12 Rules for Life: An All-too-Brief Review
There's a lot to like about Dr. Jordan Peterson's new book 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos. For Christians, though, it needs to be read with a hefty dose of Biblical discernment.
I was privileged to write a review for my church's magazine, The Canadian Lutheran, about Dr. Jordan Peterson's new book 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos. It's a worthwhile read, for sure, though as a Christian pastor, I would counsel Christians to read it with a hefty dose of Biblical discernment.
I elaborate in the Canadian Lutheran article, but I recognize that the piece—due to space limitations as a combination print/online article—is far too brief to really dive in deep. I'm planning to go into more detail here on TheResonant in the near future, so I welcome your engagement with the book and with me as we delve more into it after Easter.
You can watch the trailer below (Yes, books have trailers now. It's a thing.) to get an idea of the premise in Dr. Peterson's own words.
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Comments
Rev. Schutz, it is nice isn't it, to be able to write an article like you did for the Canadian Lutheran and it is nice for me to be able to read it in the Canadian Lutheran. I thought of that near the end of the article when I realized I was reading something that clearly was not entirely on side with all that Dr. Peterson puts out there. But unlike some on the far left on the gender issues we/you can have a very respectful dialogue about many of the positive aspects about his book.
Hi Jeff, and thanks for your comment! I'm sorry it took a while for me to look at it and respond.
I wholeheartedly agree that thoughtful and respectful dialogue is the most helpful way to discuss. I'm not sure Dr. Peterson would really want us to be all that nice about it :) but your point is well-taken.
I respect Dr. Peterson's writing in this book and many of his ideas. His is a voice that we need to listen to and consider what he says and writes. However, what he's putting out there in terms of theology isn't grounded in God's Word. It's grounded in what he thinks the Bible is, and to give him credit, he's working that out in public (I've just watched the first of his lectures on the Bible, and he admits this freely). But a Christian needs to be solidly grounded theologically before considering too much about what Dr. Peterson says about the Bible. His presuppositions are vastly different than the historic Christian understandings.
Thanks again for chiming in! I'd love to hear more from you on this.