Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places: A Conversation in Spiritual Theology

Spiritual Theology #1

by Eugene H. Peterson

Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places reunites spirituality and theology in a cultural context where these two vital facets of Christian faith have been rent asunder. Lamenting the vacuous, often pagan nature of contemporary American spirituality, Eugene Peterson here firmly grounds spirituality once more in Trinitarian theology and offers a clear, practical statement of what it means to actually live out the Christian life.

Writing in the conversational style that he is well known for, Peterson boldly sweeps out the misunderstandings that clutter conversations on spiritual theology and refurnishes the subject only with what is essential. As Peterson shows, spiritual theology, in order to be at once biblical and meaningful, must remain sensitive to ordinary life, present the Christian gospel, follow the narrative of Scripture, and be rooted in the "fear of the Lord" -- in short, spiritual theology must be about God and not about us.

The foundational book in a five-volume series on spiritual theology emerging from Peterson's pen, Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places provides the conceptual and directional help we all need to live the Christian gospel well and maturely in the conditions that prevail in the church and world today.

Genres: Theology, Christian, Spirituality, Christianity, Nonfiction, Faith, Christian Living

380 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Eugene H. Peterson was a pastor, scholar, author, and poet. For many years he was James M. Houston Professor of Spiritual Theology at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia. He also served as founding pastor of Christ Our King Presbyterian Church in Bel Air, Maryland. He had written over thirty books, including Gold Medallion Book Award winner The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language a contemporary translation of the Bible. After retiring from full-time teaching, Eugene and his wife Jan lived in the Big Sky Country of rural Montana. He died in October 2018.

Reviews

[Michele Morin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Life, Life, and More Life

We picked raspberries a couple of weeks ago — the free kind that grow along the edges of fields and in the company of thistles. They were succulent. I could wrap words around a description of raspberry picking: the gentle encompassing pressure that releases a perfectly ripe berry from its stem; the empty white cone that is left behind on the bush; the scratches on hands and forearms; the sticky red fingertips that carry home the smell of summer and bee-buzzing sweetness. But — there is no literary technique, no class in horticulture that comes close to the essence of picking raspberries. For this, one must go into the bushes and experience life in the raspberry patch.

This is the nature of knowing God as well, for Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places, and to live from the heart what we know in our heads, we must go crashing into the bushes with the thistles, thorns, and mosquitoes. This is the message of this first volume (2003) of Eugene Peterson’s classic series of five conversations on spiritual theology. The term “spiritual theology” refers to “the specifically Christian attempt to address the lived experience revealed in our Holy Scriptures and the rich understandings and practices of our ancestors as we work this experience out in our contemporary world of diffused and unfocused ‘hunger and thirst for righteousness.'” (5)

Peterson borrows a theme from Gerard Manley Hopkins and expands upon it with engaging examples and sharp Scriptural observations that argue for this truth:

“The end of all Christian belief and obedience, witness and teaching, marriage and family, leisure and work life, preaching and pastoral work is the living of everything we know about God: life, life, and more life.” (1)
He goes on to support his argument through beautifully detailed exposition of three of those “ten thousand places” in which Christ plays and in which we all go about the business of living our days.

Christ Plays in Creation

Creation’s Firstborn invites believers into a life of wonder. The Greek word kerygma, a “public proclamation that brings what it proclaims into historical reality,” (53) frames the impact of His miraculous birth and sends readers looking to the two creation stories in Genesis 1 and 2 for help in shaping a Christ-following life. Firmly grounded in time and space, we find that the good news of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection are also gifts marked by the sacredness of creation. John’s Gospel affirms in “theological poetry” (87) that Jesus was indeed “at play” in the Genesis creation.

Christ Plays in History

As creation points our thoughts toward life, history outside the Garden of Eden has been characterized by a series of deaths. Even so kerygma — good news! — appears in the midst of the mess because the death of Jesus redeems the mess of history and takes the edge off the truth that one day death will come to each of us.

“This conjunction of death, Jesus’ and mine, is where I begin to understand and receive salvation.” (143)
Peterson takes his readers to Exodus as a grounding text, rich in the history of God’s people, but particularly in the action of a holy (and often wholly inexplicable) God. The Gospel of Mark also deals in history, for with his succinct and economical style, Mark pioneered a new genre in which Jesus is the subject, but the content — rather than focusing on the background, emotions, or internal dialogue of the main character — is all about salvation, the redemption of every part of history: the world’s and my own.

Christ Plays in Community

If the birth of Jesus and the creation of the world ground us in life; and if Jesus’ death has redeemed history from the stench of meaningless death; then the resurrection of Jesus is the basis for a life lived in community. “Jesus’ resurrection is the final kerygmatic ‘piece’ that, together with his birth and death, sets the good news, the gospel, in motion and creates the Christian life.” (230)

The spiritual formation that makes community possible is the work of the Spirit, and this is nowhere more clear than in Luke’s New Testament writing about the ministry of Christ and the early church with 17 references to the Holy Spirit in his Gospel and 57 in the book of Acts. In spite of persecution and imprisonment, Luke uses the word “unhindered” (akoluto) to describe Paul’s ministry under house arrest. This irony minimizes the obstacles and invites present-day believers, who are “constantly tempted to use the world’s means to do Jesus’ work,” (299) into the unhindered life of prayerful obedience, hospitality, and submission to the means and methods of kingdom living. Perfection is the enemy of community and love is the fuel, a I John 4:21-style love that “purg[es] [the] imagination of the barnacles, parasites, and grime that have accumulated around the word ‘love’ so that Jesus and the Jesus story becomes clear.” (328)

Eugene Peterson and Gerard Manley Hopkins harmonize in the challenge to seek Christ in creation, history, and community and in any of the ten thousand places in which He plays. Finding Christ in all of life is the single unifying experience that brings wholeness to our theology and moves us toward a faith that honors the risen Christ and puts His resurrection life on display.

//

This book was provided by William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company in exchange for my review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

[Joel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the most marked book I own. It is underlined, circled, bracketed with parentheses, exclamation marked, question marked, starred. Peterson engages me like I hadn't been engaged reading theology and I read a substantial amount of it. Compared to the writing skills of other theologians he is a poet. Not an easy read by any means, but one you may find that on the other side of it you're not quite the same. "Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places: A Conversation in Spiritual Theology" sits atop the three most influential books I've read in the last few years. Don't pick it up unless you mean it.

[Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderful book and I highly recommend it. I see that several reviewers have mentioned this isn't an easy book, and I might agree with them. However, I chose to listen to, rather than read, this book. The audio production of this work (much like the audio production of Eugene's The Message) is excellent and really helps with understanding what's being said. The phrasing of words and ideas can sometimes be communicated by voice more effectively than by written word.

The breadth of this book is wonderful. He explores dozens of themes in the story God is working out throughout history and our lives. You'll learn much and be better for having read this.

[Joe Terrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't read much Christian or religious nonfiction anymore. I find most of the "genre" to be warmed-over self-help backed by harmful "personal ancedote masquerading as objective truth" (my general rule of thumb is that you can just read the back cover or inside flap of most Christian nonfiction and come away with everything you need to know about the book).

However, I've made it a goal this year to read Eugene Peterson's five-volume "Conversations in Spiritual Theology" magnum opus. Following his death in 2018, Peterson - most known for his work on The Message Bible translation - is seeing a bit of resurgence in popularity as people rediscover his work. Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places is the first volume of his "Conversations in Spiritual Theology" and serves as the cornerstone entry.

Let's get this out of way: Eugene Peterson is an absolutely magnificent writer. Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places is a wellspring of rich, nuanced, and beautiful prose. With Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places, Peterson's goal is to force you to slow down and appreciate this richness of life.

Divided into three major parts, Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places explores how Jesus meets us in Creation (place), History (time), and Community (church). Each section uses an Old and New Testament reading to make Peterson's point, followed by an extended application. Peterson is so good at drawing literary and structural parrallels between the Biblical passages he highlights, and he frequently contrasts "spiritual theology" with the consumeristic North American Christian "enterprise" (it's no wonder people are rediscovering his work in this age of disenchantment and disillusionment).

Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places is a lot of things - it's a whirlwind tour of the Biblical narrative, a cultural critique, a practical guide to Christian living, and a loving rejoinder to hard-edged and self-important "systematic theologians." But, most of all, it's an invitation to a slower paced and more beauty-oriented approach to living gratefully in a broken world.

At times, it does feel a bit long-winded and it probably could've used some tighter editing (if I'm not mistaken, this is the longest volume in "Conversations in Spiritual Theology"), but overall it's now wonder that Eugene Peterson is now being spoken about in the same reverence and affection typically afforded to the likes of C.S. Lewis and Dallas Willard.

[Justin Lonas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I never used to like devotional writing, but being in seminary threatens to take Bible study too far into the academic realm and more or less forces you to OD on theology. Hence, I find I need some periodic grounding in lived faith. This series is quite good, and motivates prayer and action.

[Seth · Rating 4 out of 5]

A grand book.

If you've read my reviews in the past, you know I'm a "short chapters guy." I read more efficiently when I feel I'm making progress (just my jam).

That said, this book is 330 pages long and only three chapters. Granted, there are subheadings and stopping points but it's still only three chapters.

This is a book I feel like I could come back to and dig a little deeper in. If you've read any of Eugene's books, you know he's a fan (and master) of words/images. He will explain a singular idea four different ways. Sometimes, I like that. Sometimes, I don't.

This book goes through the narrative of creation, history, and community. He expounds on each in the threads of what they look like concerning God, the threats that accompany them, and biblical texts (one OT and one NT) as lived out examples of each.

[Brian Eshleman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful book. Shows a broad appreciation for the Bible and the ability to apply it with insightful illustrations from everyday life. Peterson's vibrant phrasing keeps a work of scholarly depth engaging.

SECOND READING: Still golden. Nebulous in just the right spots so that the reader can escape that tendency to look for Step 1, Step 2 as applied to every Christian ever. The writer's unconditional positive regard comes through warmly enough that he gets the reader's attention when he confronts a particular issue in no uncertain terms.

[Reed Fagan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I chose not to finish this book (at least as of my first attempt to read it, summer 2020).

Besides "The Message"The Message Devotional Bible: Featuring Notes & Reflections from Eugene H. Peterson, this was my first Peterson book. I was really excited about it based on the things I had heard about Peterson. The gist I got about his thoughts on Christianity was that they were a lot "fresher" than what a lot of evangelical leaders were sharing at the time (late 20th, early 21st centuries). I know that's vague. Perhaps more open-minded but still conservative. The other reason I was really excited about the book I feel a bit conned by now: the title! I had a professor at Wheaton College, Dr. Fred Van Dyke, who loved this Hopkins Gerard Manley Hopkins poem, "As Kingfishers Catch Fire", and had us study it in the course of our Environmental Studies major. It's really a beautiful, captivating poem about the prevalence of Christ in all creation, written by someone who clearly *saw* (and heard and felt!) Christ in all creation. I also was familiar with it because of Peter Harris' book "Kingfisher's Fire"Kingfisher's Fire: A Story of Hope for God's Earth. I got to meet Harris when I was in college because our campus' A Rocha chapter organized a summit about Christians addressing climate change. He was a co-founder of A Rocha, a Christian conservation organization that intentionally aids non-religious scientific environmental research. I was very saddened to learn his wife and another A Rocha leader passed in a car crash less than a year ago. I hope Harris knows how much their work has meant. But I digress...

So I was quite excited for this book. Here is why I did not finish it.

I just could not get into Peterson's writing style. He makes connections where there are none. To be a bit pugilistic I would call what he does eisegesis, the practice of laying out one's own agenda or purposes for a text a priori and bending the text's meaning to support that agenda ("eisegesis" and those accused thereof are anathema to evangelicalism, a world I no longer call home but owe some views to).

Here is an example: in his second main section "Christ Plays in Creation", Peterson claims that the story of the Ten Plagues in Exodus is a story of "exorcism". Ok, I think we can see what he is trying to do; he is wanting to say that through disproving the power of Pharaoh and the Egyptians, God displays God's true power over history. But frankly there is nothing about actual exorcism or alluded exorcism in that text (that I am aware of - certainly not in any central sense). I could let the claim that the Exodus is about exorcism slide if it was mentioned in passing. But it is not: The exorcism claim is a fundament for the rest of this section. This method of reading is repeated throughout the book.

Again in this history section, Peterson chooses the story of the Exodus and the Gospel of Mark out of all of scripture as somehow especially instructive about the activity of God throughout history. Towards the end, Peterson claims the antidotes to not seeing that God is actively involved in and shaping history are the Eucharist and hospitality. From the texts he chose, I can see the significance of the Eucharist - the Exodus story hinges on the Passover, the meal which Jesus transformed to take on a new meaning for Christians. But hospitality? And the more important issue is that the Exodus and the Gospel of Mark are not attempting to teach believers that through participating in the Eucharist and graciously hosting others over meals they will see God active in time and human events. These are Peterson's ideas that he has conveniently used scripture to support.

Here is a summary of his logic - the outline (taken from the Table of Contents) for this section:

II. Christ Plays in History
Exploring the Neighborhood of History
Kerygma: Jesus' Death
Threat: Moralism
Grounding Text (1): Exodus
Grounding Text (2): St. Mark
Cultivating Fear-of-the-Lord in History: Eucharist and Hospitality

My criticism that Peterson is reading too much into the texts may seem pedantic or petty. Clearly a lot of probably good writing about the Christian scriptures has taken a more, we'll call it, "conversational" form (Peterson even uses the word in the book's sub-title). Certainly many powerful sermons over the years started as some cogent lines of thought the pastor had and then wanted some decent scripture to address. However, those writings and sermons are justified by their creator's admission (and to the extent of that admission) of what they are doing: bringing texts from particular contexts into the conversation. Peterson does not admit this in anyway; rather, he writes as if his ideas that we may stray into moralism if we do not embrace the Eucharist and hospitality are things clearly hidden within the biblical texts that he has sieved out. In the end, I found this irresponsible and potentially confusing for some readers.

Apart from writing as if his own ideas have been latent in the scriptures all along, I simply don't find Peterson's ideas convincing, novel or rousing, which was the last straw as for my attempt to finish reading this text.

Maybe I'll try the Epilogue at some point because from its title, "As Kingfishers Catch Fire...", he seems to take on my beloved Hopkins poem again. While I am not a fan of how this book was constructed or how Peterson dealt with scripture in it or his writing style at a voice/idiom level, I don't believe he can be ignored completely either. His work on "The Message" shows some of his creative gifts and I know many others have loved "Christ Plays...". Perhaps I will need to try a different book by him. But for now I am happy to put this book aside and hopefully begin Richard Rohr's "The Universal Christ" The Universal Christ: How a Forgotten Reality Can Change Everything We See, Hope For and Believe soon. If you are in any way questioning evangelicalism or merely curious what could be behind the curtain of this fantastic, painful, mysterious thing we call life, I would highly recommend checking out "Another Name for Everything", the podcast from Rohr's Center for Action and Contemplation in Albuquerque, NM, that explores the themes of his latest (summer 2020) book and that introduced me to his wonderful ideas about the direction of the universe.

Thanks for reading.

[John Anders · Rating 5 out of 5]

As I’ve moved later into my young adulthood, I’ve found my deepest and most wrenching spiritual concerns have had less to do with doctrine and more to do with something else entirely. This book has finally articulated that something: “Christ playing in my limbs and my eyes . . . in ten thousand places, lovely in limbs, lovely in eyes not his, to the Father through the features of men’s and women’s faces” (p. 335, 338). Or in other words, “congruence between who Christ is and who I am” in spite of the contrasting characters of Christ and North America (p. 335).

What does Trinity matter in this? How does dinner time hospitality intersect with the holy community? Can the Ten Commandments mean anything in the 21st century? What is Sabbath? Is fearing God antiquated hubris? How do sin and antichrist cut the legs from under our best efforts to love one another? These are a few of the concerns of Eugene Peterson as he embarks in Spiritual Theology. This is a compelling venture, written in the steadiness of a beloved man whose life was congruent in its message and its works.

I read this over a few months, typically 10 or less pages in the morning, and would recommend this form of reading. Spiritual Theology may be my new favorite category of theological reflection. I will certainly be reading the next volumes in this series.

[Inga · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grāmata, ko lasīju tik ilgi, ka pa šo laiku mana attieksme pret to un sapratne par to paspējusi stipri mainīties. Tomēr autoram, lai gan ir grafomānijas pazīmes, dažas lietas ir izdevies lieliski izskaidrot (man - 5.Mozus grāmatas nozīme un vieta, piemēram).
4 zvaigznes, jo cita laika cita es bija stāvā sajūsmā.

[Joshua Steen · Rating 4 out of 5]

What will stay with me is Peterson's insistence on a tangible Jesus found exclusively in the particularities of time, place, and what it means to be human -- messiness and all. A highlight was Peterson's interpretation of the Trinity as inherently relational, pulling us back from a dangerous vague spirituality of esoteric knowledge. I wasn't hungrily reading, but some ideas and lines did resonate and get underneath my skin. Only time will tell how much they stick and get inside my being.

[Chris Hatch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peterson brings spirituality into real life in this first of his five volume series. At 300 pages, it’s not a quick read, but his writing is of such quality that you’ll enjoy the time reading

[Longfellow · Rating 5 out of 5]

For me, reading this book was quite a labor, but it was worth every minute. The benefit I have received is a fresh perspective on the congruence of the Bible entire. The story of God’s relationship with humans is a long one, and Peterson articulates its purpose in Christ Plays in ways that provide a concrete shape to my pre-existing knowledge. As a result, many of Peterson’s insights and interpretations have sunk in to the extent that I find my engagement with most Scripture readings re-invigorated, as if I have been given a new pair of glasses or received a hearing aid that provides a sharper, more defined reception of sensory input.

As one example, Peterson begins by defining a few terms that are foundational to his discussion, one of them being “the fear of the Lord.” After noting that no English word captures the essence of this concept (and according to another source, neither does any German word), he explains that “the fear of the Lord” essentially means cultivating an awareness of what God is doing and desiring to be involved in God’s work. As another example, when the Bible story is viewed grammatically, God is always the subject of the sentence, the doer of the action, and the Creation is the object, the receiver of the action. Put so simply, it may sound as if Peterson emphasizes God’s transcendence, omnipotence, or even subscribes to some kind of determinism, but these interpretations are not the thrust of his point at all, in my opinion. Rather, if I were to reduce his point to a single phrase, I think I would say that we are “receivers in freedom.” Of course the book itself explains the nuances to this concept in depth.

I also appreciated Peterson’s organizational structure for the book. Though lengthy, it is a mere three chapters: Christ Plays in Creation; Christ Plays in History; and Christ Plays in Community. Paired with these three concepts are the three major events of Jesus’s story: Creation & Jesus’s birth; History & Jesus’s death; Community and Jesus’s resurrection. For each of the chapters, Peterson analyzes two “grounding texts”--one from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament--and then provides commentary on how these texts inform the relationship of God with humans. Genesis and John are used to discuss creation, Exodus and Mark to discuss History, and Deuteronomy, Luke, and Acts to discuss community. The way he connects these passages strikes me as profound.

Finally, I suspect if I had not read this book with turtle-like concentration at times, I may have completed it, replaced it on the shelf, and not have been much impacted. A superficial reading may yield some insight, but I highly recommend taking notes or annotating while reading. In addition to doing these things in high volume, I also discussed Christ Plays chapter by chapter with a friend, and these discussions cemented and enhanced the experience significantly.

[Abby Tamkin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful book. But hard to summarize. I had the though when I first started reading that this was both a familiar and startling book. On one hand, it was describing my faith and theology and thoughts perfectly. On the other hand, it was describing all of that in a fresh but jarring way.
I think some of the difficulty in summarizing this book is the conversational way Peterson has of writing. He's not very quotable: It's hard to pin him down in a concise snippet. This has made it hard for me to identify key points or takeaways. But maybe that's the point: Life (and faith) is complicated. And we want to turn it into bullet pointed plans. But the moment we think we have figured it out and have control and a plan, we've missed it.
I will be rereading this.

notes:
I read about half of it a couple years ago, then lapsed. It was a hard book for me to pick up without re-reading previous portions.
But recently I started listening to the book, and finished it rather quickly. The narrator (Grover Gardner) is excellent. ~15 hours.
(He also does the entire science fiction Vorkosigan series. To hear him instead reading a theology book was quite jarring initially)

[katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Eugene Peterson. A slow, let-it-sink-in, savorful read. A perfect blend of intellect/poet, which suits both parts of me very satisfyingly. There were a few wee points I might have wanted to question him about, and there were swaths of the book that needed more depth or specificity, but if I view the whole book as a dip-and-dive discourse on spiritual theology (a term well described and now quite useful to me), then I'm not bothered by the surface/dive quality of the text. I was delightfully surprised to find a rollicking discussion on Sabbath and on hospitality (in my opinion, two oft-overlooked but certainly central topics in the Christian life). I look forward to relishing each of the books in EP's conversations series. Oh, and I underlined much in this book, with exclamation points even. Not since Barbara Brown Taylor's An Altar in the World have I marginalia-ed up a book like this!

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

My copy is now inked-up, dog-eared, and worn. I'm considering starting at the beginning and reading it again... and again. This is a slow book with big and true ideas that need time to grow. But it is SO worth all of that precious time. Eugene Peterson is a "good shepherd," unwaveringly faithful to the true heart of Christianity. His honesty and graciousness is life-giving. This book is a good tool to return to when life in our frenetic culture leaves you feeling distracted, confused, and pulled in 1,000 directions. "One thing is necessary:" I love how Peterson sinks into that and won't let go. Counter-cultural faith CAN be a refreshing, beautiful thing. ❤️

[Libby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to this in audiobook form. In some ways I liked that - it kept me moving so I caught the big picture of what Peterson was sharing. But now I find I want to reread the book in written form, so I can stop and ponder many things he shares. And with so many books I want to read, it's high praise to say I can't wait to re-read this one!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am in LOVE with this book. The only kind of theology I care much about is the kind that we live out and that makes us love Jesus more-this book talks about exactly that. So far he has dug pretty deep into the creation story and the exodus story in ways that I haven't thought about before. Not the easiest read, but not too heady either.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

slow going - very intellectually driven. very thoughtful. a 'nibbling' book.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Along with Divine Conspiracy and Mere Christianity, this is one of those few Christian books that I would call "foundational" for a genre.

As usual, it was slow going... It takes a while to get through Peterson's books from this series. But I persevered because it was worthwhile; his words are so full of biblical and cultural insight.
Framing the spiritual life in terms of creation, history, and community, he grounds it in everyday reality. We are not called to a gnostic escape from the world, a moralistic religion, or sectarian separation. Rather, we are to live as worshippers in God's world, relying on his salvation acts in history, applying His love in community.
As usual in this series, each section is grounded in a book from the New Testament and Old Testament. So it reads like an ongoing conversation with Scripture. Worth the time to read!

Tell it Slant and Practice Resurrection also stand out to me as great discussions communication and community.

[Frank Peters · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excellent book and filled with insightful and important teaching. I absolutely love where the author was going in the book, which was ultimately to encourage those who want to follow Jesus to actually do so, rather than being distracted. While the content of the book was brilliant, I found it difficult to read, and often could only get through 4-5 pages at a time. My only negative response regarding the content was the occasional (very rare) strained interpretation of scripture, which implied either that the author is a cessationist, or else was wanting to provide interpretations that did not require the miraculous for cessationist readers.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eugene Peterson is my spiritual mentor. He is a deep well of wisdom that protects me from the spirit of the age. He makes me a better pastor and human. I decided to embark on a journey to read each of his five volumes on Spiritual Theology. This, the first, took time and patience, but perhaps that was the point. There is no rushing to the thought or practice of becoming the eyes and limbs of Christ.

[Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this more than I expected to ... am I allowed to say that about the guy that rewrote the Bible? I didn't realize I needed a "Conversation in Spiritual Theology" as much as I did. Peterson does this interesting analogy of the Trinity in creation, history and community, i.e. God the Father in Creation, God the Son In history and God the Spirit in community (hope I got that right). In my opinion, it would make an excellent devotional assist ... the way he's broken down various aspects of each big idea would make helpful devo topics ... more practical than I expected. At times I thought it seemed he might be taking too long to get to his point, then there'd be this significant concept that he brings together.
He really likes literature/poetry (a poem is the source for the title of the book) so there are a lot of those references throughout ... not perfect for me, but it isn't overdone.

[Graydon Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was incredible! It was incredibly deep, every section full of transformative ideas, theology, and the best quotes. I love Peterson’s Jesus-centered theology and how it never gets very far from humanity and creation.

[Trevor Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great work from Peterson. He takes theology and makes it so practicable.

[Ethan Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dense, but beautifully written. A needed corrective for American Dream spirituality.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had little idea of what to expect from this book. I’d heard of Eugene Peterson and his translation of the Bible into “The Message,” but what would this be about? From the back of the book: “A tour de force in spiritual theology combining incisive cultural analysis and biblical exposition with a sweeping and engaging vision of the Christian life.” After reading, I think that summary is pretty good. Peterson’s writing was thought-provoking, insightful, fresh and engaging throughout.

I liked this description given early on by the author, “It is the task of the Christian community to give witness and guidance in the living of life in a culture that is relentless in reducing, constricting and enervating this life.” At the same time, the author notes, “The Christian church has no monopoly on giving out guidance on how to live this life. The playing field of spirituality is fairly cluttered with debris from improvised attempts and makeshift rules in playing out this life.”

The author’s intent, as it came across to me, was to re-emphasize a grounded-in-reality, compassionate framework within which a Christian can live a fulfilling rich life while engaging his or her society. “The Christian life is lived with others and for others. Nothing can be done alone or solely for oneself. … In an age of heightened individualism….” (pages 7-9).

Time and again, he centers in on our Western – at least US – way of life and asks us to step back and consider our situation (doing so in an engaging, story telling sort of way, not pedantic or dry). For example, in his early years of pastoring a congregation, he became “struck by how extensively the cultural and spiritual conditions in which I was working matched the exile conditions of the Hebrews in the sixth century before Christ; the pervasive uprootedness and loss of place, the loss of connection to a tradition of worship, the sense of being lost in a foreign and idolatrous society.” (page 64). And so, off he goes, describing how Christ (God) engages and is at work (but at play) in 10,000 places within our world…

Peterson writes first of “Christ playing in Creation” with a number of reflections, one of which has to do with time. He describes his own experience with the loss of time in our culture, our sometimes frenzied running from one activity to another, yet missing out on the rhythm of time and our need for rest. His message is to slow down, appreciate the gift of time we are given and how to incorporate its freedom and limitations on our lives.

Peterson then turns to his next theme, “Christ plays in history” While there are timeless truths that celebrate our creation, history is a more somber reality. “History consists of what happens in this world. History is the accounting we make of human endeavor. More often than not it is an accounting of the mess we make of things: brutality, war, famine, hate, quarrelling, exploitation. History deals with what happens, what has happened, what is happening, and what will happen. It means dealing with a world where things rarely turn out the way we think they should. It means dealing with corrupt politicians, birth defects, floods and violence, divorce and death, starvation and famine, the arrogance of the rich and the destitution of the poor. Something is wrong here, dreadfully wrong. We feel it in our bones.” (Pg 134).
Peterson then moves to his final and third theme, “Christ plays in community.” Two reflections stand out – the first being the importance of hospitality. That while we are often tempted to retreat, band together in a false sense of community, he encourages us to reach out, and be hospitable to the edge of our comfort. He suggests that the simple sharing of a meal with others is profoundly more challenging to our society where we are often distracted with things. acknowledges the wisdom of a philosopher friend of his living in Montana who calls “the culture of the table” – “the preparation, serving and cleaning up after meals – the center of a well–lived life.” (Pg 336)

Second, he challenges a traditional understanding of the Ten Commandments as a individual code of conduct between humans and a stern God, by reframing it as God’s guidance for living in community, living with others. From this perspective, he runs through each commandment, which is eye-opening to say the least.

All in all, a reflection on a way of life for Christians delivered in both new and hopeful ways.

[Steve Croft · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read book 2 in this series first, 'Eat This book', which is one of the best books I've read. Lucky I read that one first, as if I'd done this one first, I'm not sure I'd have got to the second one.
Eugene is one of the best writers I've read, he writes with a very elegant prose, its almost poetic. As such, even if the content isn't interesting, he makes up for it with style. I listened to this book and found it very calming and nice to listen too. However, these days I judge a book by how much I learn or how much my theology of mindset changes, and I can't say this one had the desired affect. Perhaps it's because the content wasn't too deep as he built a foundation for the series, or perhaps it is the way he structured this book? I find that Eugene likes to rattle off large tranches of information, in beautiful prose mind you, without me having any sense as to why this information is presented? If I don't know why I'm being told XYZ, then the information doesn't seem to stick with me. I think I need books that outline the argument/point first, then present the information proving it next... I'm looking at you as well Mr NT Wright... :)

Anyway, I still think this is a good book and I'll continue with the series.

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

If we don't know where we are going, any road will get us there. But if we have a destination - in this case a life lived to the glory of God - there is a well-marked way, the Jesus-revealed way. Pg 1

The central verb, "play," catches the exuberance and freedom that mark life when it is lived beyond necessity, beyond mere survival. "Play" also suggests words and sounds and actions that are "played" for another, intentional and meaningful renderings of beauty or truth or goodness. Hopkins incorporates this sense of play with God as the ultimate "other" ("... to the Father") - which is to say that all of life is, or can be, worship. Pg 3

But in our current culture, soul has given way to self as the term of choice to designate who and what we are. Self is the soul minus God. Self is what is left of soul with all the transcendence and intimacy squeezed out, the self with little or no reference to God or others.
Self is a threadbare word, a scarecrow word. Soul is a word reverberating with relationships: God-relationships, human-relationships, Earth-relationships.
"Self" in both common speech and scientific discourse is mostly an isolating term: the individual.
"Soul"gets beneath the fragmentary surface appearances and affirms an at-homeness, an affinity with whoever and whatever is at hand. Pg. 37

One of the seductions that bedevils Christian formation is the construction of utopias, ideal places where we can live totally and without inhibition or interference the good and blessed and righteous life. The imagining and then attempted construction of such utopias is an old habit of our kind. Sometimes we attempt it politically in communities, sometimes socially in communes, sometimes religiously in churches. It never comes to anything about grief. Utopia is, literally, no place. But we can live our lives only in actual place, not in an imagined or fantasized or artificially fashioned place. - pg 73

[Nathan Boyett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many great concepts. This read invites the reader into a very thorough look at a lot of concepts and terms that we as Christians typically tend to gloss over in text or speech. Regular discussion with a fellow reader may help to develop/concrete some of these ideas. I don't know that I fully agreed with everything he said (but does anyone agree with everything anyone says?), but there was enough good content to cause me to keep reading. This is one that I think I would love to read again in 10-20 years to see if my understanding of the Scriptures has progressed in any manner similar to Peterson's. Additionally, my interest has peaked regarding the reading of the other 4 in this series.

I would definitely recommend this book but I would not suggest it to the new Christian. Much too dense for introducing ideas and concepts that the reader does not already have some sense of.