More Reviews

 

5.0 out of 5 stars A Challenge to Complacent Christians 

 

By Louis W. Grams - 

Dorothy Ranaghan shares her own sense of inner conflict over the issues riased by war for Christians. This is not "comfortable reading" for many of us who carry the name, "Christian." All too many of us have blindly been assimilated into political perspectives on these issues that have little or no bearing on what the Gospel has to say about the Christian as a bearer of peace. Of course, this has been a problem for Christianity for centuries. Those Christians who have taken the Gospel's challlenge to us to be peacemakers have tended to be relatively few and far between.

 

I have nothing but respect for the men and women who serve our country in the military today. They are full of courage and a readiness to sacrifice themselves for the sake of their nation. Ranaghan carries a similar, and perhaps even deeper respect, but that does not prevent her from challenging the rationale that puts these men and women in harm's way and worse yet, prepares them to take the lives of others. Having lived in a city adjacent to a number of large military instiallations, I am vividly aware of the increase in violent crime and domestic abuse every time another group of soldiers returns from combat. The questions Dorothy Ranaghan rasies in this book point to some solutions, allbeit highly unpopular ones, to this ongoing saga.

 

In a society like ours that effectively welcomes every form of taking life from abortion to the death sentence, we desperately need voices raising serious questions about what we are doing to ourselves and to the world we live in. Ranaghan does not try to answer every question she raises, and the book is all the more effective because of that. This is an effort to unsettle the conscience of anyone who claims to be a follower of Christ. He did not raise an army to promote his cause or defend his truth. Rather he laid down his life, and countless of his followers have done just that again and again. It is out of vogue to think that way these days, but Dorothy Ranaghan puts it back on the line in this excellent read.

 

Bravo! I am duly discomforted and issues I thought I had safely filed away in the recesses of my brain are out in the open again.

 

 

 

 

5.0 out of 5 stars An important book for serious Christians

 

By Ruth Sanford "teacher, grandmother of 26" (South Bend, IN USA) -

 

As an older teenager during the Viet Nam conflict, I have struggled with issues of war and non-violence all of my adult life. As a Christian, I have often tried to think my way through these issues with little final resolution. Christian leaders often profess opposite views in these difficult debates, leaving me with more questions than answers. I found The Blind Spot to be extremely helpful in working through the complex issues involved. I was impressed with the non-polemical attitude Ms. Ranaghan adopted. She demonstrates great respect for those who do not share her opinions, but she lays out a good case. She clearly followed her own advice in bringing reasoned discourse and a non-judgmental attitude to the discussion. The book is also filled with citations to aid further inquiry into the matters. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in furthering their understanding of the history of Christian responses to armed conflict as well as to anyone trying to adopt an authentic Christian response.

 

 

 

 

5.0 out of 5 stars Embracing..."The Way,The Truth & The Life"

By Maureen F -

A thoughtful and provocative work that dares asking the questions that Christians and non Christians alike should be asking themselves... that is, if we would like a pathway to a peaceful co-existence with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are "One Body" it is sin,evil and darkness that have created the divisions on earth.

 

 

 

5.0 out of 5 stars Blind Spot: Helping us to see

 

By Ann Cavera "Ann"

 

Dorothy Ranaghan makes a very clear case for bringing about the Kingdom of God through non-violence. At the same time (and this is one of the facets of her work I really liked) she admits to the ambivalence some of us feel when we are faced with the evil of war. Do we allow innocent people to be victimized, or do we fight in their defense? Regardless of how a reader feels about war, Ranaghan offers much thoughtful insight into this profound question.