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A Long Obedience In The Same Direction: Discipleship in an Instant Society

By Eugene H. Peterson

Book Review by Derek Perdue

When I first read the title of this book I thought it was going to be a book on discipleship.  In a sense it is, but more in way of example than didactic instruction.  Each chapter of the book is a meditation on one of the Psalms of the Ascent (Psalms 120-134).  These Psalms were historically sung by the people of Israel three times a year when they came to Jerusalem and appeared before the Lord (Deut 16:16).  Eugene Peterson uses these Psalms that were sung at the Feast of Passover, the Feast of Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles as a parallel to the Christian pilgrimage. 

Peterson explains his work in the first chapter in a quote from Friedrich Nietzsche, "The essential thing 'in heaven and earth' is . . . that there should be long obedience in the same direction; there thereby results, and has always resulted in the long run, something which has made life worth living."  It is this 'long run" which our culture works to discourage, and Peterson wishes to encourage.   Peterson calls us to realize that as believers we are not to be caught up in "in today’s passion for the immediate and the casual" as tourists.  Instead, we are pilgrims spending our lives going some place, that is to God.  As with the Psalms of Ascent we are moving from repentance to blessing.

With a theologian's depth and a poet's heart, Peterson meditates on the experiences and realities of the Christian journey.  When faced with the question of suffering he doesn't focus on why suffering exists, but instead relates the effect of suffering.  He says, "in suffering we enter the depths; we are at the heart of things, we are near to where Christ was on the cross."  When dealing with community he relates the struggles, "It is far easier to deal with people as problems to be solved than to have anything to do with them in community," as well as the reality, "Christians are a community of people who are visibly together at worship but who remain in relationship through the week in witness and service."  The topics are not new, but Peterson is almost an artist with words, calling the reader to plum the depths of the Christian life.

I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it highly, not because it provided some great academic or theological insight, but because it brings our minds back to the basics of our journey.  Not that the book wasn't full of both keen insight and solid theology, for it was, but I think that his intent was to have us pause, to slow down and reflect on our journey and its destination.  I encourage you to a life marked by a long obedience in the same direction, and to read this book by Eugene Peterson.

© Copyright 2005 Derek Perdue
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