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holly_keimig's review against another edition
5.0
Taylor's books are always quite comforting to me. Her way of looking at God and religious traditions is eye-opening and always makes you think. I was very excited to see she had a new book out and snatched it up right away. I listened to the audio book from the library and also followed along in the print version I bought. Taylor finds herself teaching an Introduction to World Religions class in this book and starts to see her own faith and the faith of her student's through new eyes. She finds new meaning in her own traditions after seeing others and relishes in the fact that God often uses outsiders to teach important lessons to people of faith. I highly recommend this book to anyone who needs a fresh perspective or refreshing moment of peaceful thinking. Her books always find me at just the right moment. I can't wait for her next book!
"My alternative was to become one more polarizing Christian who looks down on those who do not love Jesus the way she does." (p.21)
"What must it be like, I wondered, to put hearing God ahead of being heard? So many of the prayers in my own tradition are about beseeching God to hear us. So much of our worship involves listening to each other talk and then going out to proclaim the gospel to others. What do we think will happen if we stop talking? (p.95-96)
"I remember how many religious strangers played lead roles in Jesus's life: the Canaanite woman who expanded his sense of agency, the Samaritan leper who showed him what true gratitude looked like, the Roman centurion in whom he saw more faith than he had ever seen in one of his own tribe. If narratives like these are easy to overlook-or worse yet, to distort-then that is because our accustomed ways of hearing scripture often stop our ears to what is actually on the page. The old tape starts playing and we just let it run. This is one of the reasons why I remain a devoted student of the Bible: because what it says is so often not what I have been taught it says, or what I think it says, or what I want it to say." (p.105)
"The literalists I like least are the ones who do not own a Bible. The literalists I like most are the ones to admit that they do not understand every word God has revealed in the Bible, though they still believe God has revealed it. I can respect that." (p.107)
"Could it be that our favorite verses are the ones that make us feel most right?" (p.119)
"Unless I want to separate myself from everyone who does not see things the way I do-which my faith urges me not to do-then I have to admit that there are mutually exclusive view of what it means to be Christian and that God alone is smart enough to decide which is best." (p.147)
"The only thing that sets Nicodemus apart is that he is so uncomfortable with his unknowing. His problem is that he thinks he ought to know." (p.167)
"'The greatest single antidote to violence is conversation.', says Jonathan Sacks, 'speaking our fears, listening to the fears of others, and in that sharing of vulnerabilities discovering a genesis of hope.' The vulnerabilities cannot be undersold. Sometimes they are so great that they make my teeth chatter. When I listen to someone describe reality in a foreign language that nonetheless makes enormous sense to me, my old hold on reality is shaken. When I try to describe what I believe to be true to someone who does not believe it, my certainty springs alarming leaks. I am lost in the woods trying to find the life that makes meaning out of mine." (p.182)
"Stereotypes in general-both negative and positive-serve us because they helps us take cognitive shortcuts...left unquestioned, however, they harden into bias that can quickly become a substitute for reality. Anytime you hear yourself thinking or saying something about 'those people', you know that your stranger Geiger counter has just gone off. Without saying a word, simply by being there, the stranger reminds you that you may not know the world as well as you think you do-a world that is full of different people with different claims on its resources, different notions of right and wrong, and different understandings of God. without even thinking about it...you may conclude that people like you stand to lose something if people who are not like you become too powerful, too fearless, or too numerous. Most of the time it only takes one to trigger the problem of the stranger." (p.197)
"When the stranger turns to you with a look of disbelieving gratitude on his face, it matters very much. 'The most supreme religious challenge,' says Jonathan Sacks, 'is to see God's image in one who is not in our image'." (p.200)
"Sheep and goats, he will surprise them, because in the end the criteria for telling them apart will have nothing to do with their beliefs or their allegiances and everything to do with how they have treated the least important people in their lives-the ones who were shoved so far to the side that no one even saw them anymore; the ones who had been treated as if they were guilty of something for so long that acting guilty had seeped into them like smog; the ones who were too sick to return the favor, too old to say thank you, too strange to feel safe around, too hard to help." (p.211)
"I asked God for religious certainty, and God gave me relationships instead. I asked for solid ground, and God gave me human beings instead-strange, funny, compelling, complicated human beings-who keep puncturing my stereotypes, challenging my ideas, and upsetting my ideas about God, so that they are always under construction." (p.213)
"My alternative was to become one more polarizing Christian who looks down on those who do not love Jesus the way she does." (p.21)
"What must it be like, I wondered, to put hearing God ahead of being heard? So many of the prayers in my own tradition are about beseeching God to hear us. So much of our worship involves listening to each other talk and then going out to proclaim the gospel to others. What do we think will happen if we stop talking? (p.95-96)
"I remember how many religious strangers played lead roles in Jesus's life: the Canaanite woman who expanded his sense of agency, the Samaritan leper who showed him what true gratitude looked like, the Roman centurion in whom he saw more faith than he had ever seen in one of his own tribe. If narratives like these are easy to overlook-or worse yet, to distort-then that is because our accustomed ways of hearing scripture often stop our ears to what is actually on the page. The old tape starts playing and we just let it run. This is one of the reasons why I remain a devoted student of the Bible: because what it says is so often not what I have been taught it says, or what I think it says, or what I want it to say." (p.105)
"The literalists I like least are the ones who do not own a Bible. The literalists I like most are the ones to admit that they do not understand every word God has revealed in the Bible, though they still believe God has revealed it. I can respect that." (p.107)
"Could it be that our favorite verses are the ones that make us feel most right?" (p.119)
"Unless I want to separate myself from everyone who does not see things the way I do-which my faith urges me not to do-then I have to admit that there are mutually exclusive view of what it means to be Christian and that God alone is smart enough to decide which is best." (p.147)
"The only thing that sets Nicodemus apart is that he is so uncomfortable with his unknowing. His problem is that he thinks he ought to know." (p.167)
"'The greatest single antidote to violence is conversation.', says Jonathan Sacks, 'speaking our fears, listening to the fears of others, and in that sharing of vulnerabilities discovering a genesis of hope.' The vulnerabilities cannot be undersold. Sometimes they are so great that they make my teeth chatter. When I listen to someone describe reality in a foreign language that nonetheless makes enormous sense to me, my old hold on reality is shaken. When I try to describe what I believe to be true to someone who does not believe it, my certainty springs alarming leaks. I am lost in the woods trying to find the life that makes meaning out of mine." (p.182)
"Stereotypes in general-both negative and positive-serve us because they helps us take cognitive shortcuts...left unquestioned, however, they harden into bias that can quickly become a substitute for reality. Anytime you hear yourself thinking or saying something about 'those people', you know that your stranger Geiger counter has just gone off. Without saying a word, simply by being there, the stranger reminds you that you may not know the world as well as you think you do-a world that is full of different people with different claims on its resources, different notions of right and wrong, and different understandings of God. without even thinking about it...you may conclude that people like you stand to lose something if people who are not like you become too powerful, too fearless, or too numerous. Most of the time it only takes one to trigger the problem of the stranger." (p.197)
"When the stranger turns to you with a look of disbelieving gratitude on his face, it matters very much. 'The most supreme religious challenge,' says Jonathan Sacks, 'is to see God's image in one who is not in our image'." (p.200)
"Sheep and goats, he will surprise them, because in the end the criteria for telling them apart will have nothing to do with their beliefs or their allegiances and everything to do with how they have treated the least important people in their lives-the ones who were shoved so far to the side that no one even saw them anymore; the ones who had been treated as if they were guilty of something for so long that acting guilty had seeped into them like smog; the ones who were too sick to return the favor, too old to say thank you, too strange to feel safe around, too hard to help." (p.211)
"I asked God for religious certainty, and God gave me relationships instead. I asked for solid ground, and God gave me human beings instead-strange, funny, compelling, complicated human beings-who keep puncturing my stereotypes, challenging my ideas, and upsetting my ideas about God, so that they are always under construction." (p.213)
pkgonzales7's review
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
Wow, this is one of the best books about faith and religion I have ever read. It is seeped in wisdom and such a gentle, stunning reminder of finding the Divine in the diverse, messy world that we live in.
csefa's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
While there are a few bits of information about the major world religions and their varying beliefs, this book is more an invitation into dialog and relationship and to seeing people as people rather than practicioners of a particular faith. It is about learning to see God in the face of others, especially others who are different than us.
megacool24's review against another edition
4.0
A good sequal
A great continuation of Leaving Church, that follows the author as she teaches a college course on world religions. A very good read.
A great continuation of Leaving Church, that follows the author as she teaches a college course on world religions. A very good read.
katieproctorbooks's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book SO much. BBT’s writing and theology and love for others is so beautiful.
drbobcornwall's review
5.0
For the past two decades, I have been actively engaged in interfaith conversations and activities. My life has been enriched by friendships with persons whose faith commitments are different from my own. While I have long had an ecumenical outloo9k, the borders of my engagements have expanded considerably in the twenty-plus years that I have been serving as a pastor of Disciples churches, While I remain firmly committed to my Christian faith, I have discerned the presence of God's Spirit in persons whose religious commitments are very different from my own. I have learned much from them about God and humanity and the creation itself. So, perhaps I have had my experience of holy envy.
Holy Envy is a winsome and gracious exploration of the religious dimensions of our lives. It is written by Barbara Brown Taylor, a well-known preacher, teacher, and author. Those of us who preach have been enriched by her works. We may have struggled with her revelation of the need to leave the church, something explored in her book [b:Leaving Church: A Memoir of Faith|129504|Leaving Church A Memoir of Faith|Barbara Brown Taylor|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1442861908l/129504._SY75_.jpg|124728]. In many ways, this book is the answer to that earlier book. In the course of teaching world religions at a small college, she rediscovered her own tradition. She rediscovered her own home, even as she grew to appreciate the traditions of others.
The context for this book is the Religion 101 class she taught for many years at Piedmont College. This is a small church-affiliated college in northeastern Georgia. Most of the students are Christian. Some are afraid of the class, fearing that their encounter with other religions might undermine their own faith. As for Taylor, this class was transformative for her. She notes that the book she set out to write focused on the changes in her students, but in the end, while they play an important role in the story, this is really about her own transformation.
In her introduction, she tells us how she got to Piedmont College, after leaving her Episcopal parish. The book really gets started in chapter 1, "Religion 101," where she describes the early attempts to construct a world religions class at the college. From there she takes us a journey to other faith traditions, largely through the eyes of her students, as they have class discussions and take field trips to various religious communities, beginning with a Hindu temple in Atlanta. She engages with Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism, and along the way she develops what she calls Holy Envy.
As the book moves along, she reengages her Christian faith. In a chapter titled "failing Christianity," she begins with the story of a simple 10 p0int quiz on Christianity, which her predominantly Christian class failed. In fact, the only student who passed was Jewish. This was the quiz students thought they needn't study for because they already knew, or thought they knew the history and practices of the Christian tradition. This leads to conversations about rediscovering the complexity of Christianity.
In a chapter titled "Divine Diversity," she takes note of the fact that we live with diversity. There is no one Christian faith (here she acknowledges that though we pray as Christians for unity, that the church would be one, such a desire is not likely to occur). Perhaps that's not a bad thing. Diversity might be a good thing.
Taylor is a talented and thoughtful writer. I've enjoyed reading her books through the years. I've found them to be insightful and enriching, and I'm not alone in this. This book is no different. It is vintage Barbara Brown Taylor. If you've read her and liked her earlier books, I think you will like this book. She has a way with words, weaving stories throughout in ways that further the conversation. The stories of her students' experiences and her own are never extraneous. They all further the conversation about the religious dimensions of our reality. .
From the perspective of one who has engaged in interreligious work for some time, the question that I had going in was whether "Holy Envy" could serve as a starting point for fruitful interfaith conversation, or at least assist persons new to the conversation to get started. In that, "Holy Envy" should prove immensely valuable. It deals with important areas of concern for our time, and yet it is written in a way that is a joy to read. That's important if we're going to overcome fears and biases that keep us apart.
Holy Envy is a winsome and gracious exploration of the religious dimensions of our lives. It is written by Barbara Brown Taylor, a well-known preacher, teacher, and author. Those of us who preach have been enriched by her works. We may have struggled with her revelation of the need to leave the church, something explored in her book [b:Leaving Church: A Memoir of Faith|129504|Leaving Church A Memoir of Faith|Barbara Brown Taylor|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1442861908l/129504._SY75_.jpg|124728]. In many ways, this book is the answer to that earlier book. In the course of teaching world religions at a small college, she rediscovered her own tradition. She rediscovered her own home, even as she grew to appreciate the traditions of others.
The context for this book is the Religion 101 class she taught for many years at Piedmont College. This is a small church-affiliated college in northeastern Georgia. Most of the students are Christian. Some are afraid of the class, fearing that their encounter with other religions might undermine their own faith. As for Taylor, this class was transformative for her. She notes that the book she set out to write focused on the changes in her students, but in the end, while they play an important role in the story, this is really about her own transformation.
In her introduction, she tells us how she got to Piedmont College, after leaving her Episcopal parish. The book really gets started in chapter 1, "Religion 101," where she describes the early attempts to construct a world religions class at the college. From there she takes us a journey to other faith traditions, largely through the eyes of her students, as they have class discussions and take field trips to various religious communities, beginning with a Hindu temple in Atlanta. She engages with Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism, and along the way she develops what she calls Holy Envy.
As the book moves along, she reengages her Christian faith. In a chapter titled "failing Christianity," she begins with the story of a simple 10 p0int quiz on Christianity, which her predominantly Christian class failed. In fact, the only student who passed was Jewish. This was the quiz students thought they needn't study for because they already knew, or thought they knew the history and practices of the Christian tradition. This leads to conversations about rediscovering the complexity of Christianity.
In a chapter titled "Divine Diversity," she takes note of the fact that we live with diversity. There is no one Christian faith (here she acknowledges that though we pray as Christians for unity, that the church would be one, such a desire is not likely to occur). Perhaps that's not a bad thing. Diversity might be a good thing.
Taylor is a talented and thoughtful writer. I've enjoyed reading her books through the years. I've found them to be insightful and enriching, and I'm not alone in this. This book is no different. It is vintage Barbara Brown Taylor. If you've read her and liked her earlier books, I think you will like this book. She has a way with words, weaving stories throughout in ways that further the conversation. The stories of her students' experiences and her own are never extraneous. They all further the conversation about the religious dimensions of our reality. .
From the perspective of one who has engaged in interreligious work for some time, the question that I had going in was whether "Holy Envy" could serve as a starting point for fruitful interfaith conversation, or at least assist persons new to the conversation to get started. In that, "Holy Envy" should prove immensely valuable. It deals with important areas of concern for our time, and yet it is written in a way that is a joy to read. That's important if we're going to overcome fears and biases that keep us apart.