Customer Reviews

Jonathan Edwards on Beauty (The Essential Edwards Collection)

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I have never really read anything of Edwards expect "Sinners in the hands" but after recently being intrigued by him ( through friends, and John Pipers Bio sermon) I thought I would give this little paperback a try. I'm glad I did! It is compiled very well and will definately leave you wanting to read more of Edwards. Why? Very simple: Edwards exalts Christ! To see the beauty of Christ in the section that talks about Edwards sermon " the excellency of Christ" is worth far more than what you could ever pay for this book.

Now I am challenged to read more from this great theologian. I'm going to try to find "the Excellency of Christ" sermon right now.

How do you describe the color red to a man who has never seen? Beauty can be like that. We have trouble articulating the precise boundaries of beauty and non-beauty - but we know when we see it. Humans don't have to be trained to find sunsets captivating. We don't need a social construct to tell us a starry night sky is breathtaking. We know.

So where does beauty come from and how are we to understand it? Owen Strachan and Doug Sweeney have produced a helpful little book on the subject. Jonathan Edwards on Beauty is a helpful introduction to the thought of America's most significant mind. Christian and secular sources alike consider Edwards to be one of the most brilliant minds America has every produced. Christians understand that it is no accident that he also happened to be a pastor.

A brilliant theologian, Edwards could write tomes about complex and complicated theological themes. He was also captivated by his God. He knew that "the study of true beauty...was the study of God" (21). Strachan and Sweeney provide a quick and accessible tour through Edwards' thought concerning Beauty. They begin where Edwards begins: the beauty of God. Our visually over-stimulated world could use the antidote provided here. Edwards saw the world as a stage for the glory of God to be on display through what he has made. As he so often does, Edwards shakes us loose from the enchantments of our contemporary world.

Beauty begins and ends with the Trinitarian God who creates universes and redeems rebellious sinners. Whatever does not accord with this is but an ugly caricature. George Orwell captures this well in 1984. The main character finds himself captivated by the beauty of a young woman from afar. As he draws near he discovers she is neither young nor beautiful. Every line on her aged face was like another scar left by the pain inflicted by a broken world. He takes her for himself regardless - and adds a figurative scar of his own.

Beauty is not something that can be achieved through covering, removing, adding or seducing. Beauty comes from the hand of God; the very same hand which wipes away the make-up from a prostitutes' face to expose each scar and claim them as his very own. This God takes our ugliness upon himself and makes us like him. He makes us beautiful.

Note: To comply with Federal Trade Regulations I would like to state that I received a complimentary copy of the aforementioned text for review as compensation.

This book contains some excellent quotes from some of Edwards' sermons about the beauty of God. I really enjoyed reading those quotes. However, I wish there had been more of Edwards and less commentary. All in all, I thought it was a good introduction to one of America's greatest theologians.

This quick read is a part of the Essential Edwards Collection and the first one that I have read. It is a good introduction to the works of Jonathan Edwards, but the only really great sections are excerpts from his works. This book serves a narrow purpose - to introduce some interested parties to Edwards, who will then move on to larger works or not read him altogether. I would recommend that someone start with the books that he wrote or copies of his sermons, all available for free on Yale's new Jonathan Edwards site (edwards.yale.edu). But if someone was on the fence about reading Edwards or wanted short, topical overviews, then this book would serve that purpose.

The book is organized into five main sections. The Beauty of God, Creation, Christ, Church, and the Trinitarian Afterlife. The Beauty of God is a great section and really sets the stage for Edwards thoughts on Beauty. For Edwards, God is the starting point of theology and His attributes form a multi-faceted diamond that is incomparable. As good as the first section is, the last chapter on the Trinitarian Afterlife really ties the book together. Edwards thoughts on the Trinity, love, and the believer's entrance into the shared life are eye-opening. These passages from his works will give you a glimpse into his thoughts and theology, and should inspire anyone to read more of his works.

I have created a full page, full color mind map of this book, available on my blog under book reviews to help outline each section and show how they tie together.

Again, this is a good introduction to America's most gifted theologian. Recommended.

Book Review
By
Jason Scott


The Essential Edwards Collection: Jonathan Edwards on Beauty
By Owen Strachan and Doug Sweeny


This volume is one in a set of five. This volume shows how Jonathan Edwards valued God's creation and how everything he saw reflected the magnificent beauty of the Master Creator. Five chapters are contained in this book: 1) The Beauty of God, 2) The Beauty of Creation, 3) The Beauty of Christ, 4) The Beauty of the Church, and 5) The Beauty of the Trinitarian Afterlife.

God's beauty can be seen in His attributes. God is powerful, loving, kind, holy, all knowing, righteous and the list could go on. How should man respond to God's beauty? "the fundamental duty of every person before the holy God is to humble themselves." Pg. 41

Jonathan Edwards enjoyed greatly taking walks in nature and reflecting on God's beauty. " So far from the stereotype of Edwards as a dry and dusty thinker, Edwards's love for nature reveals the deeply aesthetic side of the man." Pg 48
"When he was twenty, he published a brief treatise
on the habits of spiders that won him international
acclaim. Called the `Spider Letter", the document
demonstrates Jonathan's powers of observation and
reveals his early tendency to trace the hand of God
in the world of nature." Pg. 49

Christians today would do very well to study Edwards and how he viewed nature and the environment. Edwards saw nature as a reflection of God. Sadly, too many Christians in our modern day have taken a carefree attitude when it comes to nature and the environment. This is probably because it is a reaction to the other extreme, the worship of nature and the environment without the worship of the Creator. Edwards did not value nature strictly for nature; instead he valued it because in it he could see the awesome beauty of its Creator.

The last chapter is a wonderful look at the harmony of the Trinity and how each person of the Godhead perfectly loves one another and that love never ever fades. One day believers in Christ will be able to enjoy a love that never fades when for eternity we will feel the love of God and will eternally love God.