A kind soul gave me this book to read with the warning, "You will not like the first two chapters, but keep reading." They were severely wrong. "Will not like" was definitely a severe understatement. In fact everyone I mention this book to says, "Good book, but, OH!, those first two chapters." Last night I was out with a lovely couple who said they gave up half way through the second chapter out of the severe pain of reading it. But as I continue to read, fortunately, mercifully, things are starting to get interesting.
Not giving
anything away, here are some thoughts from the author as we head into the great season of lent.
"The best argument for Christianity is Christians: their joy, their certainty, their completeness. But the strongest argument against Christianity is also Christians - when they are sombre and joy-less, when they are self-righteous and smug in complacent consecration, when they are narrow and repressive, then Christianity dies a thousand deaths."
Reminds me of Saint Teresa who said, "Lord, save us from sour-faced saints."
One more outtake:
"If true . . . it was, very simply, the only really important truth in the world. And if untrue it was false. No half way house. . . It is not possible to be 'incidentally a Christian.' The fact of Christianity must be overwhelmingly first or nothing."
I can't think of a worthy thing to add.
1 comment:
and neither can any of the rest of us.
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