Passion brought to miniseries music

Topeka Capital-Journal, The, May 6, 2000 by Phil Anderson Capital-Journal

By PHIL ANDERSON

The Capital-Journal

There are two particularly appealing things about "Music From and Inspired By Jesus, the Epic Mini-Series" (various artists, Sparrow- Capitol, 12 songs, 49 minutes). One is the spiritual passion the musicians bring to the project. The other is the diversity of the performers themselves, including: country sensation Leann Rimes (whose tune "I Need You" is the first radio single from the album); pop's 98(degrees); gospel's Yolanda Adams; country supergroup Lonestar; Christian rock's dc Talk; and classical soprano Sarah Brightman.

The album, a companion to the four-hour miniseries which airs May 14 and 17 on CBS-TV, is highlighted by Edwin McCain's raspy vocals on "Jesus, He Loves Me," a grown-up version of the Sunday school song "Jesus Loves Me" and quite possibly the best tune on the set.

Other keepers include: Steven Curtis Chapman's "Nobody Ever (Only You)," based on Debra Messing's portrayal of Mary Magdalene on the miniseries; dc Talk's cover of Norman Greenbaum's 1969 classic "Spirit in the Sky" (with the lyrical adjustment of "You know that I'm a sinner, we've all sinned," as opposed to the original lyrics which declared "I've never sinned" --- cleared by Greenbaum himself); and Jaci Velasquez's "When You Walked Into My Life."

Rounding out the project are: composer Patrick Williams' "Theme from the Original Soundtrack"; Avalon's "Fly to You"; and Hootie and the Blowfish with "City By a River."

- CAROL ZALESKI AND PHILIP ZALESKI, editors, "The Book of Heaven: An Anthology of Writings from Ancient to Modern Times" (Oxford University Press, hardcover, 432 pages, $30).

Just as the early mystics conceived heaven as seven distinct realms, the Zaleskis have organized "The Book of Heaven" into seven sections, each one illustrating a special aspect of the heavenly experience. The book takes a look at what people have said about heaven, including glimpses gleaned from Christian, Jewish, Islamic, Hindu and Native American religious traditions. Source material includes poems, folktales, essays, scriptures and spells --- more than 80 texts in all.

DR. STEPHEN MOTYER, "Who's Who in the Bible." (DK Publishing, hardcover, 64 pages, $14.95).

From Aaron to Zophar, this book has it all in terms of biblical characters. Biographical entries are included for more than 400 Bible characters, with feature boxes telling the stories of major personalities such as David and Goliath and the Apostle Paul. Bible chapter references are included for each character, making it easy to find out more about the fascinating personalities by looking up information in the scriptures. The book also includes full-color, specially commissioned artwork to help put faces with names. While the book will appeal to younger audiences, it is a valuable resource for the whole family.

PENELOPE J. STOKES, "Thanks Dad! Lessons from the Lake on Living and Loving" (JCountryman, hardcover, 114 pages, $12.99).

A perfect Father's Day gift book, "Thanks Dad! Lessons from the Lake on Living and Loving" brings to mind the life lessons and principles taught by fathers to their sons and daughters in the small, quiet moments, when the children didn't even know they were being taught. Chapter topics in this nicely illustrated book, with a fishing-and-outdoors theme, include: responsibility, skill, risk, self-awareness, courage, priorities, independence, regret, success, patience and inner peace.

VARIOUS ARTISTS, "PASSION: The Road to OneDay" (Sparrow, 13 songs, 64 minutes). The idea behind the Passion ministry is to bring college students together for the purpose of starting a spiritual awakening in their generation.

Thousands of students have flocked to Austin and Fort Worth, Texas, to be part of Passion '97, Passion '98 and Passion '99 conferences, with attendance increasing from 2,000 to 12,000 in those three years. Two albums featuring modern praise-and-worship music aimed at the college-student crowd resulted and proved extremely popular in the Christian marketplace.

From May 18 to 21, OneDay, an international Passion gathering of an estimated 100,000 college-age students from various churches, backgrounds and ministries, will take place at Shelby Farms, a 4,500- acre park on the east side of Memphis.

In anticipation of the prayer and worship event, "The Road to OneDay," the first studio recording from Passion, has been released. It debuted at --- and has held steady at--- No. 1 on the Christian music album charts for about six weeks running.

This strong set features modern praise and worship songs from the nation's top collegiate leaders. Highlights: "Shout to the North," Charlie Hall; "The Noise We Make," Chris Tomlin; "We Are Hungry," Steve Fee; "Holy Roar," Christy Nockels; and "Did You Feel the Mountains Tremble?," Matt Redman.

"JONAH AND THE BIG FISH: Bible Sticker Activity Books." (Dorling Kindersley Books, softcover, 12 pages, $5.95). Besides being instrumental in providing children with a spiritual foundation for their lives, Bible stories also are pretty cool. Dorling Kindersley recognized that, and offered sticker activity books, one of them about the story of Jonah, who was swallowed alive by a big fish. Besides telling the story in language children can understand, the book also includes activities such as dot-to-dots and mazes in addition to the ever-popular stickers.