A review by bonitabeckita
How the Bible Actually Works: In Which I Explain How An Ancient, Ambiguous, and Diverse Book Leads Us to Wisdom Rather Than Answers—and Why That's Great News by Peter Enns

4.0

I really enjoyed reading this book. Peter Enns seemed to have two major points to make about the Bible. First, that it is a book of wisdom, not a book of rules. He gives lots of examples of how the Bible is ambiguous and contradictory, so if it were just a set of rules to govern our conduct we would have lots of loopholes to argue through at our divine judgement. Reading the Bible as a book of wisdom though, we realize the intent all along was for us to think about this sacred text and then apply it's wisdom to our time and place. As Enns says "...the Bible holds out for us an invitation to join an ancient, well-traveled, and sacred quest to know God, the world we live in, and our place in it." Enns' second point is what has caused me to think most. He suggests the Bible records constant re-imaginings of God, God's character, and God's relationship to Creation. For example, Enns explains how the exile of the Hebrew people forced them to re-imagine God, God's character, and God's relationship to the Hebrew people because this exile didn't fit with their understanding of God's original promise to Abraham and the nation of Israel. Jesus, and especially His crucifixion and resurrection, forced the Jewish-Christian disciples to re-imagine their understanding of God because this didn't seem to fit in the "plan" as they understood it. Enns suggests we are still re-imagining God for our time and place, using wisdom as we do that. What challenged me was to know what the boundaries are around re-imagining. How do I know something I re-imagine about God is true or is just me trying to make God more palatable? Enns doesn't offer any boundaries, and I greatly appreciated that. I believe Enns trusts his readers to pursue this mysterious life of faith without any arbitrary limits he might have set.

My only criticism is in the circular writing style. Enns circled back to repeat his points frequently. I know this makes it understandable and accessible to the read who is not a Bible-scholar. I found it redundant, but not to the point that I did not enjoy the book. In fact, I will likely read it again, slowly, with my Bible out to read closely the passages Enns references.

As with the other books I have read by Peter Enns, I am more excited about reading the Bible. I look forward to reading with this added filter on my lens to seek out the wisdom in this ancient text that can still guide and inspire us in our modern times.

I received an Advance Reader Copy as part of the launch team for this book.