The Dream of God: A Call to Return

by Verna J. Dozier

"The Dream of God is a small masterpiece. . . . Her vision of the Bible is insightful and persuasive, her writing accessible and powerful." -- Marcus Borg

"This contemporary prophet has touched lives and transformed hearts through her books and talks. Many centuries before Verna Dozier, there was Amos, from the country, speaking out in the market square against the corrupt practices of merchants who 'sell the righteous for silver and the needy for a pair of shoes.' In this century we have Dozier, a black female, spreading God's word in the nation's capital, across the country, and outside its borders." -- Washington Diocese

Again and again the Christian church has fallen away from the dream God has for it, a dream in which we are called to follow Jesus and not merely to worship him. Through adept storytelling and Bible study, Dozier reawakens our sense of calling and our desire for truth.

Genres: Religion, Nonfiction, Christian, Theology, Spirituality, Christianity, Book Club

114 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1991

Reviews

[d. phelps · Rating 3 out of 5]

Verna J. Dozier is a candid, intellectual religious working to bring a community of divided Christians together around one central idea: that the dream of God is not that Christians worship the teacher known as Jesus of Nazareth, but that they embody his teachings—do what he did.

She writes, "The important question to ask is not, 'What do you believe?' but 'What difference does it make that you believe.' Does the world come nearer to the dream of God because of what you believe?"

She refutes what some might call fundamentalist, literal, or traditional interpretations of the Biblical message throughout her writing, challenging readers to consider what these historical texts mean, neither as facts nor as edicts of right and wrong, but within their “continuing lives....” She is political, calling Christians “to challenge the systems that cause people to be hungry [or disempowered] in a land of plenty.”

Ms. Dozier’s writing is thick with Biblical reference and inference. She consistently quotes the work of other scholars, arguing or supporting their points as the case may be. In other words, this is not an easy, light read, nor is it inspirational meditation, but instead it is a heady book for study, one to digest in small sections over time.

I do not recommend this book to the spiritual seeker: someone hunting the Great Mystery. I do not recommend this book to those wanting to mature childhood Christian beliefs, nor to those whose early brushes with religion have been thwarted by unfortunate disappointment or abuse.

But if you are reader looking for ammunition to dismantle beliefs you find may not be working to lift you, one who needs help understanding why Christian dogma ruled by an ineffective hierarchy makes you squirm, or one who can no longer accept teaching based on stale, literal interpretations of the Bible, this book may prove to be a marker on the journey to new understanding.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was available on Kindle Unlimited and I downloaded it without knowing anything about the author. She was an African American school teacher and lay theologian who was big in the Episcopal church, especially in the 1980s. This book is a critique of the way institutionalization in the church has been destructive to 'the dream of God' even as the institution of the church has preserved the witness to the dream of God (which is the kingdom of God). Dozier discerns three falls. (1)the Genesis 3fall of Adam and Eve where humanity decided to try their hand at being God, (2)the rejection of God as King, to have a king like the other nations in 1 Samuel, (3)and the accommodation of Empire with the ascendancy of Constantine.

Certainly, a critique on the institution of the church can be overstated, but the fact that she does this within the Episcopal church tells me that Dozier's critique on the church institutional carries some nuance. She isn't exactly advocating for a 'burn it all down' approach to Church, but she does chasten it, and calls us back to the prophetic counter cultural witness of the dream of God.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book about how Christians have become too focused on worshipping the triumphant Christ and not focused enough on heeding thencall to service by Jesus. We read it for our EfM class- the best book since Jesus and the Disinherited.

[Janet Mahlum · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this as part of the EfM study and found it to be the best of what we have read so far. In clear, easy-to-understand language, yet not "dummied down", Dr. Dozier carefully explains what Jesus meant by "the Kingdom of God," our responsibility, the church's responsibility. In Chapter 2 she carefully goes through the Biblical story from Genesis to John. There are so many gems in this book it is impossible to list them all here. But here are a few: "We are a part of God's dream of a good creation, and we are to use our freedom [free will] to do God's will. That is the Biblical understanding of creation." "We have missed the meaning of what it is to be created in the image of God. It has nothing to do with looking like God. It has to do with God's freedom." "The Biblical story is that God then entered history to show the world in Jesus the Christ the glory and the promise - the cost and the reward- of life lived in absolute allegiance to a way that is not the world's way." There are so many quotes that can be pulled from this book and used in small group discussion groups. I am just sorry we have to spend so much time on TR that we can't discuss more of the book. I would highly recommend this book to clergy, laity, seekers, students, anyone interested in learning more about God's dream.

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

Verna Dozier is a prophet of our times. This book is a must read for those seeking to be Servant Leaders and those who want to expand their notions of God.

[Sophfronia Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm writing a foreword for an upcoming reprint of this visionary book. More soon.

[Jim Rowley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, I found this book to be provocative, personally challenging and about issues I honor. For the most part, it is written with conviction and energy and also motivated me accordingly.

The thesis that Christians have vacated the high ground of their ministry by delegating power and authority to the institutional church and its officials is spot on. The resultant abdication of responsibility by the “laity” is equally blamed. Again, we’ve missed the point of God’s Covenant with us.

Only two criticisms, although they aren’t insignificant.

First, her peace and justice hermeneutics are so strong that there doesn’t seem to be much room for a widened perspective. It was oppressive at times.

Second, she makes a brilliant point of seeing the “paradox” in so many things and what a challenge that is. Regrettably she sometimes doesn’t see it when it might get in the way of a point she wishes to make

All in all, a wonderful use of my time. I wish I had the opportunity to discuss this with the deceased Ms. Dozier. Oh well...

[John Warner · Rating 5 out of 5]

The primary premise in this nonfiction book is that the institutional church has emphasized the worship of Jesus at the expense of his call to serve others in a heralding of the kingdom of God on earth. This message brought to mind Marcus Borg's concept of a pre-Easter Jesus and post-Easter Christ. The weight of her message belies the shortness of the book. There is much to think about in its 114 pages.

[John Lustrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nicely brief book detailing the ways the church has failed to live up to the dream of God. The author eloquently discusses the power of freedom offered to the human race and how the institutional church served to limit the dream of God. It’s a beautiful call to Christians everywhere to critically think how their beliefs impact their lives.

[Troy Rosamond · Rating 5 out of 5]

My impression upon finishing: "I love this book more than any book I've loved before"

My impressions after reading only the first section (which takes up all of 4 1/2 pages):

a) "This book speaks to me"
b) "This book beats around the bush of truth unlike anything has ever beaten around the bush of truth before"
c) "Some books you can read nearly whole - i.e. the last one on Christian morality - and still have to 'generate' meaningful discussion. On this one, we could fill a class period of deep debate from just the first four and a half pages."

After reading all but the last chapter, I was moved to say:

"I wholeheartedly stand by what I said in my first impressions:
'This book speaks to me!' and the thing about truth too!"

Furthermore, my impression now is that, even if all I received from my four-year participation in efm was the privilege to have read this book, then I've gotten well more than my money's worth! And you can value all of my time involved over that four years with maximum Mammon hyperbole. I've still gotten well more than my money's worth! I feel as if I've gotten riches beyond riches beyond imagination of riches. i.e. I'm a little fired up!

[Dexter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful read and game changer

Well written an persuasive argument that we drop our allegiances to institutions and try to fulfill the dream of God. What is the dream of God? That we, made in his own image, and given free will would choose to love Him and one another, as he loves us. As Christ have shown us, it is an awesome task and our fear of fulfilling “the Dream” drives us to hide behind the dogmas and rituals of the institutional Church, rather than drop these robes and be true followers, disciples, of Christ.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Verna Dozier was like John the Baptist coming out of the wilderness. She challenged the organized church and called it out for its betrayal of Jesus's revolution. She also was a brilliant theologian and teacher. She chided the church's raising up of clergy over the laity. Jesus washed the disciples' feet and contended that they were to take up his work, as servants not leaders.

This book is a great introduction to her thoughts and her interpretations of the Bible. Highly recommended.

[Peter Dunn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book about what God has called us to be and do - contrary to what conventional institutions may have led us to believe. It gave me a whole new perspective on my faith and the role of the institutional church in my life.

[Rich Colvin · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books I've read

This book helped me clarify my beliefs better than any I've read. A really worthwhile read if you are prepared to challenge your thinking.

[Adafrog · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the best book I've read in EfM this year, and most of my group agreed. Well done, easy to read, understandable, great ideas. Love Verna.

[Eileen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great critique of the institutional church. Good review of what the NT tells us about diversity of thought in the early church. Hopeful vision for the future of Christianity in the 21st century.

[Shalyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me by a person who teaches "spiritual formation" in an Episcopal church. I'm not as impressed with it as she was (I'm also not Episcopalian).

My initial reaction was a dislike of the author's writing style. She seems to ramble on in places, then focus on a marginally related point for a few paragraphs, then ramble on some more, then actually address the thesis of her book, which is God's "dream" (which might be better described as God's plan or hope) for humanity and how we've failed him, and then she goes on to ramble some more. The book is based on transcripts of a series of lectures the author gave that were later edited to be read together as this book, and perhaps that is why the text seems to ramble so much -- people are more likely to ramble when they talk. Perhaps hearing and seeing her speak rather than reading these words would make them feel more cohesive because you would get vocal inflection and body language in the presentation. As it is, this may be a short book, but it is not a quick read because of the time it takes to figure out how all the pieces of her message fit together.

Her point seems to be that people should choose God in every circumstance (she gives three historical examples of our failure to do so). She advocates for people to follow Jesus by acting as he did rather than worship him; she also draws a distinction between what she calls "Jesus of the Bible" and "Christ of Christianity," the former being a man and the latter being deity, ultimately stating that Jesus is not God (her exact words). She seems upset or maybe disappointed that the "institutionalization of the church," allows people to somewhat passively live a Christian life, believing they are Christians living out God's will for them, by merely attending church or occasionally participating in the church's activities or causes, which is to say people have abdicated their responsibility to do the work Jesus did (i.e. follow Jesus) by letting church leaders do the work and just merely supporting that work. It's worth noting, however, that she also acknowledges that this "institutionalization" she seem to dislike so much was inevitable and actually necessary so that groups of believers wouldn't "go rogue" in the exercise of the faith.

As a side note, I found the descriptions of the author and her contributions to "the church" printed on the back of the book self-aggrandizing and thus off-putting. Maybe she is (or was) a big deal in the Episcopalian Church, but she did not "single-handedly revive the study of the Bible" and if she is "known all over the county and overseas" it must be within limited communities (like only within Episcopalian churches?). Having grown up in the Christian faith in both denominational and nondenominational churches, I'd never heard of her; I've since asked several people - clergy, laity, and everyday church goers - about this book and her, and no one has heard of this person or this book except the one person who recommended it to me.

I'm giving it two stars because I can appreciate her message and intent to the extent that she hopes to inspire people to do the work that Jesus did (although sometimes her intent seems to be to shame people into doing the work Jesus did), but the rest of her message, in my opinion, is either misplaced or incoherent due to the rambling. I just can't help but think that there are better books out there to inspire people to live a life like Jesus lived.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a solid, but dense book on the history of the church and how people of faith have missed the mark on participating in "The Dream of God". I read this for a church book club and it was certainly not as popular and well-received as our previous book about snake handling! That is certainly because this is a compactly written, heavily theological book about the history of salvation. The book originated as lectures, and perhaps that would have been a better way to receive this material.

That being said, Verna Dozier makes a coherent argument that ties together not only the history of Judaism, but also Christianity and the modern church. While I am not sure that I agreed with everything that she had to say, her argument is coherent and forceful. I do wonder if she may have drifted into some heretical ideas along the way. I also found myself simply disagreeing with her one some points.

However, this is a good book to read as modern Christians see the diminution of the church in the culture and wonder what can be done. She encourages us to get back to our roots of following Jesus and walking in his footsteps as opposed to being maintainers of the church as an institution. That point is correct and also very inspiring. If you are looking for an intellectually challenging book that also inspires, "The Dream of God" is perfect for that.

[Ned Leonard · Rating 5 out of 5]

The church staff on which I serve part-time read this together, a chapter each week from mid-October through mid-November, 2020. It is provocative and informative.

Dozier's prophetic premise is -- paraphrasing Dante -- the greatest gift God gives humans is our free will and our greatest gift, in return, is to surrender our will to God; that is the essence of God's dream.

Christians are called to follow Jesus's example, rather than worship Him via an institutional structure (the Church) that He did not set out to create.

We are to practice ministry in the context of our daily lives, returning on the Sabbath to"those resting places where the story is treasured and passed on in liturgy and education." God's dream is of a Church that serves "as an island of refuge where the wounded find healing; the confused, light; the fearful, courage; the lonely, community; the alienated, acceptance; the strong, gratitude." As she concludes, "Maintaining such institutions is the ministry of the clergy." How're we doing?

[Gwendolyn B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clergy spanning the widespread spectrum of Christian denominations struggle with the question of how to convince the faithful to live Christ's teachings outside of their weekly one-hour session in the sanctuary. If they had and read and lived this book, they would know exactly what to tell their congregation. Dozier reminds us that "ministry" isn't a unique, untouchable niche for an educated hierarchy to hand down to the Rest of Us; on the contrary, ministry *is* the Rest of Us. Simply put, it is our call as Christians and must infiltrate our daily lives and big-picture vocations. Dozier takes this core idea and peppers it with quotable nuggets of wisdom, such as (p. 110): "Nothing scares us more than freedom. We are always afraid that freedom will degenerate into choice--as it often does--so to escape chaos we flee to authority, which means authoritarianism." (Ouch). Or from page 74: "Jesus did not call human beings to worship him, but to follow him." (Wow).

I will add my voice to the chorus of Education for Ministry students who found this book refreshing, thought-provoking, and often even uncomfortable in its scrutiny of the institutionalized church.

[Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is certainly one of the best books out there addressing the inherent failings of the institutional church. It is both very accessible and intentionally written for the laity who may not have a great depth of theological training to draw from; and also well researched and multifaceted to engage and challenge the entrenched ideology some clergy.
Dozier very neatly toes the line between a dense scholarly work and mass market pop-theology.

I really appreciate the way she drew the whole arch of scripture into her argument and made well reasoned and informed claims based of the stories of the Bible.

A really quality read for anyone who struggles with the dichotomy of Christ's teachings and the practice of the Church.

[Constance Chevalier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a book to read in one sitting, but one to read and think about a little at a time, and then highlight what "speaks" to you. Some interesting passages:
"I believe Christianity has journeyed far from what Jesus of Nazareth was about"(p. 3).
" The ancient Hebrew, during the time of their establishment as a nation among other nations, distorted the call by turning it into law. The Christians, during the time of their becoming a structure among other structures of the world, distorted the call by turning it into institution"(p. 5).
I learned of her work from Bishop Michael Curry's book, Love is the Way. She is known for her Bible teaching, conferences and working with lay groups.

[Maya Senen · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting examination of the failings of the church as an institution. Dozier outlines the fall of the people of God as a pattern- first in the story of Adam and Eve, second in the people of Israel choosing the kingdoms of this Earth over the kingdom of God, and then culminating with Constantine establishing the church institutionalized. She contends this institution is not actually following Jesus. While the content is compelling, I was hoping Dozier would have more solutions to offer, rather than pointing out and explaining problems

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

We read this beautiful book for EfM and I am just now getting to post about it. Busy, busy.

I love everything about this book.

We are called to follow Jesus, not just worship, but what does it look like to follow, especially in these modern times?

Here's what we were asked to do and I'd suggest you do the same if you are reading this book:
1. What is your favorite "gem" ( word, sentence, phrase- even paragraph ) in the book?
2. What do YOU think is the thing that has destroyed God's Dream?

[Jean Marie Angelo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Verna Dozier was a D.C. school teacher and administrator who became a lay preacher and a theologian the Episcopal Church. I received so much from this book and I will be visiting her other works. Lovely and thought-provoking ideas in a slim but powerful volume. She was an educator and it shows. Ideas and distinctions between following Jesus of Nazareth and worshiping God it was has become the organized, institutional church. I want my worship to be informed by following Jesus. I thank her for this.

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will never ever tire of reading theologians who offer a revolutionary perspective on the institution of the church at large. Verna Dozier is a black woman and offers an even more nuanced perspective from her Baptist upbringing and her life as a teacher and now an Episcopalian priest all while still of course being a black woman. She offers a well developed alternative to the “literalist” reading of the Bible and a call to the laity going so far as so call St Paul’s idea to separate the clergy and the laity a sin. (!) she’s just an all around badass. Highly recommend!

[Joanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Creating the Kingdom of God

Ms Dozier gives us a lot to think about. Who is God, and what does He dream for us, his beloved creations? How do we create that world ? While structure is necessary for a religion to exist across time and space, how do we keep the institution of the church true to God's dream? What role should be played by clergy vs. laity? How can we build the Kingdom of God?
I thoroughly enjoyed reading the author's thoughts on this and have captured some ideas to explore more deeply on my own.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a little gem. Dozier is a Black woman who taught Shakespeare in the Washington, DC public schools and also became an influential lay educator/thinker/theologian in the Episcopal Church. This book is her critique of the institutional church. She challenges us to think of the Bible as a book of questions rather than answers. We should think of these questions not as "Which is right? but rather "What does it mean?" "What did it mean for them? and "What does it mean for us?" Dozier believes that Jesus has been lost in the institutional church: "Jesus of Nazareth is to be followed; the Christ of the church is to be worshiped." She says the important question to ask is not: "What do you believe?" but "what difference does it make that you believe?" "Does the world come nearer to the dream of God because of what you believe." A friend recently sent me this quote from Maya Angelou which I think Dozier would agree with: "When you do nothing you feel overwhelmed and powerless. But when you get involved you feel the sense of hope and accomplishment that comes from knowing you are working to make things better."











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[John Czapko · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book as a Lent study. Do you worship Christ or do you follow Christ? The premise of Ms. Dozier’s book is there is more to just belonging to a church, we are the church, the “living, breathing, questioning entity seeking to live into the dream of God”, as quoted in the forward by Sophfronia Scott. She goes on to state Individuals too often defer to clergy and established church authority, an authority that is often guided by today’s and yesterday’s social norms. Take charge of your authority, your baptism, and create your own ministry modeling God’s grace.

[Dottie Woodard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found my questions AND some answers.

This book spoke to me on so many levels. The author discussed questions I have had for most of my adult life. Providing historical and social context brought a better understanding of where we've been and how we came to where we are now. It has also spurred me to expand my Christian life to step into some type of ministry. That is my goal. Thank you, Verna Dozier!