PLATTSBURGH — The Plattsburgh United Methodist Church Fall Book Study examines “God After Deconstruction” by author Tom Oord, who will be joining the group on the last session.
“Many people have questioned traditional ways of understanding faith, spirituality and God,” the Rev. Phil Richards, pastor, said.
“People’s worldviews have changed, and they want an understanding of God, Jesus, the Spirit etc., to be consistent with 21st century ways of knowing. The rise of the ‘Nones’ shows that something is changing in Christianity.”
The Book Study will be held Monday afternoons at 12:15 p.m. or Monday Nights at 7 p.m. on ZOOM beginning on Sept. 16 and running through Nov. 18.
All are welcome. Sign up with Diane P.: luv2garden5@gmail.com
AUTHORS’ SYNOPSIS
“God After Deconstruction” is a guide for perplexed evangelical and fundamentalist Christians who seek a kinder, saner understanding and practice of the faith. Its authors themselves have “deconstructed” from supernaturalist, exclusivist, and triumphalist Christianity.
This book breaks down the causes of deconstruction: grappling with the problem of evil, abuse in the church, irreconcilable conundrums in the Bible, doctrinal absurdities, conflicts with science, conflation of the faith with reactionary politics, and the reality of religious diversity. One by one, the authors offer alternative theological constructs, all pointing back to God as amipotent rather than omnipotent.
Not only is it okay to let go of biblical literalism, Christian exclusivism, and absurd and toxic doctrines, it is also okay to let go of thinking and talking about God as a supreme person or entity. It’s a small step out of defunct doctrine, and a giant leap into a faith that embraces and nourishes the soul.
This book invites you to an alternative view of God after deconstruction. We will offer radically different – but we think radically helpful – ideas. We invite you to ponder God, science, sexuality, the Bible, community, gender, politics, knowledge, and more in healthier ways than you’ve been taught.
The ideas we offer may strike you as revolutionary. You may feel uncomfortable. But we think they make better sense than what most people have been traditionally told. and these ideas fit our lives better. We hope you try them on.
As the authors, we (Tom and Tripp) have our own deconstruction stories. We spent our youth in faith communities, and being Christian was our identity. Congregations and various Christian practices profoundly shaped our development. We read Christian books, listened to Christian music, went to Christian conferences, dated Christian girls, and were leaders in our churches.
Our lives revolved around what seemed obvious: God exists, Christianity must be true, and the Christian life is best. People who doubted any of these were just uninformed, idiots, or deceived. We were evangelists for the Truth!
But this certainty was not to last.