Shall We Read Some Old Books?
C. S. Lewis was convinced that we read should read old books.
In his Introduction to Athanasius’s ancient work, On the Incarnation, Lewis makes a compelling case for why this is so important, and he gives this practical tip:
It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between. If that is too much for you, you should at least read one old one to every three new ones.
Lewis’s advice has come to mind recently as I’ve been swimming in J. I. Packer and his work of theological retrieval. Packer was a master at redistributing the faithful theological reflection of the past for the present day, and if you look close enough, every faithful Christian thinker is pretty much doing the same. When it comes to theology, novel is a bad thing. If it looks new, and markets as new, be suspicious (and consider not wasting your time).
This lines up with a quote that Pastor Mathis sent me this morning, extracted from his reading of Os Guinness’s Prophetic Untimeliness: A Challenge to the Idol of Relevance. Guinness writes,
According to traditional wisdom, the past is the easiest and most important part of time to understand, the present the most difficult, and the future quite impossible. But under the influence of the modern world we have reversed this wisdom — generally ignoring the importance of the past, exaggerating our knowledge of the present, and presuming to speak accurately of the future when quite simply we can't.
Selah.
An appreciation of the past, of the church’s theological witness over centuries, is vital for healthy witness in our own day, however different that day might be. The task of theology is primarily recitation — faithfully repeating what God has said in his word, and drawing on the faithful reflections of those who have come before us.
So with Lewis, might we read an old book for every new one? Or, at least, as he says, what about an old book for every three new ones?
Four Old Books to Consider
In that spirit, as you formally or informally build your summer reading list, here are a few old titles I happily recommend:
Calvin’s Institutes … this is not just theologically rich, and a kind of seedbed to our Reformed heritage, but it is refreshingly devotional. The entire two-volume set can be a bit overwhelming, but it’s easily broken into chunks. You might also enjoy an abridged version in paperback.
Jeremiah Burrough’s The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment. Just ask Pastor Mike Polley about this one. The gold is exactly what you’d think from the title, and just remember that Burrough’s was writing about contentment in the 1600s, to people with no WiFi, among other missing amenities of our modern world. John Piper has also written a short review of this work.
John Owen’s Of Mortification of Sin in Believers. This book, as part of this volume, is largely why we named one of our sons “John Owen.” True story. It’s a penetrating, earnest book, and it has proved itself so in the lives of many. In fact, one of the great stories from Packer’s life is his discovery of Owen in his early college days. He was tasked to organize an old set of books donated to the Christian Student Union in which he was a member. In unboxing the books he stumbled upon Owen, read his two main books on sin, Indwelling Sin and Of Mortification, and was so moved by it, he actually wrote his own “Cliff’s Notes” version of the books and gave it to all his friends.
John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress. I can’t not mention this one. Spurgeon said he read this book over a hundred times. Bunyan’s insight into the journey of the Christian life are timeless.
