Member of our Facebook group, Roni Grad, recommended A Small Catechism on Human Life, by John Pless, LCMS Ministries, St. Louis, 2006, also available from Concordia Publishing House.
Examine topics such as abortion, bioethics, end-of-life, and sexuality — all through the biblical eyeglasses of Luther’s Small Catechism. Each chapter concludes with thoughtful discussion questions and key Bible references. Also available in a smaller version edited for younger readers, perfect for confirmation or youth Bible studies!
This work is an Amazon Best Book of 2015.
Not hard to believe when it gets reader reviews like this one on Amazon:
This is just an outstanding work on just what is life and death, from the perspective of God’s Word and Luther’s Small Catechism.
Pless demonstrates again in this work his talents as an accomplished wordsmith, crafting powerful sentences and chapters that are short in quantity but huge in quality.
Feast your souls on some of these tidbits: “To be a creature is to owe your life to the One who is your Creator.” “He (Christ) has freed us to be both burden bearers and burdens. … we are to humble ourselves to the point of receiving the loving service of others. We are not ashamed to be a burden.” “The vocabulary of autonomy is shaped by the grammar of choice and rights.” “People might be beyond cure, but they are never beyond care.” “The Christian life is lived on the battlefield. Sin, death and the devil are the enemies.” “Life is not self-centered but Christ-centered (faith) and neighbor-centered (love).” “Where there is forgiveness of sins, there is life and salvation.”
All enhanced by wonderful woodcuts, and each chapter has nice Q&A very adaptable for personal or group study and discussion.
Besides, it’s Pless. What did you expect? Send him a very fine cigar to thank him for this little treasure. If you send it to the seminary, I am sure it will get to him.