The Rebirthing of God

I recently came acrost the Celtic scholar John Philip Newell. I'm reading through the first chapter of his book, The Rebirthing of God: Christianity's Struggle for New Beginnings. Much of his work at first glance may be dismissed by the more evangelical tribes, but I would encourage people to look past the surface. Newell offers great insight into the nature of our spiritual life and gives us much to think about.

In chapter 1, Reconnecting with the Earth, Newell reminds us that we have been made in the image and likeness of God. I think the gravity of this truth from Gen. 1:26 gets lost in the fallacy that man is inherently evil and our obsession over man's sin nature. The first glimpse we get of humanity is the Trinity expressing their desire to create man like themselves, with the capacity to love, to give, and to receive. Newell says, "Everything else written about us in our scriptural inheritance needs to be read in light of this foundation truth: that within us is the likeness of the One from whom we have come." How would a greater awareness of this truth change our approach to the Bible, to worship, to teaching and learning what it means to be a disciple of Christ, and a spiritual being created in his image?

Norwell quotes Julian Norwich who says, "We are made of the Light that was in the beginning. We are made of the Wisdom that fashioned the universe in its glory of interrelatedness." As Rob Bell says, "Everything is spiritual" Everything is connected and related to our reason for being. Every decision to give of ourselves, to love, and to reflect the image of Christ will connect us together in God's purpose for humanity and all of creation.


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