Book Review: Learning to Speak God from Scratch

Learning to Speak God from Scratch: Why Sacred Words Are Vanishing and How We Can Revive Them is a keenly thoughtful book, written with a delightful blend of eloquence, wit, humor, and hope.  In it, Jonathan Merritt addresses the need for the church (particularly in North America) to recognize the polarizing effects that religious language can sometimes have.  He considers words like blessed and broken, grace and sin – commonly heard words in churches on Sundays – and offers a fresh perspective not only on some of the ways in which they can be misunderstood, but also on how we might reimagine them in conversations about our faith.

Language matters – it is, for us, a primary form of communication.  Words convey meaning, but those meanings are often influenced by context and culture; even a beautiful word like love may mean something very different to someone who has experienced a context in which that word has been twisted.  What we say may not be what people hear, so it’s important to be mindful – not just about what we say, but how we say it.

I found this book to be an incredibly empathetic read.  When I first moved to Brooklyn last year, there were times when it almost felt like I’d moved to another country.  The culture shift from suburban Illinois to New York City was jarring, and I discovered that I was hesitant to even identify myself as a Christian, suddenly more conscious of how many connotations that word can have.  There are versions and perceptions of Christianity that have absolutely nothing to do with who I am, what I think, or how I practice my faith – and I didn’t have the faintest idea how to lean into a conversation about that with new friends and acquaintances.  Reimagine is a helpful word, as I continue to process the shifts that have taken place in my own faith and praxis over the past few years, and the ways in which I talk about them.

Learning to Speak God from Scratch doesn’t provide an exhaustive glossary of sacred words in need of transformation; rather, Jonathan’s collection of vulnerable and insightful essays provide a starting point for conversation.  He invites us to reflect on the sacred words that matter to (and/or annoy) us, and to consider new ways of defining and interacting with them.  (Some of the words on my list are: church, community, evangelism, journey, and praying.)

I can’t recommend this book highly enough (I may have actually read it twice).  My only critiques are that I wish the notes had been actual footnotes (they were so great, but including them at the end made for a lot of page flipping!) – and I also wish that in his chapter on family, he had leaned in at least a little more on what reimagining that word for folks that are single could mean.  Otherwise – oh, my goodness.  This book is spot on, and in all honesty – it gave me the courage to start writing (in earnest) again.

Learn more about the book at speakgodbook.com, and be sure to check out Jonathan’s Seekers & Speakers podcast for further conversation around words that truly matter.

Grace and peace, friends.

Always,
Happy