Memoirs of an Unfinished Tale

""What if Luke had to reteach the basic lessons of his history of the early church? How would he communicate his point while livening up the details for someone who either was not present for the actual event or had not paid sufficient attention the first time he wrote Acts of the Apostles? This is Luke's resume for a younger and still eager Theophilus. He reenacts stories and replays events almost as a performance before the audience's eyes. He knows that history is not a dry memorization of facts nor a chain of events, but a compendium of vital lessons that guide growth and change. History unfolds as episodes, cohering around an intelligible theme with drama and suspense. Not unlike a play, it requires imaginative performance to both entertain and provoke an audience to react. This is a fresh way of presenting the Bible, a method based on a rapidly growing movement in college and university classrooms called ""reacting."" It is in line with more traditional ways of understanding Scripture as performed in the context of liturgy. At the same time this book challenges individuals with creative poems and illustrations and a built-in system of application questions for daily readings."" For back cover: ""Mark Whitters'sMemoirs of an Unfinished Taleis a remarkable achievement, a creative update of the book of Acts. It invites readers into the first century while drawing Acts into the twenty-first. Beautifully written, the book offers the fruit of contemplation rooted in solid scholarship. Thoughtful questions at the end of each chapter make it even more valuable for personal Bible study--but it would be the most fun read, or acted out, in community. This book is unique, wonderful, and highly recommended!"" --Leslie Baynes, Missouri State University ""Drawing from certain aspects and features of the historical novel, the narrative sermon, and the exegetical commentary, Whitters creatively performs a new genre of biblical interpretation by retelling the story of the Acts of the Apostles. His performance sets the story in the historical and cultural setting of first-century Jews and Gentiles and their world. The boundary between thefirst and the twenty-first centuries, however, dissolves as Whitters entices the modern reader to leave the spectator's seat and to enterthe story as a participant . . ."" --Troy W. Martin,Saint Xavier University ""Whitters provides his readers with an imaginative re-envisioning of the composition of the book of Acts as a highly selective, performative, and episodic sequence of vital lessons drawn from the Lukan understanding of the history of the early church."" --Gary Knoppers,University of Notre Dame For front matter: ""The creative retelling of a biblical book is one of the earliest forms of biblical interpretation. In his delightful retelling of the Acts of the Apostles, Mark Whitters brings this ancient art form back to life again. Whitters is a master storyteller. His book is more than biblical interpretation; it is an effective teaching tool. And, to use one of his favorite expressions, it is a performance."" --Matthias Henze,Rice University ""A spotlight illuminates two figures on a darkened stage.The taller actor--is it Russell Crowe?--is . . . Luke.With him is a younger man.Luke is explaining the skepticism that greeted the apostles after the death and resurrection of Jesus.But just as you settle into your chair to watch the actors do their magic, Luke steps forward and addressesyou:'Ask yourself: ""Have I allowed my own sense of inadequacy to keep me quiet about what I believe to be the truth?""' Now you are