The Psalms are dangerous. These ancient songs inspire us and bring us a sense of joy, but they also scare us. They might even transform our faith. The Psalms of the Hebrew Bible testify to a rich, complicated life--150 stories from a people passionate and honest about the complexities of human experience. The psalmists were creative, openhearted musicians who composed and sang with their community. Their lyrics reveal that they clearly struggled with God and wrestled with their place in the world. Over time, Christians have eschewed this complexity in favor of an unhelpful model of relating to God, one that prioritizes happiness, purity, and prosperity. This model depicts a fragile God who demands praise and is disappointed in brokenness. It lessens God in our eyes and erects barriers between us. Fortunately, to counter this model, we need only reengage with the Psalms on their own terms. Taking us on a tour through the Psalms, Dangerous Songs explores three grand dimensions of human life--thriving, desolation and uncertainty. With an eye toward trauma theory, the psychology of recovery, practices of cultivating delight, and the inherent musicality of the Psalms, longtime Psalms teacher Richard Bruxvoort Colligan offers an integrative approach to the complexity of life and lifelong spiritual formation. People have long turned to the Psalms for comfort and consolation. Now Dangerous Songs also reveals how, if we read them with fresh eyes and a willing heart, these ancient texts will wreck our perfectly okay faith--and transform it into something deeper.
Richard Bruxvoort Colligan is a musician and student of the Psalms. He holds an MA in theology and the arts from United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, and a DMin in grief work from Eden Seminary. He is director of spiritual formation at Mount Olive Lutheran Church in Rochester, Minnesota.
"Richard Bruxvoort Colligan has lived with the Psalms his whole life, and he has wrestled with them on many levels (like Jacob wrestling the angel)--as a Christian, a musician, a leader, a human being. In Dangerous Songs, you'll be invited into what the Psalms have taught him, why they matter, how they work, and how they can guide you into a life of thriving, even in grief, despair, fury, and bewilderment." --Brian D. McLaren, author of Faith After Doubt, Life After Doom, and The Last Voyage "I so love this book! Richard Bruxvoort Colligan's voice is full of humor, depth, and transparency. With great wisdom and passion, he excavates what the Psalms offer to us for an unfolding life that includes danger and desolation as much as joy and jubilation. Highly recommended for a rich spiritual encounter." --Christine Valters Paintner, PhD, author of more than twenty books on spirituality, including The Artist's Rule, Breath Prayer, and Give Me a Word "Richard Bruxvoort Colligan offers the companionship of these ancient poets, we are gently given a tour of our own thriving, desolation, and uncertainty. He does it by gifting us turns of phrase that delight and widen our perspective on what is happening around us and inside us. His enthusiasm for a deep dive into the whoops and hollers, groans and teeth-gnashing, as well as the quietude and contemplation of the spiritual journey, is like being transplanted to a spot all our own near a stream of living water. Soak it up, friends." --Marcia McFee, PhD, creator of Worship Design Studio and author of Purveyors of Awe: Elements for Curating a Life of Spiritual Depth "Richard Bruxvoort Colligan has brought the Psalms to life for me as never before. His ability to connect these ancient songs with just about every gritty and grace-filled aspect of an authentic individual spiritual journey is just astonishing. He is equal parts scholar, artist, composer, spiritual director, counselor, minister, social activist, prophet, and comedian. This book touched my heart, encouraged my faith, stretched my theology, brought tears to my eyes, and made me laugh out loud." --Bryan Sirchio, pastor, musician, director of Convergence Music Project, and author of The 6 Marks of Progressive Christian Worship Music "With intimacy and vulnerability, Richard Bruxvoort Colligan helps us to connect the Psalms with life--with the particulars of our lives, with high and low moments of his own life, and with some of the great themes of living: joy, despair, gratitude. Under his wise and gentle guidance, the world of the Psalms comes alive, populated with candlelight vigils and tornadoes, elderly neighbors with snowblowers and children handing us ice cream cones. We become newly planted trees, snuggling our roots in by the stream. We get to accompany him into stories of depression and cars in the ditch as the Psalms take on new colors and dimensions. I recommend this book for anyone who is longing for the companionship of Scripture and a fresh, creative reintroduction to the Psalms." --Rev. Christopher Grundy, PhD, worship songwriter and professor of worship and preaching, Eden Theological Seminary "Dangerous Songs is a bold, imaginative invitation to pray the Psalms with your whole self--thriving, desolate, uncertain, all of you. Part sacred riff, part soul excavation, Richard Bruxvoort Colligan's lyrical midrash will disrupt and delight you, helping you meet Scripture--and yourself--anew." --Rev. Sam Houser, author of No Longer Keeping the Peace and Between the Lines
