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A New Kind Of Christianity – Initial Thoughts

Posted Feb 25 2010 by Jonathan Brink in , with 14 Comments

I finally finished Brian McLaren’s new book, A New Kind Of Christianity, Ten Questions That Are Transforming The Faith.  I wanted to wait until I had read it until I made an remarks about it.  I’m planning on writing a fairly developed book review next week, but I wanted to begin with some initial thoughts.

My first thought after closing the book is I think Brian is asking some important questions in this book. It will be easy to dismiss Brian simply because he takes a fairly nontraditional approach to answering the questions.  Many have gotten outright angry at it.  I can imagine a few people I know who will outright dismiss the book and throw it across the room after the second question. And this is the temptation with the book.  To throw the book out is to miss the questions.  One doesn’t have to ascribe or agree with Brian to appreciate the questions he’s asking.

My second thought is I think Brian missed several great questions that are infinitely deeper than the ten he is asking.  Kingdom Grace took a stab at a different list. Phyllis Tickle said at her conference last year that her three questions were the nature of sin, the atonement, the reconciliation of denominations.  But unless you are deeply  involved in theological dialogs, Brian’s list might fly over people’s heads.  At the ground level I am at, people are asking about the nature of suffering and evil.  They want to know why God doesn’t rescue people and does God even care.

My last initial thought, which I will spell out in more detail in my book review, is this is the first book I’ve read from Brian’s that I didn’t find myself really following him lock, stock and barrel.  I honestly didn’t resonate with this tension of the six line narrative.  I didn’t resonate with the idea that there is no ontological problem. I am spelling this out in extensive detail in my new book that is coming out in May, and in my review.  But this is what I love about Brian.  Brian doesn’t need me to agree with him.  He’s open to disagreement and people living in a different space.  He’s graceful in his disagreement.

More to come soon.

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About the Author

Jonathan BrinkI am an business development and communications consultant. I am also the senior editor and publisher for Civitas Press. I recently published, Discovering The God Imagination: Reconstructing A Whole, New Christianity. (Civitas, 2011)View all posts by Jonathan Brink →

  • http://www.makeesha.com makeesha

    I would be interested to know how much of this dissonance has to do with Brian's extensive engagement with the worldwide church….but I haven't read the book ;)

  • http://www.makeesha.com makeesha

    I would be interested to know how much of this dissonance has to do with Brian's extensive engagement with the worldwide church….but I haven't read the book ;)

  • Jeff Straka

    Now THIS looks like a review worth reading! I agree that there are other important questions that people are asking that need to be wrestled with. I want to pass along an interesting book in this regard called “The Existential Jesus” written by John Carroll. Read his synopsis here:
    http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/jesus-the-essence-of-being/story-e6frg8px-1111113048390

    I also look forward to YOUR new book!

  • http://jonathanbrink.com Jonathan Brink

    Makeesha, I'm not sure if you are referring to my dissonance or those who wanted to throw the book across the room. I have no concern whatsoever for Brian's engagement with the worldwide church.

    But if you are referring to the dissonance of the second group I don't think that is the real tension, although it might be some of it.

  • http://jonathanbrink.com Jonathan Brink

    Makeesha, I'm not sure if you are referring to my dissonance or those who wanted to throw the book across the room. I have no concern whatsoever for Brian's engagement with the worldwide church.

    But if you are referring to the dissonance of the second group I don't think that is the real tension, although it might be some of it.

  • Pingback: A New Kind Of Christianity – Book Review Question 1

  • kt_writes

    Our small group is discussing this book right now—we just talked about The God Question last night.

    Reading the book in a group context has been fascinating. On the surface, the dozen people in our group are similar—college educated, under 50, and we've all chosen to be a part of the same church. But the diversity of our backgrounds really rises to the surface when we discuss McLaren. One woman was raised in an atheist home by two parents with PhDs in the sciences, while one man grew up in Cameroon before moving to the states with his conservative fundamentalist parents. We have people who grew up on farms and in big cities, and people who were raised Catholic, Mennonite, Methodist, and in mega churches as well as traditional black churches.

    I guess what I'm realizing, and trying to say here, is that McLaren has a way of uncovering a lot of stuff about our pasts and our understanding of God that might otherwise just be “assumed” and ignored. I think this is really important. Seeing these different perspectives and assumptions at work also reminds me that when we disagree, it's not always about one of us being right and one of us being wrong. (I think I might have to write a post about this!)

  • kt_writes

    Our small group is discussing this book right now—we just talked about The God Question last night.

    Reading the book in a group context has been fascinating. On the surface, the dozen people in our group are similar—college educated, under 50, and we've all chosen to be a part of the same church. But the diversity of our backgrounds really rises to the surface when we discuss McLaren. One woman was raised in an atheist home by two parents with PhDs in the sciences, while one man grew up in Cameroon before moving to the states with his conservative fundamentalist parents. We have people who grew up on farms and in big cities, and people who were raised Catholic, Mennonite, Methodist, and in mega churches as well as traditional black churches.

    I guess what I'm realizing, and trying to say here, is that McLaren has a way of uncovering a lot of stuff about our pasts and our understanding of God that might otherwise just be “assumed” and ignored. I think this is really important. Seeing these different perspectives and assumptions at work also reminds me that when we disagree, it's not always about one of us being right and one of us being wrong. (I think I might have to write a post about this!)

  • Pops

    Heresy!

    But at least he has finally put his case forward so that we know where he stands, more so if you read his notes as you go through the book.

    It would just be nice if he did not call it Christianity but Mclarenese or something. Christianity stands on the doctrines of the Bible and Mclarens 'doctrines' are not from there.

    To throw the book across the room is the best response and actually advised in scripture Rom 16: 17. If believers had followed this instruction a lot earlier, the Church would not be in the mess it is in currently.

    If one studies Patristics you will find that these heresies are nothing new and were already dealt with in the 2nd and 3rd centuries – Mclaren has just rehashed them and because people have ignored patristics it all seems so new and 'intelligent', but it is not, it is old heresy plagiarised with a good dose of Fascism thrown in for good measure.

    If you do not have the time to study, then for good reviews on a chapter by chapter basis, go to Pirate Christian Radio, Fighting for the faith. Chris reviews each chapter and shows quite clearly the error in Mclarens thought process.
    Mclaren is continuing his fathers battle started in Genesis – Did God really say!

  • http://jonathanbrink.com Jonathan Brink

    Thanks KT for your thoughts. What has been the opinion of your small group regarding the book? Is it divisive, engaging, problematic…?

  • http://jonathanbrink.com Jonathan Brink

    Pops, I respect your opinion as your opinion but I would also say your dismissal misses what was good about the book. You can throw it across the room and I don't doubt you have, but Brian's questions are important to ask. I hope you engage them, at least with some sense of listening.

  • kt_writes

    All of the above! It has definitely been engaging, with just enough problematic parts to create some tension and division. For the most part, people in my small group feel very refreshed by the book—lots of “lightbulb moments” and articulations of things we've vaguely believed but not pounded out. There are definitely parts that make people say “wait a second here…” which is exactly what I think the best kind of book will do.

  • Pops

    Jonathan, I have looked at his sort of questions for a long time before he even came on the scene, as did many others all the way back to the 2nd and 3rd century.
    I have also looked at others like Islam, which one could say poses some serious questions that should be considered, but that does not detract from the fact that Islam is anti-biblical/Christian etc so why would I want to go any further studying Islam? Why would I want to go any further with Mclaren? He is building his own empire based around “Please buy my books” – honestly Jonathan – I do not even find any intelligent questions in his stuff – as I said before, it is a rehash of old stuff that may catch a lot of people as being new, but it is in fact not. If in a bookshop and I saw the latest book by the Flat Earth Society, I would not buy it – they may make some interesting points, but it is a useless, long disproven theory so why waste my time.

  • Pops

    Makeesha, I think if Brian had been honest and called his new religion something other than Christianity (which it is not), and tried to engage people with a new, for want of a better word 'Mclarenese', none of the dissonance would have occured. However, as a marketing technique he did call it Christianity, for obvious economic reasons and thus the uproar, for he twists and perverts Scripture which has long established doctrines and the dissonance is to protect the true child of God from heresy and false doctrines.

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