Yes, I know, it's been a while since I posted a blog. Please forgive me for springing this new post on you so suddenly.
If you follow me on twitter or are a friend on Facebook, you know that I've been trying to get my hands on a copy of "Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived" by Rob Bell. It took me a few days and a few trips, but Barnes & Noble came through today.
I sat down to start reading, and I stopped 20 minutes later. But it wasn't because I was offended or offput by anything that was said. I was so astounded at the preface to this very controversial book that I had to stop. I'll read it 2 or 3 more times before I make my way through the remaining 190 pages, because it's worthy of the attention.
Rather than quoting text or citing specific examples, I'll leave you with a brief first impression, in the form of a series of statements. Guess what that means... you're going to have to read it your darn self (that is, if you want to agree or argue with me).
I believe that Rob Bell has a greater grasp of the complexity of scripture than his most skeptical theologians and/or scholars.
I think that the reason this book has so enraged the Evangelical community is that the author asks questions that have been largely tossed aside by others. The preface is 80% questions and 20% research or statements. The danger with tossing aside questions about Jesus and the nature of salvation is that we can also toss aside the people sincerely asking them as well.
Most of the quotations that I've read in blogs, tweets and articles that are in opposition to the orthodoxy of this book are found in the first 10 pages. I wonder how many of those critics didn't actually make it throught the rest of the book...
I love this. I love that your first impression wasn't to throw the book, but that you had to stop because it was so powerful. I did the same thing, though at a different point in the book- it was just so much to handle and to process and so exciting and scary at the same time. I knew there was a reason we are friends:) I've doing some research on my own, so once you're through chapter 2, look at my blog and tell me what you think.
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