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166 reviews for:
Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church
N.T. Wright
4.33 AVERAGE
166 reviews for:
Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church
N.T. Wright
4.33 AVERAGE
This title will end up on my "Life-Changing Books" list, next to The Challenge of Easter. For some strange reason, in 2009 when I first purchased the book, I got stuck in it for about two years and ended up just browsing through it. This time around, two of my sisters and my mom and I decided to read together and talk together once a week about what we were learning, wondering and feeling about what -- in some regards -- is a pretty radical re-framing of what we'd come to believe about Heaven and what it means to follow the Resurrected Christ in the here and now.
Our conversations started out a bit jittery as we got to know the former Bishop of Durham's voice, which is occasionally a bit off-putting to the newcomer.
It takes a lot of courage to reexamine long-held, passionately-held beliefs. I'm so encouraged by my mom and sisters for their willingness to ask questions whose answers will be mostly wrapped in mystery until the Glorious Day when we are reunited with Christ and living in a new earth where all things have been judged and made right.
Many of our conversations included variations on the question "Since we can't know for sure what it will look like for Jesus to return and what heaven will look like or where our deceased friends and family are right now, does it matter to our everyday lives?" And with a variety of responses we decided that yes, it does matter. Not that we can know for sure, but that we can be diligent in understanding and study so that our lives reflect well the hope found in the real-life resurrection power of Christ. That power that is even now fueling our lives, and through our lives fueling acts of love, hope and justice around us. To be able to hold onto hope in the tension between fact and mystery is an act of worship.
Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus.
Our conversations started out a bit jittery as we got to know the former Bishop of Durham's voice, which is occasionally a bit off-putting to the newcomer.
It takes a lot of courage to reexamine long-held, passionately-held beliefs. I'm so encouraged by my mom and sisters for their willingness to ask questions whose answers will be mostly wrapped in mystery until the Glorious Day when we are reunited with Christ and living in a new earth where all things have been judged and made right.
Many of our conversations included variations on the question "Since we can't know for sure what it will look like for Jesus to return and what heaven will look like or where our deceased friends and family are right now, does it matter to our everyday lives?" And with a variety of responses we decided that yes, it does matter. Not that we can know for sure, but that we can be diligent in understanding and study so that our lives reflect well the hope found in the real-life resurrection power of Christ. That power that is even now fueling our lives, and through our lives fueling acts of love, hope and justice around us. To be able to hold onto hope in the tension between fact and mystery is an act of worship.
Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus.
Absolutely wonderful book! So first of all, I rate books around what level they're aimed at, so this book is by far better than most books I've read. Academically he does a great job, although sometimes referencing a bit too much to his other books. His writing style is one of the best around nowadays and it's always a pleasure to read him. 4 stars because he sometimes skipped over certain critiques rather quickly, so parts left me unconvinced, other times he was a bit stubborn/ rather specific about how to do politics combined with religion, although I agree with him on this, there are others who might not and methods and what should be done should be more discussed, also outside of this book.
But to conclude: wonderful! Tearing down the old structures of ways of thinking and giving a framework to reconstruct a new one. Good stuff.
But to conclude: wonderful! Tearing down the old structures of ways of thinking and giving a framework to reconstruct a new one. Good stuff.
With each book of [ai:N.T. Wright|38932|N.T. Wright|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1294175870p2/38932.jpg][a:N.T. Wright|38932|N.T. Wright|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1294175870p2/38932.jpg]'s that I read, the more my faith in Christ grows. This is one of the best books you will find about the meaning of Christ's resurrection and on the Christian's belief (read hope) in the bodily resurrection at the End of Days when Heaven and Earth will be joined together and perfected. Mr. Wright does a fine job of dispelling the dualistic belief in separate spheres for heaven and earth that has infiltrated the Church and popular conceptions of Christian theology and brings us back to the original belief in the bodily resurrection. But more than that he ties belief in Christ's resurrection and the bodily resurrection of believers to the way Christians and the Church are to live and pursue it's mission as God's redeemed people and messengers in such a way that should quite nearly blow your mind! As I delved deeper into what Mr. Wright was saying and read the passages of the Bible that he cited, the more my faith, love, and hope seemed to increase. However, as much as I want to give this book five stars, there is something that holds me back. One of the problems Mr. Wright has in all of his works is that his rhetoric and passion are so great that his main argument can get consumed in it. For the first half of the book I wasn't totally sure what he was arguing other than that our popular conceptions of heaven and the resurrection were wrong. And I still don't fully understand what he was saying about the ascension of Christ at the end of the Gospel accounts and the beginning of Acts. Thus, even though this book is meant for a popular and not a scholarly audience, you may want to read slowly and carefully through each chapter before moving on. Still, like his book on basic Christian belief, [bc:Simply Christian: Why Christianity Makes Sense|69094|Simply Christian Why Christianity Makes Sense|N.T. Wright|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1170703202s/69094.jpg|66955][b:Simply Christian: Why Christianity Makes Sense|69094|Simply Christian Why Christianity Makes Sense|N.T. Wright|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1170703202s/69094.jpg|66955], this should be required reading for all Christians regardless of denomination.
If you think eschatology isn't important, this book is for you. There are a few conclusions that Wright draws that I don't agree with, but overall a fantastic look at why postmillennialism matters.
Reminds me of a sort of contemporary Lewis. I’m not sure I agree with all of his conclusions but it’s quite a fascinating work and I think he makes some great points.
This book shaped my theology in college and reframed my faith radically. I'm unsure how much I still agree with, but Wright's theology of resurrection remains an important dialogue partner.
A truly transformative book. I had to digest this book slowly, a chapter a day, to soak in all of the richness of N.T Wright's writing on how to truly understand the hope of a Christian (hint: it's not being whisked to heaven when we die) and the way we get to participate in the kingdom of God/heaven right now. The perfect book to read leading up to Easter!
Okay I absolutely loved this book. N.T. Wright is one of the most brilliant writers I’ve ever read. He clearly, logically, and with plenty of references and biblical basis, tears apart the common view of heaven and the resurrection. I think I will be coming back to this one a lot
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Tom Wright (otherwise known as N.T. Wright) is one of the foremost New Testament scholars and certainly one of the most popular faith-based authors in my growing library. I read two of his books last year (here and here) and this year another one of his randomly found its way into my TBR list.
N.T. Wright’s books are often dense, despite being illuminating and very accessible. That is expected as the topics he explores and the angle he comes from often entail detailed thinking with a solid historical foundation. So far, Suprised by Hope is my most accessible and impactful work of Tom Wright.
Surprised by Hope (a title that is related to the topic as much as it is a play at C.S. Lewis’ Surprised by Joy classic) is an illuminating and fresh take at the resurrection. Tom Wright has touched on this in his other books and podcasts but in Suprised by Hope, he explores the meaning of Jesus resurrection and how it is a connection between future hope and present living. How the resurrection is a signpost to a future event that has an impact on the mission of the Church today. This connection is best explored by examining what that first Easter morning meant to the disciples, the 1st-century church and its import in our 21st-century world. According to Surprised by Hope, the resurrection is not just a sign that death has been defeated and those who believe will be going to heaven and leaving this poor world behind forever (an erroneous Platonised understanding of Christianity) but a bodily resurrection is a signpost to the hope that God will redeem, restore and renew his earthly creation. The bodily resurrection of Jesus is not just proof of ‘life after death’ but the inauguration of the new creation will climax in a new heaven and a new earth. The crux of the resurrection is this – earth matters. It shall be renewed.
A critical aspect of the exploration in Surprised by Hope is the bodily aspect of Jesus’ resurrection highlights that the present bodily life is not valueless because it will die. There is a future for not just the body (earth suit) but the earth itself. In light of this, what we do here matters because just as Christ’s empty tomb and his bodily resurrection highlight an inauguration, the climax will be not in heaven but here on earth (albeit a renewed earth). Tom Wright goes to great length to point out that the Christian hope anchored in Jesus’ resurrection is the hope that in his rising from the dead, there is hope that God will renew all things. It is not just a hope of a life after death in heaven but the start of a grand renewal project that will culminate in a new heaven and a new earth.
A great portion of the book reassesses the vocation of the Christian in the light of this hope. It is not just a celebration of hope with a heavenly destination. If rightly as Suprised by Hope points out, Jesus’ bodily resurrection is proof that God has grand plans to renew this messed up earth and that renewal has started on that first Easter morning, then what we do on this earth matters (1 Corinthians 15:58). Bringing God’s kingdom to earth as it is in heaven is a vocation that has started and should be the mission of the church, not preparing for heaven as an escape from this messed up world.
As insightful and exhaustive as the book is, there are few problems I have with it. Firstly, its discussion around the eternal torment versus annihilation topic is unsatisfactory in its option of a third alternative. I am neither convinced about eternal torment nor annihilation but I will need to chew on the third alternative much more to appreciate the view Tom Wright offers here. Secondly, while the ultimate destination is not heaven, not much is said about the stopover called heaven. The author is vague about heaven while being dismissive about purgatory. Thirdly, I do not agree with his middle of the road interpretation of praying for/to the dead saints. Thirdly, being a retired Anglican Bishop, his Anglican foundation is as expected but there seems to be way too much Anglican doctrine in the expositions. A more non-denominational base would have been more inviting.
In summary, this is an excellent exposition of the resurrection and is now a close second favourite book of mine on this topic after the classic by Paula Gooder (a former student of N.T. Wright). Surprised by Hope is firmly recommended.
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