BOOK/MOVIE REVIEWS
"Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed." Francis Bacon
Losing Moses on the Freeway: The Ten Commandments in America
By Christ Hedges
Free Press, New York, 2005. $24.
Reviewed by Darold Morgan
Richardson, TX
Simply stated, hold on to your hat as you get into this book on the Ten Commandments! It is unlike anything else you have ever read, and there are lots of good books on this subject around. This subject constitutes one of the Bible`s most important and enduring guides to ethical values and behavior. As you make your way through this book you will marvel at the author`s profound sympathy with people who have succeeded in violating the gist of these commandments. You may even feel like throwing the book against the nearest wall as he sits in Olympic-like judgment on war and related issues with his contemporary applications on idolatry, murder, envy, and greed.
The author is a seminary trained would-be pastor, turned foreign correspondent, who has received numerous kudos for his incisive reporting on global terrorism. His deep-felt views about the war come through powerfully in some of these chapters. Increasingly, he is a well-known and respected author, currently teaching at Princeton. His experiences literally around the world in some extremely dangerous situations show up in some very interesting applications related to these historic commandments from the Bible.
One by one he takes the commandments and often recasts them in today`s violent and rebellious world alongside observations that give an almost novel approach to a part of the Bible, which has had a surplus of books, applied to these centers of ethical concern. One of the main strengths of the book is his series of profound and often provocative illustrations from contemporary life.
This book is not for people who want to stay close to their comfort zone. For example, his experiences as a seminary graduate working with a church in a Boston ghetto is a vivid reminder of what is going on in every major city in the land. These are not success stories. They are alarming and bluntly realistic, and pose a backdrop for recapturing the essence surrounding the truths about the mystery and beauty of Almighty God. You will remember this part of his book long after you have completed it.
It is apparent by now that one of the major strengths of his book, so interestingly titled, come in the series of contemporary illustrations to the Decalogue. The author`s powers of observing people from many walks of life, then translated into good, solid writing, keeps the reader`s attention.
Again you may be offended by some of his words, but you will remember this book. Hedges draws deeply from his father`s influence on his life, and makes the point that "memories define us." (p.91) One can almost predict in advance his anti-war stance, an application that seems askance, but it is there and it is debatable.
The final chapter of the book moves beautifully to an emphasis on love. It well could be his finest writing as he zeroes in on a healthy overview of the commandments as moral guideposts for life. He speaks eloquently as to the savage price one pays when the commandments are not applied. Properly applied even in these times, Moses` words, though pushed aside by the pace and complexity of life, will prove an adequate guide through the multiply false covenants around us.
