Barnes, the former pastor of the National Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C., weaves together personal stories, illustrations from Dante's The Divine Comedy
and examples from the Bible to contend that our true home is in heaven. Home, he says, is where we were created to live eternally with our triune family of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Sin alienates us from our home and makes us spiritual nomads. We are always searching for the path home again, in much the same way that Dante awoke in the middle of a dark wood searching for his true path home. Christ's sacrifice, argues Barnes, becomes our path home, the church is the threshold to our home and communion with the saints of the church here on earth provides us a picture of that home waiting at the end of our journey. Barnes nicely blends Dante's insights with biblical teachings, and his use of Dante is the most original thing about the book. Barnes's spirituality for the restless will appeal mostly to evangelicals who share his belief that heaven is a real place and a Christian's true home. (Oct.)
