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Book Review: Velvet Elvis
By Brandon | April 28, 2008
This weekend I finished Velvet Elvis, the widely popular debut book by Rob Bell (of Nooma and Mars Hill fame). I must preface this review by saying that I have always enjoyed Bell’s Nooma videos, having used them in school, youth group, and church. I have been impacted by these movies personally, and know many many people that have been impacted by these movies as well.
With that being said, at times I was disappointed with Velvet Elvis. While containing Bell’s trademark style of talking (He seems to talk. Just. Like. This.), the book lacks the creativity in imagery found in his videos (think Two Trees). The book seemed too scattered and disorganized for my concrete-sequential mind.
Content-wise, the book was about average. Bell tends to rely more heavily on 1st and 2nd century Judaism than most pastors and/or authors. This does provide some great insight into the background of the New Testament. However, this must be taken with a grain of salt, as most scholars cannot agree on what Judaism looked like during the time of Jesus (only afterwards). I do not agree with some statements that he made, but I can live with them. In fact, Bell takes a very Berean approach to his writing, as evident on his back cover:
“We have to test everything… Do that to this book. Don’t swallow it uncritically. Think about it. Wrestle with it. Just because I’m a Christian and I’m trying to articulate a Christian worldview doesn’t mean I’ve got it nailed. I’m contributing to the discussion.”
Overall, I would recommend this short read (under 180 small pages) to anyone who wants a glimpse at the thinking of one of America’s more famous pastors and emergent leaders. Rating: 3.5/5
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