The Furious Longing of God by Brennan Manning
Justification by grace through faith is the theologian’s learned phrase for what Chesterton once called “the furious love of God.” He is not moody or capricious; he knows no seasons of change. He has a single relentless stance toward us: he loves us. He is the only God man has ever heard of who loves sinners. False gods — the gods of human manufacturing — despise sinners, but the Father of Jesus loves all, no matter what they do. But of course this is almost too incredible for us to accept. Nevertheless, the central affirmation of the Reformation stands: through no merit of ours, but by his mercy, we have been restored to a right relationship with God through the life, death, and resurrection of his beloved Son. This is the Good News, the gospel of grace.-Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel.
I have owned every book that Brennan Manning has ever written.
As Christian books go, they are among the most divisive and provocative you’ll ever read or discuss. A reviewer of the current book at the discernment blog The Discerning Reader is typical of the kind of assessment Manning elicits from the Knights of Reformed Orthodoxy. I could use up blog space, but there’s no real point. You can read it for yourself. If you’ve spent much time around Manning, you’ll soon be able to write this kind of criticism in your sleep. It’s been going on for years.
I remember when one of my co-workers asked me for something good to read. I’d just finished Abba’s Child, a book quite similar to The Furious Longing of God, and I passed it on to her. In a couple of weeks, the book was returned with a note in between the pages. The note was angry, and like the review cited above, pronounced the book a waste of time.
Brennan isn’t for everyone. I learned that long ago. But he sure is for me, I can tell you that.
Let’s be honest. Brennan Manning isn’t an exegete or a expositor. He’s a Catholic. He’s a mystic. He’s a story-teller. He’s sloppy. He makes no attempt at neat Systematics. He quotes other writers, some of them a bit off the farm. He repeats the same ideas and stories in almost every book. He never seems to be anything other than weak and in desperate need of help from God. His prose is occasionally excessive and sometimes obscure. He can be frustrating, puzzling and disturbing.
And Brennan Manning is, for my life (and the lives of thousands of other devoted readers), simply the most indispensably authentic writer on the God of Jesus Christ I’ve ever encountered. Brennan knows Jesus and can bring you right there like no other writer of our time.
One thing I can say for every critic who finds Manning “a waste of time:” They are not longing, in the midst of the wreckage of their own souls, to hear, existentially and constantly, the assurance of God’s absolute love and affection. I can say this with some certainty, because no one can compare to the ability of Brennan Manning to stop you and embrace you with the astonishing love of God.
The Furious Longing of God is almost a brief review of ideas Brennan’s communicated many times before. He says as much. There is a kind of weariness and finality to this book. Unlike a book like Ragamuffin Gospel– a book written when Manning was at the height of his powers- Furious Longing of God gives evidence of a Manning who has delivered his best words many times, and now wants to point to and underline them once more.
Brennan’s health has not been good and his traveling ministry has been postponed. I’m sure Brennan needs the support of those who love and appreciate him these days.
There’s a reason people like Rich Mullins, Richard Rohr, Eugene Peterson and Michael Card love Brennan Manning, and there’s a reason discernment ministries despise Manning. You’re big boys and girls. I don’t need to do your thinking for you. Read it for yourself. Manning has committed his entire life to speaking the word of God’s love and to encouraging people to CONSTANTLY be flooded, liberated and changed by that love. He, above anyone I know, teaches the necessity of simple prayer. No popular writer is more on target with the heart of God that comes to us in Jesus. No one has more compassion and helpful application to the last, least, lost, broken, dying, hopeless and weighed down.
Brennan Manning has been a gift to the church. The Furious Longing of God reminds us why.
For the sake of the bound-up minds and imaginations who believe Manning is some version of Eckhart Tolle, I hope he sells a million copies.
The Internet Monk Archives 
Thank you for your post on Brennan Manning. I do share your thoughts about him and his works. I do confess that his words, that “God loves me as I am and not as I should be”, were used by God to begin the transformation of my life. They gave me the courage to leave the road of a performance-oriented and head-centered faith and journey the road less travelled: the one of weakness, of grace and of learning to experience the great and tenacious love of my abba within my heart.
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One thing I have learned from Brennan is that it is much more important to come to the reality that I am loved than thinking that I have my theology down pat.
I have jumped through all the religious hoops I care to jump through. So as a reminder to myself… my 4 month old boy has this author’s namesake.
More than anything, I want my son and also my daughter to know that they are loved. Moreso than being right. No matter how much they ever screw up like their father has.
Thank you for shining a little light on this ragamuffin author.
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Your post puts into words how I feel about Brennan Manning. His “theology,” if you could call it that, is for the broken ragamuffin’s club for which I am a card-carrying member.
It’s not for everyone because not all are broken ragamuffins. Good for them… (I suppose)!
I visit your blog now and again and I think I have even quoted you off to the right on mine.
I also favorite you.
Keep up the good work. “E.”
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I chose my moniker as a nod to the influence and help Manning’s book (and Rich Mullins’ music) had on my life. “The Ragamuffin Gospel” was one of a handful of books I read 3-4 years into my Christian walk that talked me off the ledge and gave me hope again. The spiritual beatdown of legalism and a view of God that was way out of balance in favor of being harsh and unyielding left me worn out and ready to give up on this whole notion of Christianity.
Thank you, Brennan. I love a good systematic theology study as much as the next guy, but your books and the way you live literally saved me from ruin.
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Yes.
Different ways of writing. Capon is extremely “blue collar” while Manning is a bit more poetic and polished. But both have the same view of grace, though Capon is more about working with scripture and theology and Manning is about Christian experience.
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I have not read Manning, but some of what is said of him here reminds me of the sort of themes I have experienced in the writing of Robert Farrar Capon. He has had a profound effect on me, similar to what some of you write regarding Manning. Anyone sufficiently familiar with both to compare/contrast?
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Monk–
Did you ever notice the people who most need help with their kids are also the ones least likely to accept it?
Brennan Manning is not for everyone but he should be mandatory reading for the guilt-ridden, the legalist, and the doctrinal purist. They (we) need him most and are also the least likely to sympathetically read him, feed on his big idea, and overlook his mysticism, repetitiveness, Catholicism, imprecision, and other things for which he is so often ignored, excoriated, or picked at.
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Thanks for pointing this book out. I hope to pick it up and read it sometime!
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In my youth, I spent many years hopping between churches with my family because they could not find one that fit well and I got dragged along for the ride. The result, for me, was a season that lasted a few years that left me very jaded about church and God. Unable to take church seriously anymore, I walked away from the church into what would be the most difficult years of my life so far.
Then, one Easter, I was given a copy of The Ragamuffin Gospel: The Visual Edition which was comprised of some of the most impactful pieces from the Ragamuffin Gospel. I was floored, not only by the artwork, but by the things I read. My favorite still being:
There was a small town where almost everyone went to the same little church. One man was caught doing some very bad things, and he was banned from church. When he went to the doors on Sunday morning, they told him to go away. The man walked away and complained to God, “They won’t let me in, Lord, because I’m a sinner.†God answered him, “What are you complaining about? They won’t let me in either”
Later on in the day I rushed out to my favorite Borders and, after soeme searching, found a copy of the actual book. The intro alone to this book still makes me tear up. And having read the comments to this blog, it’s wonderful to see that he has impacted so many people with his work.
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Lion and Lamb, A Glimpse of Jesus
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Saya, I really liked Abba’s Child and Ruthless Trust.
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Ok, best recommendation for what to read if Ragamuffin Gospel is the only Manning I’ve read (but I did love it (well at least the second time – the first time I was in highschool and kind of weirded out by it) – because like you said – he is authentic – and we so need people to be real like that in the church today… )
So is Relentless Tenderness everyone’s second pick, or is there one that would make more sense to be a recommendation if you’ve already read something of his? I just always end up in the store looking at them all and can’t decide which one to buy – if I’d just given in and done inny miny miney mo I’d probably be through with them all by now – but no I kept debating which one to get…
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Scott Eaton –“You either get him or you don’t. He either ministers to you or not.”
I couldn’t agree more with this assessment. In my case I feel like I get him. I don’t think that I have ever read another Christian author who had the ability to speak into my life in the way that Brennan did in ‘The Ragamuffin Gospel’. I still remember reading that book for the first time when I was in my early teens. I thought can Christianity really be that good? Can God really love me that much?
One of the criticisms that seems to have been laid down about his new book is he doesn’t tell the whole truth about God. It seems like the reviewer takes exception to the fact that Brennan doesn’t say God has a furious and tender love for you BUT he is also just, and punishes sin, and calls you to a life of holiness and, and, and, and…
In my experience alot of people desperately to hear about the love of God with no BUTs. I am of a depressive nature and am constantly pained over my sinfulness. I am an emotional mess at times and I find it incredibly hard to believe that God gives a rip about me. When you constantly struggle to embrace the amazing grace of God through Jesus then you have a tendency to latch onto the BUTs and in the process neglect the assurance of God’s love. I believe that it is that love which is so necessary for a life of sanctification and holiness.
God help us if there is a systematic theology examination at the pearly gates. I’d rather trust in the relentless tenderness (read: Grace/Mercy/Character) of a God who loves broken sinners and sent his son on their behalf.
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I could not agree with you more. The Ragamuffin Gospel and Abba’s Child are two of my all-time favorites and I love returning to them. I was able to attend a weekend conference under Brennan Manning and enjoyed every second of his longing for God. I had seen that a new book was coming and look forward to reading more from his heart.
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May I suggest another book by Brennan Manning, “Ruthless Trust”. It’s not an easy read because he touches you in the very center. So I recommend one or two chapters at a time.
FYI, you all might be interested to know that the Catholic version of the discernment ministry hold similar opinions of his work. (and yes, we too have people that put doctrine and the avoidance of appearing to condone sin above family and love and community)
Martha, In my time as an evangelical, I never ran across any teaching about prayer dryness that didn’t put the blame on the person praying.
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I will never forget the first time I read the introduction to “Ragamuffin Gospel.” It was just a few years ago. I’d never heard of this Manning guy, but saw a number of his books on the shelf in the Christian bookstore (a place I try not to frequent). The only reason I picked up “Ragamuffin” was because of the interesting cover and curious title (how shallow is that?). But I was tired of “the deep stuff” and was somehow drawn to this book. About halfway through the intro my eyes were wet with tears as I stood there crying in the middle of the store. I knew I had met a kindred spirit in Brennan.
You either get him or you don’t. He either ministers to you or not. I think if you relate with a gospel that is for the “broken and bedraggled,” then you relate with Brennan. If you can relate to the God who steps into the mess that is your life, then his books are for you.
Thanks for the review, Michael.
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“…is there any view on dryness in prayer in your church traditions?â€
Martha, I didn’t know and was totally unprepared when it happened to me. When I first came to Christ, I experienced months of genuine closeness, comfort and joy. When I took walks the presence of God’s Spirit was so strong that I sometimes glanced sideways because I was not walking alone.
Then it was suddenly gone. At first I was absolutely terrified. What had I done wrong? Was this closeness gone forever? Had I messed up somehow?
My sister encouraged me to read Teresa of Avila. Reading Interior Castle helped me to understand. Then reading Oswald Chambers gave me encouragement to continue on no matter what I felt or didn’t feel in prayer. He says not to live longing to relive what we have already experienced.
A parent with a new baby holds him close. Then as he grows you let him run and explore. If he gets into trouble or needs comfort, then you hold him. But the child won’t grow normally if the parent continually holds him. It would be unhealthy for the child if, instead of playing and exploring he sat thinking, why won’t my parent hold me? It felt so safe and secure?
I went through this time of feeling abandoned and then one day I was preparing for something very unpleasant. Beforehand I sat on my bed praying and I felt enveloped in peace. After that, it wasn’t as thought I went back to feeling things as I did during those first months, but I knew that God was with me. I know it more deeply because I know it without feeling held. Perhaps this is necessary so that faith can grow.
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As far as the orthodoxy police, to paraphrase James, “Don’t be to quick to set yourself up as an authority, because that shirt has a target on it…and the sights lined up on it may may be God’s as well as other people’s.”
I have read some of Manning’s work, but not all. I read him in part because of his friendship with Rich Mullins–I’m not a huge Mullins fan, but I knew him slightly during his student days and enjoy some of his music.
With Manning nearing the end of his race, one writer you may want to check out is Wayne Jacobsen–one of the group that published “The Shack” originally, and was as surprised as anybody by what happened with it. His own books and articles are worthwhile, but from a different perspective–his background is Baptist and Charismatic, with other factors thrown in–I just read his early and out-of-print book “In My Father’s Vineyard”, and growing up in a working raisin farm in California gave Wayne some insights into the vine and vineyard references in Scripture that most of us miss.
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He was interested in who the waiter was as a person. He had a natural, as opposed to contrived, conversation with him and it spoke to me because I could sense that this is simply the way Brennan is….himself with whoever he engages in conversation with. That’s what spoke to me because I would have done it for ego gratification or some other really stupid reason; not out of authenticity. It was an “I and Thou” conversation not an “I and it” one if you are familiar with Martin Buber.
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“I watched how he was with the waiter . . .”
This sort of comment always mystifies me. He treated the waiter with respect and courtesy. I should hope so, and wonder what is wrong with our world if that draws surprise.
But if he had some super-spiritual or loving encounter with the waiter, it makes me think he is one of these syrupy, second-plane people I will never get,
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Just to clarify what I’m asking about: the Discerning Reader disagrees with Manning on the point of addressing God as “Abba” always, despite the circumstances, because:
(1) One should only do this when one is assured that one possesses or has been granted the spirit of sonship
(2) How one knows one possesses this spirit is that one feels “the comfort and ease and blessing of addressing God as Father” in prayer
(3) If one does not feel this comfort, ease and blessing, “then there is a reason for that and your soul would do well to find out why.”
Now, I’d agree with “your soul would do well to find out why”, but Discerning Reader seems to me to be saying “It’s all your sinful fault, bozo!” and does not seem to have the idea of aridity in prayer as a stage of struggle encountered on the path of spiritual advancement at all on his spiritual map.
Yes? No? Huh?
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I realise I’m heading off on a tangent again, but the tenor of the posts on here so far, and especially the wonderfully sympathetic(!) mention of struggle in prayer by The Discerning Reader, causes me to ask: is there any view on dryness in prayer in your church traditions?
I’m curious because, even without going into the Dark Night of the Soul, there is an acknowledgement in Catholicism that there will be periods of difficulty and dryness in prayer, and that you can feel the loss of what are called “consolations” – pleasant emotions in spiritual things, feelings of closeness to God, comfort, joy – and that this is not necessarily a bad thing in itself but a step along the way to greater intimacy and spiritual growth.
The Discerning Reader seems (though I may be taking him up completely wrong) to be familiar with the consolations, but dismissive of aridity as a problem totally on the part of the believer, a fault to be remedied in order to go back to the consolations (which, on the Catholic spiritual scale, would actually be a regression).
Comments? Clarifications? Tell me to shut up and stop dragging Papistry into every blinkin’ thing?
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iMunk,
When you said this would appeal to people that like Michael Card’s music, I wanted to read it right away. I must have about every Michael Card recording on my Blackberry along with Fernando Ortega for moments of contemplation.
Anyway, I went over to Christianaudio and bought the audio book on MP3 alone with Abba’s Child and an interview, free download. I mention this because I’m glad I have these books on audio. I listened to Furious Longing last night and will want to listen to it again. He makes sense to me.
Thank you for the review.
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It is the authenticity of Manning that has attracted me to his writings. I will admit that I have some problems with the “mystical” and “contemplative” aspects of his personality after coming out of a similar vein present within the charismatic movement.
However, it is Manning’s perception and revelations of the love and Grace of God that has really ministered to me in some of my darkest hours.
I was initially made aware of Brennan Manning back in 2002 when I was going through what was to become a “life-altering” event that drug out for almost two years into a stagnated wilderness / cave experience. The charismatics I fellowshipped with at that time became the three friends of Job and tried to convince me that lacking faith, secret sin, I must have voted for a democrat, not putting enough money in the plate, not praying long/hard enough…. was the root cause of that event happening. The pentecostals I grew up with rejoiced with glee at my life circumstance because all their prayers of judgment were finally answered as God’s wrath had finally come down on the one who left the fold, departed from the faith, possessed the ‘spirit of Diotrephes and Saul’, and “touched Gawd’z annoying (oops anointed)”. In other words through their rose colored glasses, God “hated me” so much that he would “break me” as a sign to show those charismatics and pentecostals how much he “loved them”. Go figure….
At that time in life, I was told by a friend to go pick up a copy of The Ragamuffin Gospel and read it. After reading the entire book, the one thing that came out of that reading before the love and grace observations ever came to light was….
I read a book written by a human being about himself and also about me and not a book written either by a Scholar who has the i dotted and the t crossed; and not a book written by someone who has figured out how to reduce faith to a formula, evangelism to an esoteric ecstasy, and spirituality into a tribal superstition. It is the fact that Manning does talk about his weakness and imperfections but most importantly, the repentance, love, grace and, redemption that can be obtained only through Christ alone.
It rains on the just and the unjust….
Michael, I do not know if you have ever gone to see Brennan speak but if you get a chance and Brennan is speaking in your part of the country, go see him. I really believe that he doesn’t have that much longer on earth. I saw him in 2005 and was deeply impacted as he both spoke about the Father’s love and grace, but also had the bravado to publicly question and call out why a church (where the event was held and who was to pay him for his appearance) had to have bodyguards to shield and escort him and the senior pastor (it was like the secret service with the six man surround team with their dark glasses, ear pieces, and black swat-team fatigues) everywhere they went in the building?
I did not purchase The Furious Longing of God because of all the excepts I read, it did appear that it was a repeat of / collection the best writings from Manning’s other books (Ragamuffin Gospel, Abba’s Touch, Wisdom of Tenderness, Signature of Jesus) and I would have felt like I had purchased the same book twice.
—-
“Hope”, it’s great to see you online again.
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We need the emphasis that Brennan provides precisely because a person can get the theology right and still lack brokenness and charity and compassion and love. A story that illustrates this can be found here.
The trustee who voted to deny the benefits is a fairly prominent conservative pastor whose sermons are broadcast on a local radio station. Though more calvinistic than I, he seems to have a sound theology on God’s grace and sovereignty. But what’s the point if we can’t pass along the love of Jesus?
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I watched how he was with the waiter . . .
Nicely said.
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Brennan has been very helpful for this sinner. It was while reading him that I finally realized the only way to understand God with any clarity is by focusing on his incredible love. God is love. If you lose sight of his love you will lose sight of who God is and without fail see him as something he isn’t. Some say God is all about his own glory. How can that be when love does not boast? When love is not self centered? When love is not proud?
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Several years ago I listened to Brennan speak at a conference. What he said turned my thinking upside down. There was a question and answer period and I had submitted a question about whether or not one could be a cynic and embrace the relentless tenderness of Jesus. And he said no. That a cynic was a disillusioned romantic. I don’t remember what Brennan said after that because I was thinking to myself, “Ouch, you can shut up now.” That evening a few of us went out for dessert with him. I watched how he was with the waiter and I learned something from that encounter.
What I took from that weekend the most was when Brennan said that it was more important that we let God love us than that we love God. I thought that was near blasphemy. But it stuck. And embracing it changed everything.
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In a word, YES!!!!!!
I have said that if I were trapped someplace where I could only have three books, the books would be a Comparative Study Bible (y’know — the four-translation kind), a Strong’s Concordance, and The Ragamuffin Gospel. For all the reasons stated above.
And as far as hypocrisy is concerned … if you meet someone who always lives what they believe, you are truly blessed! Because you’ve just met Jesus! Everyone else is a hypocrite; the only difference is between those who know they are and deal with it by coming to the throne of God, and those who know they are but try to cover it up.
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Brennan has so many great stories about teaching people to pray some one sentence prayer, and they will write him years later with incredible reports of healing from depression, etc.
And for this, he gets pages and pages of discernablog denouncment for promoting “contemplation” and “meditation” etc.
Brennan will never write much of a theology of prayer. But he has taught the simplicity and necessity of prayer in the context of knowing Abba like no one else I know.
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“If, when you pray, you do not feel the comfort and ease and blessing of addressing God as Father, then there is a reason for that and your soul would do well to find out why.”
Okay, Mr. Reviewer, great way to help the lost, the desperate, and those clinging to the wreckage – “If you only prayed hard enough, in the right way, you’d be happy and if you’re not, it’s your fault.”
I don’t know if Brennan Manning’s book is for me, but I’ll take him and Francis Thompson’s “Hound of Heaven” over breaking the bruised reed.
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Several years ago I was in the middle of incredible depression, I was angry, cynical and essentially an agnostic. I was one step away from committing suicide to be perfectly honest. My counselor at the time suggested “Abba’s Child” by Brennan. I read it…and I have never been the same.
I owe my life to the saving grace of Jesus that came to me through Brennan. Thanks for talking a little about Brennan here, it touches my heart to hear such good things about someone I consider a spiritual father of sorts.
I have recently been reading Ragamuffin with a friend of mine and posting quotes from it on my blog… in a desperate hope that someone out there needs the love of God.
grace and peace,
hadsell
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IOWs,
Is Michael Spencer hypocritical because he is less bothered by the flaws of the people he identifies with than by the flaws of those he identifies with less?
Yes. That would be the case. I’m not Mr. Spock.
I’m a partisan.
I know all the Reds problems. I still like them more than the Yankees.
I know all the problems of Southern Baptists. I still prefer them to the Pentecostals.
I know all the problems of my ministry. I still am an unashamed partisan for it and what it does.
I know more about the flaws of America than any other country. I still cheer for her at every opportunity.
So let’s just cut to the chase:
Readers: Michael Spencer is a hypocrite. If you read him closely, it’s obvious.
Absolutely. And my kids are smarter than yours.
ms
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Frank:
So we’re actually talking about my daring and foolish move to say that Jonathan Edwards may have talked about God so much that the Gospel in all its richness was obscured? And that I find Piper, particularly in his pastoral care, to often follow his teacher?
Ok, If the gallery needs to be reminded that I actually believe you can be too “God centered” (see Islam for details) then fine. I believe it. And it’s a particular problem if its the God revealed in the Gospel because knowing that God should free you from being obsessively interested in God’s sovereignty. (ex: Edwards. Have you never heard James White say that Edwards is, sometimes, less than useful for a similar reason?)
I love Piper and have benefited from him, even as I’ve found I have to take him in very measured doses. A dangerous confession to make in the blogosphere, I know, but I live dangerously.
So the problem is that I am actually criticizing Piper, but not actually criticizing Manning. OK. Do you believe that you and your friends at teampyro are even handed in criticizing those you recommend and those you don’t, or do the winsome qualities of some persuade you more overall? That’s what I thought.
Seriously, Frank, do you not think that I could go to your blog and find two similar personages and accuse you of the same thing? Whatever.
Of Piper I would say a similar paragraph, and YES, some of what I would say would be, in my view, more critical than what I’ve said of Manning.
If Manning is to be judged as an exegete, then he’s a failure, and a possible misleader of some. But plenty of exegetes mislead all the time. Have you listened to Driscoll on Song of Solomon?
If Manning is to be judged by the standards of a D.A. Carson, he’s laughable.
If he CLAIMED to be anything that is required to be a pastor, an elder, a teacher or a priest, then he’s not going to make the grade.
He’s a drunk. If you make it to AA you’ll meet people like him all the time. God loves them, and they can sometimes astonish with their wisdom.
Your problem, Frank, is that you want me to judge my friends the way I judge people who stand up and say they are the only ones who know what the Bible means. I’m not playing that game. Manning has one message and it comes out of the mess that is his life as he’s lived it. I love the message and the mess is recognizable to me as my own life. For that reason, I listen to his message of accepted tenderness, his message of Abba, his message of simple prayer. I listen and I lay aside and I find a friend.
I have no idea why my review of Manning has caused you to believe I must be called to account for my criticisms of Piper, but I’m sure I’ll be reading about it soon at your blog.
I’ll say the same of both men: Let Crossway publish an edition of critical essays of both. Surely both men have sufficient critics and fans to make such volumes profitable.
ms
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I won’t speak for iMonk, but let me throw in my 0.02 USD on the side discussion with Frank. Imperfections (such as the laundry list which iMonk presented) are not necessarily something to be criticized. I am reminded of Rich Mullins’ “Brother’s Keeper”:
My friends aren’t the way I wish they were / They are just the way they are
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Just to be clear, the “He” mentioned in my comment above of “be still and know that He is God” is not Manning… 🙂
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I love Manning. As Wickle commented above, Brennan Manning repeats himself because he’s sticking with what really matters. We distract ourselves incessantly with all kinds of socio-political ideas about religion and its sub-divisions and forget that we need, more often than not, to simply “be still and know that He is God.”
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michael-
see:I look at that list, and there’s nothing on that list where I think you mean what I would mean if I said it. For example, “not an exegete” isn’t a condemnation from you even though you list it as a critique. In the iMonk parlance as I have read you over the years, it means something like “he handles scripture organicly rather than syntheticly”, especially when matched with the “criticism”, “story teller”.
And I’m asking, btw, because your post here doesn’t hardly read as certain and clear as, for example, your a of Piper for being too “God centered”. I think it’s worth clarifing if for no other reason than to find out how these things are worked out in your post-evangelical exposition.
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Brilliant post. Why bother getting into a fight … If you get Brennan Manning, you’re sure to love the book (which I haven’t yet read). If not, then you won’t. That about covers it.
What I really love about Manning is, like Rich Mullins, he loves God. He doesn’t care about discussing how many angels can dance on the head of a pin, whether predestination conflicts with free will doctrines, or a lot of other profound principles.
He just loves God and wants to tell us about Him.
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I love Brennan Manning for all the same reasons as you. Sometimes his books seem like retreading the same idea over and over, but hey, it’s a pretty big idea! God’s relentless love for his messed up creation! Sometimes he leaves things out that he shouldn’t, but that gets back to his sheer messiness, which you mentioned! But he knows one thing and it saved his life and it’s a true thing and so with it he would like to throw a lifeline to others. The real trouble with Manning is, the love of the Father is so real to him, and not just a concept. His purpose then is always to display it, not simply explain it, and so the people who require dictionary-worthy explanations always get grumpy.
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I read Ragamuffin Gospel years ago and loved it and loaned it out to someone. It was years before she mentioned that she never got around to returning it to me. I told her to just pass it along to someone else. I hope it has continued to get passed around to lots of people! I think I need to read more of his books. Anyone whose main focus is “God loves you, no matter what you think or yourself” has something important to remind us about. Thanks for the review, Michael.
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I’ve been hearing about Manning for years but haven’t gotten around to reading him. I think I’ll take your advice above and start with Ragamuffin.
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Thanks so much for writing this. No apologies for Brennan needed…theology may be a compass for direction…but Brennan uncovers the bones of my failure in a way that reveals a fleshy redemption.
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Hi Michael,
Good to see Brennan getting some airtime here. I first encountered him four or five years ago when I read “Abba’s Child”, and was utterly blown away by it. I can’t think of any other book where a single chapter so changed my world that even its title is etched indelibly into my memory (“The Impostor”).
Your post hit the nail on the head – the key thing that attracts me to Brennan, other than his unashamed emphasis on the love of Jesus above all else, is his authenticity. I’m tired of hearing about authenticity as the latest church buzzword, where actually it is stripped of its meaning and turned into yet another attempt to impress ourselves, each other and God. In Brennan, we see real authenticity – the real, often heart-rending and gut-wrenching honesty that acknowledges that in the end, I’m just a sinner scratching around in the dirt and my only hope of redemption is the relentless love of Jesus.
Better stop, I’m starting to wax a little too eloquent…
Rob
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I read my first Brennan Manning book several years ago and found that it confirmed a realization that I’d been growing toward for some time: you really can’t go far wrong emphasizing the love of God, because that is at the heart of who God is and of the gospel.
I have an MA in theology with a very high gpa, so have done the apologetics stint and plenty of theological thinking and nit-picking like many others here. Yet as I grow older I’m more and more convinced that the love of God lived in and through our imperfect lives is the most important component of faith and witness: it is the thing on which all else depends.
I first realized this when I had to speak in a Romanian church many years ago through a translator. I had less than 24 hours notice for this sermon and I hadn’t a clue what I was going to say. Two things came to mind: love and unity. I preached from John chapter 17 where Jesus prays for all believers, specifically for unity and the knowledge that we are loved. Even through a translator, I could see it made an impact.
I think the church often underestimates and underemphasizes the power and purpose of the love of God for us and through us. I pray for Brennan’s health and that his message of God’s love will continue. We need it.
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Thanks for hear words. My oldest boy is named after Brennan. I read The Ragamuffin Gospel at a time when I had long since forgotten the grace of God. At the moment of this writing (1:56 a.m), my Brennan, who is 7 is in the midst if surgery for a double compound fracture. May the Abba of Jesus bless my boy as much as I have been blessed by his namesake!
I needed to read this post right about now. Thanks Michael!
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thanks!
i too love brennan manning, despite his weakness and imperfections. that IS what i love about him. he is who he is and makes no excuses, and never makes me feel like he thinks he’s better than me. i have to let go of the things that i disagree with, but, like you, i love him and what he brings to the table.
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….there is nothing that i can add to the imonk’s appraisal of Brennan Manning…all i know is.. that i was blind..but now I SEE…………
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I got an advanced copy of the book as well as a reviewer.
My review of the book is here on Amazon
http://tinyurl.com/okqo3n8
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I’m ashamed to say that Furious Longing is the first Manning book I’ve read. But boy am I glad I did. My boss gave me a preview copy to read a few months ago and I was blown away at how grace saturated his writing is. And no, it doesn’t surprise me one bit that Michael Card (my favorite Christian song writer) also loves him. It’s sad that so many of the so-called discernment ministries are really nothing more than pickers of nits. I’ll take words from someone who’s broken and knows it than anyone who has all 173 essential doctrines wrapped up tight but has no grace. Thanks Michael.
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Frank:
Let me guess. The fact that I wrote a critical paragraph and I still love what the guy writes just made someone’s brain explode.
Are there any legit criticisms?
Brennan Manning isn’t an exegete or a expositor.
He’s a Catholic.
He’s a mystic.
He’s a story-teller.
He’s sloppy.
He makes no attempt at neat Systematics.
He quotes other writers, some of them a bit off the farm.
He repeats the same ideas and stories in almost every book.
His prose is occasionally excessive and sometimes obscure.
He can be frustrating, puzzling and disturbing.
And I still like him. Nor do I care one bit if others don’t. I will admit that hearing comparisons to Tolle do make me angry.
Remember, I actually like a bunch of people that the reformation police are sure are apostates.
That’s not news and needs no response or explanation.
I also like Piper, despite a similar paragraph of thoughts about him. Any regular reader knows that as well.
ms
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Not to go too off topic, but I was a little surprised by that Discerning Reader blog. They have such a narrow view of orthodoxy, it’s hard to take them seriously. Of course, they’d probably say mine was too broad to be taken seriously… so there you go. 🙂
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Michael-
Is there any room to criticize the way Manning approaches Jesus? “Sloppy” is not a criticism from your neck of the woods – it’s a badge of honor.
Your hailed Piper for your perceptions of his shortcomings. I’m wondering if there are any legit criticisms of Manning you’d embrace?
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I’ll take Brennan Manning on his worst day in terms of the authentic love and passion that his writing evidences over the cerebral rehashing of his critics.
I spent years immersed in apologetics and slicing and dicing truth and who’s wrong and who’s right.
If I’m ever laying half dead in a ditch and my choice is between those exegeters of truth walking past me or Brennan Manning, I’ll bet my life on Brennan please. And thanks for the heads up on his health. He’s someome I will pray for and ask for God to continue to sustain him.
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Well you won’t have to worry about any discussions of whether to build buildings.
Try Relentless Tenderness or Ragamuffin Gospel.
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Well…I’ve spent a lot of time with contemporary Christian music, and I have become tired of most of it. But the two most prominet exceptions to that feeling are Michael Card and the late Rich Mullins. So maybe I’ll check this Manning guy out.
Still, Michael Card and Rich Mullins are great artists, and I’m just a practical man. Everybody can’t be a Ragamuffin. Somebody had to build that church the ragamuffin leans against.
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