Book #6

Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller:

Stepping away from my typical young adult fiction I decided to read this non-fiction religious book.  This book was sitting on our bookshelf (Chris got it during his year in Oakland) and I heard there was a movie coming out.  I always like to read books before I see the movie, so I grabbed it off of the shelf.  I was quite surprised by how much I enjoyed it.  Well, at least the first twelve chapters.  After that it got a bit redundant and I got bored.  

The book basically tells the author's spiritual story.  The subtitle of the book is: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality.  I think that sums it up pretty nicely.  The author is a pretty liberal christian and it was so refreshing to read his thoughts.  As a person who grew up in a pretty fundamental religious church I had always struggled with how my religious beliefs and political beliefs didn't seem to line up.  Reading this book helped me realize that I wasn't alone in my thinking, and gave me some newfound enthusiasm for my faith because it helped me realize that what I believe (both politically and spiritually) do line up.  It can all work together.  

It's hard to explain how this book made me feel, but maybe some quotes will help sum it up.  The book was a wealth of awesome quotes, here are just a few of my favorites:

" The thing I loved about Nadine was that I never felt like she was selling anything.  She would talk about God as if she knew Him, as if she talked to Him on the phone that day.  She was never ashamed, which is the thing with some Christians I had encountered.  They felt like they had to sell God, as if He were soap or a vacuum cleaner, and it's like they really weren't listening to me; they didn't care, they just wanted me to buy their product." page 46

"Here are the things I didn't like about the churches I went to. . . . (second): They seemed to be parrots for the Republican Party.  Do we really have to tow the party line on every single issue? Are the Republicans that perfect? I felt like, in order to be a part of the family, I had to think George W. Bush was Jesus.  And I didn't.  I didn't think that Jesus really agreed with a lot of the politics of the Republican party or for that matter the Democratic Party.  I felt like Jesus was a religious figure, not a political figure. . . . They left us thinking that our war was against liberals and homosexuals.  Their teachings would have me believe I was the good person in the world and the liberals were the bad people in the world. . . . The truth is we are supposed to love the hippies, the liberals, and even the Democrats, and that God wants us to think of them as more important than ourselves." page 131-32

"I had to tell my head to tell my heart to love the people at the churches I used to go to, the people who were different than me.  This was entirely freeing because when I told my heart to do this, my heart did it, and now I think very fondly of those wacko Republican fundamentalists,  . . . and I know that we will eat together, we will break bread together in heaven, and we will love each other so purely that it will hurt because we are family in Christ."  page 137-38

I can't really put into words how excellent this book was (until the boring end).  Whether you are a liberal or conservative christian, or someone who has other spiritual beliefs, this book is an excellent read.  If for no other reason, then to understand the thinking of your liberal christian friends :)

6 down, 24 to go.