Brian McLaren books

I’ve read a couple. A New kind of Christianity and A Generous Orthodoxy.
McClaren writes very well, and he is engaging. I believe his theology amounts to heresy (i.e., while admittedly unorthodox his theology, IMHO, is a barrier to salvation).


God’s revelation, according to him, is a grand narrative - an ongoing conversation. (e.g., OT cultures were violent and therefore portrayed a violent God. A god who expressed his wrath by killing people while saving Noah would be guilty of genocide and not worthy of belief, much less worship.)



He teaches a dangerous theology which is even more dangerous as it encompasses much of the contemporary mindset.

 

McLaren does not believe that Scripture is useful in instruction, but instead that its relevance lies in the contemplation of the believer as one is challenged to think and thereby gain wisdom. He believes in what he calls biblical inherency – the Bible is not the Word of God, but the Word of God is contained within Scripture (God’s inerrant Word inherently in the Bible). Scripture is therefore a “community library,” it is something God has “let be,” and so is at once God’s creation and the creation of the cultures which produced it. The Bible is, to McLaren, subjective stories of God and not objective revelation. Inspiration is an ongoing process that builds upon itself.

This is seen in his assessment of Paul’s letters. McLaren challenges the idea of justification by grace through faith. He views this idea as an interpretation of Jesus in light of Paul. Romans, according to McLaren, is an expression of the free flow of thought and feelings of Paul as he speaks to Tertius. Paul spurs the imagination to justify the gospel as good news for both Jew and Gentile. It is a contextualization of the gospel specifically for Paul’s audience. To McLaren, the gospel of Jesus is the new way of life that carried good news to all people of every religion; a new kingdom that would accommodate many religious traditions. He contends that his view of Christ as the Liberating King cannot coexist with the traditional view of the gospel – hence the need for “A New Christianity.”

 

:thumbsup: