Book Reviews

JASA Book Reviews for March 1976

Table of Contents
THE NEW CONSCIOUSNESS IN SCIENCE AND RELIGION, by Harold Schilling, Pilgrim Press, Philadelphia, 1973. 288 pp. $7.95.
INTRODUCTION TO FRANCIS SCHAEFFER by Francis Schaeffer, Downers Grove, Illinois: Intervarsity Press, 1974, 40 pp., $1.25.
ALL WERE MEANT TO BE: A Biblical Approach to Woman's Liberation by Leta Scanzoni and Nancy Hardesty, Word, 1974, $6.95.
THE BIBLE AND DRUG ABUSE, by Robert A. Morey, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1973, 110 pp., $1.45.
HEALING: A Doctor in Search of a Miracle, by Bill Nelson, Random House, 1974. $8.95.
THE PSYCHOBIOLOGY OF TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION: A Literature Review, by Demetri P. Kanellakos and Jerome S. Lukas, W. A. Benjamin, Inc., Menlo Park, California, 158 pp. 8" x 11" Paperback. 1974. $3.95.
HUMAN MEDICINE: Ethical Perspectives on New Medical Issues, by James B. Nelson, Augsburg, Minneapolis, Minnesota (1973). 207 pp. Paperback. $3.95
GUIDE TO SEX, SINGLENESS AND MARRIAGE by C. Stephen Board, editor. Downers Grove, Illinois: Intervarsity Press, 1974. 130 pages. Paperback. $1.95.
DEVIANCE: ACTION, REACTION, INTERACTION by Frank R. Scarpitti and Paul T. McFarlane. Addison-Wesley: Reading, Mass. 1975. 448 pp., paper.
IMAGES OF MAN: A Critique of the Contemporary Cinema by Donald J. Drew, Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1974, 121 pp., $2,95.

THE NEW CONSCIOUSNESS IN SCIENCE AND RELIGION, by Harold Schilling, Pilgrim Press, Philadelphia, 1973. 288 pp. $7.95.

In this book Harold Schilling, now emeritus professor of physics and Dean of the Graduate School at Pennsylvania State University, presents what he describes as "a message of hope for our time and the future." Modestly characterized as a book written for general readers of modest competence, not a "scholarly treatise," Schilling's book treads through difficult subject matter in a clear, sometimes almost consciously pedagogical style, with Schilling illuminating his points by citing with equal ease popular writers, technical scientific writers, philosophers and theologians.

In Schilling's view science has entered a qualitatively new era in the contemporary period; it is postmodern, as opposed to modern, science. The scientific developments characteristic of post-modern science in turn have led to a new consciousness. The discoveries of post-modern science "represent not only additions to what man knows, but changes in the way he knows, and in the way he feels about, responds and relates to the known and unknown." The major scientific features of these changes are that matter is now conceived of as fundamentaly relational (rather than having an intrinsic essence or substantiality); the material world is historically developmental and evolutionary; matter is transmutable into energy, and matter-energy is intrinsically creative. While this creativity is ambiguous, filled with "prodigal wastefulness, ugly perversions, stark brutality. . . . evolutionary dead ends, it also exhibits "process realities that are transformative and remedial." The revolutionary changes in the scientific vision that have accompanied twentieth-century discoveries have highlighted an often overlooked reality: science is "intensely human and personal, in many respects like the arts, and that imagination, intuition, and creativity are extremely important in its life and thought." Post-modern science now reveals the world to be mysterious when deeply probed. In so doing it suggests interconnections with religion, which also is fundamentally mysterious.

Schilling continues with two sections. First, be sets out a "secular" section in which he explains in detail bow post-modem science shapes the consciousness of the world and gives new understandings to fundamental concepts such as matter, energy, time, and determinism. Old notions of simplicity in nature have been exploded; reality recedes into mystery as it is pursued farther and farther from ordinary experience. Nature reveals both creativity and destructiveness.

The analysis of nature helps to understand both. No longer able to distinguish between matter and mind or spirit, post-modern science posits that phenomena be interpreted as part of the continuum 11 matter-energy-life-mind-spirit."

In a second "religious" section Schilling suggests a way of conceiving Biblical theism consistent with the emerging post-modern consciousness. For this theological stance, be believes, post-modem science can provide an apologetic. Asserting that "it is in God's continuing creative activity that Biblical faith sees the ultimate continuing source of nature's existence and evolutionary development, and it is in his unceasing redemptive activity that it sees the ultimate continuing cause of the tranformative and remedial processes that operate in nature and history 'for good,"' Schilling advances a religious vision that accepts the insights of the post-modern consciousness but moves beyond the merely secular by affirming that "the ultimate Source, Guide, and Goal of nature, in all its scientifically discernible levels and aspects is creating and redeeming God." The language of process metaphysics most suitably expresses Schilling's vision of God by modifying "absolutist" features of traditional theism, emphasizing the imminence of God, and reminding us how mysterious even our traditional discourse about God really is. Schilling suggests a vision of the cosmic Christ: "an awareness that the remarkable mystery reality Christians call 'Christ'-which was so supremely and radiantly revealing of God in Jesus of Nazarethis an eternal, all-pervading cosmic reality that is present creatively and remedially to all beings of the universe." Man is "come of age" in that his greatest temptation will be to draw back from shaping his destiny rather than to shape it creatively toward greater human unity and cooperation in balanced relationship to the cosmos. The traditional concept of God's grace suggests to Schilling an open future in which the cosmos can be creatively transformed "for good."

Schilling recognizes that his vision departs from traditional language that talks of a radically transcendent Triune God whose will overrides natural law, of a vicarious atonement, and of special revelation. But he argues the difference between his view and the traditional one is "not one of basic intentionality"; both "profess the same faith in one God who creates and redeems, though they employ different models or imagery."

No doubt responses to Schilling's religious vision will differ considerably, not only on the question of whether and how far it departs from traditional expressions of Biblical faith, but also on whether it provides a usable articulation of a vision of hope on which to ground human action. His description of the consciousness rising from post-modern science will be stimulating to most for whom the book is intended. Certainly the book demonstrates Schilling's contention: "No longer can it be said justifiably that religion finds man's basic sensibilities and sensitivities toward nature beng eroded and corroded by the scientific vision." Thus Schilling's work emphatically marks the considerable difference between contemporary views of the relations between science and religion and that expressed almost exactly a century ago by John Draper.

Reviewed by John C. Gienapp, Concordia Senior College, Ft. Wayne, Indiana. Reprinted by permission from The Cresset, October 1974.

INTRODUCTION TO FRANCIS SCHAEFFER by Francis Schaeffer, Downers Grove, Illinois: Intervarsity Press, 1974, 40 pp., $1.25.

This is a study guide to three of Francis Schaeffer's most widely circulated books: The God Who Is There, Escape from Reason, and He Is There and He Is Not Silent. These three books were chosen because they best convey the essence of his views. To understand them is to comprehend Schaeffer's basic approach.

In addition there is a brief essay entitled, "How I Have Come to Write My Books." In this essay Schaeffer tells of his early agnosticism, his conversion, Christian service,,early writings and the formation of L'Abri. His first book was The God Who Is There, published in 1968.

Francis Schaeffer is influencing many people through his writings (19 books) and this guide is intended to help readers grasp his salient ideas. The approach is to present twelve study guides, each containing four sections entitled purposes, interpretation, implications and summary. Each study highlights key terms and ideas. The study guide is designed for use by individuals or groups.

Reviewed by Richard Ruble, Department of Psychology, John Brown University, Siloam Springs, Arkansas.

ALL WERE MEANT TO BE: A Biblical Approach to Woman's Liberation by Leta Scanzoni and Nancy Hardesty, Word, 1974, $6.95.

Here is a book to challenge the analytic powers of the scientific community. Carefully researched, with attention to the minute details of Biblical and secular scholarship on the role of women in western society, authors Scanzoni and Hardesty challenge the tendencies and assumptions of the 20th century Church. Their book brings together under one cover for the first time the wide range of opinions, conceptions, misconceptions, and dogmas which together delineate the consensus of the Church in our day toward the female sex. Carefully refuting what they believe to be unacceptable and ill-grounded, these authors attempt to weave together a credible and Biblically grounded rationale for the liberation of women. They handle unflinchingly every pertinent Scripture text on the subject, even the most difficult and controversial ones, meeting every difficulty bead-on.

The book uses two primary methods. It analyzes the attributes of women who exercised leadership in Biblical times, from Old Testament beginnings to the early Church, seeking parallels and principles within a historical perspective. It uses, too, a method of exegesis which places Jesus' statements and insights about women above those of Paul. Jesus, as the Son of God, would have a wider view of personhood, unhampered as he was by the cultural biases of his day. Christ's attitudes thus serve to temper the harder sayings of Paul, conclude these writers.

As to methodology, this second approach may prove difficult for those who wish to assert the reliability of Paul's statements within an inspired Scripture. The historical background which the authors give for their view is, nonetheless, compelling, In the first century, poorly educated as they were, women might only have brought confusion into a church meeting by their uninformed questions. Paul's directives to them were given in the context of that early restricted situation, just as his comments to Onesimus and Philemon on slavery must be understood. Paul's first concern was for the survival of the Church of God in a hostile world and

w*thin a secular and divisive, even backward, culture; God's Church must rise above all that. Readers need not conclude, however, that Scanzoni and Hardesty wish us to repudiate Paul's teachings; rather they seek informed interpretation, with full awareness of the Scriptural contexts.

Are there, nevertheless, certain principles that transcend the first century cultural setting? Certainly the authors affirm all the principles of full-personhood regardless of sex which the Bible affirms from cover to cover. But those principles of sex-differentiation which the Bible also suggests they dismiss as secondary, best resolved differently in our own day by a condition of complete role-interchangeability, male and female performing equally well any task within the family structure, or the social structure. The authors argue well, and perhaps they are right, that males can learn to be more expressive, females more purposive in living out their God-given potential. Perhaps each sex has for too long let a large part of its potential lie dormant and unrealized. Despite its troublesome exegetical premises, this book, like few others of its kind, leads a Christian readership convincingly to that conclusion.

What we lack now, as we stand in the middle of the controversy, is perspective. Perhaps a brave humility, coupled with an understanding that God sees beyond our cultural limitations, will keep us in the meantime both firm in our affirmation of the soundness of written Revelation, and firm in our commitment to the kind of free, intelligent inquiry which this book represents.

Reviewed by Nancy Barcus, Department of English, Houghton College, Houghton, New York 14744.

THE BIBLE AND DRUG ABUSE, by Robert A. Morey, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1973, 110 pp., $1.45.

The Bible and Drug Abuse presents a perspective on drug abuse problems in light of the teachings of Scripture. The foreword and introduction indicate that the author, R. A. Morey, is qualified to explore Scriptural dimensions of the drug abuse scene in the 1970's.

The concepts to be examined are initially placed in perspective to Creation, Fall, and Redemption. After briefly discussing these Biblical concepts, a basic thesis is stated. All of the following presentations regarding drug abuse rest on this thesis that

the use of any drug for the purposes of entertainment, escape, mind-control, religious worship, occult experi-
ences, magic, or murder is a sin against God, the Creation, the Society, and the individual. (p. 29).

The basis for this thesis is presented in chapter 6 where the English term for sorcery as used in Galatians 5, Revelation 9, Revelation 18 and Revelation 21 is identified as being derived from the Greek word pharmakos. From the word pharmakos we derive the words "pharmacy," "pharmaceutical," and "pharmacists." Developing this concept the author concludes that "wherever the Bible mentions sorcery, it also refers to drug abuse, which was an integral part of ancient sorcery." From the scriptural references noted it can clearly be determined that sorcery was seen as evil and sinful. This is probably the best written chapter of the book.

Separate chapters then discuss drugs and relationships to God, to the earth, to society, and the individual. Those chapters looking at the earth and society seem to be particularly weak. Each is three or less pages in length and include extensive quotations.

One of the latter chapters presents suggestions for parents, pastors, and teachers. Some suggestions seem rather sound; yet others appear to be rather superficial. For example, several preventative aids are suggested against drug abuse. It is recommended that the Christian school and teacher can serve such a role. This may be true, but it doesn't relate to thousands of Christians who attend and teach in non-Christian educational institutions.

The book contains three appendices. Each presents data on marijuana, alcohol, and drug classifications. It is of interest to note that the conclusion is reached that the use of marijuana "is condemned by the Word of God" (p. 93) and that ". . . Scriptures condone the moderate use of alcohol," (p. 96). No doubt some would question and take exception with aspects of these conclusions.

There is a bibliography at the conclusion of the book and the book is adequately footnoted. Studies referred to in the appendix on marijuana are mentioned but not footnoted. Particularly since some of the findings of these studies are controversial, it seems that footnoting would be appropriate.

This book might be meaningful for reading by the general Christian public. It is doubtful whether the book would be useful as a Christian response to the drug scene for reading by the non-Christian, particularly college and university students.

Reviewed by Dean F. Miller, Associate Professor of Health Education, College at Education, The University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio.

HEALING: A Doctor in Search of a Miracle, by Bill Nelson, Random House, 1974. $8.95.

Writing in an informal, easily read style, Dr. Nolen presents Kathryn Kuhlman as a charismatic figure who creates an emotional atmosphere at her large services through exuberant gestures, radiant smiles, and glowing testimonies concerning the power of the Holy Spirit to heal the physically afflicted. Possessing a vague belief in God as creator, as well as chronic hypertension, the author found himself caught up in the groundswell of hope that rose in the heart of each person among the thousands of afflicted in the audience. Soon Ms. Kuhlman began encouraging those who believed themselves to be healed to come forward to the stage. One by one she introduced these people, asking them to demonstrate their "cure" by appropriate physical movements and praising the Lord for each one. In describing this meeting and evaluating the significance of the healings, Dr. Nolen sought to be as objective and open-minded as possible. His conclusions regarding Kathryn Kuhlman are generally applicable to the other healers and are also the most directly pertinent to understanding the proliferating claims of Christian healings, so I shall dwell on these observations.

Dr. Nolen had no doubt that Kathryn Kuhlman helped many people. However, he could not document one cure of a person with a serious organic disease such as cancer, tuberculosis, or severe head injury. People with such diseases might claim some temporary relief from symptoms, but the underlying disease process was not affected. Thus one woman rushed forward to exclaim that the pain from her stomach cancer was gone, but the next day she woke up writhing in pain from a collapsed cancerous vertebra. The patients which Dr. Nolen found to benefit from Ms. Kuhlman's ministrations were those with diseases known to be psychosomatic or hysterical in origin (e.g., temporary loss of speech, hearing, or sight) or else the large category of diseases whose symptometology is known to be affected by attitudes and emotions. Functional disorders of the gastro-intestinal system including some types of constipation, diarrhea, indigestion, and ulcers are examples of the latter category. Other such ailments which might benefit from the healer's reassurance and positive suggestions include acne, asthma, impotence, migraine headaches, menstrual disorders and high blood pressure. The fervent belief in the historicity of the New Testament miracles that Kathryn Kuhlman and many of her audience share, coupled with the need of these people to observe the healings which many believe will precede the allegedly imminent Second Coming of Christ, predispose many listeners to great receptiveness to her suggestion that they are healed. Additionally, many ailments are self-limited (e.g., the common cold), naturally improving with time, and some diseases such as multiple sclerosis and arthritis are cyclic, with symptoms waxing and waning in response to physical and emotional factors. Although this is well known medically, should these symptoms of such an illness ameliorate soon after visiting a healing service, many Christians would ascribe the credit for their "cure" to the intervention of the Holy Spirit through the healer. Spontaneous regression of serious diseases such as cancer, a very rare but well documented phenomenon (see Spontaneous Regression of Cancer, Everson and Cole, 1966), might be similarly acclaimed if it occurred among a few of the many thousands of cancer victims seen by faith healers each year. Sum this physical ministry with the warm sympathy and comfort exuded by the spiritual healer, which contrasts strikingly with the professional, rather stiff manner of some physicians, and it is easy to understand why faith healers have created such strong, steadily growing followings across the world.

Acknowledging that faith healers deliver some benefits even without documenting healing miracles, Dr. Nolen was left profoundly troubled by these practices for three reasons. Following the healing services he watched the stream of sadly disabled people flow out of the hall-people whose hopes were just rudely dashed as the emotion from the service subsided and they realized that their bodies were still diseased. Heightened anguish and depression were their lot, and their Christian faith might well have been shaken to its roots. Secondly, people with organic diseases, whom Dr. Nolen found were not helped by healers, wasted large sums of their precious money on several kinds of practitioners, such as the Filipino psychic surgeons. Most disturbing of all is the fact that many people delay critically needed medical treatment because they believe, along with their friends and family, in the efficacy of spiritual or folk healers. For instance, one of Dr. Nolen's patients, a young woman with children, tragically delayed surgical removal of her cervical carcinoma for too long because she believed folk healing to be easier and safer. I think that the stakes of unwisely supporting the claims of spiritual healers, Christian or otherwise, may well be the continuation of such needless deaths. Therefore it certainly behooves us to be wary of the sensational claims of healing and mass miracles which circulate through many Christian circles. Dr. Nolen also points out that even the most intelligent and skeptical lay person may well be taken in by the mystery, emotion, and complexity associated with the healing process, providing additional grounds for caution. However, I believe Dr. Nolen's observations in no way preclude the possibility that the Lord may choose to manifest His power through individual healings, as recorded in the New Testament. Thus, the Christian is called to walk the narrow road between skepticism and belief in God's potential healing intervention when confronting claims of healing.

Reviewed by Robert McGrew, student, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California 94305.

Kanellakos, an electrical engineer, and Lukas, a psychologist, both currently at Stanford Research Institute, offer an attempt to present "scientific information so that it may be clearly understood by those readers not specifically qualified in the areas of biology and psychology." The book incorporates a Final Report of a research program carried out at SRI (1973), involving the preparation of a literature survey, a pilot plant study to determine the teachability of TM, and a replication of some of the findings previously claimed in the literature. The effects of TM are still uncertain, and the authors make it p!ain that the reported findings cannot be unambigiously interpreted since "their reliability is not fully established." The book is divided into four main portions: one on physiological correlates of TM, one on psychological correlates, one on possible deleterious effects of TM, and a variety of Appendices.

The physiological studies are directed toward answering the question: Is there a transcendental state that can be empiricallv distinguished from the states of wakefulness, deep sleep and dreaming? If it exists, the transcendental state is unique in that it alone combines a low relative sensitivity to internal stimuli, a high relative sensitivity to external stimuli, and a low level of physiological activity. The authors warn that the experiments reported often "lack conventional scientific rigor." They also imply that there is one "right" way to do TM, and warn on several occasions against attempting to learn TM by oneself.

The physiological correlates and a brief summary of conclusions are as follows: (1) electroencephalography-brain waves are a complicated subject to analyze, but both the "transcendental state" and early sleep stages have similar patterns; (2) electroenceplograms (measure of eye movement) -unlike REM stage of sleep (associated with dreaming), no REM-like motion was observed in the "transcendental state;" (3) electromyograms (measure of relaxation) -some evidence that practitioners of TM showed greater reduction in the neck and shoulder muscle tension than a control group who simply rested for comparable periods; (4) respiration rate-marked decrease in the respiration rate is reported, but this also occurs prior to sleep; (5) heart rate-decrease in heart rate with TM is reported comparable to that observed in control groups during their rest periods, but more experienced TM practitioners obtained more significant reductions; (6) blood pressure-no significant change during TM; (7) skin resistance-an increase upon TM but not distinguishable from the same effect produced by general relaxation; (8) metabolic rate-a decrease is reported during meditation, but some decrease is also believed present during sleep; (9) skin and body temperatures-same magnitude found during sleep; (10) blood pH-the pH of the blood changes more during several hours of sleep than during 32' hour of TM; (11) cardiac output-about the same order of magnitude in TM and sleep. A review of these physiological correlates seems to this reviewer to indicate evidence for physical relaxation accompanying TM, but not necessarily anything more unique.

The testing of psychological correlates is more difficult to control and the responses are more colored by uncontrollable features of the experiment. Practitioners of TM have been found at least under some circumstances to show improved ability to perform perceptual tasks, enhanced "habituation," and lowered perceptual thresholds. Personality profiling tests indicate that practitioners of TM "have greater psychological stability, are more harmonious and balanced and are more alert in activity than the norm." Initial reports indicate success in reducing the use of illicit drugs through TM, but "TM may only help to sustain the drug user's resolve to discontinue drugs."

Possible deleterious effects of TM practice can be a consequence of failure to understand the proper ways to handle the symptoms associated with "release of stress" during meditation; at least this is the way they are interpreted by supporters of TM. Such release of stress is hypothesized as the means by which the practice of TM leads to rejuvenation and "purification." (One cannot help but think of the "engrams" of Scientology as an analogous hypothesis.)

In a section of the Appendix on "Theory of TM and Altered States of Consciousness," it is curious to see the listing of Phenomenon of Man by Teilhard de Chardin, and Maslow's Toward a Psychology of Being. The authors maintain an approach of scientific objectivity throughout; so it is even more striking to read in their description of how TM is taught,

On the first convenient day following the second lecture, the instructor performs and the student is a witness to a brief private ceremony honoring the long tradition of masters who have kept the teachings intact to this day. This ceremony is performed in front of a picture of the latest of these teachers of TM, Guru Dev. After this ceremony, the instructor discloses the student's mantra. The selected mantra is one of several that have a resonant quality and that apparently have been found, after centuries of use, to be effective in directing perception and thinking inwardly. The mantra is a Sanskrit word whose quality is employed only-not its meaning.

What a curious way to introduce a scientific discipline! And what of this mysterious mantra that is so powerful that a control group "mimicking TM" by the same series of meditations but reciting an "English phrase" had only a 37 percent report of positive results compared to a 79 percent report for practicioners of authentic TM? Answers to many questions are still lacking.

HUMAN MEDICINE: Ethical Perspectives on New Medical Issues, by James B. Nelson, Augsburg, Minneapolis, Minnesota (1973). 207 pp. Paperback. $3.95

James B. Nelson is professor of Christian Ethics at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities. In this survey of the problems, options and Christian informed solutions of a variety of pressing medical issues, he may not provide the last word on every subject, but he certainly seems to provide the first word for any future discussions. It is probably one of the best popular books written to cover this range of topics.

The thrust of the book is exemplified by the fact that the first and last chapters deal with "caring;" the first chapter with "Caring for Human Health," and the last with "Medical Care for a More Human Society." He sees caring as more important even than curing. He treats the problems related to abortion, artificial insemination, human experimentation, genetics and control of human development, humanizing the dying process, and the human dimensions of organ transplants.

Throughout this treatment be is concerned with the response of the whole person and comments that "for the Hebrew, body and spirit could not be divorced, and hence the notion of salvation of the soul or the spirit apart from the body was foreign." There are many dimensions to health and all must be kept in mind in attempting to serve through human medicine: the mechanical-physical, the chemical, the biological, the psychological, the social and historical, and the spiritual.

Nelson favors a "developmental" view of the human being in which all human life is viewed as valuable and as worthy of respect, but in which it is also imperative to discriminate between purely biological life and personal life. To mindlessly subject personal life to biological life at any stage, Lt particularly at the beginning and ending of life, can lead only to "biological idolatry."

Reviewed by Richard H. Bube, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305.

GUIDE TO SEX, SINGLENESS AND MARRIAGE by C. Stephen Board, editor. Downers Grove, Illinois: Intervarsity Press, 1974. 130 pages. Paperback. $1.95.

This book is a collection of twelve articles that originally appeared in HIS magazine for the university student. Half of the articles are on sex, four on marriage and two on singleness. When these articles appeared in HIS, they drew a large volume of mail. Students are obviously interested in these topics.

The articles, by well-known Christian writers, are uncomplicated and easy reading. The first article, entitled "One Woman's Revolution" by V. Mary Stewart, is already being given a wider circulation via publication in booklet form under the title "Sexual Freedom."

The editor of HIS magazine and this book, C. Stephen Board, writes a philosophical defense of chastity and an attack on hedonism. Hope Warwick recounts the experience of a coed who had a premarital pregnancy with subsequent abortion. Thomas Howard writes with grace about the meaning of the sex act. Kirk Farnsworth contests the idea of sex as a drive like hunger or thirst. Alice Fryling discusses some differences between men and women in the sexual relationship and the possibility of being single and happy. Barbara Sroka writes about interpersonal relationships. J. Richard Arndt gives a checklist of major areas in which marital tensions develop. C. Stephen Board has an interview with Walter Trobisch. Lars Granberg writes about the family and the church, the world's oldest commune.

These articles are thoughtful, candid and concise. They speak to timeless topics and will provide help in deciding one's place in the baffling world of sexuality.

Reviewed by Richard Ruble, Department of Psychology, John Brown University, Siloam Springs, Arkansas 72761.

DEVIANCE: ACTION, REACTION, INTERACTION by Frank R. Scarpitti and Paul T. McFarlane. Addison-Wesley: Reading, Mass. 1975. 448 pp., paper.

Here is a quiz question. What do the followmig people have in common? A dwarf, a chiropractor, a boy of five with an I.Q. of 180, a negro in a freedom march ' a battered child, a swinging couple, a bum on skid-road, a lesbian, a serpent-handling minister, a Viet Nam draft protector, an ouija board enthusiast, a person with leprosy, an obese person who weighs 300 pounds, the relative of a patient in a mental hospital, the parent of a retarded child, a physician sued for malpractice?

The answer is: they are all social deviants. By this the authors mean: "those acts, attributes, and beliefs, which when performed or made known by an actor, elicit an evaluative social sanction or sanctions from an observer." Put simply, when we are different from "the average Bear," people will respond with either praise or censure, but they will likely not fail to notice our difference from the usual and expected,

We tend to think of social deviants solely in terms of those who deliberately violate the most extreme norms of society. But we fail to see that the bright kid in the classroom, the crippled neighbor, and the zealous evangelist are all social deviants. Some types of social deviance are inborn-such as the dwarf. Some deviance is the result of accident-such as the paralyzed athlete. Some deviance is chosen-such as a war protestor or freedom marcher. Some deviance is a complex product of multiple forces-the alcoholic, the priest who ordains women, the reporters who kept digging into Watergate.

All of us are to some extent deviant from social norms at one time or another, even if we tend not to see our deviancy. At other times our deviancy is painful and we hasten to return to the comfort of social acceptance. At other times we seek a deviant status and accept the consequences.

The authors point out that there is both positive deviance-such as a political or military hero who dares to speak out and lead in social reform, and negative deviance-those whose acts are destructive to society. And here's the rub. For different segments of society may give deviant behavior a positive or negative judgment.

The religious scene is a critical arena for the analysis of deviance. Religious groups have been at the center of social norming, that is, defining the socio-cultural patterns of life by which we gauge deviancy. At times the church, in its large sense, has maintained the social norms by proclaiming deviancy as immoral or heresy. Yet at other times the church has dared to lead in the most profound revolution of social norms.

This book does not tackle those larger issues of social deviancy. But it does provide an excellent introduction to the important functions of social labels and the profound implication of those labels. Although a few chapters are rather heavily larded with sociological jargon, in the main the articles are written in a popular style that make the point. Perhaps we are more aware of the psychology of our behavior than the sociology. Thus this book would make an excellent discussion guide for both scientists and lawman who seek to understand the judgment of deviancy in our society. The response and initiative of the church to social deviancy is in hot debate these days. This would make an excellent resource for church dialogue.

Reviewed by E. Mansell Pattison, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of California, Irvine.

IMAGES OF MAN: A Critique of the Contemporary Cinema by Donald J. Drew, Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1974, 121 pp., $2,95.

Donald Drew lectures in English in Great Britain; in this study he has written a sort of "guide to the movies for Christian kids." As the publisher would lead one to suspect, Drew's ideas and vocabulary are strongly influenced by the work of Francis Schaeffer and his followers (Os Guinness, H. R. Rookmaaker, and others). Schaeffer is, I think, the source of both strengths and limitations in Drew's survey.

First of all, Drew's primary concern is not with cinema as such, but with cinema as a document of modern cultural premises. Four central chapters concern the modes in which "man's search for meaning" appears in recent films: sex, violence, "tripping," and religion (anti-, and non-). Here Drew's observations are up-to-date but superficial, He habitually reduces a film to its "moral," ignoring the fact that a film is a film and not an essay or legal deposition. He not only scants cinematic technique, but neglects to provide summaries of plot or content for those whose film-going is infrequent.

This concern with film as document rather than as art defines Drew's major foci and limits, His introduction to the aesthetics of film-making is alternately hip and confused, Later in the book, when discussing the politics of film-its latent uses as behavioral conditioning-and matters like censorship and criticism, Drew is much more often on target. But then these are matters not of art but of cultural consensus.

All in all, the book makes (though sometimes embarrassedly) one solid positive recommendation; Christians should by all means avail themselves of the resources for pleasure and learning in modern cinema. Drew urges us to go, to study, to discuss, and to involve ourselves in the cultural issues the cinema raises and expresses. His rationale for Christian involvement is perhaps the most adequate part of the book. But even this is, of course, not really about film.

Reviewed by Lionel Basney, Department of English, Houghton College, Houghton, New York