Book Review: The Crucified God, by Jurgen Moltmann

I have been reading this book for months and months, and I finally finished it! It is by far the most challenging book I have ever read. The reason I read it is that my Mike King, who is bald, recommended it in response to my post about baldness here.

I don't regret reading it. I feel that I have gotten about 15% smarter. And every other book I read now feels dumbed down. I learned many new words such as theodicy, iconoclast, stoical, and many more.

The most lasting spiritual application that this book had on me was that it focused on how Christ was crucified as a rebel, blasphemer, and he was forsaken by his Father. He was crucified as an outsider, and not an accepted person. He did not come and take away all of our suffering in this present life. But he gave dignity and purpose to all who suffer now.

After all, God himself was crucified, and he is sympathetic and feels pain for us. Early religion beleived that God had no feelings, that the actions of men do not affect him, and that is the model that Islam is currently in. But the cross shows that he does indeed suffer. The Father suffered to spare his Son, and the Son suffered separation from the Father.

Anyway, that is a small and probably slightly errant way that I can explain the extensiveness of this book - 330 pages of theology.