Customer Reviews

Love Your God with All Your Mind: The Role of Reason in the Life of the Soul

5 star:		(40)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Moreland does the Christian community a favor by writing this book, which could have easily been entitled, "Using Our Christian Mind in a World That Doesn't Want us to Think." Unfortunately, I have seen too many Christians pooh-pooh the concept of "loving God with all your mind" and instead focus on the "heart and soul." I just heard someone say, "The only thing that's important is loving Jesus." What does that mean? For her, it is pretty much forgetting anything intellectual. To reach her goal of worshipping Jesus, she apparently desires to continually sing worship choruses and read fluffy sections of the Bible every day. This is a dangerous trend in our evangelical Christian society today where, for many, nothing but good feelings matter. (And when you don't have "good feelings," does this mean God has stopped loving you? Or that you no longer love God? And how am I supposed to think of these things if my mind really doesn't matter? The problems with shutting down the mind are endless.)

As Moreland points out, all aspects of our heart, soul, and mind play a role in the true worship of an all-holy God. He does a great job giving reasons why we need to make sharpening our intellect a priority. God has given us brains, so why should we not use them? At the same time, this does not put the mind at the top of our priorities and relegate everything else to a secondary status. I think Moreland tries really hard to show that he wants to avoid a Gnostic mentality. (I see some reviewers before me did not see this, but c'mon, give a break here. The entire premise of his book is stressing how the mind has taken a second-class status with too many Christians. What else was Moreland supposed to stress?)

My only complaint is that the book does bog down in several areas. For instance, I don't think it was important in the heart of his book to take five pages and dedicate them to giving a "brief lesson in logic." I've studied logic, but I predict that these five pages would confuse the average layperson. Instead, he should have simplified such a section or else eliminated it and referred the reader to additional resource material. For this and several other "bogged down" areas, I might hesitate giving this book to someone who might be an "average" thinker, even though I might want to convince him that he needs to "love God with all his mind." The book's English is also choppy in several areas and could use a good revision. If we're trying to convince the Christian church, we need to realize that much of the population is currently feeding on sugar-coated eschatalogical "rapture" literature and other fictional nonsense. We don't need to scare them away from thinking--perhaps I'm off track, but I'd love to see a simpler book written for "Joe Christian" at 1st Baptist. Either that or revise this. Except for these minor complaints, I love this book. It proclaims 1 Peter 3:15-16 and says what I've been both thinking and preaching. Thus, every Christian, including church leaders and pastors (yes, even "senior" pastors!--see the last chapter), needs to study Moreland's challenge to the church.

"How is is possible for a person to be an active member of an evangelical church for twenty or thirty years and still know next to nothing about the history and theology of the Christian religion, the methods and tools required for serious Bible study, and the skills and information necessary to preach and defend Christianity in a post-Christian, neopagan culture?"

This question captures the essense of this readable and profound book. In it J. P. Moreland explores the intellectual life of the Church; the history of intellectualism (or lack thereof) in the Church; and the scriptural basis for why it's important for Christians to develop healthy, active, critical-thinking minds. And he offers some challenging and intriguing ideas for renewing the intellectual life of the Church (No senior pastors!!??).

As an active member of an evangelical church for close to twenty years who has much to learn about the history and theology of the Christian religion, J. P. Moreland's book has challenged me to spend more time studying God's Word and mastering the evidences for my faith so that I can be a more effective witness for Jesus Christ. This book has encouraged me to love God with all my mind (Mark 12:30).

This is an important, convicting, and helpful book for any Christian who sincerely desires to grow in their relationship with our Lord and Savior.

Often Christians are accused of not engaging their brains, unfortunately this criticism is often deserved. J.P. Moreland does an excellent job of showing the reader how to develop his Christian Mind. If you are an intellectual wannabe and have read James W. Sire's book 'Habits of the Mind', you'll also want to read this book which was written three years prior to Sire's book. I would suggest reading them both as they both compliment each other well.

Moreland takes 10 chapters divided into four sections to develop the concept of the mature Christian mind, a mind that loves God to the utmost. One special chapter of interest covers logic, a discipline that is lost on all but a few Christians, but crucial for developing a reasoned apologetic. In Section Three (chapters six through nine), Moreland describes how the Christian intellect is relevant in evangelism, apologetic reasoning, and worship within the church. I also enjoyed the final chapter which covers a plan for developing the Christian intellect within our churches.

I highly recommend this book and give it an 11 on a scale of 12. As I suggested previously I would also read Sire's book shortly before or after reading Moreland, depending on which you read first. Let us continually strive for the Mind of Christ!

Semper fi & agape--Ed D.

At first I thought maybe I was ostentatious by thinking that many of today's Christians need to get their intellect in gear as part of sharing & defending the gospel. Too often too many Christian feel that as long as we are happy & friendly then we are doing our part in the church. J.P. Moreland explains what a well-formed mind is and, more importantly, why it is so needed in the church today. He shows how a mature mind has taken a back seat in the church and how we can get it back at a personal level, congregational level, and in the church as a whole.

Moreland gives Biblical passages and reasons for having a mature Christian mind and how the Spirit works within the mind to bring us to a more mature Christian faith. I cannot imagine anyone reading this book and not being motivated to allow their faith to go beyond just an emotional level.

Moreland gives a quick lesson in some essential principals of logic. He briefly shares several experiences he has had with various skeptics and provides basic arguments to a variety of modern ideas.

This book is good to not only get your mind prepared for a deeper relationship & understanding of God, but also to equip your mind for evangelism with unbelievers and various faulty beliefs. Furthermore, Moreland provides suggestions for getting an ENTIRE CONGREGATION to a whole new way of thinking about worship, fellowship, and equipping the saints. I am so glad to know that someone else agrees with me that church should not just be a place to gather, sing, and be happy. We should also go to church to LEARN about (not just discuss) God and learn to defend the faith as we are instructed in I Peter 3:15. I would love to see more churches become actively and aggressively involved with developing a mature Christian mind. Moreland encourages all to use their sharp, Christian minds in whatever vocation they have.

At the end of the book there are several handy indices pertaining to sources for subjects from mathematics, biology, psychology, sociology, ethics, etc.

I think that if a handful of dedicated Christians & congregations in every county took Moreland's suggestions to fruition that we'd see amazing changes in this country. Yes, it's a challenge, but it's worth it.

Describing the book is easy enough. It is a competent Christian philosopher-educator trying to heal the anti-intellectualism in the modern Church. To that end the book is first a description of the problem with a little historical analysis. ("How We lost the Christian Mind and Why We Must Recover It"= chapter 1) Then an explanation of the role of reason in the spiritual transformation that is the historic orthodox Christian faith. This is part 1 = "Why the Mind Matters in Christianity". The rest of the book is a two piece prescription, argued top down, from big principles to important particular and specific recommendations. But such simple descriptions don't do justice to such an important book, so i will expand, as he did into the details of the argument.

First, several motivations of the author are clearly seen and are important to understanding the way he writes and the structure of the arguments. One, he has a preacher-teacher's heart, concerned that people pick up this book, read and understand it, but most significantly internalize the ideas. To this end it is not a hard read, he uses the best techniques to involve the mind of the reader in the material. Uses clear language and argues point-by-point systematically building his book so that the average reader will walk away with the main points in his head, rather than leaving them, as is often done, still in the pages of the book. This alone recommends the book to Sunday School, high-school or college reading groups, or as he talks about in the book -- church libraries and study centers where the faithful are taught to think clearly about their faith. In fact, i'd propose that this book would be the required reading introduction to such study centers. Second, Moreland is concerned and worried about the condition of the average pew warmers mind and the skills he/she has acquired in this world concerning the faith and he desires to do something about it. That something is tied to vocation. Vocation, both types, the calling to walk in this world being ready to give an apologia, and the form of how to 'subdue the earth' with our own hands, ie our 'secular' job. This thread, slanted to college students looking for theirs, but applicable to all, prevades the book from the first page to the extensive list of resources in the back.

But what are the details? pg 39 "If we are going to be wise, spiritual people prepared to meet the crises of our age, we must be a studying, learning community that values the life of the mind." He assumes that anyone reading past this point will be desirous of attaining such a lofty goal. Convinced of the need, we need help finding the way to achieve it. The way is to understand Romans 12:1-2 "Paul puts his finger on the very essence of how we grow to become like Jesus: "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world." he tells us, "but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." pg 65. But like any good preacher he doesn't stop at description but moves to prescription: "More generally, by choosing to undertake a course of study, meditation, and reflection, I can put myself in a position to undergo a change in the content, strength, and centrality of my beliefs." These beliefs we undertake to change are part of the plausibility structures of both ourselves and of the greater society we are a part of. This is his big argument, unless Christians are prepared and competent in understanding their beliefs then they can not communicate the Gospel to others(apologetics), nor can they influence an increasingly secular society(being salt). Simply put, modification of society's plausibility structures means you need to first understand and build your own rightly.

This takes him to part 2= " How to Develop a Christian Mind", which is mixture of top-down arguments like: "commitment to truth and reason" pg 99 and lower level details like: jog when you get tired to get out of a passive rut, pg 95. There is even a section on the elements of logic: "Clearing the Cobwebs from My Mental Attic" = chapter 5. It is this part that i found harder reading because of the changing levels, one part big issue analysis, then the next paragraph details on a conversation. The last part is application (typical sermon structure *grin*) with a very interesting section on "Refurbishing the Local Church" pg 190-200, where the details from his past ministries figures prominently in his recommendations. If you just want to read a few pages to get the best of the book, these 10 are them. Surprisely detailed, most certainly a big step for any local church, i'd love to move anywhere in the country where these ideas were put into practice.

Thanks for the opportunity to recommend the book to you, i hope you pick a copy up as a result of this review.

Have you ever wished that the church wasn't looked down upon in intellectual circles, and that when the average person thought of trustworthy sources for ideas and wise men/women that it was Christians who would first come to mind? I have, and so has J.P. Moreland. In LOVE YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR MIND, Moreland writes a groundbreaking book, presenting a strong case for the role of the rational mind in the Christian life. He gives background on how the church has strayed from incorporating our intellect into our worship and faith and even our work, and then demonstrates how this needs to change, and why that need is so urgent. He outlines how to develop the Christian mind and shows how reason and faith can and should work hand in hand. And he closes by giving his vision of what the church, incorporating these principles, might look like.

This is a fantastic book that is prophetic in its urgancy. Moreland's writing is utterly appealing to the rational and even skeptical mind, but the message here is for the layperson as well as the academic. It should be required reading at every Christian college and seminary, and the church would do well to give its message attention at the pulpit and in Sunday School's. Five Stars.

One of the primary reasons we are now living in a post-Christian world is because the vast majority of 20th century Christians cared little or nothing about intellectually interacting with non-Christians. Hence, we have our modern stereotype of the ignorant, fundamentalist Christian who knows little about science, history, philosophy, or anything else related to academics. Unfortunately, this label is often deserved.

Thankfully, we have a new wave of Christian thinkers like J.P. Moreland who can intelligently interact with non-Christians in an attempt to demonstrate the truthfulness of Christianity. This book will go a long way toward equipping Christians to reverse the trend of anti-intellectualism in the 21st century.

Moreland explains why the mind really matters. God gave us brains for us to learn more about him and the world he created. Like a body that is out of shape from lack of exercise, so the mind weakens without use. We can strengthen our minds in order to make a difference in the world around us. Moreland argues persuasively that Christians can not truly make a difference in the world unless they are able to articulate their Christian worldview.

If you are worried that you're not a "smart" Christian, don't be concerned. With tools like this book, you can use the mind that God gave you to better understand him and to more effectively communicate your beliefs to those around you.

"Your great learning is driving you mad." Festus to the Apostle Paul, Acts 26:24 (NASB)

"He [Christ] wants a child's heart, but a grown-up's head." C. S. Lewis

The imagination need not be stretched very far in order to see that Christianity as a system of beliefs is increasingly being considered impotent in the church and the culture. The believer and the unbeliever alike have seen a steady decline in biblical authority in the past century, which in and of itself has no reason to be discredited.

J. P. Moreland understands the need for the church in our culture to re-establish an intellectual focus toward our spiritual development. It is evident that he senses the church's failure to model itself after the intellectual voracity as modeled by the early church. He encourages us to follow the Apostle Paul and take as our own the statement in 2 Cor. 10:5 (NASB) - "We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ". His book is composed of four parts, which highlight the development and role of the Christian mind.

In the first part, Moreland briefs us on the history of how the Christian mind was lost and why it must be recovered. His support for his propositions are rooted directly in the inspired text of Scripture and of particular interest is his discussion on the Spirit's role in Bible understanding. He debunks the myth (from Scripture) that the Spirit enables the believer to cognitively grasp the text but rather He "speaks to the believer's soul, convicting, comforting, opening up applications of the truth through His promptings" (p.46). Nothing replaces the value of the mind, sound hermeneutics and great sweat! Once the value of the mind is asserted, we can then see how it fits into the process of human transformation.

Part two is a "how to" section concerning the development of the Christian mind. Moreland recaptures the necessary activity of the mind to break away from the passivity and poor habits that reside there. Once the mind is purged of hindrances, we are encouraged to discipline our minds by applying knowledge (wisdom), studying (secular and sacred), improving language skills, and by practicing good principles of reasoning and argument. To ingrain these disciplines, there are even some exercises to help the reader begin the journey.

The third part focuses on how the mature Christian mind is integrated into the various areas of life including evangelism, apologetics (defense of the faith), worship, fellowship and vocation. These chapters are replete with examples and discussions concerning various other forms of thought that also deal with these issues. As C. S. Lewis has aptly stated, "Good philosophy must exist if for no other reason than because bad philosophy needs to be answered" (The Weight of Glory).

Love Your God with All Your Mind ends with a sort of "manifesto" dealing with suggestions for the local church on developing the mind of the entire body of Christ. The last chapter is of great value to those concerned about the future of the church and is alone worth the price of the book.

The structure of the book is very logical and its tone is philosophical, as one would expect from a professor of philosophy. Despite the emphasis on the mind for soul development, Moreland never departs from a thoroughly Christian perspective, which at times prompts worship to God for such complexity in His creation. It is a very sound work Biblically and engages the Christian mind in such a way that for one to deny intellectual progress thereafter would seem like debauchery. I heartily recommend it if for no other reason than the fact that it will give you an adrenaline rush toward Christian thought.

I had to read the book twice. The first time my irritation kept getting in the way. Often I would agree with a statement only to be irritated by the "support". For example, the statement he makes on page 90 that our culture's "primary agenda is to be amused and entertained" is well taken. But his supporting details are in a paragraph that makes sweeping (and arguably inaccurate) statements about the origin and meaning of the words "holiday" and "vacation". Rather than being an insightful support to his statement, it seems to be gratuitous rhetoric.

After some time the dust of my irritation settled and I was able to think calmly about his main ideas. All he really wants to do is to encourage the Christian community to value intellectual excellence. I applaud his initiative in doing this. In spite of my critisicms (of which there are many) I came away from the book having learned a lot. I would sum up his message as "Think! Brother, think!". And that's just what I did!

Christian Apologist and philospher J.P. Moreland's book is an outstanding work. While so many Christian books today (especially in the Protestant world) are filled with fluff, Moreland presents a a text that puts an emphasis on the mind and its role in the Christian life.

The book has four parts with several chapters in each part: (1) Why the Mind Matters in Christianity, (2) How to Develop a Mature Chrsitian Mind, (3)What a Mature Christian Mind Looks Like, (4) Guaranteeing a Future for the Christian Mind.

Moreland's writing is concise, yet very thorough. The chpaters flow perfectly and each section develops the next. This is one of the best, if not the best, protestant released book I have read in the last couple of years.