- Paperback: 272 pages
- Publisher: Zondervan (1 April 2009)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0310286182
- ISBN-13: 978-0310286189
- Product Dimensions: 20.1 x 13.7 x 2 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 621,947 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The Sacredness of Questioning Everything
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||
 Trade In this Item for up to £1.20
Get an extra £5 when you trade in books worth £10 or more until June 30, 2012. Trade in The Sacredness of Questioning Everything for an Amazon.co.uk gift card of up to £1.20, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Find more products eligible for trade-in.
|
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Synopsis
The freedom to question - asking and being asked - is an indispensable and sacred practice that is absolutely vital to the health of our communities. According to author David Dark, when religion won't tolerate questions, objections, or differences of opinion, and when it only brings to the table threats of excommunication, violence, and hellfire, it does not allow people to discover for themselves what they truly believe.The God of the Bible not only encourages questions; the God of the Bible demands them. If that were not so, we wouldn't live in a world of such rich, God-given complexity in which wide-eyed wonder is part and parcel of the human condition. Dark contends that it's OK to question life, the Bible, faith, the media, emotions, language, government - everything. God has nothing to hide. And neither should people of faith. "The Sacredness of Questioning" offers a wide-ranging, insightful, and often entertaining discussion that draws on a variety of sources, including religious texts and popular culture. It is a book that readers will likely cherish - and recommend - for years to come.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Reviews
There are no customer reviews yet on Amazon.co.uk.
5 star
4 star
3 star
2 star
1 star
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
18 reviews
22 of 25 people found the following review helpful
The Sacredness of Questioning Everything
5 May 2009
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Every once in a while, I encounter a book that breathes life into me by the way it communicates profound truth. The interesting thing is that books like this almost always take me by surprise. Zondervan sent me David Dark's new book, The Sacredness of Questioning Everything, with the request that I review it if I liked it. I had heard of Dark, but had never read anything by him. The title intrigued me, so I opened to the table of contents...which intrigued me all the more:
Table of Contents
1. Never What You Have In Mind--Questioning God
2. The Unbearable Lightness of Being Brainwashed--Questioning Religion
3. Everybody to the Limit--Questioning Our Offendedness
4. Spot the Pervert--Questioning our Passions
5. The Power of the Put-On--Questioning Media
6. The Word, The Line, The Way--Questioning Our Language
7. Survival of the Freshest--Questioning Interpretations
8. The Past Didn't Go Anywhere--Questioning History
9. We Do What We're Told--Questioning Governments
10. Sincerity As Far As The Eye Can See--Questioning the Future
End Note: That Means To Signal a World Without End
That was enough to get me to start reading immediately. Halfway through the first chapter I was hooked. Dark artfully articulates faith in the context of what Lesslie Newbigin calls "A Proper Confidence"...faith that is not (cannot be) the equivalent of certainty...faith that recognizes our finite nature, our tendency to re-craft God in our own images and religion into self-justifying dogma. At times, he seems to be virtually channeling Kierkegaard in the context of 21st century Western culture. Dark offers us a thing of beauty, a life-giving breath of fresh air. His book invites us to take God a lot more seriously by taking ourselves a lot less seriously. Drawing from diverse voices (from Augustine and Aquinas to Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert to U2 and Arcade Fire) and various disciplines (Theology, Philosophy, Literature, Film, Music, etc.), he revives the Biblical tradition of questioning...as an act of humility in the pursuit of truth. He calls for us to cut through the propaganda, and resist any "powers that be" that would seek to subvert or co-opt the Way of Jesus. He beckons us to journey down a path that is characterized by faith, hope, and love (rather than certainty).
Pick up this book. You won't be disappointed.
AE
Table of Contents
1. Never What You Have In Mind--Questioning God
2. The Unbearable Lightness of Being Brainwashed--Questioning Religion
3. Everybody to the Limit--Questioning Our Offendedness
4. Spot the Pervert--Questioning our Passions
5. The Power of the Put-On--Questioning Media
6. The Word, The Line, The Way--Questioning Our Language
7. Survival of the Freshest--Questioning Interpretations
8. The Past Didn't Go Anywhere--Questioning History
9. We Do What We're Told--Questioning Governments
10. Sincerity As Far As The Eye Can See--Questioning the Future
End Note: That Means To Signal a World Without End
That was enough to get me to start reading immediately. Halfway through the first chapter I was hooked. Dark artfully articulates faith in the context of what Lesslie Newbigin calls "A Proper Confidence"...faith that is not (cannot be) the equivalent of certainty...faith that recognizes our finite nature, our tendency to re-craft God in our own images and religion into self-justifying dogma. At times, he seems to be virtually channeling Kierkegaard in the context of 21st century Western culture. Dark offers us a thing of beauty, a life-giving breath of fresh air. His book invites us to take God a lot more seriously by taking ourselves a lot less seriously. Drawing from diverse voices (from Augustine and Aquinas to Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert to U2 and Arcade Fire) and various disciplines (Theology, Philosophy, Literature, Film, Music, etc.), he revives the Biblical tradition of questioning...as an act of humility in the pursuit of truth. He calls for us to cut through the propaganda, and resist any "powers that be" that would seek to subvert or co-opt the Way of Jesus. He beckons us to journey down a path that is characterized by faith, hope, and love (rather than certainty).
Pick up this book. You won't be disappointed.
AE
17 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Theological Futures
24 Aug 2009
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
This book has been getting a lot of rave reviews lately, so I decided to download it to the Kindle and give it a quick read. It reads very fast as the author is an excellent writer. He weaves cultural images, amusing stories and biblical insight into a fun tale. As much as this may turn off some readers, it comes across as more sermons should. It's honest, prophetic and entertaining. The audience intended are clearly lay people trying to figure out the intersections of faith and life.
One story I enjoyed from the book was a discussion about eternity that started with someone saying that when they die their argument with another individual will finally be over. Dark told this person that when they wake up (i.e. resurrection), they are going to find more people to deal with. He insightfully plays this very true theological insight off Sarte's comment of hell being people and C.S. Lewis' vision of heaven being people. The best in New Testament scholars today, whether NT Wright, Michael Bird or Larry Hurtado are making this same insight from the texts...the revelation of the New Testament is that our eternal future will be one in community with other people and God.
I also enjoyed the call of this book to action. I do not expect readers to remain apathetic about their faith after reading. That's a good thing. I firmly believe that we can love God by/in loving others. The church should become more active and be what Hauerwas has called an alternative to empire's secular ideals. No disagreements here.
So why did I only give the book three stars?
To put things in context, I finished reading Alister McGrath's "The Science of God" last night and as soon as I posted my review, I started this book. It read quickly (one sitting), but offered minimal prospects for theological reflection. McGrath offered fresh insights built upon the intellectual traditions of the church, offering new avenues for both the intellect and action. I didn't get the same fresh insights from Dark.
Dark clearly writes from the Christian tradition, but seems to attack those seeking to live within, while constantly reforming its historical confessions. "Uncle Ben" concepts of God should be rejected (and have been rejected throughout the history of the church), but I fear Dark may be playing on the intended audience, implying that we must reinvent the wheel, seeking insights from all faith traditions. I agree wholeheartedly that we constantly need to deconstruct (or if you prefer, reform), while being engrossed in our great tradition to find the Spirit's future for us. The Spirit has led the church throughout its history and plunging the depths of previous theological insights will better help us to situate ourselves today, and see a clear God-led vision for our future. I'm not sure that Dark would disagree, but I think he underemphasized the history of Church in thought and action.
As such, I would suggest two books for further (or alternative) reading:
1. Ancient-Future Faith: Rethinking Evangelicalism for a Postmodern World
2. Reading Scripture With the Church Fathers
We have a great Christian tradition, offering plenty of insights for those of us following Christ on this journey in community.
One story I enjoyed from the book was a discussion about eternity that started with someone saying that when they die their argument with another individual will finally be over. Dark told this person that when they wake up (i.e. resurrection), they are going to find more people to deal with. He insightfully plays this very true theological insight off Sarte's comment of hell being people and C.S. Lewis' vision of heaven being people. The best in New Testament scholars today, whether NT Wright, Michael Bird or Larry Hurtado are making this same insight from the texts...the revelation of the New Testament is that our eternal future will be one in community with other people and God.
I also enjoyed the call of this book to action. I do not expect readers to remain apathetic about their faith after reading. That's a good thing. I firmly believe that we can love God by/in loving others. The church should become more active and be what Hauerwas has called an alternative to empire's secular ideals. No disagreements here.
So why did I only give the book three stars?
To put things in context, I finished reading Alister McGrath's "The Science of God" last night and as soon as I posted my review, I started this book. It read quickly (one sitting), but offered minimal prospects for theological reflection. McGrath offered fresh insights built upon the intellectual traditions of the church, offering new avenues for both the intellect and action. I didn't get the same fresh insights from Dark.
Dark clearly writes from the Christian tradition, but seems to attack those seeking to live within, while constantly reforming its historical confessions. "Uncle Ben" concepts of God should be rejected (and have been rejected throughout the history of the church), but I fear Dark may be playing on the intended audience, implying that we must reinvent the wheel, seeking insights from all faith traditions. I agree wholeheartedly that we constantly need to deconstruct (or if you prefer, reform), while being engrossed in our great tradition to find the Spirit's future for us. The Spirit has led the church throughout its history and plunging the depths of previous theological insights will better help us to situate ourselves today, and see a clear God-led vision for our future. I'm not sure that Dark would disagree, but I think he underemphasized the history of Church in thought and action.
As such, I would suggest two books for further (or alternative) reading:
1. Ancient-Future Faith: Rethinking Evangelicalism for a Postmodern World
2. Reading Scripture With the Church Fathers
We have a great Christian tradition, offering plenty of insights for those of us following Christ on this journey in community.
11 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Stimulating challenge to question
19 April 2009
Format:Paperback
One of the many memorable phrases found a couple of times in David Dark's new book; "The Sacredness of Questioning Everything" is related to the difficulty "to try to want to know what I don't want to know." It is the antithesis of having things figured out and being very comfortable with that that you very much. It's about digging deeper and exploring possibilities that might be foreign, inconvenient or even contrary to that place from which I operate. It is a rigorous exercise in humility and searching.
As the title states this is all about questioning; everything. The book has 10 chapters each a main focus of questioning; God, religion, media, our "offendedness", history and others. Throughout the book questions related to these "topics" are explored. But through each chapter more questions come up and the end of each chapter has even more questions to provoke discussions. This is a healthy and invigorating practice that Dark is encouraging.
I'm not as familiar with some of the literary figures or works he cites. However, in this I was simply introduced to interesting people, music, history or books I have begun to check out for myself. It is easy not to question. It may be a natural tendency to gravitate toward community where similarities are more prevalent than dissent or diversity but it can be unhealthy, self-perpetuating and dangerous. If I cannot question, as Dark gives me opportunity to in his book, what I currently believe about God, religion, history, governments or ideas is it possible I have tipped my hand? Am I really as certain about things as I would like to be? If I take myself so seriously as to think I cannot say "I don't know" without sliding into thinking I cannot know anything, I suffer from some god-complex. Just because I question something does not mean I will not continue to believe what I have come to believe. Either I will believe more firmly, find corrective adjustments to my thinking and living or reject a bad idea altogether. I may simply need to rethink the presentation of my ideas and the way I communicate.
The tone of the book is stimulating, entertaining, and enlightening and Dark's humor, expansive understanding of his subject matter and related facets and his apparent affection for the reader keep this from getting bogged down into a finger-shaking, question-for-the-sake-of-questioning exercise. I found myself challenged by this engaging author and take him at his word when I question even the ideas he presents in his book.
As the title states this is all about questioning; everything. The book has 10 chapters each a main focus of questioning; God, religion, media, our "offendedness", history and others. Throughout the book questions related to these "topics" are explored. But through each chapter more questions come up and the end of each chapter has even more questions to provoke discussions. This is a healthy and invigorating practice that Dark is encouraging.
I'm not as familiar with some of the literary figures or works he cites. However, in this I was simply introduced to interesting people, music, history or books I have begun to check out for myself. It is easy not to question. It may be a natural tendency to gravitate toward community where similarities are more prevalent than dissent or diversity but it can be unhealthy, self-perpetuating and dangerous. If I cannot question, as Dark gives me opportunity to in his book, what I currently believe about God, religion, history, governments or ideas is it possible I have tipped my hand? Am I really as certain about things as I would like to be? If I take myself so seriously as to think I cannot say "I don't know" without sliding into thinking I cannot know anything, I suffer from some god-complex. Just because I question something does not mean I will not continue to believe what I have come to believe. Either I will believe more firmly, find corrective adjustments to my thinking and living or reject a bad idea altogether. I may simply need to rethink the presentation of my ideas and the way I communicate.
The tone of the book is stimulating, entertaining, and enlightening and Dark's humor, expansive understanding of his subject matter and related facets and his apparent affection for the reader keep this from getting bogged down into a finger-shaking, question-for-the-sake-of-questioning exercise. I found myself challenged by this engaging author and take him at his word when I question even the ideas he presents in his book.
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
