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The Last Word and the Word after That Brian D. McLaren

The Last Word and the Word after That By Brian D. McLaren

The Last Word and the Word after That by Brian D. McLaren


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Condition - Very Good
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Summary

Explores some of the darker issues involved in questioning faith and coming up against the demands of traditional interpretations of salvation, damnation, and morality through the life crises of the author's main character Dan Poole.

The Last Word and the Word after That Summary

The Last Word and the Word after That: A Tale of Faith, Doubt, and a New Kind of Christianity by Brian D. McLaren

For all those seeking more authentic ways to hold and practice Christian faith, Brian McLaren has been an inspiring, compassionate and provocative voice. Starting with the award-winning A New Kind of Christian, McLaren offered a lively, wide-ranging fictional conversation between Pastor Dan Poole and his friend Neil Oliver as they reflected about faith, doubt, reason, mission, leadership, and spiritual practice in the emerging postmodern world. That conversation widened to include several intriguing new characters in the sequel, The Story We Find Ourselves In, as Dan and friends continued to explore faith-stretching themes from evolution to evangelism, from death to the meaning of life. Now, in this third installment of their adventures, Dan and his widening circle of friends grapple with conventional Christian teachings about hell and judgment and what they mean for our relationship with God and each other. Is there an alternative to the usual polar views of a just God short on mercy or a merciful God short on justice? Could our conflicted views of hell be symptoms of a deeper set of problems - misunderstandings about what God's justice and mercy are about, misconceptions about God's purpose in creating the world, deep misgivings about what kind of character God is and what the Christian gospel is for?

The Last Word and the Word after That Reviews

Pastor Dan Poole returns with another personal and theological crisis in this final installment of McLaren's A New Kind of Christian trilogy, which again features fictional characters engaged in nonfictionish theological dialogue. This time around, Poole has been granted an extended leave of absence from his conservative church as it investigates what it believes to be his liberal theological leanings, especially regarding the doctrine of hell and salvation. In rather predictable fashion, Poole finds himself questioning his own beliefs about hell and God's goodness, and just as predictably, Poole's friend Neo gently shepherds Poole away from the traditional doctrine of hell by pointing out that salvation is not just an individual matter but a communal one as well. Once Poole reaches some personal level of understanding about these doctrines through his reading, the church committee miraculously clears him of all charges and, after some emotional meetings, asks him to return to the pulpit. In the end, Poole finds comfort God's goodness and love, but by then readers may have been disappointed by the book's flimsy characters and simplistic insights. Although McLaren has justly earned a reputation for provocative postmodern theological observations, this doesn't live up to his standard. (Apr.) (Publishers Weekly, March 28, 2005)

About Brian D. McLaren

Brian D. McLaren is the founding pastor of Cedar Ridge Community Church in the Washington-Baltimore area, and the author of several books on contemporary and postmodern Christianity, including A New Kind of Christian and The Story We Find Ourselves In, both from Jossey-Bass.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments.Introduction.BOOK ONE: The Last Word.1. Something Serious.2. Flare-Up.3. Poet in a Trench Coat.4. Party in the Living Room, Torture in the Basement.5. Playing Hardball.6. I Don't Know.7. The Architecture of the Bible.8. The First Two Threads.9. The Third and Fourth Threads.10. The Scapegoat Factor.11. Better Than We Realized.12. Something like a Straight Answer.13. End in Embrace?14. Piano Lessons and Lumpy Hands.15. You Have a Tough Job.16. All over the Map.17. Deconstructing Hell.18. Proposal, Plan, Implementation.19. Homework Assignment.BOOK TWO: The Word After That.20. How Can I Hurt Him?21. Nice Walleye Fishing Charters.22. Wolves in Lawyers' Tuxedos.23. Up Toward the Stars.24. A Colorful Breakfast.25. A New Kind of Christianity.26. Second Thoughts.27. To God, All Are Alive.28. A Part of Me at the Core of My Mind.29. The Last, Best Word.Commentary.The Author.

Additional information

GOR001588506
9780787975920
0787975923
The Last Word and the Word after That: A Tale of Faith, Doubt, and a New Kind of Christianity by Brian D. McLaren
Used - Very Good
Hardback
John Wiley & Sons Inc
20050408
224
N/A
Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in very good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

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