Love Wins

April 4, 2011
Bell, influential pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church and author of Velvet Elvis, aims to provide an introduction to some of the big questions of Jesus' life and message. Claiming that some versions of Jesus should be rejected, particularly those used to intimidate and inspire fear or hatred, Bell persuasively interprets the Bible as a message of love and redemption. He is clearly well-versed in the scriptures, and for support his arguments look to everything from the parable of the prodigal son to Revelation to the story of Moses, in addition to his own personal experiences as a pastor, many of which are the book's highlights. Bell's vision of Christianity is inclusive, as he argues against some traditional ideas--for instance, hell as eternal punishment reserved for non-Christians--in favor of a God whose love and forgiveness is all encompassing. His style is characteristically concise and oral, his tone passionate and unabashedly positive. The result is a book that, while not exploring its own ideas deeply, may be a friendly welcome to Christianity for seekers, since they don't have a dog in the fight over hell that this book has ignited among the professionally religious.

May 1, 2011

Author of several rather controversial books on Christian spirituality, Bell (founding pastor, Mars Hill Bible Church, Grand Rapids, MI; Velvet Elvis) is nothing if not a hip pastor. His books generally reconcile Christian belief with modern life in novel ways, but in his broadest theological statement yet, Bell treads old territory: by a rather curious and selective reading of the Bible, he suggests that our ideas of hell are too broad and our notion of heaven too small--in short, he is a good old-fashioned American Universalist. VERDICT For many mainstream or conservative Christians, Bell's message will (as usual) go too far; for younger or more open-minded Christians, it may well have the intended effect--to bring readers and believers closer to God.

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2011
Outspoken pastor and best-selling author Bell dares to question conventional Christian wisdom, such as the popular belief that states a select number of Christians will spend eternity in heaven while the rest of humanitynon-Christians and those who have not been savedwill suffer pain and punishment in hell. How does a person end up being one of the few? Chance? Luck? Random selection? he wonders. By asking these and other similarly pointed questions, Bell raises issues some may find disturbing or, at the very least, unsettling, not only about religion but about what it means to be a believer. He contends that some images of Jesus and God should be rejected outrightimages contrary to what he considers authentic Christian behavior. Through the use of anecdotes and Bible stories, Bell suggests alternative ways of understanding heaven and hell as well as such deeply Christian concepts as salvation and repentance. Further, he maintains that the cruel rather than loving God so many Christians believe in is a distortion of the Christian spirit. Thought-provoking.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)