“Detheologizing Christianity”: My Review of Rob Bell’s New Book

In 1941, Rudolph Bultmann published a very famous essay on “demythologizing” the New Testament. For Bultmann, the New Testament was filled with myths of miracles that no modern person could accept. Thus, in an effort to save Christianity, he attempted to strip it of all its supernatural elements. After all, we don’t want the concept of “God” to become out of date.
Rob Bell’s recent book, What We Talk About When We Talk About God (HarperOne, 2013), brings up many memories of Bultmann. While Bell is not trying to take away the supernatural elements of the faith, he is trying to purge it of elements that he thinks will make … Continue reading...