Speakeasy book review: Patmos
The Main Idea: Aiden who is a theologian and St. John, author of the Gospel of John and Revelation, meet in a cave on the Island of Patmos and have a three-day conversation.
What I liked: The crux of what the author wants to convey is exactly what I have come to understand about the Gospel: that the biggest lie we have been fed by religion and the devil is the lie of seperation from God. There is no seperation except in our minds. And any theology that has seperation (IE - you are apart from God until you believe the right thing and say the right prayer and live the right lifestyle) at the heart of its truth will eventually lead to the exhaustion and despairof its adherents. Life is in understanding that Christ is already in us - always has been and always will be. Nothing was created or exists in the Heavens or on Earth outside of Jesus - as is the message of John's Gospel. The Gospel of John is explored from this framework as is the Revelation given to John on Patmos.
What I didn't like: The story itself mostly served as a loose backdrop for the message that was being conveyed through the dialogue between the two characters. It's an OK story, there is some enjoyable banter between John and Aiden. I suspect it might well come directly from the author's own experience in the Spirit, but the story itself is not very deep development wise. I'd place it in the same vein as Brian McClaren's fiction works which are more about getting his theological message across than in crafting a richly detailed piece of fiction. I stuck with it because I loved what Kruger was getting at through the conversation between Aiden and John. I am always looking for more writing from this perspective since it is quite lacking in the Western church which is hell-bent on the tired old "you're a sinner going to hell 'less you come to Jesus and then prove how thankful you are by your righteous living" message.
What I learned: I need to brush up on church history. I'm pretty studied in the biblical narrative but I have only a passing knowledge of how the church developed from Acts on, especially at the split between Eastern and Western Christianity. I recognized many names but honestly don't know many of the details of their stories. Without a foundation in basic Christian theology/history this book could be a difficult read.
Summary: Although compared to 'The Shack' I don't think this one is as re-readable or as spirit-awakening as 'The Shack' at least for me. Maybe because I have already had the revelation this book puts forth. I appreciate its message and highlighted many things but I wasn't as blown away as I'd hoped to be.
Image Credit: amazon.com
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the author and/or publisher through the Speakeasy blogging book review network. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR,Part 255.
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