Rob Bell
Encyclopedia
Robert Holmes "Rob" Bell Jr. (born August 23, 1970 in Ingham County, Michigan
) is an American author
and pastor
. He is the founder of Mars Hill Bible Church
located in Grandville, Michigan
and is also the featured speaker in a series of spiritual short films called NOOMA
.
, who was nominated by Ronald Reagan
to the federal judiciary and publicly confirmed by the United States Senate
. Bell grew up in a traditional Christian environment. In 2011, Bell was recognized as a member of the 2011 Time 100
list.
Bell attended Wheaton College
. While at Wheaton, he roomed with Ian Eskelin
of All Star United
. With friends Dave Houk, Brian Erickson, Steve Huber and Chris Fall, he formed the indie rock band, "_ton bundle", which was reminiscent of bands such as R.E.M. and Talking Heads
. This is when _ton bundle wrote the song "Velvet Elvis", based upon the same Velvet Elvis
painting that he used in his first book Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith. Wheaton College was also where Bell met his wife, Kristen. The band _ton bundle started to gain some local fame and was even asked to perform at large events, but when Bell was struck with viral meningitis these plans fell through.
Bell received his bachelor's degree in 1992 from Wheaton and taught water skiing in the summers at Wheaton College's Honey Rock Camp, making about thirty dollars a week. During this time, Bell offered to teach a Christian message to the camp counselors after no pastor could be found. He taught a message about "rest". He said that God led him to teaching at this moment. Bell was later approached by several people, each of them telling him that he should pursue teaching as a career.
Bell moved to Pasadena, California
to pursue this calling for teaching and received a M.Div. from Fuller Theological Seminary
. According to Bell, he never received good grades in preaching class because he always tried innovative ways to communicate his ideas. During his time at Fuller he was a youth intern at Lake Avenue Church. He did, however, occasionally attend Christian Assembly in Eagle Rock, California, which led to him and his wife asking questions in the direction of how a new style of church would appear.
Between 1995 and 1997, Bell formed a band called Big Fil
which released two CDs; the first was a self-titled disk and the second was titled Via De La Shekel. When asked what style of music they played, Bell would respond with "Northern Gospel!", which later became the name of a song on the second album. Even after Big Fil stopped performing, Bell continued with two more projects by the name of Uno Dos Tres Communications volume 1 and 2, both of which had a similar musical sound to Big Fil.
In the January 2007 issue of the magazine TheChurchReport.com, Bell was named No. 10 in their list of "The 50 Most Influential Christians in America" as chosen by their readers and online visitors.
In June 2011, Bell was named by Time Magazine as one of the "2011 Time 100
", the magazines annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.
. He handled many of the preaching duties for the Saturday Night service at Calvary Church. Bell announced that he would be branching out on his own to start a new kind of community and he would call it "Mars Hill" after the Greek site where the apostle Paul told a group, "For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you."
In February 1999, Bell founded Mars Hill Bible Church
, with the church originally meeting in a school gym in Wyoming, Michigan
. Within a year the church was given a shopping mall in Grandville, Michigan
, and purchased the surrounding land. In July 2000 the 3,500 "grey chair" facility opened its doors. As of 2005, an estimated 11,000 people attend the two "gatherings" on Sundays at 9 and 11 AM. As of March 2011, Sunday attendance numbers between 8,000 and 10,000. His teachings at Mars Hill inspired the popular "Love Wins" bumper sticker, and the congregation freely distributes these stickers after services.
In order to maintain balance in his life, Bell maintains his Fridays as a personal sabbath, where he does not allow contact by electronic means, and has all pastoral duties transferred to other Mars Hill pastors.
On September 22, 2011 it was announced that Rob Bell is stepping down from the church he founded to pursue other areas to reach a broader audience. "Feeling the call from God to pursue a growing number of strategic opportunities, our founding pastor Rob Bell, has decided to leave Mars Hill in order to devote his full energy to sharing the message of God’s love with a broader audience."
– a series of short films created by a West Michigan-based non-profit film company called Flannel
. The title of the video series, "NOOMA", is an English variation of the Greek word pneuma which means breath or spirit. All the videos feature the teachings of Bell accompanied by music written and sung by local independent artists with the exception of The Album Leaf
s music being licensed for the Nooma DVD Lump.
In August 2005, Zondervan Publishing published Bell's first book, Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith. Velvet Elvis is for people who are, in Bell's words, "fascinated with Jesus
, but can't do the standard Christian package".
Bell's Everything is Spiritual national speaking tour launched on June 30, 2006, in Chicago
, drawing sold-out crowds in cities across North America. The proceeds from ticket sales were used to support WaterAid
, an international non-profit organization dedicated to helping people escape the poverty and disease caused by living without safe water and sanitation.
Bell's second book, titled Sex God: Exploring the Endless Connections between Sexuality and Spirituality, was released in March 2007. In February and March 2007 Bell hosted a "Sex God" tour on six university campuses to promote his book. The tour functioned more as a time for engaging questions and conversation. Questions ranged from Old Testament codes to homosexuality to what should Christians do with the word "evangelical". Each night ended with the showing of NOOMA number 15 entitled "YOU".
In June 2007 Bell toured the United Kingdom and Ireland, calling all peacemakers.
Bell launched another speaking tour on November 5, 2007, in Chicago
, ""The Gods Aren't Angry"" again drew sold-out crowds in cities across North America. The subject matter of this presentation was a narrative defense of justification
through faith and not works (sacrifice). Proceeds from this tour were used to support the Turame Microfinance
program supporting the poor in Burundi
, a mission supported by Bell's church.
Bell's 2009 project, Drops Like Stars, explores the links between creativity and suffering. Drops Like Stars was an international tour and a book, initially handwritten by Bell, with photographs. The title of the project comes from a young child's view of raindrops on a window at night. Rather than focusing on the conundrum of why an all-powerful God would allow suffering, Bell instead looks at the creativity, empathy, new connections, and growth that can spring from suffering. When asked in an interview how he had become interested in suffering, Bell replied that as a pastor he had been given a front row seat in the most poignant moment's of people's lives. At the same time he was doing lectures on creativity and realized, "There was a connection between these two halves of my life – all these connections between suffering and art-making."
, the Executive Producer of the television show, Lost. The show, based loosely on Bell's own life, will follow the life of Tom Stronger, a musician on a spiritual journey.
Bell says, "This is not just the same old message with new methods. We're rediscovering Christianity as an Eastern religion, as a way of life. Legal metaphors for faith don't deliver a way of life. We grew up in churches where people knew the nine verses why we don't speak in tongues, but had never experienced the overwhelming presence of God."
In his most recent book, Love Wins, Bell states that "It's been clearly communicated to many that this belief (in hell as conscious, eternal torment) is a central truth of the Christian faith and to reject it is, in essence, to reject Jesus. This is misguided and toxic and ultimately subverts the contagious spread of Jesus' message of love, peace, forgiveness and joy that our world desperately needs to hear." In this book, Bell outlines a number of views of hell, including universal reconciliation
(UR), and though he does not choose any one view as his own, he states of the UR view, "Whatever objections a person may have of [the UR view], and there are many, one has to admit that it is fitting, proper, and Christian to long for it." At the time of the book's publication, some prominent reformed church
figures like Dr. R. Albert Mohler Jr. said Bell's book was "theologically disastrous" for not rejecting the UR view. Bell denies that he is a universalist. He does not embrace any particular view but argues that he wants to leave room for uncertainty. Love Wins presents his "case for living with mystery rather than demanding certitude."
Some evangelicals see this "uncertainty" as incompatible with scripture, while others say that the book is simply promoting overdue conversation about some traditional interpretations of scripture.
Ingham County, Michigan
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 279,320 people, 108,593 households, and 63,744 families residing in the county. The population density was 500 people per square mile . There were 115,056 housing units at an average density of 206 per square mile...
) is an American author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
. He is the founder of Mars Hill Bible Church
Mars Hill Bible Church
Mars Hill Bible Church is an American non-denominational Christian megachurch located in Grandville, Michigan. The teaching pastor is Rob Bell.-History:...
located in Grandville, Michigan
Grandville, Michigan
Grandville is a city in Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 16,263 at the 2000 census. Grandville is one of the oldest suburbs of Grand Rapids, and was incorporated as a city in 1933....
and is also the featured speaker in a series of spiritual short films called NOOMA
NOOMA
NOOMA is a series of short films produced by Flannel promoting spiritual perspectives on individual life experiences. The name NOOMA comes from a phonetic spelling of the Greek word meaning "wind," "spirit," or "breath."-Format:...
.
Education and ministry
Bell is the son of Judge Robert Holmes BellRobert Holmes Bell
Robert Holmes Bell is a United States federal judge.Born in Lansing, Michigan, Bell received a B.A. from Wheaton College in 1966 and a J.D. from Wayne State University Law School in 1969...
, who was nominated by Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
to the federal judiciary and publicly confirmed by the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
. Bell grew up in a traditional Christian environment. In 2011, Bell was recognized as a member of the 2011 Time 100
Time 100
Time 100 is an annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, as assembled by Time. First published in 1999 as a result of a debate among several academics, the list has become an annual event.-History and format:...
list.
Bell attended Wheaton College
Wheaton College (Illinois)
Wheaton College is a private, evangelical Protestant liberal arts college in Wheaton, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago in the United States...
. While at Wheaton, he roomed with Ian Eskelin
Ian Eskelin
Ian Eskelin , is a record producer, songwriter, solo artist, and founding member and lead singer of the Grammy-nominated Christian rock band All Star United. He won the Dove Award for "Producer of the Year" in 2011 and 2008, and was nominated for the same award in 2007, 2009, and 2010...
of All Star United
All Star United
All Star United is a Christian rock band that was formed by solo artist Ian Eskelin in 1996. The band is known for clever and sometimes sarcastic lyrics, as they frequently use their songs as vehicles to lampoon perceived excesses in Western culture...
. With friends Dave Houk, Brian Erickson, Steve Huber and Chris Fall, he formed the indie rock band, "_ton bundle", which was reminiscent of bands such as R.E.M. and Talking Heads
Talking Heads
Talking Heads were an American New Wave and avant-garde band formed in 1975 in New York City and active until 1991. The band comprised David Byrne, Chris Frantz, Tina Weymouth and Jerry Harrison...
. This is when _ton bundle wrote the song "Velvet Elvis", based upon the same Velvet Elvis
Velvet Elvis
A Velvet Elvis is a painting of Elvis Presley on velvet. It typically represents a costumed torso of Elvis holding a microphone, painted on black velvet...
painting that he used in his first book Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith. Wheaton College was also where Bell met his wife, Kristen. The band _ton bundle started to gain some local fame and was even asked to perform at large events, but when Bell was struck with viral meningitis these plans fell through.
Bell received his bachelor's degree in 1992 from Wheaton and taught water skiing in the summers at Wheaton College's Honey Rock Camp, making about thirty dollars a week. During this time, Bell offered to teach a Christian message to the camp counselors after no pastor could be found. He taught a message about "rest". He said that God led him to teaching at this moment. Bell was later approached by several people, each of them telling him that he should pursue teaching as a career.
Bell moved to Pasadena, California
Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
to pursue this calling for teaching and received a M.Div. from Fuller Theological Seminary
Fuller Theological Seminary
Fuller Theological Seminary is an accredited Christian educational institute with its main campus in Pasadena, California and several satellite campuses in the western United States...
. According to Bell, he never received good grades in preaching class because he always tried innovative ways to communicate his ideas. During his time at Fuller he was a youth intern at Lake Avenue Church. He did, however, occasionally attend Christian Assembly in Eagle Rock, California, which led to him and his wife asking questions in the direction of how a new style of church would appear.
Between 1995 and 1997, Bell formed a band called Big Fil
Big Fil
Big Fil was a Christian rock band formed by Rob Bell in 1995 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The band performed and toured for several years at Christian schools and universities, with Rob Bell speaking before or after the performance...
which released two CDs; the first was a self-titled disk and the second was titled Via De La Shekel. When asked what style of music they played, Bell would respond with "Northern Gospel!", which later became the name of a song on the second album. Even after Big Fil stopped performing, Bell continued with two more projects by the name of Uno Dos Tres Communications volume 1 and 2, both of which had a similar musical sound to Big Fil.
In the January 2007 issue of the magazine TheChurchReport.com, Bell was named No. 10 in their list of "The 50 Most Influential Christians in America" as chosen by their readers and online visitors.
In June 2011, Bell was named by Time Magazine as one of the "2011 Time 100
Time 100
Time 100 is an annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, as assembled by Time. First published in 1999 as a result of a debate among several academics, the list has become an annual event.-History and format:...
", the magazines annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.
Mars Hill Bible Church
Bell and his wife moved from California to Grand Rapids to be close to family and on invitation to study under pastor Ed DobsonEd Dobson
Edward G. Dobson is a Northern Irish-American who was an executive of the Moral Majority and the pastor of a megachurch in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He is an evangelical author and Vice President for Spiritual Formation at Cornerstone University.In 1964, Dobson moved to the United States from...
. He handled many of the preaching duties for the Saturday Night service at Calvary Church. Bell announced that he would be branching out on his own to start a new kind of community and he would call it "Mars Hill" after the Greek site where the apostle Paul told a group, "For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you."
In February 1999, Bell founded Mars Hill Bible Church
Mars Hill Bible Church
Mars Hill Bible Church is an American non-denominational Christian megachurch located in Grandville, Michigan. The teaching pastor is Rob Bell.-History:...
, with the church originally meeting in a school gym in Wyoming, Michigan
Wyoming, Michigan
Wyoming is a city in Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 72,125. That makes it the 2nd largest community or city in West Michigan, the 14th largest city in the state of Michigan, and the 18th largest community in the state as well...
. Within a year the church was given a shopping mall in Grandville, Michigan
Grandville, Michigan
Grandville is a city in Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 16,263 at the 2000 census. Grandville is one of the oldest suburbs of Grand Rapids, and was incorporated as a city in 1933....
, and purchased the surrounding land. In July 2000 the 3,500 "grey chair" facility opened its doors. As of 2005, an estimated 11,000 people attend the two "gatherings" on Sundays at 9 and 11 AM. As of March 2011, Sunday attendance numbers between 8,000 and 10,000. His teachings at Mars Hill inspired the popular "Love Wins" bumper sticker, and the congregation freely distributes these stickers after services.
In order to maintain balance in his life, Bell maintains his Fridays as a personal sabbath, where he does not allow contact by electronic means, and has all pastoral duties transferred to other Mars Hill pastors.
On September 22, 2011 it was announced that Rob Bell is stepping down from the church he founded to pursue other areas to reach a broader audience. "Feeling the call from God to pursue a growing number of strategic opportunities, our founding pastor Rob Bell, has decided to leave Mars Hill in order to devote his full energy to sharing the message of God’s love with a broader audience."
Other projects
Bell is the featured speaker in NOOMANOOMA
NOOMA is a series of short films produced by Flannel promoting spiritual perspectives on individual life experiences. The name NOOMA comes from a phonetic spelling of the Greek word meaning "wind," "spirit," or "breath."-Format:...
– a series of short films created by a West Michigan-based non-profit film company called Flannel
Flannel
Flannel is a soft woven fabric, of various fineness. Flannel was originally made from carded wool or worsted yarn, but is now often made from either wool, cotton, or synthetic fibre. Flannel may be brushed to create extra softness or remain unbrushed. The brushing process is a mechanical process...
. The title of the video series, "NOOMA", is an English variation of the Greek word pneuma which means breath or spirit. All the videos feature the teachings of Bell accompanied by music written and sung by local independent artists with the exception of The Album Leaf
The Album Leaf
The Album Leaf is an American solo musical project founded in San Diego, California in 1998 by Jimmy LaValle. He is known for his use of electronics, synthesizer and Rhodes piano...
s music being licensed for the Nooma DVD Lump.
In August 2005, Zondervan Publishing published Bell's first book, Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith. Velvet Elvis is for people who are, in Bell's words, "fascinated with Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
, but can't do the standard Christian package".
Bell's Everything is Spiritual national speaking tour launched on June 30, 2006, in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, drawing sold-out crowds in cities across North America. The proceeds from ticket sales were used to support WaterAid
WaterAid
WaterAid is an international non-profit organisation set up as a response to the UN International Drinking Water & Sanitation decade . WaterAid is dedicated to helping people escape the poverty and disease caused by living without safe water and sanitation. It is based in London, England and was...
, an international non-profit organization dedicated to helping people escape the poverty and disease caused by living without safe water and sanitation.
Bell's second book, titled Sex God: Exploring the Endless Connections between Sexuality and Spirituality, was released in March 2007. In February and March 2007 Bell hosted a "Sex God" tour on six university campuses to promote his book. The tour functioned more as a time for engaging questions and conversation. Questions ranged from Old Testament codes to homosexuality to what should Christians do with the word "evangelical". Each night ended with the showing of NOOMA number 15 entitled "YOU".
In June 2007 Bell toured the United Kingdom and Ireland, calling all peacemakers.
Bell launched another speaking tour on November 5, 2007, in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, ""The Gods Aren't Angry"" again drew sold-out crowds in cities across North America. The subject matter of this presentation was a narrative defense of justification
Justification (theology)
Rising out of the Protestant Reformation, Justification is the chief article of faith describing God's act of declaring or making a sinner righteous through Christ's atoning sacrifice....
through faith and not works (sacrifice). Proceeds from this tour were used to support the Turame Microfinance
Microfinance
Microfinance is the provision of financial services to low-income clients or solidarity lending groups including consumers and the self-employed, who traditionally lack access to banking and related services....
program supporting the poor in Burundi
Burundi
Burundi , officially the Republic of Burundi , is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Its capital is Bujumbura...
, a mission supported by Bell's church.
Bell's 2009 project, Drops Like Stars, explores the links between creativity and suffering. Drops Like Stars was an international tour and a book, initially handwritten by Bell, with photographs. The title of the project comes from a young child's view of raindrops on a window at night. Rather than focusing on the conundrum of why an all-powerful God would allow suffering, Bell instead looks at the creativity, empathy, new connections, and growth that can spring from suffering. When asked in an interview how he had become interested in suffering, Bell replied that as a pastor he had been given a front row seat in the most poignant moment's of people's lives. At the same time he was doing lectures on creativity and realized, "There was a connection between these two halves of my life – all these connections between suffering and art-making."
Stronger
ABC television has announced production of a new television drama, Stronger, co-written by Bell and Carlton CuseCarlton Cuse
Carlton Cuse is an AmericanEmmy Award winning screenwriter and producer, most famous as executive producer andscreenwriter for the American television series Lost for...
, the Executive Producer of the television show, Lost. The show, based loosely on Bell's own life, will follow the life of Tom Stronger, a musician on a spiritual journey.
Beliefs
In his writings, Bell says "I affirm the truth anywhere in any religious system, in any worldview. If it's true, it belongs to God." However, he acknowledges Scripture as the authoritative source of truth by which to compare all other truths in the Mars Hill Bible Church statement of narrative theology.Bell says, "This is not just the same old message with new methods. We're rediscovering Christianity as an Eastern religion, as a way of life. Legal metaphors for faith don't deliver a way of life. We grew up in churches where people knew the nine verses why we don't speak in tongues, but had never experienced the overwhelming presence of God."
In his most recent book, Love Wins, Bell states that "It's been clearly communicated to many that this belief (in hell as conscious, eternal torment) is a central truth of the Christian faith and to reject it is, in essence, to reject Jesus. This is misguided and toxic and ultimately subverts the contagious spread of Jesus' message of love, peace, forgiveness and joy that our world desperately needs to hear." In this book, Bell outlines a number of views of hell, including universal reconciliation
Universal reconciliation
In Christian theology, universal reconciliation is the doctrine that all sinful and alienated human souls—because of divine love and mercy—will ultimately be reconciled to God.Universal salvation may be related to the perception of a problem of Hell, standing opposed to ideas...
(UR), and though he does not choose any one view as his own, he states of the UR view, "Whatever objections a person may have of [the UR view], and there are many, one has to admit that it is fitting, proper, and Christian to long for it." At the time of the book's publication, some prominent reformed church
Reformed churches
The Reformed churches are a group of Protestant denominations characterized by Calvinist doctrines. They are descended from the Swiss Reformation inaugurated by Huldrych Zwingli but developed more coherently by Martin Bucer, Heinrich Bullinger and especially John Calvin...
figures like Dr. R. Albert Mohler Jr. said Bell's book was "theologically disastrous" for not rejecting the UR view. Bell denies that he is a universalist. He does not embrace any particular view but argues that he wants to leave room for uncertainty. Love Wins presents his "case for living with mystery rather than demanding certitude."
Some evangelicals see this "uncertainty" as incompatible with scripture, while others say that the book is simply promoting overdue conversation about some traditional interpretations of scripture.
Publications
- Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith (Zondervan, 2005) ISBN 0-310-26345-X
- Sex God: Exploring the Endless Connections between Sexuality and Spirituality (Zondervan, 2007) ISBN 0-310-26346-8
- Everything is Spiritual (DVD) (Zondervan, 2007) ISBN 0-310-28556-9
- The Gods Aren't Angry (DVD) (Flannel, 2008) ISBN 0-310-29074-0
- Jesus Wants to Save Christians: A Manifesto for the Church in Exile (Zondervan, 2008) ISBN 0-310-27502-4
- Drops Like Stars: A Few Thoughts on Creativity and Suffering (Zondervan, 2009) ISBN 0-310-32704-0
- Love Wins (Harper One, 2011) ISBN 0-062-04964-3
- NOOMA VideosNOOMANOOMA is a series of short films produced by Flannel promoting spiritual perspectives on individual life experiences. The name NOOMA comes from a phonetic spelling of the Greek word meaning "wind," "spirit," or "breath."-Format:...