Rev Bill

A friend brought this critique of Rick Warren’s book The Purpose Driven Life to my attention and asked what I thought.

After reading the critique, I must say that I agree with some of the points (not all of them), but have 3 main reasons for liking the book:

1. I feel Warren presents the essential message of Christianity in a way people can understand
2. I feel Warren clearly presents the need for Christians to have a deeper relationship with God
3. I feel Warren clearly presents the need for Christians to discover the gifts God has given them and use those gifts for God’s glory.

I can understand the point in the critique that Warren uses too many different translations and paraphrases of the Bible to cite from and that it is confusing to find and read the direct Biblical quote, but I do not feel he leaves out key points in verses by doing this. The author of the critique seems to like the KJV. I believe translations that go directly to the Greek and Hebrew (which the KJV does not — it is a translation of Latin) are more reliable — and modern translations much more readable and understandable. While I still use the KJV many times because of the beauty of the language, the NIV, NRSV, English Standard, and many other modern translations are more reliable.

I do not agree with the critique that Warren uses “New Age” ideas and concepts.

I know that The Purpose Driven Life is not perfect, but I still like the book and feel Warren does a great in presenting some truths that we all can learn from.

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