Jesus wants to save Christians
Rob Bell and Don Golden
I read enthusiastically Rob Bell's first book Velvet Elvis, and have lent it out and given away several copies as presents. The second book Sex God maybe requires more caution -- someone at church suggest I should pass it around in a brown paper bag -- but I enjoyed that, too. So I was excited to see the publication of his latest book.
In Jesus wants to save Christians, Bell has aqcuired a co-author, Don Golden, formerly another pastor at Mars Hill Church. Stylistically, it doesn't show: the book is still full of Bell's trademark pithy prose. Rather frequently it breaks down
into those short, connected phrases
which are separated by blank lines
and run for up to a page
to make a dramatic point.
And I fear there are too many of them, so the dramatic point is sometimes lost. The presentation is, however, once again, beautiful.
Enough of the externalities. What is the book about? Well, I'd have to say that it has much in common with McLaren's Everything must change, except that where McLaren is verbose in the extreme, Bell and Golden are, well, golden. The readers are left to join the dots for themselves. The book tracks what you might call the redemptive purpose of God across the ages, through the scripture. Along the way we get to reflect on power and weakness, on being exiles and relating to the empire. As with Walsh and Keesmet's Colossians Remixed we have to concern ourselves about whether the church is too associated with the empire and not enough with the exile.
And of course, the climax of the redemption narrative is the cross. The "blood on the doorposts of the universe" as Chapter Six has it. The cross matters deeply in all this -- not only for all that Christ does there, but because he established a eucharistic community. The chapter dwells on this idea of the church as embodying and sharing the eucharist --- the "good gift".
"The church is a living Eucharist, because followers of Christ are living Eucharists. A Christian is a living Eucharist, allowing her body to be broken and her blood to be poured out for the healing of the world."
They talk about how this is accomplished in weakness, in peace, in reconciliation, in a new humanity. They remind us of our calling to give to those who cannot give in return.
And in doing so, they raise a telling question: "if our church was taken away - from our city, our neighbourhood, our region - who would protest?" If only those who belong and attend, then too many are surely missing out on the blessing.
If you don't get to join the dots by yourself, an epiologue to the book spells out some things Jesus wants to save us from. It is good, thought-provoking stuff. I'd rather like to see a companion volume - a study and action guide. Somehow it's easy to let this stuff challenge me, then put it on one side and forget it again. The book is undoubtedly a call to action; a manifesto for a transformed church. Read it.
3 comments:
"if our church was taken away - from our city, our neighbourhood, our region - who would protest?"
that is SUCH a good question (and fits in with the postChristendom question)
when church is incarnational - in the area and living working alongside folk who don't yet 'get' Jesus ... then it would be missed. Otherwise I do wonder if we are (most of the time) wasting our time.
Interesting that Rob Bell's teamed up with Don Golden ex Mars Hill. Mark Driscoll there is a sort of stand alone in emergent circles isn't he ... much more conservative than many (I read Listening to the beliefs of EC very recently - have you read it? What did you think about it? )
Ah. Bell's church is called Mars Hill, but it's unrelated to Driscoll's Mars Hill.
I think Driscoll regrets ever having been involved with the EC folks. He wrote somewhere that he felt obliged by past relationships to participate in the "Listening to the beliefs" book, but wasn't comfortable with it.
I reviewed it (or that's what I call my ramblings; not sure if it's a proper review) back in February. And yet, when you look at what Driscoll's lot are up to, it's distinctly incarnational. It's just scarily reformed too.
if you're reading this, you might want to see a follow-up post, too.
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