The Gospel Coalition recently asked me to review the book The Zimzum of Love: A New Way of Understanding Marriage, written by Rob and Kristen Bell. What follows is an excerpt of the review.
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Let’s begin by giving Rob Bell his props. The Zimzum of Love: A New Way of Understanding Marriage (co-written with his wife, Kristen) is an innovative work. It’s hard to build a book around the word zimzum and not be tagged as racing down the road less traveled. Zimzum, by the way, is a Hebrew word unearthed by the Bells from some arcane rabbinic literature. “God had to contract or withdraw from a certain space so that something else, something other than God, could exist and thrive in that space,” they explain. “And the word a rabbi from the 16th century used for this divine contraction is zimzum” (18). They do not explain why God’s omnipresence is displaced by the things he created.
In marriage, zimzum is the space you create for your spouse to thrive. It releases energy “generating the flow that is the lifeblood of marriage” (19). If you want a strong marriage, you work to strengthen your zimzum and increase the energy flow between you and your spouse. Those with failing marriages have neglected their zimzum. Zimzum is innovative . . . in a somewhat mystical Jedi, “Use the force, Luke” kind of way.
Points for Style
As for style, the writing is simple, clear, and accessible—no small feat when dealing with the complexities of zimzum. The Bells prove adept at charting the space between couples as “responsive, dynamic, exclusive, and sacred”—ideas that shape the themes for chapters two to five. They write in a way that says, “We get you; we’ve been there!”—which helps explain the popular appeal of Rob’s writing. The Rob and Kristen, “he said, she said” dialogue stretching throughout the book is not merely a catchy literary device but a playful look at what appears to be a strong and commendable marriage. Useful handles such as “act in love, not fear” and “don’t let others into your exclusive space” ring with relevance, though sourced in zimzum rather than in Scripture.
If Love Wins raised the question “Is Rob Bell a universalist?” this work presses an even more troubling inquiry: “Has Rob Bell lost his Bible?” It’s a critical question for someone advertised on the dustcover as “one of the most influential Christian leaders in the country.” To measure him accurately against that endorsement, though, the reader must consider two related problems.
Photo by Tom Hermans
