South Carolina Books

Joseph Tyson is professor emeritus of religious studies at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas and in his latest book, Luke, Judaism, and the Scholars: Critical Approaches to Luke-Acts, surveys the history of critical scholarship on the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles. Professor Tyson draws particular attention to the interpretation of Luke's treatment of Jews and Judaism as he notes that the Holocaust was a major turning point in the history of New Testament scholarship, including the study of Luke's writings. Professor traces the evolution of scholarly view of the text over the past two centuries and examines the work of leading New Testament scholars, both European and American. Luke, Judaism, And The Scholars is a splendid contribution to the growing body of New Testament scholarship focusing on the writings of Luke and the study of Christianity's Judaic roots.

I fully agree with the previous review of this book by Midwest Book Reviews. I find their reviews succinct, accurate, and extremely useful. That being said, I hope that I can amplify and flesh out their contribution. It should be noted that this work does not spend much time with scholars emphasizing source critical or historical critical analysis. It is largely a study of how attitudes brought to the text have shaped theological scholarship regarding Luke-Acts. If your primary interest is in the historical content of Luke-Acts and the sources of material included by the author, this book will provide you with some information but not as much as you might wish. Furthermore, my academic specialty makes me extremely aware of the conundrum of writing about the past while weighed down by the baggage of the present. While my primary interests are not addressed in this volume, please note that I still gleaned much of interest from this study. Also, Tyson is to be commended for writing a book that is accessible to all literate adults which provides a road map of where we have been and where we seem to be going in scholarship regarding Luke-Acts and Judaism.

Starting with F. C. Bauer representing the "Tubingen School" in the eighteen-thirties and running through Harnack, Schlatter, Heanchen and Conzelmann into the nineteen-fifties Tyson finds that these German scholars read a rather unremitting stream of anti-Judaism into Luke-Acts. One wonders if the results might have been different if scholars from another nation were queried? The short answer is probably not as anti-Jewish sentiment has existed in Christian circles since circa 40 CE right through the Augustine-Ambrose debates on the topic and thereafter. With the Crusades, this sentiment turned ugly and violent. Modernity which was ushered in during the sixteen hundreds was viewed by the Roman Catholic Church as a direct attack on its authority. And, as if by habit, the "evils" of modernity were blamed on the Jews. It was but a short leap to the political anti-Semitism of the nineteenth and early twentieth century which culminated in the Holocaust. In nineteen sixty-two, Jacob Jervell, a Norwegian scholar, started questioning the pervasiveness of anti-Judaism in the New Testament. The publication in nineteen seventy-two of his book, "Luke and the People of God," opened a floodgate of revisionist scholarship on Luke-Acts. The degree of anti-Judaism displayed in these scriptural texts has been an important topic in later works.

Once again, this should remind us of the dictum "that what we write about the past tells us much about our present." Tyson rightly and frankly sees the Holocaust as a pivotal event in the here and now that changed the scholarly treatment of anti-Judaism in the N.T. However, historical revisionism, new left historiography, and deconstructionist literary criticism have also contributed to this reassessment. These later factors have been instrumental in the weeding out of cultural bias from scholarly work in a number of fields. Regrettably, religious studies, theology, and related areas have lagged in their attempts to implement value free objective goals as well as rigorous methodological criteria. After Jervell, Tyson considers the work of three late twentieth century American scholars. They are Jack T. Sanders, Robert L. Brawley, and Robert C. Tannehill. In short, Sanders finds the ultimate closure of the mission to the Jews in Acts and the triumph of anti-Judaism in the text while Brawley finds in Luke-Acts a primarily positive attitude towards Judaism with a still open mission to the Jews at the end of Acts. All three of these scholars find ambivalence towards Jews and Judaism in Luke-Acts, but it is Robert Tannehill who emphasizes it most. At the end of Acts, he finds the mission to the Jews to be closed and replaced with the mission to the gentiles.

On the one hand, the earlier German scholars found a Christianity triumphant over a moribund "late Judaism." For them, Judaism earned the reprobation it received by its obdurate rejection of repentance and salvation through Jesus Christ. On the other hand, Tannehill sees a tragedy steeped in misunderstanding and ambivalence. An historical reading of Luke-Acts goes a long way to explain the ambivalence of the early Church regarding contemporary Judaism. On that topic, one might wish to consult a bibliography published by Joel B. Green on the historicity of Luke-Acts. A fine short closing chapter by Tyson indicates some of the future directions the study of Luke-Acts might take. The author deserves enormous credit for his evenhanded and objective approach to the material covered in this book. Even though Tyson lets you know his opinions, they never interfere with his careful explication of the scholarship of others. And, while Tyson dates Luke-Acts at a very late date, you would never suspect that from this book. There is much to be gained by reading this work. It is a model of objectivity. It should challenge and inform all but the most advanced students and scholars of the matters considered.

You can tell that Hubert Green writes from the heart. His own story is heartwarming and his ficitional story shows great imagination.

I recommend the book to everyone! This book is for your whole family to enjoy! Children will appreciate the meaning of family. Children will learn to not take life for granted and appreciate what you have. It is a book that is so good you don't want to put it down until you are finish reading it! Then read it again!

If Shackelton made it across the antartic as planned he probably would not be as well-known as he is today. The feat he and his crew managed to pull is simply astounding. One of the most inspiring adventure stories of all time in my opinion.
Amru Albeiruti

The collective effort of Jonathon Shackleton (Antarctic special and a cousin of the famed explorer) and biographer John Mackenna, Shackleton: An Irishman In Antarctica is an informed and informative portrayal of Ernest Shackleton's historic, dramatic, highly dangerous South Pole expedition. Even though the voyage's ultimately failed to achieve it's stated goal, and Shackleton's crew were stranded on ice floes, all hands worked together to survive for a year before the perilous return to civilization could be made. Not a single man died in Shackleton's expedition, a credit to Shackleton's leadership and determination. His is a profound, inspirational, and keenly engaging story which is very highly recommended reading.

This remarkable first book by Dr. Smith has already won two of the history profession's highest awards. The historical society named it the best book of history for 1997 and it shares the prestigious Avery O. Craven Award for the most original book on the Civil War era. Smith's observations of the slaves' adjustment to and manipulation of measured time are fascinating. The portrait of plantation life and the effect of the normalization of time on the South will be a revelation to anyone interested in Southern history.

Mark Smith has produced a masterpiece. His mastery of theory and primary material is breath-taking. His willingness to take on such established scholars as Geonovese (and convince this reviewer that he is correct and they were wrong) is the mark of a confident historian.

Would that all works of history were as intellectually stimulating as this. MASTERED BY THE CLOCK is an example of the historian's craft at its best--something rarely seen these days.

Masters of Small Worlds views the relationship between yeomen and planters from a new perspective. Selecting the Low Country of South Carolina for her study, Stephanie McCurry uncovers documents revealing the presence of a much-ignored yeoman class and contrasts their political and social motivations with that of the economically dominant planter aristocracy. McCurry, an Associate Professor of History in the University of California, San Diego and winner of two awards for Masters of Small Worlds, claims that yeomen were not seeking an egalitarian society, but one of republican democracy. McCurry argues that not only were these yeomen masters of their own domain, but they were instrumental in the South Carolinian secession of 1860, acting "in defense of their own identity, as masters of small worlds" (page 304). In order to support her claim, McCurry first identifies her study group. The yeomen of South Carolina, a previously ignored and invisible group accordi! ! ng to the author, emerge as a cohesive and numerically significant class from census documents and court records. McCurry selected the South Carolina Low Country as her study area because of its unique geography that placed yeomen next to planters. This side-by-side arrangement necessitated yeoman-planter interaction. McCurry's argument focuses on the patriarchal structure of plantations and yeomen families. The author cites numerous comparative examples, contrasting the planter and yeomen social relationships and successfully illustrates that white males with absolute authority ran the estates of both. The similarity of structure allowed elite manipulation of the yeomen toward planter-oriented political stances. For example, McCurry states that yeomen identified with the planters enough to feel that a threat to the established social order was a threat to their own mastery and manhood. Ultimately, this identification led yeomen to perceive abolition and unionist sentiment as ! ! a threat and enlist in the secessionist cause. While docume! nting the similarities between planters and yeomen, McCurry also notes the similarities between involuntary servitude and marriage. The author equates the lack of rights and loss of identity for women with slavery, and thus strengthens her argument that the yeomen male was a master in his own domicile. Although arguing that planters and yeomen shared similar social motivations, McCurry stresses that the two classes were unequal socially. To support this claim, the author cites examples of planter wives who snubbed yeomen or wrote of their animosity towards them. Interestingly, women, rather than men, provide clear examples of class inequality. McCurry suggests that men were forced to interact and maintain good relationships with their neighbors, regardless of class, due to business and political dealings. However, women were not so encumbered, and, according to McCurry, rarely interacted. McCurry also addresses the role that evangelism played in the social and political struct! ! ure of South Carolina. According to McCurry, although the churches initially were a yeomen institution, the ministers adopted the elitist doctrine of planters and helped create a yeoman following for paternalism, republicanism, and the continuance of servitude. Ultimately, the pulpit was used to rally church members to the cause of secession, which the ministers assured the congregation God supported. While presenting her arguments, McCurry provides many enlightening insights into the yeomen's world, not the least is the often elusive definition of 'yeoman'. While McCurry notes and even partly adopts traditional definitions, she also uncovers a self-descriptive definition provided by yeoman narratives: a "self-working farmer." This definition clearly states what other historians have missed. Rather than tie a class to the number of slaves or the value of assets, the fact that a farmer did not have enough slaves and owned sufficient land to require "self-work&quo! ! t; made him a yeoman. By taking into account variables such! as land and slaves, this elegant definition is far superior to popular definitions that must be qualified to account for many exceptions. For instance, McCurry classifies families that had up to nine slaves as yeoman because the majority of the slaves were women and children. Many definitions would place these families outside of the yeoman class, as they limit yeomen slave ownership to less than five slaves. However, the productivity of the bondsmen would not be taken into account. McCurry supports Bertram Wyatt-Brown's claim that private space did not exist for southerners. While describing the yeomen, McCurry states that the division of private and public spaces had no meaning. However, McCurry supports this conclusion differently than Wyatt-Brown. McCurry notes that the difference between northern and southern social structures was great, and that the Cult of Domesticity did not penetrate to South Carolina. Because of this, private and public spaces were not considered se! ! parate in the South. Of course, this conclusion dovetails with Wyatt-Brown's code of honor and peer influence and suggests an explanation of this phenomenon. McCurry also notes that a common practice of planters was an annual party that yeomanry attended. According to the author, the purpose of the event was to show off art and architecture to the "hordes" of yeomen and poor whites. While this fact is not significant by itself and, in fact, the author used it to show the inequality of planter and yeomen, it also illustrates that yeomen were not only witnessed planter culture, but were deliberately exposed to it. Coupling this information with the claim that yeomen viewed themselves as potential entrants into the planter class, we can see that architectural emulation is a logical path for the yeomen to take. The information that McCurry presents allows for a greater understanding of the yeomen families that were so important to the South. The yeomen of South Carolin! ! a share much with other southern yeomen. Thus, McCurry's fi! ndings suggest similar motivations for other southerners. For example, the geographic proximity of yeomen to planters in South Carolina is similar to the proximity of yeomen to planters in North Alabama, where valleys and mountains divide holdings of the two classes rather than swamps and rivers. Additionally, the affects of evangelism and its influence on yeomanry and planters in South Carolina equally apply to other parts of the South. Another similarity exists between the South Carolina that McCurry studied and Alabama. Both states had an elite group controlling government by limited representation. In South Carolina, representation of the yeomen class was unequally assigned and the public denied the right to directly express their political positions. Similarly, Alabamians had limited electoral powers, as indirect representation was common. While McCurry's study of the Low Country of South Carolina appears to be a flawless and comprehensive study, its usefulness in stud! ! ying yeomen outside of South Carolina may be limited. Although many similarities exist in the social order of the study and in other parts of the South, South Carolina has a reputation for non-conformity. Therefore, other studies must be cautious about applying McCurry's findings to other areas. McCurry presents readers with many enlightening views of yeomanry. Boldly challenging the popular opinion that yeomen subscribed to an egalitarian/Jacksonian social order, her argument for a republican democracy is convincing. While her findings may not apply universally to all yeomen, McCurry offers many alternative viewpoints to consider when studying cultural patterns of the South. Additionally, the author finds many surprising parallels between planter and yeomen social structures. These revelations, together with her successful argument make Masters of Small Worlds a valuable and interesting addition to any study of yeomen as well as planters in the Old South.

McCurry's 1995 work "Masters of Small Worlds," is an attempt to fill the traditional gap in American historiography of theclass between slave and planters. Her work attempts to address the question of why the South Carolina yeoman elected to defend slavery and the present social hierarchy in the nullification struggle and the succession crisis of 1860. In this aim she is largely successful, by arguing that yeoman's may not have been planters political or social equals, but the institutions of slavery and a rigid defense of property rights gave yeoman's their own sense of power within their own households and communities. Her analysis involves gender relations in the state. Men's position of dominance rested on the cultural institutions that grew out of slavery. Making them masters of small worlds

On the hole: this work is a deeply reward read. Its difficult narrative and heavily structured natures make it a challenge to read but the benefit greatly outweigh the costs.

This book provides a fascinating look into the life and teaching of Muhammad Nurbaksh an adept of the Kubravi order ( an order famous for it's focus on the visionary experience of various colored lights along the stations of the Sufi path ) , Shi'ite , and claimant to the title of Mahdi. Shahzad Bashir provides a good introduction to the concept of Mahdi in general (looking both into the Sunni and the various Shi'ite teachings regarding the subject) as well. It also discusses some of the other claimants to the title such as Fazlallah Astrabadi the founder of the Hurufi movement. If you have an interest in the more "unorthodox" streams of Shi'ite thought, Messianism, and Sufism then buying this book is a no brainer. Get it!

Messianic Hopes And Mystical Visions: The Nurbakhshiya Between Medieval And Modern Islam by Shahzad Bashir (Assistant Professor of Religion, Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota) is an impressively in-depth study of the Nurbakhshiya sect of Islam, which originated in fifteenth-century Iran and survives to the modern day in Pakistan and India. From a detailed biography of founder Muhammad Nurbakhsh (d. 1464); to the world view of this Islamic sect; to its eventual transplantation into Kashmir, Messianic Hopes And Mystical Visions is a meticulous and scholarly account which is a very highly recommended contribution for Islamic studies reference shelves and reading lists.

Dr. Farmer proves himself to be an expert on his subject matter. He developes his themes superbly and keeps his reader interested and involved. An excellent display of talent and knowledge!

He makes the argument that the Old South, its finest intellectual hour seen in Thornwell, was much superior intellectually than the North. By the way, this is published by the scholarly Mercer University Press, so it ain't no hick from the sticks writing.

Thornwell also warned of the coming religious crisis, that which we call the Civil War. While criticizing unbiblical aspects of Southern slavery, he primarily warned against the rising humanistic and unitarian tide from the North which would overwhelm the South, not only militarily, but also--and more deadly--spiritually.

If I can restate the thesis in different terms: with the fall of the Confederacy, we saw the last bastion of a thoroughly Christian civilization destroyed. America would move from a decentralized republic to a consolidated Empire (which subsequent decades proved chillingly).

This little book is a visual feast, a celebration of nature's bounty in this lovely, unsung corner of the world. The 3 creators each address art and nature in their own unique--and breathtakingly beautiful--manner. This book is a priceless gem, believe me.

I own a copy of Mirror Lake.? Robert and I think it is absolutely stunning!!! It is evocative, yet restful.? I love the combination of the paintings with the photographs, and the combination of your bright colors together with the starker whites, greys, light browns and light blues--of the ocean, sand, sky and birds. ? It is really a remarkable accomplishment!!!

In More Than Petticoats, the reader is introduced to fourteen extraordinary and memorable women from North Carolina. Each of this remarkable women were alive at important historical junctions of the state's history ranging from the Revolutionary War, to the Civil War, to the beginning of the 20th Century. These were women who saw reformation all around them and realized that they too could contribute and promote change. There was Emeline Jamison Pigott, a Confederate spy; Mary Martin Sloop, a physician, community leader, and child welfare advocate in the hills of the Blue Ride; Maggie Axe Wachacha, a healer, teacher, and Cherokee leader; Cornelia Phillips Spencer, who helped liberate the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and eleven others who each directly addressed the challenges of their respective times and places. Their enduring contributions are here chronicled in absorbing and informative biographical sketches, providing a highly recommended addition to women's studies and American history reading lists.

More Than Petticoats: Remarkable North Carolina Women is a very satisfying book. As the title suggests, it is a collection of profiles of women who contributed to the history of the State of North Carolina through impressive acts of courage and/or years of determined effort.

The book opens with the story of Mary Hooks Slocumb, born in 1760, a heroine of the American Revolution, and concludes with the biography of Maggie Axe Wachacha, a Cherokee healer, treaty clerk and midwife who delivered more than 3000 babies before she died in 1993. Between, we meet a dozen other fascinating women who played significant roles in the advancement of North Carolina's social conditions, politics, education and health.

Scotti Kent is a strong writer - her spare, evocative prose draws readers in immediately and holds our interest and attention throughout each chapter. That these women's stories were of consistent interest to a reader who has never (yet) set foot in North Carolina is a testimony to not only the admirable qualities of the subjects' lives but also to the strength and clarity of the writing.