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But her spiritual growth doesn’t appear to concern either Keller or God. Aside from the physical afflictions, Job’s wife suffers as much as he does. But Keller loses sight of some people who, in my opinion, should receive more attention than they do - Job’s wife and children. He also looks at the unhelpful comments Job receives from his friends and the direct interaction he has with God toward the end of the book. Later, Keller discusses the different trials Job experiences and the gradual, if painful, spiritual growth that comes to him. How could the God of holiness and righteousness ever make a deal with the prince of darkness or even allow that evil being to enter his kingdom? By focusing on the less-problematic attitude of Satan toward God, Keller overlooks the more-problematic attitude of God toward Satan. What doesn’t make sense is God’s amiable, almost collegial attitude toward Satan.
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For example, while addressing the peculiarity of Satan approaching God and conversing with him, Keller emphasizes Satan’s flippant, disrespectful attitude toward God. By tunnel vision, I mean the author’s tendency to focus so closely on one person or issue that he loses sight of other significant people or issues. Tunnel vision arises in Keller’s analysis of the Book of Job. Yet, Keller forgets all about them when putting forth his Christian solution to suffering. That meaning gained strength from a new or renewed “religious interest.” Frankl refers to “improvised prayers and services in the corner of a hut, or in the darkness of the locked cattle truck.” Faith, in this case Jewish faith, enabled at least some prisoners to survive an environment that was demeaning, dangerous, and miserable. Frankl found that fellow prisoners who survived their horrible surroundings did so by finding a meaning in life that went beyond their own freedom and happiness.
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Keller specifically cites the work of Victor Frankl, a Jewish psychiatrist and former concentration camp prisoner. Those people were Jewish concentration camp survivors. Yet he appears to forget a special group of people he discussed earlier who survived unimaginable suffering without Christianity. Keller doesn’t see any alternative steps outside the Christian realm. Each step presupposes the sufferer knows and believes in the fundamental concepts of Christianity.
#NO GRAVEN IMAGE ELISABETH ELLIOT SERIES#
My misgivings stem from contradictions that arise in Keller’s writing as well as from his “tunnel vision” when discussing the book of Job and Elisabeth Elliot’s book No Graven Image.Īs mentioned in Part I of my review, Keller offers a series of steps sufferers should follow to endure (and perhaps benefit from) their suffering. Sandel’s book identifies at least three conflicting non-religious theories of justice vying for dominance in our society, but apparently none of the three stands out as better than the other two.Īlthough I find Keller’s criticisms of Western secular culture to be accurate, I struggle with his contention that faith in Jesus Christ coupled with a solid knowledge of Scripture is the only reliable way to walk with God through times of severe trouble. Keller cites Michael Sandel’s Justice: What’s the Right Thing to Do? to support his argument. As he points out, there is no neutral “rational” basis for determining the meaning of human life and for shaping concepts of justice and moral behavior. Keller also does a good job undercutting the idea that standards of morality can be based on non-religious grounds. (Granted, the fact that Christianity is more comforting does not necessarily make it more plausible.) He notes, correctly in my opinion, that Christianity is superior to other religions in preparing people for tragedy and seeing them through it. Keller is on the mark in criticizing contemporary Western culture for failing to give people a solid, consistent belief system that allows them to deal with pain and suffering. In Part II, I focus on what I believe Keller gets right and where he goes wrong. In Part I of my critique of Walking with God through Pain and Suffering, I analyzed the essential content of Tim Keller’s book.