Book Review: A Generous Orthodoxy Part 5 of ??

Jesus * 7

In the next several chapters McLaren explains why he is a Christian. The first of these is called "The Seven Jesuses I have known". These aren't literally different Jesuses, but rather different ways of viewing Jesus that McLaren encountered throughout his life (he sort of traces his spiritual journey through these different Jesuses).

McLaren notes that these different ways of looking at Jesus emphasize different things, and that to our determent groups have sometimes limited their view of Jesus to less than whole. The different Jesuses (and what those views emphasize) McLaren mentions are:

Conservative Protestant - Jesus death to pay the penalty of sin
Pentecostal - Miracles that come through faith in Jesus
Roman Catholic - Jesus' resurrection defeats death in frees humanity
Eastern Orthodox - The incarnation brings all of creation back to a proper alignment with God
Liberal Protestant - Jesus' example inspires people to work for social justice
Anabaptist - Jesus convenes a community of disciples
Liberation Theology (non-violent) - Jesus leads activists who seek to bring God's peace to earth.

Well, I didn't really get a lot out of this chapter, although I do agree with the main point that sometimes certain groups will limited their view of who Jesus is and of what his purposes are.