(Part 1)

JBTM Book Reviews
188
leading from one topic to the next. Those who have read Hauerwas’s previous works, however,
should know that the majority of his books are similarly arranged, and thus should not be
surprised that he does the same here. Hauerwas’s choice of hermeneutician(s) also may be
viewed as a weakness due to their reputation for denouncing authorial-intent hermeneutics.
Though reader-response hermeneuticians such as Stanley Fish tend to gravitate towards
subject-focused theories of reading, one should maintain an open but cautious ear to what
they have to say.
Overall, Stanley Hauerwas’s The Work of Theology is a phenomenal work. Other essays
that stand out in this work are “How to Remember the Poor,” “How to Think Theologically
about Rights,” and “How (Not) to Retire Theologically.” As noted above, Hauerwas is a great
writer in that his work is not only clear, but also enjoyable. There are many places where The
Work of Theology will bring the reader to laughter and then to prayer. This work will serve well
university and/or seminary professors, ministers of all vocations, and interested laypersons.
- Andrew Hollingsworth, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, New Orleans, Louisiana
A Double Review of People to Be Loved and Living in a Gray World
People To Be Loved: Why Homosexuality Is Not Just An Issue. By Preston Sprinkle. Grand
Rapids: Zondervan, 2015. 223 pages. Paperback, $16.99.
Living In A Gray World: A Christian Teen’s Guide to Understanding Homosexuality. By
Preston Sprinkle. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2015. 155 pages. Paperback, $12.99.
Now that the United States has legalized same-sex marriage via judicial fiat, many
young evangelicals are wrestling with how to interact with the issue of homosexuality. One
such author is Preston Sprinkle (PhD, Aberdeen University), who has served at Cedarville
University in Ohio, Nottingham University in England, and Eternity Bible College in
California and Idaho. In People To Be Loved and Living in a Gray World, Sprinkle explores the
biblical teaching on homosexuality, eventually landing at a moral position consistent with
the traditional Christian stance. However, some of his moral argumentation and handling of
particular texts leaves his work unsatisfying. People to Be Loved (hereafter, PTBL) is directed
towards an adult audience; Living in a Gray World (LGW) is basically the same material geared
towards a teen audience. As such, both books will be reviewed together.
Sprinkle’s methodology and approach is deeply influenced by his personal interaction
with homosexual people. Sprinkle notes that as he researched homosexuality, he “made it a
point to spend half my time in books and the other half in the lives of gay people. . . . I have
made many unexpected friends whose stories have seeped down into my bones” (PTBL,