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Spiritual Influences
The following spiritual authors and speakers have been very inspiring as well. Some are more well known than others, but even the lesser-known ones I’ve found to be very inspiring and challenging.
Inspirational Spiritual Influences:
Henri Nouwen
and Thomas Merton are two Christian authors who write introspective works with a mystical yet highly engaged approach to spirituality. I particularly liked Henry Nouwen’s book Reaching Out
about the three movements of the spiritual life: from loneliness to solitude, from hostility to hospitality, and from illusion to prayer. I also read his book Gracias: A Latin American Journal
at an opportune time right after I had lived six months in a shantytown as well (some portions from the book). The first, and favorite book I have read by Thomas Merton is Life and Holiness
(some quotes). Kahlil Gibran has a lot of short, poetic mystical thoughts as well.
Richard Foster‘s Celebration of Discipline
and Freedom of Simplicity
both convinced me I should give the whole Christian life thing another look at a time when I’d given up on Christian living as anything particularly challenging or different. Foster’s writings inspired me to try out some Christian disciplines that have really enriched my life.
Walter Brueggemann is the best Bible scholar I have ever heard or read, both in knowledge about the Christian Scriptures and also in his particular “angle” on many topics reiterated in the Old Testament. His explanations frame some important considerations on what a non-partisan Christianity looks like, one that both liberals and conservatives can embrace. I particularly like his thoughts on loss, on land, on the security Pharoah/Caesar’s “empire” offers, and how God works to subvert and offer alternatives to empire thinking and empire living. Read some quotes from Finally Comes the Poet, or The Prophetic Imagination. But I most highly recommend a collection of his lectures.
Shane Claiborne writes and speaks some of the most applicable examples of Christian living outside the norm. His and some related writings were like finding a gold mine of like-minded Christians when I was beginning to feel a little insane for deciding to live in a barrio for several months. Beyond that specific call for radical immersion, however, his thoughts on a vibrant, living, revolutionary trajectory for Church communities has a lot of wisdom anyone can learn from. I’d recommend Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals
, and an awesome podcast with a huge collection of some of his presentations.
John Wesley‘s journal, John Woolman‘s journal, and Hannah Whitall Smith‘s Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life were interesting. I sort of enjoyed some of John Wesley and John Woolman’s more eccentric lifestyle decisions. John Woolman’s unyielding opposition of slavery, how he links affluence and oppression of others, and how he made changes in his dress and diet as a way of testifying to others about the need to abolish slavery is quite inspiring and challenging. His attempt to address slavery personally and also communally by influencing the decisions of the Quaker Friends is quite fascinating to read about.
Derek Webb is a music artist whose music I enjoy and his lyrics are prophetically provocative. Rob Bell has some interesting stuff out (check out his interviews on Homebrewed Christianity). Ghandi‘s life, and his autobiography, are inspiring. The biography of Nate Saint in the book Jungle Pilot
(quotes) is really good, and his son Steve Saint’s writings are interesting as well. Steve Saint honors his father’s dedication to reaching lost people, but he brings missionary thought to its present state and makes some important observations on how missionary work has changed (some quotes from The Great Omission
). Reverend Jim Wallis’ lectures in his Social Justice class at Berkeley are really interesting. I’m just starting to read into some of John Perkins’ writing and Rene Padilla, which bring some important reflections and focus to liberation theology’s broad task of addressing social inequality.
