Sacred Bullet (Ron Hoffman)

***** 5 of 5 stars

I have been thinking about my theology of suffering these days. Buddha had it right: everybody suffers. Frankly, ALS isn’t that bad yet. I have friends who are suffering much more than myself as I write. I am not asking the well-worn questions of theodicy. Even Jesus did not answer the big WHY. As I read my Bible and pray, I am asking myself, “what did Jesus say about suffering”?”

Ron Hoffman, the author of Sacred Bullet, came to the same conclusion as Jesus. And the apostle Paul. Suffering is a gigantic opportunity to evolve. It makes you more compassionate, wise, aware and unselfish. Suffering is a gigantic opportunity to make the world a better place. It enlarges your moral footprint. If you can do the right thing, despite the pain, your effort will bear great fruit. However, there is a hitch. You have to give up your attachment to the goal of pain-free living and reattach yourself to the goal of righteous living. As Ron words it, you have to make a wholehearted effort to heal yourself spiritually.

Ron and I come from different worlds. I am a Christian; he is Jewish. I had the ideal childhood; his was a nightmare. I grew up in the Northeast; he grew up in the South. I discovered a higher plane of spirituality through evangelical Christianity; Ron found spiritual healing through Buddhism and new age-inspired spirituality and retreats. Isn’t that amazing? Ron discovered the mysterious truth that a bullet can be sacred through a very different religious path than my own. God apparently enjoys revealing truth to anyone who honestly seeks it. How cool is that?

Today, Ron is the director of Compassionate Care ALS. He has journeyed with over 1000 people with ALS, with particular attention to end-of-life. I look forward to including him on my journey.

Bonhoeffer (Eric Metaxas)

**** 4 of 5 Stars

Great man. Good read. Thought-provoking. Uneven writing style.

I relished every bit of this book.  I had read short articles and books about Bonhoeffer but never a full biography.  Metaxas provided just the right level of detail for my taste and kept me hanging on each chapter. I like how he organized the book into many short chapters. I appreciated that he included Bonhoeffer’s human weaknesses as well as strengths in true Biblical / Navajo fashion.  Read it!

My only criticism is that his writing seems to get lazy in the last quarter of the book. Instead of writing a gripping narrative, the book turns into string after string of quotes from other books.  It’s like reading somebody’s research notes for a book.  Such a bummer after the strong beginning.

Bonhoeffer makes me want to worship God ALONE, Numero Uno, and go wherever that takes me.  It’s the pearl of great price but hardly anybody knows it.

A Mission from God (James Meredith)

**** 4 of 5 Stars

James Meredith is one of the most unique people I have ever read about. He is the civil rights activist who was the first black student to enroll at Ole Miss. I swung wildly between admiration and criticism, back and forth, back and forth, throughout the entire book. In the end, I liked him and was glad I listened to his story.

What did I admire?  (1) Clear Vision – he felt called to drive a stake in the “the holiest temple of white supremacy in America”: Ole Miss.  Despite threats and setbacks, he just kept up the legal challenges. Despite daily harassment and social isolation, he just kept going to class.  In his own words, “I was called by God”.  (2) High Self Regard – Meredith had a great Dad who ran his own farm, set his own prices, and kept his family far away from the demeaning habits in the cultural around them.  He refused to let anyone in his family be dependent on the white man. The US Military also gave Meredith a strong sense of self worth. He wouldn’t take crap from anybody after that.  (3) Honesty – Meredith says what he thinks whether you like it or not.  He disagrees with the venerable Martin Luther King.  He wants his own statue removed from Ole Miss because it twists his story (and he was never consulted during the design).  (4) Independent Thinking – the man worked for Jessie Helms!  He made a convincing argument for black Americans to take an honest look at their own self-defeating habits and change them.  He is particularly passionate about valuing education. (5) He’s smart.

What did I criticize? (1) Sexism! OMG.  Men can march and risk their lives, but not women.  Men need to protect women. He mostly describes the physical beauty of his mother and wife, not their other characteristics.  (2) Force! Meredith believed only overwhelming physical force could change our sick culture.  While some could argue history proved him right, I can’t help but think Jesus would disagree.  Meredith didn’t count on God to do much of anything. His philosophy is, “if you want to get it done, do it yourself.”  (3) Cantankerous!  Meredith turns everything into a battle rather than giving folks the benefit of the doubt and seeking cooperation.

At the end of the book, Meredith got humble. He admitted a few mistakes. He admitted he was incredibly lucky his wife stayed with him because no other woman would have him.  He admitted he is cantankerous and “these white people can be decent.”  The humility won me over.

Lost Daughter (Mary Williams)

**** 4 of 5 Stars

This book gave me respect for Jane Fonda.  She adopted teenage Mary Williams, rescuing her from a dysfunctional family and abusive sexual relationship.  Mary, now an adult, tells the story of growing up in the Fonda household as well as reconnecting and reconciling with her biological family.

What I liked best about this book is its realism.  Yes, Jane was unselfish and generous to pour her heart and money into this teenager . . . but there were many times Mary rejected her love or didn’t follow her advice.  Yes, money bought Mary a great education and a big new perspective on life . . . but money couldn’t fix the deeper wounds of her childhood.  Yes, Mary’s Mom neglected her children . . . but she loved them within the limits of her own psyche and resources.  Yes, Mary wanted to forgive her Mom and Dad . . . but it took many tries, many talks, and large doses of forgiveness.

The book left me feeling like it’s always worth it to give love, but life isn’t a storybook. It has ups and downs and requires unconditional love and persistence over the long haul.

Jesus, My Father, the CIA, and Me (Ian Morgan Cron)

**** 4 of 5 Stars

After reading, enjoying, and critiquing Chasing St Francis, a friend told me he knew Ian Cron from his Young Life days. He said the real Ian is not as dumb at the pastor in that book.  Well, he was right. Not only is the real pastor Cron wise, his memoir is better written, and moving in its honesty.

Cron explained in painful detail the wounding caused by a narcissistic, alcoholic father on a sensitive boy.  It hurt just to read it; I can’t imagine living it.  This is a great book to read if you want to understand the soft spots in many of the people we love.

Cron’s writing style irked me sometimes (he makes a giant drama out of EVERYTHING) . . . and utterly delighted me at other times. The delightful times gave me such a grin or a belly laugh, it was well worth putting up with the excessive drama.  Most of all, Cron was honest, humble, insightful, and God-loving.  I am honored to have “met” him!

 

Mission Possible (Marilyn Laszlo)

**** 4 of 5 Stars

If you like to learn about other cultures . . . and you believe translating the New Testament into a new language is a good thing to do (I sure do, but it’s not PC any more), you will like this book.  For me, this classic missionary tale never gets old. A few brave souls putting Jesus’ words into practice, then a few more, and eventually the entire tribal culture is transformed.  I wish Marilyn specified more of the cultural changes.  She did mention the Sepik Iwam people not getting ripped off on trades after they became literate.

One of my favorite little cultural moments in the book is when she told them the Bible says that man was made from dust and God breathed into him.  I don’t take this literally but apparently Marilyn and her translation team did. There was a long silence. Finally, one young man finally spoke up, “I never did think we were really descended from the crocodile.”  I guess everybody has logic problems with their religion : )

The most encouraging aspect of this book for a church planter such as myself is Marilyn’s perserverence in spite of many set backs.  A praiseworthy person and book.

Zealot (Reza Aslan)

*** 3 of 5 Stars

The Historical Reza

Reza Aslan started out a hero . . . is now becoming a goat . . . but I predict he will end up a revolutionary.  Aslan became a hero after Lauren Green’s biased Fox interview, garnering sympathy, publicity, and book sales.  Now that actual PhDs in the Historical Jesus are reading and reviewing  Zealot, Aslan is turning into a goat. I will tell you why I think Aslan is actually a revolutionary at heart.

At first, I too felt sorry for Aslan and bought Zealot.  He writes beautifully and I breezed through the book. As I read, I screamed at it. I even screamed at the footnotes.  He would say things like the Judaizers Paul attacked in Galatians were really James-brother-of-Jesus, Peter, and John.  And that this was “definitively proven” by Gerd Ludemann in 2002. He claimed first century Jews were xenophobes who wanted to “rid the land of all foreigners.”  He loves to use dramatic language, calling Paul “heretical” and “deviant’’ from James’ and most likely Jesus’ perspective.  He sees deep spiritual discontinuity between Jesus, the gospels, and Paul, in just 60 years time.

OK, I’m an open minded person. Show me what ya’ got. When Aslan laid his cards on the table all I saw was inconsistent logic, meager evidence, and picking /choosing dubious sources.  The book is so replete with errors, Elizabeth Castelli, Barnard Religion Professor, advises, “Nothing to see here, people. Move along.”

After I finished the ranting stage, I began to wonder about the historical Reza. Who is this man? Why did he write this book?  Reza quotes Bultmann, who said that the quest for the historical Jesus is ultimately an internal quest.  Scholars see themselves in the image of Jesus they have constructed.  Reza looked in the mirror and saw in Jesus a deep compassion for suffering, powerless people.  Reza says that Jesus blamed Rome and the elite Jews who sided with Rome.  So, Jesus tried to create a revolution.  While Jesus failed at toppling Rome and putting his 12 disciples in charge, he succeeded in becoming Reza’s hero.  Reza calls himself a “committed disciple of Jesus of Nazareth” but not the Christ of Paul’s invention.

So, who is this man, Reza Aslan? Probably someone who has deep compassion for people suffering under oppressive and greedy governments, especially in the Muslim world.  Why did he write this book?  To destroy Paul’s over-spiritualized Christ and replace him with a more useful regime-changing role model. Reza is not a hero. Not a goat. Not a historical Jesus scholar. But a highly intelligent and caring child of Iranian immigrants trying to mitigate suffering by inspiring regime change.

To test my hypothesis, I investigated Reza’s academic interests and activities.  His PhD Dissertation: Global Jihadism as a Transnational Social Movement: A Theoretical Framework. He is the founder of AslanMedia.com, an online journal for news and entertainment about the Middle East and the world, and co-founder /Chief Creative Officer of BoomGen Studios, the premier entertainment brand for creative content from and about the Greater Middle East. BINGO.

I only hope and pray he doesn’t edit out the parts of the gospels where Jesus tells us to purge ourselves of anger.  Because, by my reading of Jesus, the enemy isn’t Rome. We’re our own worst enemies; the Bible word is “sin”.  Both Islam and Jesus teach that the secret to winning the “outer jihad” is winning the “inner jihad.”  I am curious about Aslan’s inner jihad, spirituality, theology, and mission. Zealot was a lot of deconstruction; by the end, there wasn’t much left to believe in. Maybe his next book?

Chasing St Francis (Ian Morgan Cron)

*** 3 of 5 Stars

I greatly enjoyed this book because it’s my life!  Comparing my “emergent” understanding of Jesus with Cron’s theology was thought-provoking. But, in all honesty, it’s not great theology or great literature (thus the 3 stars).

Cron attempts to create an alternative to modern evangelicalism through the fictional story of an evangelical pastor having a crisis of faith, taking a pilgrimage to Italy, studying the life of St Francis, and restarting a new kind of church.  It’s an emergent fantasy.

Cron concludes with five church values. Here they are with my two cents.

TRANSCENDENCE – a personal experience of God fostered through liturgy and ritual.  MY TAKE:  I’m all for a personal experience of God – I call it the “Holy Spirit.” While I have nothing against rituals, Jesus did not tell us we get the HS through liturgy or sacraments; he gives it to those who read what he said, talk to him about it, and do it.

COMMUNITY – church being a counter-cultural microcosm of a heaven. For example, rich  and middle class church members should give up luxury items and share more with the less fortunate.  MY TAKE: I agree the church should be a counter-cultural slice of the Kingdom of God. And, economic justice is part of it. But there’s a lot more to it than avoiding luxury goods. While I admire Shane Claiborne, one could argue Bill Gates has done more for the poor because he thought about how to create wealth before he shared it.

BEAUTY – instead of hiring a pastor for evangelism, hire a bunch of artists. SAY WHAT?! I’m all for art. I love art. I encourage art in our church. But I am concerned about this anti-evangelism trend. I wouldn’t have experienced “transcendence” if it weren’t for evangelists! This trend is a reaction to pushy, self-righteous people. The solution should be to walk your talk, not stop talking. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel!”  Jesus sent his disciples into town after town to preach and heal!  So did St Francis for that matter.

PEACE – treat even your enemies with respect; tone down the “us-them” mentality and seek to understand and work through conflict. Even if your enemy is dead-wrong, by loving them you create the possibility of change.  MY TAKE: Amen and Amen!

DIGNITY – treat people you don’t respect, or our culture demeans, with more respect simply because they are beloved by God.  MY TAKE: Amen!

The main character, Pastor Chase, was not credible. At every turn, he played the role of “dumb and dumber” while most of the other characters were all-knowing teachers.  However, the Elder Board and staff were very credible!

Emergence Christianty (Tickle) and The Future of Faith (Cox)

**** 4 of 5 Stars

Both of these books were a good summary of current trends in the Church. I can sum up what I learned in this quiz I prepared for my congregation to discuss. (Sorry, WordPress has limited formatting options!)

How Emergent Are You?

Indicate how much you like or dislike each trend. Please excuse the false dichotomies! This is simply a tool to discuss trends in the church today.

Orthodoxy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Orthopraxy               

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

           Right action trumps right belief every time.

            If you believe it, live it! Don’t just debate it.

            Measure success by ideal of “Kingdom of God” manifesting on earth.

            “Missional”churches who serve their neighbors in practical ways:

                        Habitat Housing, Food Distribution, Homeless Shelters, Educating Poor

 Traditional Disciplines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ancient Practices

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

Harvey Cox calls this transitioning from the Age of Belief to the Age of the Spirit

A yearning to “go back”

1. Fasting

2. Celebratory community meals; Weekly communion

3. Fixed Hour prayers every 3 hours; Moravian, Orthodox, Episcopal Prayer books

4. Sabbath

5. Liturgical Year – reenact part of faith story; decorate worship space

6. Pilgrimage – Taize, Iona, Assisi, Greenbelt, Wild Goose, Emergent Churches

7. Tithing – Least mentioned; a reaction to self-serving pressure in old churches

Biblical Literalism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mystery                  

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

                      Words and language are inadequate to capture God.

                      Scripture is not inerrant but Bible study is critical for faith formation.

                        Bible is an inherited record of what others heard God say

                                    in different contexts,

                                    in different literary genres; then, affirmed as most beneficial for faith

                                    formation by many faith communities of the past.

                        Art in worship: spoken word, participative mural, altar design, dance,                                 drama

                        Apophic Theology, “what God is not”, ie. Rob Bell and Brian McClaren “may                                   not be absolute”: hell, penal substitution atonement, etc; not definitive

                        Embrace paradox

Low Church . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . High Church           

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

                        Non-verbal encounter with the Divine

                        Stoles, candles, icons, incense, and participative art engage all the senses

                        Liturgy as poetry-in-motion

                        Neo-Orthodox; Neo-Quakerism, Mysticism                 

Traditional Music . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Eclectic Mix        

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

                       Depends on the week!  Jazz, Taize, Gospel, Contemporary, Remixed Hymns

                        OK to be emotional, raise hands, or not

 “Birds of a Feather” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Diverse Demographics

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

                         Racial diversity

                        Socioeconomic diversity

                        Childhood religion diversity

Exclusive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Inclusive                        

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

                       Other religions do not go to hell

                        Anti-denominational

                        Dislike drawing theological lines and excluding people groups

 Judgmental . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grace

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

                        Be authentic, transparent, and honest about sin

                       Be humble; start with log in your own eye, not your neighbor’s

                        Micah 6:8; mercy, social justice, humility

 Pluralism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Neo-Calvinist Push Back

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

Mark Driscoll and Acts 29 Network

            Sin is dangerous; Hell is Real

            Jesus is the only way of salvation

            Bible is inerrant, but need to interpret original context

            Complementary, but equal, roles for women

            Large number of children; family worship

 Staff-led . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lead by Consensus     

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

Loss of faith in “the experts”

Pastor not source of all knowledge or right interpretation

Pastor is a function, not a status

Pastor not critical to worship service; OK to come in/out as needed; skype sermon

Participatory worship; discuss the sermon afterwards

Informal attire and seating (couches, coffee, conversation groups)

Suburban . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Urban                         

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

Urban ministries

Ancient-modern rituals, like Blessing of the Bicycles

Vibrant Downtown Areas

Sometimes an Urban Hub with Suburban satellites

 Ownership of Church Building . . . . . . . . . . . Temporary Rental Space, Cyberspace, or Homes

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

                       Theology-on-Tap, bars/pubs, bowling alleys, schools, TV campuses

                        House Churches, Home-based Missional Communities

                        Belong to Niche Facebook groups, Favorite Blogs, Tumblr, Twitter

                        Net-life “anonymous intimacy”; open soul to another with abandon

                        Church deinstitutionalized; do not “join” or commit long term

 Politically Conservative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Politically Progressive

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

                       Social Justice for Poor, Vulnerable

                        Ecology

                        Adoption

                        LGBT rights, gay marriage

                        Racial equality and integration

                        Equal, not complementary, roles for women                       

Evangelism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Accessibility

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

                        Reaction against colonialism, religious domination

                        Share liberally on internet for anyone who is looking

                        Absolute transparency

Hard Copies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tech Savvy

-2 . . . . . -1 . . . . . 0 . . . . . +1 . . . . . +2

                       Success measured by internet hits, not attendance

                        FB Groups, Tumblr, Bogs, Itunes, Youtube, Google Hangouts, Podcasts

                        Multimedia in worship service

Teach Children Propositional Truths  . . . . . Tell Stories, Teach Spiritual Practices

                       Godly Play Stories with wondering questions; all ages

                        Personal Bible Study, Prayer, and Journaling Habits 

                        Intergenerational worship services

                        Intergenerational service projects

                        Intergenerational pilgrims

Which trends are dangerous for the Church?

Which trends are long-overdue corrections, making the Church more beautiful?

The End of Your Life Book Club (Will Schwalbe)

***** 5 of 5 Stars

If you LOVE books, like I do, you will love this one.  It’s the story of a son’s last couple of years with his Mom who was dying of pancreatic cancer.  They form a “book club” with just the two of them.  I have to go back and make a list of all the good books they read together.

When I get to heaven, I am going to look up Mary Anne Schwalbe!  We could be best friends.  Not only does she love books, she love refugees and libraries. She managed to have an exciting career and raise 3 well-adjusted children (who are also living lives of service) and build a strong marriage.  She traveled to refugee camps all over the world.  She mentors and encourages young women to think big.  Not only that, but she has a deep faith in God!  She’s a little bit of a control-freak, which just makes her more human and  loveable.

Will’s perspective is honest, loving, and funny. Like recounting the time his working Mom ate the dog’s heartworm pill and give the dog her birth control pill. He’s great too.

My only criticism is the choice of reader (Jeff Harding).  He uses this “Aunt Bee” voice whenever he is Mary Anne, and it TOTALLY does not fit this powerhouse of a woman I am reading about.  Will, it’s just so bad, I think your Mom would want you to re-record this with a female reading your Mom’s parts (Jeff was great for the rest of the book!).