Paradigm Shifts, Tearing Down the Temples, & Being Here: The Rob Bell Interview

Yesterday MPT and I had the pleasure of sitting down with Rob Bell for EP36 of That God Show. We covered a lot of ground, from his new book, How to be Here, to leaving Mars Hill, why he seems so happy these days, and wide-range of other topics.

As Rob always does, he left us with a lot to think about and digest.

Since I primarily write for people who have undergone, or are in the process of experiencing an evolution in their faith, my favorite part of our discussion was on surviving a paradigm shift.

What do you say to the people who just aren’t sure what they believe anymore?

“The first thing that happens when the rug gets pulled out is people are most acutely aware of what they no longer believe or think… They say, “I don’t know what I believe anymore” but that’s not actually true, because the reason why you are walking away from that previous framework is because it didn’t work…

We do not move to later stages of consciousness without loss, pain, suffering, or a some usually cross-cultural experience where our previous categories and labels no longer work. Generally in times of stress, loss, pain, or when we’re confronted with some new experience that doesn’t fit our previous categories, we will either dig in our heels and entrench, or we will break through to greater expansiveness, freedom, complexity, or inclusion… So to the person who’s like, “Oh man, I’m just taking the whole thing apart, nothing works like it used to, up is not down, right is not left… that’s the only way that growth happens. And so, celebrate it! Because it means the old is going and the new is coming.

So, the first thing I would say is it’s not entirely true that you have no idea what you believe anymore. It just happens that in this moment you are acutely aware of some things you no longer believe, but the only reason you don’t believe them is because there’s something better that is pushing them out… This is how people grow— it’s totally normal, and you should celebrate it.”

There’s lots packed into our conversation, so you won’t want to miss the full interview. You can catch the entire episode right here, or download in iTunes: