Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality
Book by Donald Miller
Preface
Blue Like Jazz was one of those books that sat on my shelf for a few years before I felt the urge to pick it up. But I ended up reading it at the right time, I believe. I finished this book right after college in my early twenties (2015-ish) and it remains one of my all-time favorite books.
This book is an intimate, thought provoking take on modern Christianity and the church. It’s about the author’s personal journey of his love and criticism for the religion.
The tone is very authentic, matter of fact, and respectful. With a little bit of humor. The author's note at the beginning of this book has been ingrained in my brain, and I often think about it randomly.
Author’s Note
"I never liked jazz music because jazz music doesn't resolve. But I was outside the Bagdad Theater in Portland one night when I saw a man playing the saxophone. I stood there for fifteen minutes, and he never opened his eyes.
After that I liked Jazz music. Sometimes you have to watch somebody love something before you can love it yourself. It is as if they are showing you the way. I used to not like God because God didn't resolve. But that was before any of this happened."
Quotes
My copy of Blue like Jazz is filled with sticky notes and underlined sentences. I will share two of them below.
Why would God want to call Himself Father when so many fathers abandon their children (p.4)
My most recent faith struggle is not one of intellect. I don’t really do that anymore. Sooner or later you just figure out there are some guys who don’t believe in God and they can prove He doesn’t exist, and some other guys who do believe in God and they can prove He does exist, and the argument stopped being about God a long time ago and now it’s about who is smarter, and honestly I don’t care. I don’t believe I will ever walk away from God for intellectual reasons. Who knows anything anyway? If I walk away from Him, and please pray that I never do, I will walk away for social reasons, identity reasons, deep emotional reasons, the same reasons that any of us do anything. (p.103)
My Takeaway
The book’s high relatability factor for me personally comes from growing up devoutly in the Christian faith and having my own journey of sorts questioning it, defining what it means for me — relearning what was presented to me from childhood, and ultimately keeping the good and leaving the bad out.
I’m now resting in a space where I’m comfortable not having any absolutes when it comes to my faith. In my personal opinion, arrogance and absoluteness are closely related.
I think there is wonder and humility in being curious, asking why, finding patterns between different faiths, and connecting the dots.
What I do know to be true within, is that there is divine presence in me and you.
Opmerkingen