The Sacred Diary of Adrian Plass, on Tour

The Sacred Diary of Adrian Plass – ON TOUR: Adrian Plass

A bit of light relief from my current diet of Carson and Piper, but amid the laughing, I think Plass gives me just as much to think about. Adrian Plass is On Tour, with the usual characters – his longsuffering and insightful wife Anne, son and now Curate Gerald, mad friend Leonard Thynn (now with dancing girlfriend, Angels), and a new theologically-sound-financial-backer Barry Ingstone.

Touring around the country speaking, they meet un-cooperative caretakers, PA operators who can’t, over-optimistic meeting organisers (not exactly 500 people in a theatre, more like 8 in a front room), and lots of people who need Jesus.

Through anecdote and conversation, Adrian Plass addresses show more important truths but with a knack of rising above theological debate to show you the love of God working through flawed, unwilling servants in a fallen world, to heal and help ordinary people.

Anne sums it up, in her response to Barry theologically-correct-but-hopelessly-wrong Ingstone’s objection to using the church simply to help people without preaching to them at the same time.

Barry, in meeting you, I have been brought face to face with a phenomenon that is completely new to me. I have never before known anyone who was so completely and utterly right, and at the same time so totally and unequivocally wrong. Everything you say about the Bible and its teaching is accurate and unarguable. Everything you say about real people and real life and the way God actually is in his dealings with sad, confused human beings was born in some other, distant, cold and unfriendly place, and should never have been allowed to live. I think there’s a very kind person inside you, Barry, and I really hope and pray you’ll teach that person all those Bible verses you know, so that he can use them to bring the love of God to lots and lots of people in the future. I do hope you don’t think that I’ve been rude. Please forgive me if I have been. I’m going to bed now. Goodnight.

Now, I think theological understanding is really important, but a book that helps us to see and feel (that’s Piper creeping back!) that God loves me, and can use me, broken though I am, is pretty important too. And the jokes are good. show less

This book follows covers a tour which Adrian makes with his fictional wife Anne, and their son Gerald (now an an ordained minister). Amongst others. It's a local speaking tour in which Adrian - supposedly - writes his diary daily. There are some very amusing moments. There are also some thought-provoking discussions that occur, some of which point out - gently - flaws in some modern evangelical fundamentalist styles of thinking.

This isn't really a book for those outside the church; there are too many 'in' jokes and allusions, too much cynicism to make any sense to someone who thinks Christianity is a load of rubbish anyway. I'm not sure it would even be helpful to those who are absolutely certain of their theology and don't like to hear show more dissenting voices.

But for those who like to think outside the box, to see things in a slightly different light and who don't mind a sometimes irreverent sense of the ridiculous and a gentle poking fun at well-meaning people within the church, this comes highly recommended. But preferably read the earlier books first - the original Sacred Diary in particular.

Latest longer review here: https://suesbookreviews.blogspot.com/2024/09/the-sacred-diary-of-adrian-plass-on... show less