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Challenge our common images of God by blowing the lid off conventional God-descriptors.
"We do not have to let go of one sense of God to take up another. Neither do we need to go about challenging old metaphors. What is crucial is to find a metaphor—or two, or six—that creatively point toward what we believe."
—from Chapter 1
Let Carolyn Jane Bohler inspire you to consider a wide range of images of God in order to refine how you imagine God to have and use power, and how God wills and makes divine will happen—or not. By tapping into your God-given ability to re-imagine God, you will have a better understanding of your own beliefs and how you, God and the world relate to each other.
Wonderfully fresh and down to earth, Bohler uses playful images, moving stories and solid scholarship to empower you to break free of old habits and assumptions, whatever your faith tradition. She encourages you to explore new names for God that are not only more consistent with what you believe, but will also deepen and expand your experience of God. Think about …
- God the Choreographer of Chaos
- God the Nursing Mother
- God the Jazz Band Leader
- God the Divine Blacksmith
- God the Divine Physical Therapist
- God the Team Transformer
- … and more
"No book can be more helpful than this one in guiding pastors and lay people to come to greater clarity about what they really believe about God. Guides us in critical reflection in a way in which all can participate. At once genuinely popular and genuinely theological."
—John B. Cobb, Jr., professor emeritus, Claremont School of Theology
"Titillating ... an adventure in 'metaphor wondering' and in multidimensional faith."
—Rev. Dr. Jeanne Stevenson-Moessner, professor of pastoral care, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University
“A treasure house of word pictures, some conventional and some outrageously original. A testimony to the inveterate need, on the part of humanity, to connect with God.”
—Rabbi Neil Gillman, professor of Jewish thought, The Jewish Theological Seminary of America
“Lays out the implications of our choices of metaphors for the Divine and expands our minds with practiced and practical suggestions. A must for all who wish to leave parochial worlds!”
—Nancy Corcoran, CSJ, Catholic chaplain at Wellesley College; author, Secrets of Prayer: A Multifaith Guide to Creating Personal Prayer in Your Life
“Scholarly and accessible … will help seminarians and seekers, professors and pastors explore new ways to talk about the Divine. Deftly compels the reader to continually nuance the mystery and complexity of our God—no matter what our faith tradition. A book we've been waiting for!”
—Marsha Foster Boyd, president, Ecumenical Theological Seminary in Detroit
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. God the What?
A Lively, Multidimensional Faith
What Makes a Good Metaphor?
Bringing New Meaning to Old Metaphors
Metaphor Wondering
Imagining New Metaphors
2 God Can Do What? God's Power
A Shaky Search to Understand God’s Power
An Attitude of Inquiry
A Hundred Ways of Wondering
Powerful Options
Transforming Power
3 God Wants What? God’s Will
God the Designer of All Events: Is What Is, Meant to Be?
God the Proposer: Dare We Say No to a Proposal?
God the Improviser: How Do We Creatively Respond to God’s Nod?
God the Graffiti Artist: How Do We Get Clues to What God Wants?
4 God Interacts How? Our Relationship with God
Twin Spiritual Needs
Implications for Human Relationships
A Closer Look at One Metaphor
Conclusion: Metaphors Matter
Epilogue: Personal Metaphor Wondering
Reflective Questions
Discussion Guide for Groups
Notes
Credits
Hebrew, Christian, and Islamic Scriptures Index
Metaphor Index