Christianity for the Lazy, January 24, 2005

This book and the home study sessions now being touted by many churches is a bunch of bunk. Mr. Warren has written NOTHING NEW here! All he has done is ripped off the work of others before him and dummied it up. As I went through this 40 days with some friends 2 Catholics, 4 Lutherans, 3 Episcopalians (The local Lutheran Church was the sponsor). I was bored to tears!!!!! We are reading along and I stated that this sounds like Brother Lawrence in "The Practice of the Presence of God". Well in the next chapter Mr. Warren finally gives credit to Bro. Lawrence after having used his work repeatedly. As we continue through the book I find myself saying that this is nothing more than what has been said before by St. John of the Cross or St. Teresa of Avila and their books are a whole lot more interesting translated from the "Old Spanish".
Do yourself a favor do not try to cram zero to spiritual in 40 days! The walk is never-ending!!! Read the Complete Works of St. Teresa (it is a 3 volume set) and "Dark Night of the Soul" by St. John of the Cross. You will be better off!

Please DO NOT BUY the Purpose-Driven Life! It sucks!, December 29, 2004

I own this book. It is awful. He misquotes the Bible, and promotes the "Just believe and be saved" LIE of the denominations. Why doesn't he just tell people the truth? Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the Name of Jesus Christ, and you will be saved. Acts 2:38
NOT just believe. Get baptized, Rick Warren! Get real salvation!

Modernistic, New-Agey claptrap, December 28, 2004

Okay, in all honesty, there are a few good points made, but too many important facts are missing, and Pastor Warren seems to utilize some questionable methods. First, there is really NO real covering of the issue of "How to Get Saved"-without that first being established, the rest is useless self-righteousness, which are as filthy rags in the eyes of God. Also, in Chapter 11, it is suggested to use "breath prayers", short words or phrases, repeated over and over again, to "practice the presence of God". That's identical to the vain repetitions used by various eastern cults when in meditation, and very similar to the positive affirmations used in pop-psychology and the New Age. Then, there is the issue of accepting worldliness and disposing of biblical, Christian separation from apostates, along with more, ad nauseum, all adds up to a pretty poor excuse for a Christian book. I recommend trying some good "Sword of the Lord" literature, instead. Or just, uh, the Bible?

My Purpose is in Christ and Him Crucified, December 22, 2004

I do not recommend this book but if you choose to read it then read it with a King James Version Bible and not the Message paraphrase because this really distorts Scripture. The Christian's purpose can easily be found in the Holy Bible. This book is not much into the meat of God's word it is a works driven and based book. If I read this book as a non-Christian I would be given the impression that doing good works in the right frame of mind would be enough to get me to Heaven. That associating myself with a church will get me to Heaven. But this is not true. The line is blurred between the Christian (faith in Christ and Him crucified) and the non-Christian. Simply filling my life with good works and happy people won't get me to heaven. ONLY faith in Christ and Him Crucified will do that. Rick Warren is wrong in saying that a Christian is defined by his church or the group he associates with. The group did not save my soul neither did the church. Faith in Christ alone saved my soul! As a Christian this book is an offence to me. The quotes of atheists and new age leaders is disgusting. There are ample Christian examples of faith and changed lives in our Christian history and in the Holy Bible without the need to quote from non-Christian philosophers. Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? 2 Cor 6:14. People say this book changed their lives...being reminded to put someone else first, that there is more to life than yourself is a good but it's taken too far in this book. I am not a Christian because of my good works but because of the mercy and grace of God making a way by His Son Jesus who died on the Cross for Me. As a Christian I will do good things because Christ is in me - but my works will not save me and they will not define me. There are plenty of non-Christians and non-faith people who do-good works but their works do not make them a born again believer in Christ. You want your purpose than read the KJV Bible and ask God to fill you with what He wants in your life. It's easier than you think to get an answer from God - faith in Christ!

Beware of Hucksters Selling Easy Answers, November 30, 2004

This book gave me a purpose -- to tear down false idols like this author and his snake oil religious salesmanship.
The book claims that there are "five purposes for our lives" which are "clearly revealed" by the Bible. They are (1) You were planned for God's pleasure, (2) You were formed for God's family, (3) You were created to become like Christ, (4) You were shaped for serving God, and (5) You were made for a Mission. These purposes seem somewhat repetitive to me, but the author apparently thinks they are complex. In his introduction, entitled "A Journey with Purpose: Getting the Most from this Book", he advises that we also purchase two additional items, the Purpose Driven Life Scripture Keeper Plus and The Purpose Driven Life Journal, to aid us in our spiritual journey. What, I wonder, is a Scripture Keeper Plus? The new and improved version of the Scripture Keeper, standard model? Is this a book or an advertisement?

Once you get past the author plugging his "purpose driven" paraphernalia, you will notice that he cherry-picks the Bible for quotes that will "prove" his personal viewpoints, even if the Bible's actual meaning is quite different from what he is saying. For example, in Chapter 1 the author goes to great pains to state that his book is not a "self-help" book. He then writes: 'The Bible says, "Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self."' Huh? The Bible predicted and dissed the contemporary self-help genre 2,000 years ago? According to the book's endnotes, that quote of Jesus putting down self-help literature is from Matthew 16:25.

The King James version of Matthew 16:25 is as follows: "For whosoever shall save his life shall lose it: and whosever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." Reasonable minds can differ on what that passage means, but it clearly was not aimed at the self-help industry of late 20th and early 21st centuries.
The author continues his biblical borrowings in Chapter 1 by saying that "God has not left us in the dark to wonder and guess" about the meaning and purpose of existence. He has given us the Bible, our "Owner's Manual" of life. To "prove" his point, he quotes, no surprise, the Bible itself: "God's wisdom . . . goes deep into the interior of his purposes. . . . It's not the latest message, but more like the oldest -- what God determined as the way to bring out the best in us." According to the endnotes, that quote is from 1 Corinthians 2:7.
      The King James version of 1 Corinthians 2:7 is as follows: "But we speak of God in mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory." Again, reasonable minds can differ on what that passage means exactly, but it is distinctly speaking of the presence of deep mystery and hidden wisdom in this world God created. The passage serves as a timely warning to be wary of snake oil salesmen like Rick Warren, who promise to reveal the mystery and hidden wisdom of God in a five-step process.
      The book is divided into 40 chapters, and the author advises us to read and digest one chapter each day. The chapters tend to follow the pattern described above, where the author makes an unprovable philosophical statement and then cherry-picks a biblical quote to "prove" his point.
      Some of his points are blatantly unscientific, such as some ramblings in Chapter 2 to the effect that the universe is the result of intelligent design rather than any sort of evolution. In this chapter he also makes bizarre and philosophically unsound statements such as "There would be no right or wrong, and no hope beyond your brief years here on earth" without God. There are all sorts of demonstrated ethical and philosophical frameworks that give great thought to right and wrong without taking God into account. One such framework is the United States Constitution and the laws it has generated. Rick Warren and I and our friends, families and countrymen have derived great benefit from this secular framework of right and wrong. As far as there being no hope beyond our brief years here on earth without God, our children and grandchildren provide hope and reason for acting ethically and morally with regard to future generations. God can be a wonderful force in our lives, but atheists, agnostics and other non-believers can love their children and the world around them, and can know right from wrong, as well as anyone else.

Some of the author's points are worthwhile . Examples are his Day 3 teachings regarding simplicity and anti-materialism, his Day 7 admonitions to be Christ-like, and his Day 8 material about hypocritical worship. But given his shameless attempts to sell his various "purpose driven" companion items, I question his ability to practice what he preaches.

If you are looking for purpose and meaning in life through Christianity, there are some wonderful books out there. My personal favorite is the Journal of George Fox. The books of Bishop John Shelby Spong are also extremely enlightening texts that provide readers with the opportunity to both learn Biblical history and to deepen your spiritual faith. I recommend avoiding authors like Rick Warren, who promise easy answers to questions that prophets and saints have wrestled with for generations.

I saw this book on the bestseller list and picked up a copy to read, the title seemed like applicable to any one, who does not want a purpose driven life anyway? After a few pages and watching a coincidental interview w/author on Larry King, I promptly returned it to the bookstore. I don't have any comments on devout Christians who find it useful but I am appalled at the self-righteousness and exclusivity that seems to pass off as 'Christian belief' - by the author among other people. Literal interpretation of scripture/religion is easy, compelling to do and elicits lots of people as followers as everyone wants the easy way out. But we are given thinking brains for a reason, that we balance faith with humility/acceptance and tolerance of all forms of living - be it Christian or pagan or any other form of faith. If you believe your purpose in life is through Christ's words then someone else has a right to say his/her life is meaningful, say, through Buddha, or even Martin Luther King, or Gandhi, or anyone. There is no evidence, spiritual or otherwise, that one is better than the other and we are all better off acknowledging that.

 The reasons for this book, November 8, 2004

This book and its success will tell you much about what's wrong with America and many Churches today. But it
will not help bring you closer to God. America is full of churches that have no purpose and are spiritually dead. But these same churches are experiencing huge growth and large numbers of new members. They are held out as models and praised.
Why is this? Because many so-called evangelicals have become more interested in getting people into the doors of Churches
than getting Christ into the hearts of people. And the leaders of the Church are as often as not playing politician or
businessmen while the people of the Church are neglected. That neglect leads to a need for a "simpler" and more
attractive Christianity to appeal to the ignorant and worldly.  So in comes Rick Warren with his new commandments. The new Christianity is much more attractive because it turns the Church into a sort of community "club" and entertainment
center. In the new purpose-driven Christianity, "sin" (an unpopular topic) is replaced by "loyalty" to worldly institutions.
Rather than confess sins and bow before God, the new Christians believe that they are above sin in many cases. Or (worse)
they see Grace as a license to sin without consequence. Sin is a problem for the people they hate outside their Church, not for them. Rick Warren gives these new Christians five new commandments (or purposes) all of which they can fulfill while leading an utterly sinful and amoral life. Its a Christianity of works over faith and of pride rather than confession of Sin. It’s a Christianity where bodies stacked in Churches means more than bringing people to God.  The true "purpose" in all of this is to turn our Churches away from God so that they are like stadiums, entertainment complexes, political halls, clubs and places where businessmen (like Warren) can sell products.

Self-aggrandized purposelessness is indeed 'driven', November 1, 2004

Self-aggrandized purposelessness is indeed subserviently 'driven'. Unfortunate for the author, he has managed to do more harm than just to himself and advocate simplicity and indulgence for vested interests. Be sorry and read this book, or spend the precious time and find some purposes elsewhere. The book talks with basic simplicity-prone prose and ignores the sociological implications of idealism. In the book, one doesn't find the awe of god but instead, the awe of mobs. A Gould's quote would give a good summary of such problem: "only two possible escapes can save us from the organized mayhem of our dark potentialities - the side that has given us crusades, witch hunts, enslavements, and holocausts. moral decency provides one necessary ingredient, but not nearly enough. the second foundation must come from the rational side of our mentality. for, unless we rigorously use human reason both to discover and acknowledge nature's factuality, and to follow the logical implications for efficacious human action that such knowledge entails, we will lose out to the frightening forces of irrationality, romanticism, uncompromising 'true' belief, and the apparent resulting inevitability of mob action. reason is not only a large part of our essence; reason is also our potential salvation from the vicious and precipitous mass action that rule by emotionalism always seems to entail. skepticism is the agent of reason against organized irrationalism - and is therefore one of the keys to human social and civic decency".

Scared people indeed write horrible books.

What about birth defects and AIDS babies? , October 20, 2004

Warren claims that there are no accidents, and that God plans every detail of every child. He does not even try to explain unpleasant things like severe birth defects or mental retardation. He also claims that God plans and designs everything in the world - again, he does not discuss how the bacteria that causes flesh rotting disease or the plague fits into God's plan. Or nasty animals like mosquitoes, or poisonous reptiles. This book is for people who don't know or care about science and medicine. He is the Christian fundamentalist version of Depak Chopra or Wayne Dyer. Where is Voltaire when we need him?

Purpose Driven Wallet, October 19, 2004

One must ask when reading this book. What does the Bible say? Look up his 16+ Translations used. That isn't a huge issue by itself. The fact that some are Catholic, etc... Mormons, Oneness Pentecostals and Jehovah's Witnesses also have used it too. I calculated about 60% of the time Warren uses the Message Paraphrase hardly an accurate translation. Does this affect Warren's book?

On Pg. 19 Warren quotes The Message
Matthew 16 (MSG)
25 Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self.

Compare to the NIV...
Matthew 16 (NIV)
25For whoever wants to save his life[1] will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.

And then says, "This is not a self-help book." See the difference and how it affects the book? Warren is also hostile to anyone disagreeing and disrupting unity. It’s the Unity above Principal. Christians are ALWAYS to speak against error. That does NOT preclude Dr. Warren.

I am no KJ Onlyist. But Warren plays fast and loose with the scriptures. He is openly hostile to traditional worship. CCM is fairly shallow as is Warren's book. I can't help but wonder where Sin is? One must understand their own sinfulness in order to understand WHY they need Christ. It’s not to make your life in this life better. The scriptures do not teach this Warren does.

Warren takes scripture after scripture out of context and seems to select translation on how well it follows his theory.

Warren's book is shallow at best and deceptive at worst. Read it but with a Bible handy. Hopefully something a bit more literal than the Message.

Warren is making money on this. You see Purpose Driven everything that should give one pause. As for loving Jesus you will love this book. I love Jesus, but I do not like this book. I only love one book in that level and that is the Holy Bible. I care not what translation you use. Be cautious in accepting whatever comes down the pike.

Those who are solid in the faith. Will find this book basic and glossing over various things. However, the unbeliever is not going to get a clear picture of Christianity. They are going to see it presented in a "What's in it for me." Mentality. I just don't see where this is edifying for anyone. It is theologically weak and wrong in several places.

The book starts out with its not about you. Then goes about telling you it’s all about you.

Unscriptural "Purpose", October 15, 2004

This book is not scripturally sound, as is especially evidenced by the fact that Rick Warren relies mainly on a paraphrased version of scripture to make his points, which is very different from what a literal translation states. In addition, most of his advice is based on human ideas instead of biblical wisdom and human ideas are generally wrong while God is always right.

It's a shame that so many Christians are gravitating toward this book looking for some magical “40-day" formula instead of seeking the truths found only in the scriptures. I cannot recommend this book under any circumstances.