Coffeehouse Theology

The second book, also from viralbloggers.com, was Coffeehouse Theology by Ed Cyzewski. I have to say that I enjoyed this considerably more than The Colors of God and it was a very different book as well. While the title for the book seems silly and the explanation for it was somewhat nonsensical, there are some good ideas in this that I truly believe are crucial in interacting with the Bible.

The two main things I took from here which were exciting to potentially get in the hands of a population outside the scholarly world:
1. Being aware of all that you bring into reading the Bible. How does your context shape the way you interpret it?
2. Based on how you come at the Bible, how does that correspond(or not generally!) with the original recipients of the Bible in its various forms.

I believe being conscious of both of these is extremely radical and crucial if we hope to truly study the Bible. The other facet to this, which is part of the first, is how much the church or other community you have that has "helped" you interact with the Bible previously affects you. I think if we can be this honest with God in how we face it we can approach it with much more humility than is often done. The texts were not meant to be plucked out individually in shaping some topic, but we are to try and find the currents and rhythms throughout that give us an idea of the nature of God and God's interaction with us all.

With that said, I believe Cyzewski did get many things right, however there was still some exegesis throughout that was not given as much attention as you'd hope. Additionally, if I remember correctly the name of a leading scholar was butchered in this as well which is an extremely unfortunate error. I believe this can be an important gateway for many and I do truly hope it is able to take this shape in people's lives.

The Colors of God

I have several books as of late that are a bit overdue as my life has been in a massive state of transition lately. With that said, I am actually reviewing a couple months after having read it so while my reactions won't be quite as immediate there are undoubtedly parts that linger from them.

The first book is one written by several key members of a Canadian church. It is called The Colors of God which is based on several colors that make up the core values of what the church is about. Additionally, this book is mainly written as a conversation which supposedly was done in a hotel room if I remember correctly(although it sounds like serious preparation had to of been made before doing this if that was truly the case!).

This book is mostly made up with the background of how their church came to be and what the central tenets are that they value in a church. Sounds like a recipe for success and truly a gift for a faithful member of their congregation as well? Unfortunately, however, much of it seems to fall short in ending up with much substance or much that they truly get behind. As is becoming more and more customary of writers today, they are quick to say how much they are not like most evangelical churches and how all are welcome regardless of what they've done, etc. With the latter, while that should sound like something fantastic, it seems that based on their response to sin(lackadaisical at best) that there need not be much of a repenting or turning away from sin. Not only a turning away from sin but a turning towards God. No, they seem quick to offer unhelpful grace at the expense of much and it ended up leaving somewhat of a foul taste in my mouth. I never would have thought a couple of years ago that I would be the one representing the side against excess grace and more focus on sin(although contextualizing that would take much longer than this post) but I believe there is a somewhat clear line of what is appropriate and when it is not. Kids that do not have any sort of discipline in their life don't turn out for the better because of it. It is either in spite of it or not at all.

I truly did want to like this book. I am as open to innovation in the church as much as anyone, however when it is done while substance is foregone then it brings up many different questions. Additionally, all that said, I do believe they can and probably do serve an important niche in the community they're in and believe God is able to work through them and connect with folks that otherwise would have nothing to do with church. Unfortunately this is a book review and the content combined with several typos made for a somewhat frustrating read.