So, here's part II to my favorite quotes/passages from this fantastic Rob Bell book known as Velvet Elvis. These are from Movements 3 and 4 of the book.
"God is always present. We're the ones who show up."
"If it is true, if it is beautiful, if it is honorable, if it is right, then claim it. Because it is from God. And you belong to God."
"I don't follow Jesus because I think Christianity is the best religion. I follow Jesus becase he leads me into ultimate reality. He teaches me to live in tune with how reality is."
"God isn't in one building only."
"Just because I'm a Christian and I'm trying to articulate a Christian worldview doesn't mean I've got it nailed. I'm contributing to the discussion. God has sopken, and the rest is commentary, right?"
"All things are yours. Being a Christian is not cutting yourself off from real life; it is entering into it more fully. It is not failing to go deeper; it is going deeper than ever. It is a journey into the heart of how things really are. What is it that makes you feel alive? What is it that makes your soul soar?"
"Shalom is the presence of the goodness of God. It's the presence of wholeness, completeness."
"Your job is the relentless pursuit of who God made you to be."
There we are. Same as last time. If you've taken a moment to read these, as well as the long list from movements 1 and 2, hopefully you're interested and perhaps thinking about actually getting the book and reading the entirety of it, rather than the pieces I've given you. Again, leave a comment. Tell me which ones you like, which you don't, what you agree or disagree with, what challenge you, which confuse you. I'd love to talk about them with you! :]
peaceandlove,
Danielle.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Quotes/Passages from Velvet Elvis.
So, I recommended the book Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell about a month and a half ago to those of you who actually take a second to read my ramblings (which I quite appreciate!) and I said I'd post some of my favorite quotes and such so here we go....
"We must keep reforming the way the Christian faith is defined, lived, and explained. Jesus is more compelling than ever. More inviting, more true, more mysterious than ever. The problem isn't Jesus; the problem is what comes with Jesus."
"I am learning that what seems brand new is often the discovery of something that's been there all along-it just got lost somewhere and it needs to be picked up, dusted off, and reclaimed."
"Everybody has faith. Everyone is following someone."
"The person who says we are here by chance and that there is no greater meaning has just as many beliefs as the person who says there's a creator. Maybe even more."
"Existence is not limited to what we can see, touch, measure, taste, hear, and observe."
"Everybody follows somebody. All of us make decisions every day about what is important, how to treat people, and what to do with our lives. These decisions come from what we believe about every aspect of our existence. And we got our beliefs from somewhere. We have been formed, every one of us, by this complicated mix of people and places and things. Parents and teachers and artists and scientists and mentors-we are each taking these influences and living our lives according to which teachings we have made our own. Some insist that they aren't influenced by any person or any religion, that they think for themselves. And that's an honorable perspective. The problem is they got that perspective from...somebody. They're following somebody even if they insist it is themselves they are following. Everybody is following somebody. Everybody has faith in something and somebody. We are all believers."
"Jesus exposes us to reality at its rawest. So the way of Jesus is not about religion; it's about reality."
"This is something people have struggled with since the beginning: how to talk about God when God is bigger than our words, our brains, our worldviews, and our imaginations."
"God has no thingness because there's no end to God."
"The first Christians announced this way of Jesus as "the good news". That tells me the invitation is for everybody."
"Jesus invites everybody to jump. And saying yes to the invitation doesn't mean we have to have it all figured out. This is an important thing to remember : I can jump and still have questions and doubts."
"So the invitation to jump is an invitation to follow Jesus with all of our doubts and questions right there with us."
"Questions, no matter how shocking or blasphemous or arrogant or ignorant or raw, are rooted in humility. A humility that understands that I am not God. And there is more to know."
"Central to the Christian experience is the art of questioning God. Not belligerent, arrogant, questions that have no respect for our maker, but naked, honest, vulnerable, raw questions, arising out of the awe that comes from engaging the living God."
"I did not ask for success, I asked for wonder." -Abraham Joshua Heschel
"When everything gets answered, it's fake. The mystery is the truth." -Sean Penn
"If you study the Bible and it doesn't lead you to wonder and awe, then you haven't studied the Bible."
"Being a Christian is more about celebrating mystery than conquering it."
"With God being so massive and awe-inspiring and full of truth, why is his book capable of so much confusion?"
"The Bible is open-ended. It has to be interpreted. And if it isn't interpreted, then it can't be put into action. So if we are serious about following God, then we have to interpret the Bible. It is not possible to simply do what the Bible says. We must first make decisions about what it means at this time, in this place, for these people."
"God has spoken, and everything else is commentary."
"Everybody thinks their opinion is the right one. If they didn't, they'd get a new one." -Anne Lamott
"The Bible meets us where we are."
"The Bible tells a story. A story that isn't over. A story that is still being told. A story that we have a part to play in."
Alright, that's just from the first 2 movements of the 7 in the book. I'll post movements 3-4 soon! Let me know which ones are your favorites, which you agree or maybe disagree with, which challenge you. :]
"We must keep reforming the way the Christian faith is defined, lived, and explained. Jesus is more compelling than ever. More inviting, more true, more mysterious than ever. The problem isn't Jesus; the problem is what comes with Jesus."
"I am learning that what seems brand new is often the discovery of something that's been there all along-it just got lost somewhere and it needs to be picked up, dusted off, and reclaimed."
"Everybody has faith. Everyone is following someone."
"The person who says we are here by chance and that there is no greater meaning has just as many beliefs as the person who says there's a creator. Maybe even more."
"Existence is not limited to what we can see, touch, measure, taste, hear, and observe."
"Everybody follows somebody. All of us make decisions every day about what is important, how to treat people, and what to do with our lives. These decisions come from what we believe about every aspect of our existence. And we got our beliefs from somewhere. We have been formed, every one of us, by this complicated mix of people and places and things. Parents and teachers and artists and scientists and mentors-we are each taking these influences and living our lives according to which teachings we have made our own. Some insist that they aren't influenced by any person or any religion, that they think for themselves. And that's an honorable perspective. The problem is they got that perspective from...somebody. They're following somebody even if they insist it is themselves they are following. Everybody is following somebody. Everybody has faith in something and somebody. We are all believers."
"Jesus exposes us to reality at its rawest. So the way of Jesus is not about religion; it's about reality."
"This is something people have struggled with since the beginning: how to talk about God when God is bigger than our words, our brains, our worldviews, and our imaginations."
"God has no thingness because there's no end to God."
"The first Christians announced this way of Jesus as "the good news". That tells me the invitation is for everybody."
"Jesus invites everybody to jump. And saying yes to the invitation doesn't mean we have to have it all figured out. This is an important thing to remember : I can jump and still have questions and doubts."
"So the invitation to jump is an invitation to follow Jesus with all of our doubts and questions right there with us."
"Questions, no matter how shocking or blasphemous or arrogant or ignorant or raw, are rooted in humility. A humility that understands that I am not God. And there is more to know."
"Central to the Christian experience is the art of questioning God. Not belligerent, arrogant, questions that have no respect for our maker, but naked, honest, vulnerable, raw questions, arising out of the awe that comes from engaging the living God."
"I did not ask for success, I asked for wonder." -Abraham Joshua Heschel
"When everything gets answered, it's fake. The mystery is the truth." -Sean Penn
"If you study the Bible and it doesn't lead you to wonder and awe, then you haven't studied the Bible."
"Being a Christian is more about celebrating mystery than conquering it."
"With God being so massive and awe-inspiring and full of truth, why is his book capable of so much confusion?"
"The Bible is open-ended. It has to be interpreted. And if it isn't interpreted, then it can't be put into action. So if we are serious about following God, then we have to interpret the Bible. It is not possible to simply do what the Bible says. We must first make decisions about what it means at this time, in this place, for these people."
"God has spoken, and everything else is commentary."
"Everybody thinks their opinion is the right one. If they didn't, they'd get a new one." -Anne Lamott
"The Bible meets us where we are."
"The Bible tells a story. A story that isn't over. A story that is still being told. A story that we have a part to play in."
Alright, that's just from the first 2 movements of the 7 in the book. I'll post movements 3-4 soon! Let me know which ones are your favorites, which you agree or maybe disagree with, which challenge you. :]
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