Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller

I'm a little hesitant to write about subjects such as politics and religion here. This isn't because I don't find those subjects interesting or important. It's more because I assume that my regular readers ("Of which I have none," to quote Tom Lehrer) are less interested in reading my ramblings in these areas. Instead, these subjects are better suited to in-person discussions, or at least on a more interactive forum than this one. But I do make rare forays into these topics, as I will here.

Today's topic is Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller. Where should I start? This is a good book.

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OK, it's been two weeks since I started the review of this book, ending with what's above the line. I haven't found the time to spend on this post, but I'll try to finish up now and keep it short. As I said, though, this is a good book. In it, Miller writes largely autobiographically (I think it's called memoir-like) about his spiritual life, as well as his struggles, and his views regarding different aspects of Christianity.

To begin with, Miller's not a big fan of the term Christianity. He seems to feel it has too much "baggage," meanings, and negative connotations to many people. He prefers to use the term Christian Spirituality for his personal spiritual life as distinct, for example, from the actions of certain armies in 1100 AD or other things that Christianity might be asked to answer for.

In short, I think that the best way to sum up the book is like this: Have you ever gotten the feeling that in certain Christian circles, you're not considered a good Christian (or a good person) unless you share the goals and views of a certain political party? (Yeah. What's up with that?) I have, and so has Miller.

• If you have too, then this is a good book for you to read.
• If you haven't, but are a Christian who largely agrees with the current US Administration and its party, then this is a good book for you to read.
  

He is a non-conformist by nature (which isn't always a good thing) and rebels against some of what he sees are the failings of modern North American conservative Christianity. But he's no liberal when it comes to his beliefs. Basically, he shows it's possible to be a Bible-believing Christian, to sincerely put loving God and others as first in his life, and not be bogged down by others who would try to limit him in achieving these goals.

While reading the book, in a few places, I'd think, "Hey, I'm like that." In a few others, I'd think, "I wish I was like that." As I mentioned above, this might not be always a good thing, but there you have it.

As for a rating or recommendation, I'm hesitant to suggest to non-Christians any particular "religious" book. If or when I do, I assume that the book had better be good, or else you'll be turned off by my future recommendations. I'll give it 5 stars out of 5, recommending it to Christians. To non-Christians, I'll suggest it if you'd like an explanation of what Christianity (or "Christian Spirituality") could or should be.