THE {SPIRITUAL}@DVENTURES OF CYBERCINDY
By Gill Rowell
Paternoster. 216 pages
ISBN 1 84227 170 9
This is a most unusual book, impossible to classify - you may well think it is the most original you have read for a long time, conversely you may barely make it to the end of the first chapter. Its cover discloses nothing of its subject matter. An initial glance made this reader think of a Christian version of Adrian Mole's Diary - nothing could be further from the truth. So what is this book about and will you like it?
The story is set in the future when people, in this case CyberCindy, can interact with virtual characters from the past. Cindy chooses to interact with two biblical individuals, firstly Ruth and then the woman of Samaria. The subjects they discuss are their roles in the light of postmodernism and feminism and ultimately the need of an individual for a personal relationship with Jesus. It provides detailed, scholarly and thorough commentary on both stories. Somewhat bizarrely the author has Ruth and the Samaritan woman meeting in cyberspace and holding a conversation!
The book is unusual in its structure, for the dialogue is interspersed on every page with either quotations, definitions of difficult words (e.g. androgynous), or inserts explaining background. I found that this made it much more difficult to follow arguments, although the information itself was often interesting. Indeed, at times I often skipped the asides for the sake of continuity.
If I'm honest some parts made my head hurt but then I'm not very interested in postmodern society.
So it's not for simple folk like me but if you are made of sterner stuff and have a theological background you will probably be amazed at the sheer creativity and relish the wealth of information contained therein.
There is a very comprehensive bibliography, detailed notes and an appendix. All good scholarly material - but will someone please tell me why the chapter headings are random colours of the spectrum?
So, if you know someone with theological reading stamina, buy it for them for Christmas - it will certainly be an excellent talking point.
Jan Tervet,
teacher and member of
Prettygate Baptist Church, Colchester
