TRAVELING LIGHT:
Galatians and the Free Life in Christ (Expanded Version)
By Eugene H. Peterson
IVP. 209 pages. £20.99
ISBN 978 1 514 008 201
My interest was stirred by the idea of an expanded version of this classic published in 1982, the year of my ordination to Christian ministry.
Eugene Peterson has been a regular feature in my reading these past four decades. As it happens, the expanded bit only runs to a few pages of questions for reflection and a sparkling new Foreword by Karen Swallow Prior, in which she reminds us that what you get with Eugene Peterson is ‘spiritual theology lived’. Traveling Light is well-observed, intelligent, and grounded in everyday life. It is a book that crackles with the lively energy of a writer at home with his subject and in touch with the reader.
This is not a verse-by-verse commentary on Galatians and some readers might feel that the author could have spent more time on themes like justification by faith. That being said, so much of Paul’s letter is opened up by Peterson’s illuminating reflections. The book includes what was the first translation of what was to become his Message version of the Bible. It all began with an attempt by the author to get men in his church interested in reading the Bible.
In 15 chapters, Peterson explores what it means to be free in Christ. So much ‘Bible handling’ can look like dancing with a corpse; Peterson helps the reader feel the pulse of Paul’s writing. Taking his cue from the title of one of F.F. Bruce’s books, Paul: Apostle of the Heart Set Free, Peterson guides the reader on a journey that navigates the rich contours of Christian freedom. Peterson is particularly good at reminding the reader that Christian freedom is both freedom from and freedom for.
The Christian gospel, he suggests calls us to be responsibly free: ‘Freedom achieves humanity and avoids bestiality only when it is used in acts of love.’
Forty years on, this book still retains a remarkable freshness. Peterson writes well; re-reading this book I am grateful for the author’s contribution to my thinking and practice.
