"Love is a harsh and dreadful thing to ask of us, but it is the only answer."
- Dorothy Day
- Dorothy Day
I just finished reading Shane Claiborne's book "The Irresistible Revolution" yesterday, and if you haven't read it, I would highly recommend it. It has definitely made the top charts of summer reading.
There's quite a lot of controversy surrounding this book, or at least I've experienced some of th
at this summer. What Shane has to say is pretty different and something that hasn't been heard of for many years (like since the Monastic movement pretty much), but I think a lot of what he has to say is worth hearing and acting on. Shane is a very convicting writer and brings a lot of good points to the table. I also trust his points (most of them) due to his credentials. Shane isn't some spiritual guru who woke up one afternoon, donned his bandanna, threw up a few peace sign spray paintings, and decided to write a book. He really knows his stuff. He researched, went to seminary, university, and all that jazz. I'm frustrated with those who blow off his book because he isn't smart enough when we've got writers in the Christian circles who try to draw an entire book out of two verses like the Prayer of Jabez.* So know that Shane is talking pretty intelligently about this stuff, even if he does passionately rant for awhile.
The only thing I didn't like about his thoughts were his ideas on politics and civic duty. I feel like some of what he said is ok, but he seems to take it a bit too far. I believe strongly that Christians need to be involved with the political world and fulfilling their civic duty as members of a country instead of completely removing themselves from it. I think there is a lot to be said for Christian ethics influencing how we interact with politics and the world needs more people that are willing to do so intelligently, which means actually researching and learning and making valid opinions based on that information rather than reading some junk off the interweb. It also means being able to converse intelligently about topics rather than shutting yourself in your own opinion. Regardless, Shane's political views were tangental at best in this book.
The rest of it, however, is incredibly convicting. My favorite part of the book was Shane's great and purposeful use of quotes from people like Mother Teresa, Soren Kirkegaard, Dorothy Day and Dr. MLK Jr. I love quotes. He also has some really powerful stories of God moving to help the poor and the outcasts of this world that are great in the book, but even better heard in person.
If you haven't read this book, seriously consider reading it, even if you have to borrow it from someone else. It will, as the book says, "comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable."
*please, save yourself the time and don't read the Prayer of Jabez book. Instead, read 1 Chronicles 4 as a whole and see that there's more than just "enlarging your territory" or whatever that means.
There's quite a lot of controversy surrounding this book, or at least I've experienced some of th
at this summer. What Shane has to say is pretty different and something that hasn't been heard of for many years (like since the Monastic movement pretty much), but I think a lot of what he has to say is worth hearing and acting on. Shane is a very convicting writer and brings a lot of good points to the table. I also trust his points (most of them) due to his credentials. Shane isn't some spiritual guru who woke up one afternoon, donned his bandanna, threw up a few peace sign spray paintings, and decided to write a book. He really knows his stuff. He researched, went to seminary, university, and all that jazz. I'm frustrated with those who blow off his book because he isn't smart enough when we've got writers in the Christian circles who try to draw an entire book out of two verses like the Prayer of Jabez.* So know that Shane is talking pretty intelligently about this stuff, even if he does passionately rant for awhile.The only thing I didn't like about his thoughts were his ideas on politics and civic duty. I feel like some of what he said is ok, but he seems to take it a bit too far. I believe strongly that Christians need to be involved with the political world and fulfilling their civic duty as members of a country instead of completely removing themselves from it. I think there is a lot to be said for Christian ethics influencing how we interact with politics and the world needs more people that are willing to do so intelligently, which means actually researching and learning and making valid opinions based on that information rather than reading some junk off the interweb. It also means being able to converse intelligently about topics rather than shutting yourself in your own opinion. Regardless, Shane's political views were tangental at best in this book.
The rest of it, however, is incredibly convicting. My favorite part of the book was Shane's great and purposeful use of quotes from people like Mother Teresa, Soren Kirkegaard, Dorothy Day and Dr. MLK Jr. I love quotes. He also has some really powerful stories of God moving to help the poor and the outcasts of this world that are great in the book, but even better heard in person.
If you haven't read this book, seriously consider reading it, even if you have to borrow it from someone else. It will, as the book says, "comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable."
*please, save yourself the time and don't read the Prayer of Jabez book. Instead, read 1 Chronicles 4 as a whole and see that there's more than just "enlarging your territory" or whatever that means.
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