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A review by drbobcornwall
Inspired: The Holy Spirit and the Mind of Faith by Jack Levison
4.0
Being that I am a Mainline Protestant Pastor with a Pentecostal background, I am always on the outlook for books that wrestle with the relationship of the two. My own book, [b:Unfettered Spirit: Spiritual Gifts for the New Great Awakening|18108582|Unfettered Spirit Spiritual Gifts for the New Great Awakening|Robert D. Cornwall|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1371848598s/18108582.jpg|25430991] is in many ways my own attempt to make sense of these two parts of my life. This is the first of Jack Levison's books that I've read and found it intriguing and challenging. I must admit that I struggled with it at first. Perhaps it's because I've not read his earlier books that I was trying to figure out his purpose and perspective. It seemed as if he was taking a dismissive tone toward Pentecostalism. But the blurb by [a:Amos Yong|76486|Amos Yong|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1348443655p2/76486.jpg] gave me pause.
As I read further I discovered Levison's intent -- one that I share -- and that is bridging the gap between Pentecostalism and Mainline Protestantism. In order to do this, he forces us (I think that's a good word), to go back to the Hebrew Bible, especially Genesis 2, to find the way forward. In contrast to Pentecostalism, which places a premium on the Acts 2 story of Spirit Baptism, Levison speaks of "spirit-breath," that endowment of life and the spirit that God provides at creation. It is, therefore, an endowment that is shared by all humans -- and the interfaith part of me embraces this idea. While I had already abandoned my earlier belief that the Spirit had abandoned the Jewish people in the inter-testamental period, I found his explanations very helpful. That said, at points I felt overwhelmed by all the data on Jewish and Greco-Roman sources on the issue of ecstacy. Despite being overwhelmed, in the end I discovered why he went to such trouble.
The point of this book, as Levison makes clear by the end of the book, is to bring together ecstacy and comprehensibility. They need to be together. Inspiration comes in the context of study, not in place of it. Paul's interpretation of Scripture may be inspired -- he clearly takes what we would think are liberties with the text -- but Paul is clearly schooled in the Scriptures and Jewish interpretation. Thus, the goal is symbiosis. This is the goal because the future of Christianity is at stake. Pentecostal/Charismatic Christians and Mainline Protestants are in danger of splitting off from each other in such a way as to create a new schism. Levison offers his current work as a starting point for building that bridge. I will be interested in seeing where this goes. In fact I hope to be part of the conversation.
It's not an easy book. It will tax even those who have theological education -- as it did with me -- but it is a most useful text. I look forward to what comes next.
As I read further I discovered Levison's intent -- one that I share -- and that is bridging the gap between Pentecostalism and Mainline Protestantism. In order to do this, he forces us (I think that's a good word), to go back to the Hebrew Bible, especially Genesis 2, to find the way forward. In contrast to Pentecostalism, which places a premium on the Acts 2 story of Spirit Baptism, Levison speaks of "spirit-breath," that endowment of life and the spirit that God provides at creation. It is, therefore, an endowment that is shared by all humans -- and the interfaith part of me embraces this idea. While I had already abandoned my earlier belief that the Spirit had abandoned the Jewish people in the inter-testamental period, I found his explanations very helpful. That said, at points I felt overwhelmed by all the data on Jewish and Greco-Roman sources on the issue of ecstacy. Despite being overwhelmed, in the end I discovered why he went to such trouble.
The point of this book, as Levison makes clear by the end of the book, is to bring together ecstacy and comprehensibility. They need to be together. Inspiration comes in the context of study, not in place of it. Paul's interpretation of Scripture may be inspired -- he clearly takes what we would think are liberties with the text -- but Paul is clearly schooled in the Scriptures and Jewish interpretation. Thus, the goal is symbiosis. This is the goal because the future of Christianity is at stake. Pentecostal/Charismatic Christians and Mainline Protestants are in danger of splitting off from each other in such a way as to create a new schism. Levison offers his current work as a starting point for building that bridge. I will be interested in seeing where this goes. In fact I hope to be part of the conversation.
It's not an easy book. It will tax even those who have theological education -- as it did with me -- but it is a most useful text. I look forward to what comes next.