Dr. Gordon E. Carkner has written two books in tandem with the ethos and discursive trajectory of The Forum (GFCF). The insights and arguments come partly from interaction with 35 years of Forum discussions and partly from his own research on the moral self and identity (A Dialogue Between Charles Taylor & Michel Foucault in his doctoral dissertation). The Great Escape from Nihilism (2016) agues a case for unlearning nihilism in late modernity, for breaking out of the thinking box of the Closed Immanent Frame. Carkner encourages today’s academics to be open to interdisciplinary thinking, especially the broader, richer horizon of science & theology, arts & theology, humanities & theology discursive exploration. He points in the direction of the transcendentals of truth, beauty, and goodness. See also The Great Conversation https://ubcgcu.org/the-great-conversation/

The second 2024 book, Towards an Incarnational Spiritual Culture, deals with a contrast between gnostic thinking (inventing self and world) and a trinitarian theistic outlook (creational realization of self and world) rooted in the incarnation of Jesus the Christ. The incarnation is a central theme in Christianity and carries a heavy payload of meaning for today’s identity-conflicted, identity-confused citizens. It engages and claims to resolve some of our deepest human problems. The great Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor and his three great tomes, Sources of the Self, A Secular Age, The Language Animal, help to inform the analysis and critique of late modern culture in both books. Both books invite us into dialogue on some of the most important themes wrestled with in our day.

Christmas 2024 Reads

 Creation, Covenant, Incarnation, Redemption, Mission, Adventure, Cultural Analysis. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tS7s9kDPKNw The God of All Comfort Sermon by N. T. Wright. This sweeping articulation of a biblical theme is a great way to enter the Advent and Christmas Celebration. 

1.  From the Garden to the City: The Redeeming and Corrupting Power of Technology. 
John Dyer, 2024. 

2. The Road to Wisdom: On Truth, Science, Faith, and Trust. Francis Collins, 2024. 

3. Amazing Grace: The Life of John Newton and the Surprising Story Behind His Song, Bruce Hindmarsh & Craig Borlaise, 2024. 

4. The Patient Ferment of the Early Church. Alan Kreider, Baker Academic, 2024. 

5. How to Read & Understand the Psalms. Bruce K. Waltke, Crossway, 2024 

6. Remembering the Future. John D. Zizioulas, 2023. 

7.  On Freedom. Timothy Snyder, 2024. 

8.  Water from a Deep Well: Christian Spirituality from the Early Martyrs to Modern Missionaries, Gerald L. Sittser & Eugene Peterson, 2010. 

9.  Abundantly More: The Theological Promise of the Arts in a Reductionist World. Jeremy S. Begbie, Baker Academic, 2023. 

10. A Quiet Mind to Suffer With: Mental Illness, Trauma, and the Death of Christ. John Andrew Bryant, Lexham Press, 2023. 

11. Jesus and the Powers: Christian Political Witness in an Age of Totalitarian Terror and Dysfunctional Democracies. N. T. Wright & Michael Bird, 2024. 

12. Contextualization and the Old Testament: Between Asian & Western Perspectives. Jerry Hwang, Langham Publishing. 

13. The Surprising Genius of Jesus. Peter Williams, 2023. 

14. Democracy and Solidarity: On the Cultural Roots of America’s Political Crisis. James Davison Hunter, 2024. 

15. All Things Are Full of Gods: The Mysteries of Mind & Life. David Bentley Hart, Yale University Press. 2024.

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