Take this Word to Heart

In Take this Word to Heart, Perry Yoder and his former students make important contributions to our understanding of the two great commandments in the Gospels--Jesus' command to love God and to love our neighbor. Yoder's own introductory chapter and the excellent studies of Deuteronomy and the Synoptics that follow shed fresh light on the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-5) and the New Testament's use of it. Preachers, scholars, and other students of scripture will be grateful to the Institute of Mennonite Studies for publishing this unique resource, which should be widely read.Ben C. Ollenburger, Professor of Biblical TheologyAssociated Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Elkhart, IndianaThe master teacher entangles the students in a web of compulsion and enticement. New material must be mastered, assignments completed, tests taken, and papers written. But there is also the promise of buried treasure. ""Here is a word that has spoken to me,"" says the teacher. ""It is my hope that it will also speak to you. And if you take this word to heart, it will speak to me anew through your discoveries."" These essays by Perry Yoder and four students in his biblical studies seminar give voice to a deeply shared journey of discovery. There is a popular misconception of the rarified atmosphere of the graduate seminar as the sterile launching ground of esoteric papers, as countless as they are pointless. The vigor and passion of these essays should help correct this false image.Paul Keim, Professor of Bible and ReligionGoshen College, Goshen, Indiana