it inherently and unapologetically adopts certain qualities of the culture. For example, Americans are very materialistic and our churches reflect that materialism: flat screen TV's line our churches which are enormous buildings that would dwarf the humble churches in African or South America while our coffee bar could probably support two missionaries for a year. In the same way, many Americans would become defensive at such accusations much like the Japanese would become defensive about their ancestors. The question the author poses is, is it right for us to be critical about cultural Christianity?
I may not have an answer for that at the moment, but this book provides an interesting dialogue on why Christianity has not become popular in Japan. There are many other reasons but if you are interested in the others, I would encourage you to buy the book!
That is the question Samuel Lee asks in his book, "The Japanese and Christianity." The are a plethora of reasons why, maybe too many to answer here, but I will highlight a few. In Japan, there is something called the "wa." The "wa" is the harmony of everything around you but in this case, it is the harmony of social dynamics. In this way, the idea is to not let ripples interrupt the harmony of social relationships by introducing tension or nonconformity. This poses a huge problem to the spread of Christianity because Jesus talks very frequently about the truth being divisive and the division it will cause within your family and friends.
The Japanese are also incredibly tolerant of spiritual ideas but less thrilled about organized religion or commitment. It seems that what is attractive is an amalgamation of several different religious ideas combined into a unique melting pot instead of a verified pronunciation of one particular belief. For example, it is said that the Japanese have Shinto births, Christian weddings, and Buddhist deaths.
One of the sharpest points of contention to the author in the book is about ancestor worship. The Japanese have a very high view of their ancestors and in some cases worship them. When Christian missionaries (as the author explains) have come to Japan and told the people about Christianity, they are sometimes willing to change their ways… until they mention they must give up the worship of their ancestors. The author brings up an interesting (although perhaps misguided) point about cultural Christianity. Cultural Christianity reflects that in any system of Christianity, it inherently and unapologetically adopts certain qualities of the culture. For example, Americans are very materialistic and our churches reflect that materialism: flat screen TV's line our churches which are enormous buildings that would dwarf the humble churches in African or South America while our coffee bar could probably support two missionaries for a year. In the same way, many Americans would become defensive at such accusations much like the Japanese would become defensive about their ancestors. The question the author poses is, is it right for us to be critical about cultural Christianity?
I may not have an answer for that at the moment, but this book provides an interesting dialogue on why Christianity has not become popular in Japan. There are many other reasons but if you are interested in the others, I would encourage you to buy the book!
13- Strange Glory: A Life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Charles Marsh, 528 pages
Dietrich Bonhoeffer continues to be a controversial character among evangelicals, and others, even into the 21st century. Some praise the 20th century German theologian for his contribution to "neo-orthodoxy" while others are harshly critical of both Bonhoeffer and friend Karl Barth, condemning both for their intrusion on traditionalism. Regardless what presuppositions you may have on Bonhoeffer (or Barth for that matter), "Strange Glory" was a deep, rich (and quite frankly, most enjoyable) read that solidified in my mind how we should view Bonhoeffer.
I must start off by saying that this book is not without controversy. Indeed, I originally found it on Al Mohler's summer reading list, where I had recently read an article he wrote called, "Baptist Polity and the Integrity of the Southern Baptist Convention," which was about the intrusion of homosexuality threatening to split the convention. As I was reading the comments for Marsh's book on Amazon, I saw a comment condemning the book for the accusation that Bonhoeffer was gay. I have never been one to shy away from controversy, so I read the book anyway and would recommend (and have recommended) for other Christians to read it. So here is what I will say on the subject: do I think Bonhoeffer was gay? No (not only did he die a virgin, but he was engaged to a young woman for some years). And in fact, the Gospel Coalition wrote a fantastic article recently called, "Was Bonheoffer gay? And other adventures in missing the point!" I thought the most striking feature of this article was the obsession our culture has with not just sex but gender and sexual orientation. In our day-to-day lives we are saturated with themes that are sexual-centric and it becomes the pivotal point in determining what is important in the biographies of today (As a side-note, in the book I read earlier this year, "Washington" by Ron Chernow, he is convinced that George Washington was having affairs with various women). If this is the central point in the book (it's not) to you or the only reason you won't read it, then you are certainly missing out.
With that out of the way, Marsh is a beautiful writer. The imagery that he writes with made me feel like I was sitting with Bonhoeffer in the mountains as he read a book in the cool of the morning, or inside his childhood home having a most clear picture of what it would have looked like. Marsh explores several very interesting ideas regarding Bonhoeffer, particularly his theological convictions in the "revival" of the Lutheran church. Just like context is key when studying scripture, the same is true in looking at a man such as Bonhoeffer: we must look at neo-orthodoxy and view it through the lens of the early 20th century Lutheran Church to fully understand the perspective in which Bonhoeffer swore his allegiance to.
I must start off by saying that this book is not without controversy. Indeed, I originally found it on Al Mohler's summer reading list, where I had recently read an article he wrote called, "Baptist Polity and the Integrity of the Southern Baptist Convention," which was about the intrusion of homosexuality threatening to split the convention. As I was reading the comments for Marsh's book on Amazon, I saw a comment condemning the book for the accusation that Bonhoeffer was gay. I have never been one to shy away from controversy, so I read the book anyway and would recommend (and have recommended) for other Christians to read it. So here is what I will say on the subject: do I think Bonhoeffer was gay? No (not only did he die a virgin, but he was engaged to a young woman for some years). And in fact, the Gospel Coalition wrote a fantastic article recently called, "Was Bonheoffer gay? And other adventures in missing the point!" I thought the most striking feature of this article was the obsession our culture has with not just sex but gender and sexual orientation. In our day-to-day lives we are saturated with themes that are sexual-centric and it becomes the pivotal point in determining what is important in the biographies of today (As a side-note, in the book I read earlier this year, "Washington" by Ron Chernow, he is convinced that George Washington was having affairs with various women). If this is the central point in the book (it's not) to you or the only reason you won't read it, then you are certainly missing out.
With that out of the way, Marsh is a beautiful writer. The imagery that he writes with made me feel like I was sitting with Bonhoeffer in the mountains as he read a book in the cool of the morning, or inside his childhood home having a most clear picture of what it would have looked like. Marsh explores several very interesting ideas regarding Bonhoeffer, particularly his theological convictions in the "revival" of the Lutheran church. Just like context is key when studying scripture, the same is true in looking at a man such as Bonhoeffer: we must look at neo-orthodoxy and view it through the lens of the early 20th century Lutheran Church to fully understand the perspective in which Bonhoeffer swore his allegiance to.
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