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The Heart of Christianity: Rediscovering a Life of Faith
Marcus J. Borg
4.10
4,816 ratings316 reviews
In The Heart of Christianity, world-renowned Jesus scholar and author of the bestseller Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time argues that the essential ingredients of a Christian life—faith, being born again, the kingdom of God, the gospel of love—are as vitally important today as they have always been, even during this time of conflict and change in the church.
Borg wants to show us, as today's thinking Christians, how to discover a life of faith by reconceptualizing familiar beliefs. Being born again, for example, has nothing to do with fundamentalism, but is a call to radical personal transformation. Talking about the kingdom of God does not mean that you are fighting against secularism, but that you have committed your life to the divine values of justice and love. And living the true Christian way is essentially about opening one's heart—to God, and to others. Above all else, Borg believes with passion and conviction that living the Christian life still makes sense.
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GenresReligionTheologySpiritualityNonfictionChristianityChristianFaith
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234 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2003
Original title
The Heart of Christianity: Rediscovering a Life of Faith
This edition
Format
234 pages, Paperback
Published
July 21, 2015 by HarperOne
Language
English
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About the author
Marcus J. Borg56 books324 followers
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Borg was born into a Lutheran family of Swedish and Norwegian descent, the youngest of four children. He grew up in the 1940s in North Dakota and attended Concordia College, Moorhead, a small liberal arts school in Moorhead, Minnesota. While at Moorhead he was a columnist for the school paper and held forth as a conservative. After a close reading of the Book of Amos and its overt message of social equality he immediately began writing with an increasingly liberal stance and was eventually invited to discontinue writing his articles due to his new-found liberalism. He did graduate work at Union Theological Seminary and obtained masters and DPhil degrees at Oxford under G. B. Caird. Anglican bishop N.T. Wright had studied under the same professor and many years later Borg and Wright were to share in co-authoring The Meaning of Jesus: Two Visions, an amicable study in contrast. Following a period of religious questioning in his mid-thirties, and numinous experiences similar to those described by Rudolf Otto, Borg became active in the Episcopal Church, in which his wife, the Reverend Canon Marianne Wells-Borg, serves as a priest and directs a spiritual development program at the Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Portland, Oregon. On May 31, 2009, Borg was installed as the first canon theologian at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral.
Marcus J. Borg is Canon Theologian at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Portland, OR. Internationally known in both academic and church circles as a biblical and Jesus scholar, he was Hundere Chair of Religion and Culture in the Philosophy Department at Oregon State University until his retirement in 2007.
Described by The New York Times as "a leading figure in his generation of Jesus scholars," he has appeared on NBC's "Today Show" and “Dateline,” PBS's "Newshour," ABC’s “Evening News” and “Prime Time” with Peter Jennings, NPR’s “Fresh Air” with Terry Gross, and several National Geographic programs. A Fellow of the Jesus Seminar, he has been national chair of the Historical Jesus Section of the Society of Biblical Literature and co-chair of its International New Testament Program Committee, and is past president of the Anglican Association of Biblical Scholars. His work has been translated into eleven languages: German, Dutch, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Indonesian, Italian, Spanish, Portugese, Russian, and French. His doctor's degree is from Oxford University, and he has lectured widely overseas (England, Scotland, Austria, Germany, Belgium, Hungary, Israel and South Africa) and in North America, including the Chautauqua and Smithsonian Institutions.
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Ratings & Reviews
My Review
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4.10
Caroline
503 reviews564 followers
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June 22, 2019
This is a wonderful book for anyone wanting to explore what is termed 'progressive Christianity'....a coming together of Christian values and beliefs, and 21st century ideas. Borg, who died in 2015, was a New Testament scholar and theologian. He also held the post of Professor of Religion and Culture at Oregon State University - and this book very much reflects this. He makes it clear that he respects the gamut of world religions. They are all just different ways of trying to find a path to that ground of our being that we choose to call God, Allah, Yahweh or whatever. We are nevertheless all products of our cultures - and we therefore usually choose to worship within our own traditions - they are often the ones that feel most comfortable.
So many things that he has written about in this book have tallied with my own experiences in recent months, and he has really helped me make sense of my journey into Christianity (and for me it was such a very alien concept to begin with!) I needed help, and people like Borg have been invaluable....perhaps Borg more than anyone else.
Even though I don't agree with all his ideas, he has proved to be an invaluable guide and mentor. I particularly like his generous spirit and inclusiveness.
I will end with a few notes I took, which give a flavour of his ideas...
Faith as VISIO
This means faith as a way of seeing 'what is'.
1. We can see reality as hostile. In this scenario God is the one who is going to punish us, unless we offer the right sacrifices, behave the right way and believe the right things. If we see reality this way we will respond to life defensively.
2. We can see reality as indifferent. This viewpoint presumes that "what is" is indifferent to human purposes and ends. This is the most popular modern secular viewpoint.
3. We can see "what is" and view it as life-giving and nourishing. It has bought everything that is into existence. It sustains our lives. It is filled with wonder and beauty, even if sometimes a terrible beauty. To use a traditional theological term, this is seeing reality as gracious. This viewpoint leads to radical trust. It liberates us from anxiety and self-preoccupation. It leads to the 'self-forgetfulness' of faith. It leads to the kind of life we see in Jesus and the saints. Or in the words of Paul, it leads to a life marked by freedom, joy, peace and love.
The Easter story
Jesus is a figure of the present as well as the past. He continued to be experienced by his first followers after his death. He continues to be experienced today. Jesus lives. Jesus is Lord. He has been raised to God's right hand, where he is one with God. For some Christians the historical factuality of the Easter stories matters greatly, but I am 'indifferent' to things like...
- Was the tomb really empty?
- Was his corpse transformed?
- Did he really appear to his disciples in a visible way?
The above may all be metaphors. I don't believe that the Bible is literally true. I believe it is really true.
God
The question "Is God real?" is really the question "Is there more?" (More than just the material world.) My own answer is an emphatic "Yes".
Reasons for believing in God
1. The collective witness and wisdom of the world's religions.
2. People throughout history and across cultures have had experiences that overwhelmingly illustrate to them that these are experiences of the sacred. The experiential base of religion is very strong and for me it is the most persuasive ground.
3. Postmodern science - especially physics.
The above isn't proof as such, but they call into question the adequacy of the modern world view.
God is seen in two ways in history...............
1. Supernatural theism
God is person-like
God is in heaven, beyond the universe
He occasionally intervenes in the world, especially in response to prayer.
Emphasis on the transcendence of God
God is seen as a particular existing being.
2. Pantheism
God is an encompassing spirit of everything.
We live in God, move in God, we have our being in God.
He is right here, all around us, but he is also MORE than right here.
God is both transcendent and immanent.
It allows both the transcendence and the presence of God
God is 'what is', or ' the ultimate reality' or 'the ground of being'.
~~~~~~~
Rather than speaking of divine INTERVENTION, pantheism speaks of divine INTENTION and divine INTERACTION. God is in/with/under everything. A presence beneath and within our everyday lives.
In these circumstances, what happens to intercessory prayer - our prayers for help, for ourselves and others? Pantheism doesn't deny the efficacy of such prayer. Its framework allows for prayers to have effects, including prayers for healing. It doesn't rule out extraordinary events.
But it refuses to see efficacious prayer or extraordinary events as the result of divine intervention. If God intervenes sometimes, how does one account for the non-interventions? Especially given all the horrible things that happen. And so Pantheism rejects the language of divine interventions.
Many people don't know about the option of pantheism. Some religious thinkers talk about the end of theism, but I disagree with this. I think we should talk about the end of "supernatural theism".
Pantheism is an alternative form of theism. It is just as Biblical as supernatural theism.
We do not see Jesus's purpose as dying for the sins of the world.
His purpose was to be a healer and teacher of wisdom. His death was the consequences of the radical things he was doing. Like Gandhi or Martin Luther....
The concept that rather he died for our sins is very strange. It implies a limitation on God's power to forgive, or that he can only forgive if adequate sacrifice is made.
But in another light it is rather a metaphor for amazing grace. Radical grace.
5-star-books spirituality
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Mary
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May 25, 2008
This really is an amazing book. Borg offers a vision of Christianity that doesn't require us to check our intellect at the door and that rejects the Christian exclusivism that so many of us find distasteful and irrelevant today. Borg offers a way of seeing the Bible, Jesus, and Christian practices that transcends the literal-factual interpretation that most people in my demographic can't swallow. My favorite thing about this book is Borg's rejection of the question, "Did it really happen?" Was Jesus really born of a virgin? Did he really rise from the dead on the third day? Did he really heal the sick and restore sight to the blind? Borg's answer to this question is, "I have no idea if it really happened, but I know that it is profoundly true." This more-than-literal interpretation of the Bible takes it out of the realm of magical hocus-pocus and gives it tranformative relevance in our context. Borg also outlines the foundational elements and practices of a Christian life, and provides a compelling argument for a passionate pursuit of social justice as an essential component of the Christian way.
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Nate
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May 27, 2008
Interesting. I guess liberal Jesus-seminar-types do have faith after all....
I don't necessarily agree with everything, but I can see that Borg is really trying to forge a way of Christian living based on the historic faith. He is especially helpful in understanding that the biblical meaning of "belief" is not simply mental assent. It's not a checklist of right doctrines, but living faithfully, trusting God through Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit.
I do disagree with some stuff, which is why I'm not a liberal.
For example:
1) I don't think the WHOLE Bible is meant to be taken metaphorically and stripped of its literal meaning. Sure, there are hugely important metaphorical meanings, but that doesn't mean that they have to be seen as unfactual. I understand the corrective of only focusing on literalistic proof-texted facts, but I think Borg goes overboard.
2) The Resurrection absolutely HAD to happen. It's not possible for us to be Christians to day if Jesus had not risen from the dead. Don't try to skirt around this, Marcus! I don't like how he talks about modern people who "can't believe" in things like miracles and the resurrection. I'm sorry, but you can, too.
3) This whole preoccupation with the "pre-Easter Jesus" over against the "post-Easter Jesus". Sure, doctrine took on a much fuller shape in the next 3-400 years of the church's history about what the incarnation meant and what the trinity was all about, but that doesn't mean that Jesus' bones are still in some ossuary in Palestine waiting to be discovered by James Cameron! "I'm King of the World!!!". Nevermind........
Overall, even though Borg has some glaring blind spots in his theology, he still manages to forge a way of living that looks an awful lot like "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, and strength; and love your neighbor as yourself". I'm still grateful for many of his insights.
It's good not to just read stuff you agree with all the time. It makes you remember there's a whole world of ideas out there.....
spirituality theology
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Katy
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January 26, 2013
Four years ago I read Borg's "Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time," and the result was destructive. I loved and hated the book, not because of Borg but because I felt the Christian church had betrayed me. Borg's language about Jesus rang true--true to my thoughts and meditations, true to the reality I experienced, and true to history. But his language also complicated and even contradicted most Christian teachings I had encountered throughout my young life. "Meeting Jesus Again for the FIrst Time" freed me with new insights, but I also left its pages feeling confused and filled with rage.
The past four years have felt like exile. I had "The Heart of Christianity" on my bookshelf all these years, and despite being told it would "reconstruct" the "deconstructing" Borg did in "Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time," I couldn't pull off the read. I tried. Multiple times. But "now" was different for some reason.
This was a quietly dramatic reading event for me. The book is an affirmation of my faith. Borg's writing isn't complicated nor sophisticated, but he very directly and with clarity of purpose portrays Christianity as the religion I've always hoped it could be. I finished this book with a lighter heart, a commitment to the tradition and practices I cherish, and an excitement for the journey ahead.
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Linda
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August 9, 2011
I loved this book. Loved it. It may not appeal to people who are pretty content with their current understanding of Christianity, especially if it's very narrow or conservative understanding. But if you feel like Christianity has lost it's appeal (or that it never had much) I highly recommend this book. It made sense to me on a very deep level. My reaction to almost everything I read was "this is what I've always thought myself, but could never really express well, even to myself."
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Sam
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January 4, 2017
I can't even begin to explain how bizarre it feels to me to have willingly read and now review a book of Christian theology, but, well, here I am. I was raised Protestant, but since about the age of eighteen have considered myself a pragmatic agnostic. I still do, actually, but have been... meandering my way back to wrestling directly with my upbringing for years.
There were many reasons why I stopped identifying as Christian, but broadly speaking, 1.) I felt that evangelical Christianity had so thoroughly monopolized the term "Christian" and made it synonymous with reactionary American politics that I could not, in good conscience, affiliate with any denomination, and 2.) There are a lot of pillars of Protestant theology that felt deeply intellectually dishonest to me, even at the age of thirteen. It's actually the latter that I have struggled with the most, to the point that I did not even know how to articulate my reservations until about five years ago when I read Karen Armstrong's "The Case for God" where she began by arguing (paraphrasing), "Religion is something you DO, not something you BELIEVE."
That was a revelation. Because the core tenant of Protestant theology is that Belief is really all that matters. Up until that point, in my mind, Belief (the intellectual assent to a proposition) WAS Religion. (Side Note: Armstrong and Borg both argue that conflating Belief and Faith with "assenting to a fact" or "empirical observation" is a product of Modernism, which I need to explore, because I do not think either articulates the history well enough.) I could not get over the insistence in the Lutheran and Methodist catechisms (I was indoctrinated with both) that you had to take everything in the scripture, as Borg puts it, as "literal-factual." Setting aside that first requirement that "You Must Accept This, in All of It's Contradictions and Absurdities, as Historical and Divinely Legal" made exploring religion, finally, accessible to me.
After reading a lot of Armstrong and western philosophy broadly, I finally felt willing to take another look at Christianity. And so I asked my former youth minister for recommendations, because he was the one who was most willing to engage with and address my adolescent questions directly and fairly, who recommended Marcus Borg.
Reading Borg's "The Heart of Christianity" was moving not so much because it was novel, but because I kept thinking, "Why did no one tell me this was a viable approach to Christianity? I have always felt this." In broad strokes, Borg presents Christianity as a philosophy of living; argues that the Bible should be understood metaphorically/historically; embraces and celebrates the diversity of religions as ways of accessing the transcendental and rejects Christian exclusivity; and affirms that the nature of reality is dualistic, composed both of the material and the Divine.
Borg makes his points better than I can. The endorsement I give is that, as someone who has been frequently accused of being a "Doubting Thomas", I am beginning to feel persuaded. Which is not to say doubt is a bad thing. The opposite, actually. To quote Leslie Hazelton, "The best of us are doubters." I'm not writing that to sound arrogant -- I do not think I would make "The Best of" list of anything. Pursuing Doubt leads to new insight and deeper understanding. It appreciates that the world is imperfect but assumes it can be made better. Doubt rejects and seeks, ultimately arriving at satisfactory conclusions while reserving the right to change and grow.
I am a Doubter and always will be. Because I believe in something "More" (to use Borg's term) that informs me every moment of this unpredictable existence called Life.
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Donald Powell
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November 19, 2021
A very inspiring look at Christianity. For such a short book it has a lot of meat. The author's view of Christianity is more open, loving, thoughtful and community based than the traditional perception. This is an honest, if at times a bit intellectual, but open, kind, and logical explanation of the faith. I challenge a bit of this book in my thought but am glad to be exposed to his ideas, his perspectives and his urging me to learn, grow and think.
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Roben
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January 1, 2013
I'm so glad I read this. Our new minister told me that this book was singularly inspiring.
The following are lines from The Heart of Christianity that I reread and treasure:
Of course, the earlier paradigm uses the language of God's grace and compassion and love, but its own internal logic turns being Christian into a life of requirement and rewards, thereby compromising the notion of grace. Indeed it nullifies grace, for grace that has condition attached is no longer grace.
The point is, there is no single right way of understanding Christianity and no single right way of being Christian.
You can believe all the right things and still be relatively unchanged.
To think we are primarily the product of our own individual effort is to ignore the web of relationships and circumstances that shape our lives.
Jesus avoided cities, with the exception of Jerusalem. He spoke in small towns, villages and the countryside. The elites heard of him, and a few of them were attracted to him and even supported him, but he spoke primarily to peasants.
And repentance in the New Testament has an additional nuance of meaning. The Greek roots of the word combine to mean "go beyond the mind that you have."
Loving God means paying attention to God and to what God loves.
Religious community and tradition put us in touch with the wisdom and beauty of the past. They are communities of memory.
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Andrea
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April 4, 2008
Ive seen this guy talk a few times, and read a number of his books. A Jesus scholar, really, and this is probably the one most important book in convincing me that following a "christian" faith, apart from connection to any particular religion, is still valuable to me. I dont know how to explain my complete lack of interest in the Bible as anything more than a literary/political work yet my continued membership in an Episcopalian church and my absolute spiritual hunger for the ritual of communion, prayer, and hymns. There is still a way to find a spiritual path to better wholeness, better peace, better generosity, and if you get the church as a whole out of the way, Jesus still embodies that (as does Buddha and probably lots of others I know less about).
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Sabrina
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March 4, 2019
Marcus J. Borg discusses the practice of Christianity in modern everyday life, drawing from plenty of sources (including the Bible obviously) and his own life. He spends part of the book arguing for his point of view in terms of viewing the Bible within its historical context, rather than as the literal word of God, while still regarding it as a sacred text. The rest of the book provides guidance on how to use that context to practice Christianity.
He’s primarily addressing Christians who don’t take the Bible literally about how the religion can fit into their 21st-century lives. You don’t need to do logical gymnastics to have a rewarding Christina life.
The notes provide an excellent reading list for further examination of modern ways of reading the Bible and living a Christian life.
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