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Beauty Will Save the World Paperback – January 3, 2012

by Zahnd (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 261 ratings
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In today’s world we have technology, convenience, security, and a measure of prosperity, but where is the beauty?
For thousands of years, artists, sages, philosophers, and theologians have connected the beautiful and the sacred and identified art with our longing for God. Now we live in a day when convenience and practicality have largely displaced beauty as a value. The church is no exception. Even salvation is commonly viewed in a scientific and mechanistic manner and presented as a plan, system, or formula.

In Beauty Will Save the World, Brian Zahnd presents the argument that this loss of beauty as a principal value has been disastrous for Western culture, and especially for the church. The full message of the beauty of the gospel has been replaced by our desires to satisfy our material needs, to empirically prove our faith, and to establish political power in our world--the exact same things that Christ was tempted with and rejected in the wilderness.


Zahnd shows that by following the teachings of the Beatitudes, the church can become a viable alternative to current-day political, commercial, and religious power and can actually achieve what these powers promise to provide but fail to deliver. Using stories from the lives of St. Francis of Assisi and from his own life, he teaches us to stay on the journey to discover the kingdom of God in a fuller, richer, more beautiful, way.
 

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    256 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Charisma House
  4. Publication date
    January 3, 2012
  5. Dimensions
    5.5 x 0.58 x 8.25 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1616385855
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1616385859
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Brian Zahnd is blunt, bold, and biblical—an authentic prophetic voice in the lineage of Elijah and Amos." —Eugene H. Peterson, Professor Emeritus, Regent College, and Translator of The Message

About the Author

Brian Zahnd is the founding pastor of Word of Life Church in St. Joseph, Missouri.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Charisma House (January 3, 2012)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1616385855
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1616385859
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.7 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.58 x 8.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 261 ratings

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  1. Brian Zahnd

    Brian Zahnd

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  2. Brian Zahnd

    Brian Zahnd

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    Brian Zahnd is the founder and lead pastor of Word of Life Church in St. Joseph, Missouri. Brian is a passionate reader of theology and philosophy, an avid hiker and mountain climber, and authority on all things Bob Dylan. He and his wife, Peri, have three adult sons and five grandchildren.

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Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
261 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Ronnica Rothe
5.0 out of 5 stars A Fresh Take on the Gospel
Reviewed in the United States on June 16, 2012
Verified Purchase
I read a lot of books about the Christian faith, and sometimes they start to blend together. Beauty Will Save the World: Rediscovering the Allure and Ministry of Christianity by Brian Zahnd definitely stands out in the crowd.

Zahnd has some harsh but needful things to say to the Western evangelical church. His premise is that, "Christianity as the ongoing expression of the Jesus story lived out in the lives of individuals and in the heart of society is a beauty that can redeem the world" (p. 2).

That, in itself, perhaps doesn't sound radically different than the gospel preached from most pulpits and most Christian speakers and thinkers. I think that most would agree with the premise, as far as it goes. But that's the problem...that's as far as most of us go. We talk a good game, but we don't really think about what it means. We know that the Gospel story is awesome, beautiful and wonderful...or at least we say it is.

I find it incredibly easy to come at my faith in a individualistic, pragmatic, no-nonsense way. I'm a good American like that. But there is mystery and beauty in the truths of God that cannot and shouldn't be explained away.

I am so glad I read this book, and I hope you will, too. There are still implications that I'm trying to ponder through. What does seeing the Christian story as fundamentally beautiful mean for how I view worship? How I speak about God? How I seek Him and share His truths with others?

This is definitely a book that is going to stick with me.
6 people found this helpful
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Debby Henry
5.0 out of 5 stars The Saving Beauty Of Christ
Reviewed in the United States on October 9, 2012
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The author writes, "Everything about Jesus is beautiful." He calls for the body of Christ to rise in authenticity and be beautiful with unconditional love for one another - and to attract the world to the saving beauty of Christ. He shows us Christ upon the cross as the form and sacred beauty of self-sacrificing and forgiving love. The incarnate Jesus as fully God and fully human lived a life of love. Christ gave us a new life - the abiding life - and it is to be motivated by love. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the most beautiful story of wonder and love ever told. The author writes, "Jesus loved relentlessly." That is what love is! Loving one another relentlessly - like Jesus. Best bold blunt line in the book is "If it isn't beautiful, we need to abandon it!" We are to be the beautiful instruments in God's symphony of unconditional love. The Sermon On The Mount - The Beatitudes - declare the beautiful nature of Jesus that we are to partake of. The author shows us - as we follow the teachings of the Beatitudes....we will discover the kingdom of God....in a more beautiful way. We are to love one another unconditionally - everyone - a universal love - to a brokenhearted world in need of the saving beauty of Christ. I like the term, "the saving beauty of Christ". There is so much more of beauty and mystery in this book; you will want to read this book repeatedly. It is on my gift-giving list. I attribute this book review to an awakened experience of rediscovery. In doing so, I thank the author, Brian Zahnd, for teaching a better way to live and giving Christianity a rebirthing of the joy of our journey of salvation.
6 people found this helpful
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John Gibbs
5.0 out of 5 stars Fresh reminder of the radical path of discipleship
Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2012
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To a skeptical world we are accustomed to defend Christianity in terms of its truth and goodness, but beauty also belongs to the Christian faith, according to Brian Zahnd in this. Where truth and goodness fail to win an audience, beauty may once again captivate and draw those it enchants into the kingdom of saving grace.

The dominant American script, according to the author, is that of a superpower - idolizing success, achievement, acquisition, technology and militarism. Followers of Jesus are faced with the choice of becoming accommodating chaplains or prophetic challengers. The American church has chosen the role of accommodating chaplain. As a result its form of Christianity has become disfigured, and is in need of a process of re-formation to recover its true form and original beauty.

Some of the interesting ideas in the book:

* The greatest wonder of all is that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and yet familiarity has caused us to lose our sense of wonder.
* True Christians are from the future, because they know how history ends and they are already experiencing the kingdom of God.
* Our canned gospel presentations fail to astonish people, yet astonishment is the most appropriate initial reaction to the gospel story.
* Each of the beatitudes was played out in real life when Jesus was crucified.

I am not sure that I can see the beauty that the author sees in the figure of Christ on the cross, but I do agree that there is beauty in the way salvation is provided by grace and the forgiveness of sins, and in the style of living outlined in the Sermon on the Mount. Overall I found the book to be fresh, provoking and original, filled with ideas that challenge preconceptions and remind the reader of the radical lifestyle of true discipleship.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

B B Benny
5.0 out of 5 stars Essential Reading
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 15, 2024
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Expanding my view of atonement theory and enriching my teaching and preaching. A vital read
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Cez09
5.0 out of 5 stars Loved it all. Will think about it for a long time to come.
Reviewed in Canada on May 5, 2020
Verified Purchase
I absolutely loved this book. I was underlining so many things and at times I had to just sit and think about what was written. It has buoyed me.
Thank you for writing such a wonderful book!
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Phillip Waite
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Australia on May 21, 2015
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Great read. Full of fruit….
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Jordan
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic book!
Reviewed in Canada on February 12, 2015
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The first chapter alone is worth the price of the book. As a farmer I have never thought about beauty in these terms before. The language is slightly above your average 8th grade reading level, but he has well argued and clear points and it is quite accessible for the average reader.
One person found this helpful
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J. DOUGLAS
5.0 out of 5 stars winsome cruiciform beauty
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 24, 2012
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Epic stuff here from Brian Zahnd. Beauty Will Save the World, is incredibly impressive on so many levels. The core ideas are not brought by treatises, statements of doctrine, or argumentation. The book uses stories, and insightful metaphors. It is an invitation to see through a new lens.
Zahnd writes with a passion, depth & inspiration. Zahnd calls us back to the beauty of the cruciform through his great use of story both current and historical. This isn't a warm, fuzzy, make you feel good book, but one that is deeply challenging and calls us into a more intimate and real walk with God. It is a breath of fresh air which kindles hope and new imagination. Memorable, moving and compelling stuff.

Some of my favourite quotes......
"The beauty that saves the world is the cross."
"Instead of angry protesters shaking our fists at a secular culture, we should be joyful singers transforming the secular with the sacred."
"Christianity as the ongoing expression of the Jesus story lived out in the lives of individuals and in the heart of society is a beauty that can redeem the world."
"The cross is the beauty of Christianity because it is at the cross that we encounter co-suffering love and costly forgiveness in its most beautiful form."
"When we lose sight of the subtle beauty of the cruciform we become seduced by the power, prestige, and pragmatism of politics."
"Christ persuades, not by the force of Caesar, but by the beauty of love."
"If Christ can transform the Roman instrument of execution into a thing of beauty, there is hope that in Christ all things can be made beautiful."
3 people found this helpful
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