It is impossible to replace a classic, in part because classics are what they are because they are timeless and at the forefront of wisdom. Phillp G. Camp’s new book, Finding Your Way: A Guide to Seminary Life and Beyond
, does not even try to replace Helmut Thielicke’s slender collection of unsurpassable wisdom (A Little Exercise for Young Theologians
), but Camp’s book offers 24 bits of wisdom that every theological student, whether undergraduate or graduate (seminary), will find beneficial.
When I was a college junior I read Thielicke and he spoke to me about what was most important to me in my own studies. I’ve since read him a number of times, though I do think he’s a bit out of reach or out of sync with many contemporary students. Phillip Camp’s book is bound to the same path, but what makes Camp’s book needful is that it speaks directly to the Western, American theological student in ways that Thielicke’s book couldn’t and still does not.
I will mention his chapter ideas and wonder what you’d advise for the theological student in addition to his suggestions:
Remember who you are working for, read your Bible, manage your time, grades do and don’t matter, be careful with labels, ask questions, think, associate with folks with whom you disagree, speak up without talking down, respect your teachers but don’t idolize them, own your faith, maintain a devotional life, go to church, find a mentor, participate in a covenant group, love the church, be humble, speak boldly and confidently, don’t voice all your doubts, don’t be a visionary, be appreciative and then he ends with a charge he gave to a graduating class.