Finding Our Way Again isn’t Brian McLaren’s best or most important read, but I find myself chewing on what he brought up.
The book introduces a series on 7 ancient spiritual disciplines. The basic thesis is that Christianity’s diminishing role and potency is due to becoming just a system of belief rather than a way of life. He shows how these 7 spiritual practices have roots in ancient traditions, in some ways reaching back to Abraham.
A few take aways:
- There’s a great diagram on how change happens within the church. Rebels leave the established bodies, but eventually it affects even the institutions they left. His point is that God is at work, both within the rebels and the institutions, helping them find common ground in the middle.
- The 3-fold path of ancient spirituality- Via Purgativa/Katharsis, Via Illuminativa/Fotosis, Via Unitiva/Theosis. We purge ourselves of embedded sin, bask in the light of God, and join him in his work. He has a cute parable to help communicate this.
Downsides:
- The book seems rush and disconnected. Pearls on a string.
- The second is a hobby horse that he won’t get off of. McLaren opens the book discussing the common ancestry of Judiasm, Christianity and Islam, and how we suffer from the same problems. Though he has some interesting points, he keeps coming back on it, making you think that he’s more interested in tinkering with Universalism than teaching us how to find our way again.
Despite these downsides, it has enough pearls that it’s worth the short read. I’m wrestling with how to make katharsis a regular part of my life. If you’re really interested in spiritual disciplines, go read Foster or Williard or Brother Lawerence.
Tweets