Product Description

After many years as a successful pastor, Brian McLaren has found, as more and more Christians are finding, that none of the current strains of Christianity fully describes his own faith. In The Story We Find Ourselves In –– the much anticipated sequel to his award–winning book A New Kind of Christian–– McLaren captures a new spirit of a relevant Christianity, where traditional divisions and doctrinal differences give way to a focus on God and the story of God′s love for this world. If you are searching for a deeper life with God–– one that moves beyond the rhetoric of denominational and theological categories–– this delightful and inspiring fictional tale will provide a picture of what it could mean to recapture a joyful spiritual life.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #40947 in Books
• Published on: 2008-05-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 336 pages

From the Inside Flap
After many years as a successful pastor, Brian McLaren has found, as more and more Christians are finding, that none of the current strains of Christianity fully describes his own faith. In The Story We Find Ourselves In — the much anticipated sequel to his award–winning book A New Kind of Christian— McLaren captures a new spirit of a relevant Christianity, where traditional divisions and doctrinal differences give way to a focus on God and the story of God′s love for this world. If you are searching for a deeper life with God— one that moves beyond the rhetoric of denominational and theological categories— this delightful and inspiring fictional tale will provide a picture of what it could mean to recapture a joyful spiritual life.

Brian McLaren′s witty and wise characters take on difficult, faith–busting themes, from evolution and evangelism to death, and the meaning of life— and reveal that the answers to life′s pressing spiritual questions often come from the most unlikely sources. Dan and Neo (and some new characters as well) invite reflection on the story we find ourselves in— that is, the narrative of God′s presence and meaning in the world now and in the future. In doing so they encourage each of us to live as a new kind of Christian. The Story We Find Ourselves In ultimately provides inspiration for revitalizing Christian spiritual life and offers Christians everywhere a new story of their faith′s relevance in today′s world.

From the Back Cover
The Story We Find Ourselves In

Book Two in The New Kind of Christian Trilogy

The Story We Find Ourselves In is the sequel to Brian McLaren′s award–winning book A New Kind of Christian. His witty and wise characters take on difficult, faith–busting themes, from evolution and evangelism to death and the meaning of life—and reveal that the answers to life′s pressing spiritual questions often come from the most unlikely sources. Dan and Neo (and some new characters as well) invite reflection on the story we find ourselves in—that is, the narrative of God′s presence and meaning in the world now and in the future.

"McLaren′s narrative is bonfire faith: a warm, spacious history of God where wonder and logic dance freely together. Superb."
—Sally Morganthaler, founder, Sacramentis.com

About the Author
Brian D. McLaren is a speaker, author, activist, and networker exploring the intersection of Christian faith and contemporary life. He has written or co–written over a dozen books, including A Generous Orthodoxy, The Secret Message of Jesus, and Everything Must Change. For twenty–four years, he served as the founding pastor of Cedar Ridge Community Church in the Washington–Baltimore area. He was named by Time magazine as one of America′s twenty–five most influential Evangelicals. He is a founding member of emergentvillage.com. See www.brianmclaren.net.

About Leadership Network
The mission of Leadership Network is to identify and connect innovative church leaders and provide them with resources in the form of new ideas, people, and tools. Contact Leadership Network at www.leadnet.org.

Customer Reviews

This book is amazing!!!
Honestly this book has been sooo liberating for me.

No longer does post-modernity have to be considered an enemy of christianity (as it often has been seen by a church stuck in its modern ways). Rather, it is a culture with good points and bad points just like any other.

If you love Jesus, yet you sometimes find yourself identifying more with those around you than with those in the church, then this book is for you.

Or if you are just intrigued by him or some ideas of christianity, yet don't like the idea of a controlling, irrelevant religion then this is for you too.

It is written as a narrative rather than a textbook, so is very easy to read. The downside of this (and, perhaps, of its American audience) is that it has moments of cheesiness that you will need to forgive. But look beyond this and you will find a tale that may resonate with something deep within you.

WARNING: This book is not for everyone. If, for example, you think that evolution and christianity are inherently opposed then you will probably not like it.

Stories about the Story?
Dan & Neo from ‘A New Kind of Christian’, together with a couple of new characters, explore and expound the story we find ourselves in—the great story of life, the universe & everything. According to Neo there are seven main episodes: Creation, Crisis (the fall, sin & disobedience), Calling (of Abraham & Jews), Conversation (with priests, prophets, poets & philosophers), Christ, Community (of the church) and Consummation.
The book tends towards a kind of universalism or justification by works in its final stages but has many striking insights and offers a way of inviting people to make sense of their own lives by seeing them as part of this greater story.
Like "A New Kind of Christian" it is easy to read and offers much food for thought. Some postmodernists, like Lyotard, would say that no metanarrative is possible any more but McLaren makes a good case for saying that this one is compelling enough for people to intuitively accept it.
Richard Seel.

Worth Reading
If you are struggling with the contradictions between traditional Christianity and living in the modern world this could be the book for you, whether you see yourself as a Christian, someone who is looking for faith or from a more anthropoligical persepective. The downside to the book is that in trying to weld the theology to a fictional storyline it can feel rather slow going at times.