About novus•lumen books
“Novus Lumen” is a combination of two Latin words: novus, which means “new” or “fresh” and lumen, meaning “understanding” or “clearness”. As Jeremy Bouma, the founder, tried to communicate to people what he was experiencing at that particular stage in his life, the word “re-understanding” continued to enter into his explanation. Back then he was re-understanding several things: himself, his life course, the world and culture around him, theology, God, and what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ in 21st century America. He was experiencing a “new understanding” or “fresh clearness” about life and God’s reality, thus began the blog novus•lumen began to chronicle that newness.
Those who are fluent in Latin may notice a problem with this name: the term “novus lumen” is not technically correct and should read “Novum Lumen” for a more natural Latin. While the combination is a disconnected, technical embarrassment, that is sort of the point: there needs to be dissonance and a disconnect between what authors want to say and express, with what is written and articulated in word, because that is the theme of many of our spiritual opuses.
In perfect thematic parallel, people are feeling dissonance in their faith and lives, and a disconnect between what is Revealed and what we know or are able to articulate about that Revelation. In our effort to re-understand Christian spirituality and the postmodern condition we often cobble together pieces of what is Real in an effort to express that Reality. In the same way Jeremy cobbled together two bits of Latin to convey meaning, we seek to take bits of Truth to fashion together an understanding of Meaning. While it may be disconnected and not entirely technical, it is still our attempt at understanding God, His Reality, and His Story, nonetheless.
Through novus•lumen books, what is published will be a messy amalgamation of words, thoughts, ideas, and sentences. Yet in that mess, meaning is somehow conveyed. In the spirit of this Latin word-smithing, we do not pledge to write technical or consistent prose. Rather our writings will be from the heart of dissonance, weaving in and out of inharmonious syllables/words/phrases in order to create a harsh-toned effect. Why? Because this is the manner in which Jesus danced.
For Jesus, only when he created discordant tones could the disciples begin to see the Kingdom of Heaven for what it was; Jesus deliberately used imagery that would cause the disciples to gasp and do a double-take in an effort to teach, instruct, and convey meaning about His Reality. In the same way, that which is published through n•l books will hopefully move others through new territory into freshly understanding a range of aspects of Christocentric spirituality, culture, politics, and philosophical thought, all the while exploring the tension that exists between them all.
