IF GOD IS LOVE, DON'T BE a JERK: FINDING a FAITH THAT MAKES US BETTER (audiobook) by John Pavlovitz

 


Published by eChristian in November of 2021.
Read by the author, John Pavlovitz
Duration: 6 hours, 19 minutes
Unabridged.

John Pavlovitz is a minister who has done a lot of thinking about how Jesus told us to act and how formal "name brand" Christianity often acts to those that it deems as "less". We all know that thinking of people as "less" is not really a thing Christ endorses, but it is still an all too often sad reality.

Who are the less that have been in the news lately? Immigrants, LGTBQ people, Muslims...and more. 

Pavlovitz asks:

"If God is love and if you're emulating that God, then you should be loving. If you claim a religious worldview or have spiritual aspirations, those should yield more compassion, not less; more decency, not less; more generosity, not less. If not, what's the point of having them?"

Great question. What's the point?

I've had these thoughts more than once in the last 6 years, coinciding with the candidacy and presidency of the 45th President. If nothing else, he shook a lot of things loose. 

The author, John Pavlovitz
Pavlovitz doesn't really follow a mainstream religious tradition any longer. He boils it all down very simply - God calls us to love each other. He gave us a great example in the person of Jesus. Aspire to that. If your theology is in the way of you doing that, ditch the theology.

I don't agree with everything Pavlovitz talks about, but I found some parts extremely compelling. Specifically, I found myself in serious agreement with his chapter on prayer. 

I listened to this as an audiobook from my library so I was not able to take notes as well as I could have on paper. I have added this book to my wish list to get as a paper copy so I can mark it up and think about it harder later on.

I rate this audiobook 5 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: IF GOD IS LOVE, DON'T BE a JERK:  FINDING a FAITH THAT MAKES US BETTER by John Pavlovitz.

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