Oasis of Imagination

We have waited a long time for a biblical theology of the imagination, and Ted Turnau has given us a deep, thirst-quenching drink. Here you will find a sure-footed guide, who avoids both cultural indifference and culture wars, plants a dagger in heart of Christian kitsch, and then encourages us onwards, without nostalgia, not to be satisfied with merely consuming, or even intelligently critiquing our culture, but to decide to contribute. You’ll be taken into territory that is unfamiliar, thrilling, and occasionally disturbing. You’ll be shown how the gospel is provocative, unsettling, and yet deeply compelling to a lost world. Above all Ted has laid down a challenge for artists, churches, pastors, creatives of all kinds, to ‘plant oases’, where we can begin to imagine what it’s like to inhabit the glory of the kingdom-yet-to-come, and make it so attractive that even as we worship here, we long to be home, bringing many others with us.

This is a wonderful book. Above all it is full of … imagination. It combines solid theoretical foundations with lively examples. It’s all very rich, but Part IV holds a special interest for me. I have been personally invested in several of personages here. Few if any studies that I know of join together this company under the theme “subversive, hopeful protest.” The section on Blind Willie Johnson is worth the price of the book. Non-Christians ought to read this book, if only to disabuse them of the bromides about evangelicals. Christians must read this book in order greatly to enhance their lives.

Oasis of Imagination offers a refreshing and much-needed vision for the church to engage with the wider culture in a way that is neither shrill nor shallow. His passionate call to cherish the creative arts as God himself does provides fresh, compelling ways for the church to connect with and bless the world. Whether you consider yourself a creative or not, Ted Turnau's insights will inspire you to imagine a church faithful to its own imaginative calling and how you can play your own part in offering hospitality and hope to a weary world. This book is a must-read for anyone seeking to deepen their relationships and influence beyond the walls of the church.

I don't know of a more comprehensive, more inviting, or more compelling case for a Christian understanding of the imagination than the one offered in this book. Oasis of Imagination belongs in every church library, every seminary, every Christian classroom, and on every believer's shelf. I wish I'd had this book years ago. I will be using it for years to come.