Bobos in Paradise by David Brooks - Page 5

I don't have real good hiking boots, but I do have top of the line New Balance cross trainers. These things give my feet and ankles the padding and support I need to run a marathon, play basketball or handle rough terrain. I don't do any of that, but a guy like me needs shoes like this. After all, when I get out of my car to go into the house I often step into a sandy patch on my lawn, cross a concrete driveway, walk on some grass, climb a flight of five steps, and walk into a house where the terrain changes rapidly from wood flooring to carpet to linoleum. It's good to have shoes that can withstand such punishment and constantly changing terrain. Also, to get from my bedroom to the refrigerator, to the bathroom and to the TV room I have to turn several sharp corners and go up and down flights of six steps, so I need a shoe that gives me good ankle support.

Oh well, enough silliness for now, the point is that we all have imbibed Bobo values to some degree. All in all, Brooks paints a very positive picture of the Bobos. Sure, there is much silliness in Bobo-land, but much good has come out of it. Even though I have argued that Bobos need to be careful about transferring their merit driven worldview to their view of how they relate to God, the fact is that their hard work has brought about much temporal good in the world. Bobos have made it possible for those who don't come from the "right families" to find success in this world. Although they overdo the back to nature and health thing at times, there are many benefits to the healthier and more ecologically friendly lifestyles they adopt.

One of the problems I see is that there is a latent narcissism in Bobo-land. Much of what Bobos do is for the purpose of self-enrichment and self-empowerment. Even when they care and volunteer (which is another of the many good things they do), they often do it because it makes them feel good or enriches them. In reading the book I didn't see any attitude of pursuing the good, simply because it is good.

I didn't say anything about the chapter on "spiritual life" but it was insightful. As a pastor, I am particularly interested in these matters. The whole "purpose driven" lifestyle of the Bobo's is something which resonates with the Christian faith, as I mentioned above with a few caveats. But what is most noticeable about Bobo spirituality is its emphasis that "each person can and must find his or her own course to spiritual fulfillment." The problem with that is, when each and every person is his or her own god, or can make their own god, they have to deal with the reality that their own personal god may not be the one true God. A bit of wisdom from the pre-Bobo era is in order here—the pre-Bobos used to say "there is a God and you ain't He."

Article Author: David Wayne

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