Using unconventional examples from his own life, Shane Claiborne stirs up questions about the church and the world, and challenges readers to truly live out their Christian faith.
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Must read. Feel free to disagree on some if not many theological points, but the main theological point is clear... God HATES injustice, and there ... (show more)
Must read. Feel free to disagree on some if not many theological points, but the main theological point is clear... God HATES injustice, and there are 3,000 verses in the Bible about taking care of the oppressed and impoverished. Why is this not the Church's main focus? This book will challenge you, turn your world upside down, and shake you vigorously. You might not know what you believe anymore by the time you are done, but you'll be thinking so much. The point is so clear, a life that follows Jesus is radical, is not wealthy, turns the other cheek, and loves until it is martyred for doing so. Man this is a challenge the American Church needs to hear today. However, after you read it, you will feel like there's NO WAY you can do all that. That is when you pick up "Justice In The Burbs" by Will & Lisa Samson... It will give you persepective and small steps towards living a life of justice. (show less)
Shane Claiborne gives some very thought provoking and challenging stories which illustrate the need to live out the kingdom of God. He rightly emp... (show more)
Shane Claiborne gives some very thought provoking and challenging stories which illustrate the need to live out the kingdom of God. He rightly emphasizes that the kingdom is about a new kind of life, lived in the power of the Spirit, which begins to go about living out a vision of love, peace, kindness, etc. in our world now and into eternity.
However, I finally gave up on the book after reading about 7/8 of it for three main reasons. 1) His writing is good in some places, but overall, I found it highly repetitive; 2) He essentially says that anyone who might believe in just war theory or the death penalty is missing the kingdom message. Maybe he is right; but simply re-stating snippets from the Sermon on the Mount with no context or theological reflection doesn't prove that war is always wrong and the death penalty is always evil.
Yet, the third reason is his extreme biblical/theological fuzziness. The most egregious example of this is when he portrays John Dominic Crossan as a kingdom visionary on pages 240-241. He sweeps aside Crossan's theological position by saying, "I will shrewdly avoid the delicate theological issues he stirs up ... ." This is simply not acceptable. Crossan's view of Jesus is that He was a politicizing Jewish rabbi who challenged the social and political structure by welcoming the social outcasts into His movement. Crossan explicitly denies that Jesus claimed to be God, explicitly denies that he came into the world to accomplish atonement, and he explicitly denies the resurrection by saying that Jesus was thrown into a shallow, common grave and his body was eaten by wild dogs that roamed the execution grounds.
I don't have time to go into the clear historical evidence which disagrees with Crossan. I do have time to say that Claiborne includes Crossan as an example of someone who is trying to take seriously the vision of living life in the kingdom. I'm sorry, but Crossan has missed the crucial fact that Jesus Christ didn't just come to make the poor, downcast, and sin-laden people feel accepted. He came to set them free from the bondage of sin, death, and the curse of the law. He didn't just come to give people good feelings of belonging; He came to give dead sinners new life through an atoning work and the new birth of His Spirit. Claiborne's theological and biblical fuzziness undermines the good points of his book. He emphasizes some important things about Jesus; but He confuses the ultimate purpose of His life and ministry. For that reason, I cannot recommend this book. (show less)
This book is, simply put, FANTASTIC! Shane is a contemporary, I would daresay, prophetic voice calling the Church back to its role of recognizing and calling for social justice. The Church has become complacent and comfortable. We were never told that we would be comfortable by Jesus during his time here on earth. I say this, of course, tongue in cheek because I'm not going to go and join Shane's commune in Philadelphia. BUT, I will strive to live more frugally and be a better steward. I... (show more)
This book is, simply put, FANTASTIC! Shane is a contemporary, I would daresay, prophetic voice calling the Church back to its role of recognizing and calling for social justice. The Church has become complacent and comfortable. We were never told that we would be comfortable by Jesus during his time here on earth. I say this, of course, tongue in cheek because I'm not going to go and join Shane's commune in Philadelphia. BUT, I will strive to live more frugally and be a better steward. I will also not hesitate to communicate Shane's message to any and all who will listen. (show less)
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An absolutely beautiful book. Shane Claiborne has an incredible heart for his neighbor, and tells the story of his journey to a genuine discipleship of Christ in a disarmingly friendly, simple, witty, and humorous way. Don't let the tone fool you, however - this is a book that challenges the Church to re-examine what its core principles really are, why it is on this earth, and provides support for those disillusioned by the oppositional, self-centered Christianity that is too prevalent in C... (show more)
An absolutely beautiful book. Shane Claiborne has an incredible heart for his neighbor, and tells the story of his journey to a genuine discipleship of Christ in a disarmingly friendly, simple, witty, and humorous way. Don't let the tone fool you, however - this is a book that challenges the Church to re-examine what its core principles really are, why it is on this earth, and provides support for those disillusioned by the oppositional, self-centered Christianity that is too prevalent in Christendom today. He makes the radical suggestion that we follow Christ's teachings, fully and completely, regardless of how they may clash with capitalism, politics, religion, and life and relationships as we know it. It's a powerful idea in and of itself, but without an application, an idea is all it is. Shane's life offers a glimpse into what that idea looks like, lived out, and it is a beautiful, glorious, humbling, simple, and moving portrait of a man simply trying to follow in the footsteps of Christ. It is evident that society - including many Christians - regards his way of life as foolish and impractical, and it is, judging by the standard of the capitalistic, politically-charged perspective of America. Fortunately, that perspective is miles away from that of Christ. (show less)
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Another call for legalistic moral-ism and rallying the church to make the world a better place to go to hell from. Claiborne presents himself as a pacifist and yet justifies civil disobedience. He blasphemes God in his own brand of pantheism (God dwells in chai?!)
Bottom line: no gospel message, and more folks who love eschewing the label of "Christian" get to feel better about their good works.
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