Countdown Day 20
That’s why this quest begins not by tweaking details of the conventional six-line narrative, but by calling the entire narrative scheme into question. We do not for a second say, “These six lines present the true shape of the biblical narrative, but we reject it.” Rather, we stare at this narrative, scratch our heads, and with a bewildered look ask, “How in the world, how in God’s name, could anyone ever think this is the narrative of the Bible?” (35)
From A New Kind of Christianity: Ten Questions That Are Transforming the Faith (available February 9, 2010)
"Now and then gifted people emerge who see the situation from a higher and more helpful level. Brian McLaren is one of those seers." (Richard Rohr, author of Everything Belongs and The Naked Now)
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Q & R: Absolute truth
Here's the Q:
I'm a pastor of a XX church and recently led our "College Plus" group through a study of your book, "Adventures in Missing the Point". Many times I agreed wholeheartedly with what you said, many times I was more than a little convicted, many times I wanted to scratch my head and say, "What is he trying to say?". And occasionally I wanted to say, "This guy is crazy!" Sorry about that. :-) Anyway, one statement that I really want to ask you about is what you mean when you say, "I hear or read preacher after preacher beating the drum of Absolute Truth, as if the term was on the same level as repentance, salvation, prayer, God, love - as if it were part of the vocabulary of the Bible." Is it the "absolute" part that you have a problem with? "Truth" is such a major part of the vocabulary of the Bible that its hard for me swallow that comment.
Would it be fair to say that you are not a big fan of "The Truth Project" put out by Focus on the Family? Thanks for the way you've stretched and challenged my thinking on many things
R after the jump
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Countdown Day 21
To be a Christian – in the West, at least, since the fifth or sixth century or so – has required one to believe that the Bible presents one very specific story line, a story line by which we assess all of history, all of human experience, all of our own experience. Most of us know the story line implicitly, subconsciously, even though it has never been made explicit for us. We begin our quest for a new kind of Christian faith by questioning this story line. (33)
From A New Kind of Christianity: Ten Questions That Are Transforming the Faith (available February 9, 2010)
"Brian's writing is brave and honest, vulnerable and courageous, disturbing and unsettling, reassuring and hopeful. Every now and then you come across a book you've been waiting for. A New Kind of Christianity is that book." (Steve Chalke, MBE, founder of Oasis Global, UN Special Advisor on Human Trafficking)
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Everything Must Change Study Guide
Here's a free study guide prepared by Alan Ward. Great questions for using EMC with your group or class! Download this comprehensive guide here.
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Fr. Richard Rohr gets it right … on Dr. King
Richard says ...
Jesus undercut the basis for all violent, exclusionary and punitive behavior. He became the forgiving victim, so we would stop creating victims ourselves. He became the falsely accused one, so we would be careful whom we accuse.
Any worldly system actually prefers violent partners to nonviolent ones; it gives them a clear target and a credible enemy. Empires are actually relieved to have terrorists to shoot at and Barabbas figures loose on the streets. Types like Jesus, Martin Luther King and Gandhi make difficult enemies for empires. They cannot be used or co-opted.
The powers that be know that nonviolent prophets are a much deeper problem because they refuse to buy into the very illusions that the whole empire is built on, especially the myth of redemptive violence. Like Jesus, they live instead a life of redemptive suffering.
Taken from Things Hidden: Scripture as Spirituality, p 152
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