The Seven Faith Tribes by George Barna

The Seven Faith Tribes by George Barna

George Barna. Love him or loathe him, we take his polls, and read his results – as well as his interpretations of them. He’s earned the reputation of ‘maverick’ in recent years, making a 180 from years of supporting megachurch growth to advocating on behalf of the millions of ‘revolutionaries’ leaving institutional churches in favor of house churches and other relationally-based expressions of faith. At the same time, his investment in endeavors like BarnaFilms – providing faith-and-family-friendly programming – make it clear that he hasn’t abandoned his conservative evangelical commitments. So what on earth is making neopagan blogger Jason Pitzl-Waters ask [1] “could a prominent conservative Christian be calling for a new attitude in Christian-Pagan relations…[and] an end to the culture wars?” Jason is referring to The Seven Faith Tribes, and George Barna is at it again. In The Seven Faith Tribes Barna identifies, describes, and analyzes seven major “faith tribes” in America—documenting who they are, what they believe, how they vote, and what they are passionate about. Barna provides helpful insight into how these groups influence our economy, politics, and values—and what their potential is to change America. Through his in-depth study of all seven tribes, Barna has identified potential strategies that faith tribes—if they choose to—could employ to facilitate healing and restoration in American culture, and cultures across the world. The seven tribes are as follows: Captive Christians, Casual Christians, Jews, Mormons, Pantheists, Muslims, and Skeptics. The United States harbors a long and deep tradition of faith. From its founding as a nation of people who sought religious freedom to the present-day conversations regarding the appropriate expression of religious beliefs, American spirituality remains a hot topic of personal conversation, political intrigue, social commentary, and economic significance. But what do we know about the faith of Americans? Most analyses are woefully inadequate, lumping people into generic categories such as Protestant and Catholic, evangelical and mainline, charismatic and fundamentalist. These general portraits are of limited value. In The Seven Faith Tribes, Barna draws upon 25 years of research—and interviews with more than 30,000 people—to identify and closely study the seven dominant “faith tribes” in America. Who are they? What holds them together? How do they differ from each other? And what difference might understanding them make for the future of our country? Barna offers insightful information on each of these tribes and reveals astonishing insights about how they are influencing our economy, politics, and values. Most importantly, he predicts what lies next for faith in America—and how we all might come together to set the nation on a better course, no matter what faith we embrace. [hide] This Title Has Been Closed for Review :: Special Viral Blogger Section :: Link-love for your review: Invite your readers to download a PDF chapter [2] of The Seven Faith Tribes America's Seven Faith Tribes Hold the Key to National Restoration [3] - article by Barna about the book Can Barna Unite the Tribes In Time to Save America? [4] - interesting neopagan preview of The Seven Faith Tribes Interview Availability: Barna’s availability for blog and podcast interviews is unknown at press time. Let me know if you’re interested in an interview – I’ll keep you posted! Your Commitment: Remember, your commitment is to write a blog post (minimum 50 words) about The Seven Faith Tribes within 30 days of getting it. Please cut & paste your post underneath this entry. Thank you! [/hide] [1] http://wildhunt.org/blog/2009/05/can-barna-unite-the-tribes-in-time-to-save-america.html [2] http://www.tyndale.com/products/nonfiction/details.asp?isbn=978-1-4143-2404-3&subpage= [3] http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/13-culture/262-americas-seven-faith-tribes-hold-the-key-to-national-restoration [4] http://wildhunt.org/blog/2009/05/can-barna-unite-the-tribes-in-time-to-save-america.html

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A Lover’s Quarrel with the Evangelical Church by Warren Cole Smith

A Lover’s Quarrel with the Evangelical Church by Warren Cole Smith

Since World War II, evangelicals have emerged, seemingly from nowhere, as a potent political force and the focus of rapidly expanding retail markets. Megachurches and parachurch organizations like Focus on the Family attract both wealth and publicity, allowing them to reach more people than ever before. But something troubling has happened in spite of this expansion. Overall church attendance is not growing. Political clout has not yielded spiritual renewal. America's high divorce rate is just one of many melancholy cultural indicators that bigger is not necessarily better. Evangelicalism aims to cure these ills. What if, instead, it is actually preying on the body, like a cancerous tumor growing unchecked? In his new book, A Lover's Quarrel with the Evangelical Church, awarding-winning journalist Warren Cole Smith offers an insightful and deeply personal critique of the evangelical movement from the perspective of a long-time evangelical insider.  Using solid research and original interviews with some of America's leading Christian thinkers, Smith offers an assessment of what has gone wrong as evangelicalism has grown in power and size and what must be done if the church is to be salt and light in a culture starved for redemption. “American evangelicalism, for all the good it has done, is in need of a modern reformation,” Smith states.  “There is something toxic in the soil of the evangelical garden, and the poison has been building up over time, tainting everything.  It is evident in our quick condemnation of homosexuality or alcohol or gambling, but our indulgence of greed and envy in the form of careerism.  It’s there in the hypocrisy of religious-right political leaders quick (and right) to condemn big government and its corrupting power, but who think that the big ministries and megachurches they have created are somehow immune to the same corrupting power.” A Lover’s Quarrel with the Evangelical Church reveals the lesser-reported events that have shaped every aspect of modern evangelicalism, starting with the Second Great Awakening (hint: it wasn’t so great).  As only a great journalist can, Smith delivers some startling facts and raises serious questions about many of the practices and institutions that define modern evangelicalism including: · The evangelical myth—is the church really growing? · Body-count evangelism—makes for impressive stats, but at what cost? · The Christian Industrial complex—examining a Christian retail industry that generates billions · The Overhead Church—multimedia presentations a must, no hymnals or bibles necessary Smith wrote the book not as one who is on the outside looking in, but as one who has chosen to remain on the inside for forty years.  As he describes the flawed approach of many of modern evangelicalism’s best-known leaders and organizations, Smith is quick to point out the many problematic activities in which he has actively participated.  He longs to see a church that embraces her ancestry, values spiritual depth over bragging rights, and is shaped more by the words of Scripture than by the whims of youth culture. In the end, Smith’s intention is not simply to lob accusations but to restore health to the body of Christ.  “I call it a ‘lover’s quarrel’ because I believe it is important to speak the truth with love, as Scripture commands, but also to speak it as two lovers would,” Smith says.  “In a marriage, two become one.  When a husband cuts his wife, he injures himself.  So it is with the church.  We are all members of the body of Christ.  When one hurts, we all hurt.  Therefore, it is not the goal of this book to destroy, but to encourage, sharpen, and build.” [hide] This Title Has Been Closed for Review :: Special Viral Blogger Section :: Link-love for your review: http://loversquarrel.net [1] – the official site for Warren and the book. Nice & clean. Interview Availability: Warren is available for blog and podcast interviews. You’ll get his email address if you select A Lover’s Quarrel with the Evangelical Church for your monthly review. Your Commitment: Remember, your commitment is to write a blog post (minimum 50 words) about A Lover’s Quarrel with the Evangelical Church within 30 days of getting it. Please cut & paste your post underneath this entry. Thank you! [hide] [1] http://loversquarrel.net/

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Finding An Unseen God by Alicia Britt Chole

Finding An Unseen God by Alicia Britt Chole

Do you ever discover a gem of a new (or at least, new-to-you) writer and wish all of your friends could read her – particularly your friends who enjoy memoir and narrative nonfiction? This is how I feel about Alicia Britt Chole and her Finding an Unseen God. Truth is dead. God never lived. Life is filled with pain. Death is the end of life. These beliefs formed Chole's outlook as a young woman. "I sincerely believed that there was no God," she says. "As a young Atheist, I simply considered myself a realist who preferred unanswered questions over fairy tales." Then one day, without warning, Alicia's atheistic paradigm was shattered. Finding an Unseen God is written and arranged creatively, nonlinearly in her narrative. If it wasn't such an overused phrase, dare I say her storytelling style is...postmodern? This concise travelling companion opens a window into Alicia's surprising spiritual journey. With warmth, intellect, and compassion, Alicia invites us to carefully consider what we believe and do not believe, while she paints a vivid portrait of a God who relentlessly pursues even those who wrestle with doubt and ambiguity. Here's what Mark Batterson [1] has to say about Finding An Unseen God: "Alicia's heartfelt and thoughtful words penetrate the soul and make you feel and think in new ways." [hide] This Title Has Been Closed for Review :: Special Viral Blogger Section :: Link-love for your review: Finding An Unseen God: The Book Trailer [2] - all nice & YouTube-embeddable Truth Portraits [3] Alicia’s official website Invite your readers to read excerpts [4] from Finding an Unseen God Peace for the Journey [5] - an excellent review of the book Interview Availability: Alecia is available for blog and podcast interviews. You’ll get her email address if you select Finding an Unseen God for your monthly review. Your Commitment: Remember, your commitment is to write a blog post (minimum 50 words) about Finding an Unseen God within 30 days of getting it. Please cut & paste your post underneath this entry. Thank you! [/hide] [1] http://www.evotional.com/ [2] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-glSwXzyNgE [3] http://www.truthportraits.com/ [4] http://www.bakerpublishinggroup.com/ME2/Audiences/dirmod.asp?sid=0477683E4046471488BD7BAC8DCFB004&nm=&type=PubCom&mod=PubComProductCatalog&mid=BF1316AF9E334B7BA1C33CB61CF48A4E&AudId=205F4A61B07648D98551934CA40DE116&tier=3&id=92433763B99A428EB0B44D44E003AE7E [5] http://peaceforthejourney.blogspot.com/2009/05/finding-unseen-god-by-alicia-chole-book.html

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A People’s History of Christianity by Diana Butler Bass

A People’s History of Christianity by Diana Butler Bass

Am I the only one who gets depressed reading church history sometimes? For supposed followers of Jesus, there sure seems to be a lot of killing and ugly attitudes among the faithful through the ages. I was pleased last year to read Saving Paradise [1] by Brock and Parker, and I’m equally thrilled to introduce you to Diana Butler Bass’s latest offering, which I think will transform how emerging and missional Christians see their heritage. Subtitled A History of the Grassroots Movements in Christianity that Preserved Jesus' Message of Social Justice for 2,000 Years and Their Impact on the Church Today, Bass’s A People’s History of Christianity is written in the same spirit as Howard Zinn's radical and groundbreaking work A People's History of the United States. In this landmark volume, Bass reveals the under-reported movements, personalities, and spiritual practices that continue to inform and ignite contemporary Christian worship, activism, and social justice reforms in the name of Jesus. The book will offer up a much-needed “other side of the story” for missional and emerging Christians, drawing from examples of alternative practices in every period of Christian history, including: Care for the environment and celebrating God in nature Defining compassion, hospitality, and social justice as integral to the Gospel Peace-making as the pervasive Christian response to war Highlighting the female attributes of God, and the power of women in the Church Celebrating human sexuality as a gift from God This is the book that “the great emergence” has been waiting for - a deeply researched history of Christianity that sheds new light on the underreported personalities and movements of the faith. Bass has garnered a groundswell of support for this innovative project, spanning the conventional left/right spiritual divide. Here’s a sampling: “It would be difficult to imagine anyone reading this book without finding some new insight or inspiration, some new and unexpected testimony to the astonishing breadth of Christianity through the centuries.” —Philip Jenkins, author of The Next Christendom “A perfect armchair companion for contemporary Christians. Charmingly written and refreshing to read, yet rich in details and thorough in its mapping of the major themes and events that have shaped the evolution of the Western Church, A People’s History of Christianity is our story re-told with both clear-eyed affection and a scholar’s acumen.” —Phyllis Tickle, author of The Great Emergence “In this beautifully written history, Diana Butler Bass reveals the living, beating heart of love at the core of Christian faith.” —Sara Miles, author of Take This Bread "Intelligent and sassy, honest and redemptive. ...a warning that if we don't remember the blood-stained pages of the past, then we are doomed to repeat them., but also an invitation to participate in the next chapter of what it means to be the Church in this broken world." —Shane Claiborne, author of The Irresistible Revolution "An excellent introduction to grass-roots renewal movements as well as to the various shapes that Christian spirituality has taken through the ages. ...necessary reading for any who may have thought that history is irrelevant for present-day living." —Justo L. Gonzalez, author of The Story of Christianity "...this book is so much more than a wonderful overview of Christian history. It is also a joyful apologetic for a 'new kind of Christianity.' I already gave away my copy, because I knew it would help salvage the faltering faith of a disillusioned friend." —Brian McLaren, author of Everything Must Change and A New Kind of Christian "Interesting, insightful, illuminating, and remarkably relevant." —Marcus Borg, author of The Heart of Christianity "In a refreshing look at 2,000 years of Christian history from the bottom up, Butler Bass offers unique insights into the spirit has stirred the hearts and minds of faithful people over the centuries and brought renewal to Christianity during periods of upheaval and distress." —Christian Science Monitor "...immediately accessible, helped along by frequent and shrewd linkages to contemporary counterpoints. This presentation includes lots of folk along the way who never made the 'power lists.' Readers will resonate with this inclusiveness and be grateful to Bass for making them fellow travelers in the on-going story." —Walter Brueggemann, Columbia Theological Seminary [hide] This Title Has Been Closed for Review :: Special Viral Blogger Section :: Link-love for your review: Diana's official website [2] Invite your readers to browse inside [3] A People’s History of Christianity Interview Availability: Diana’s availability for blog and podcast interviews is unknown at press time. Let me know if you’re interested in an interview – I’ll keep you posted! Your Commitment: Remember, your commitment is to write a blog post (minimum 50 words) about A People’s History of Christianity within 30 days of getting it. Please cut & paste your post underneath this entry. Thank you! [hide] [1] http://savingparadise.net [2] http://dianabutlerbass.com/ [3] http://browseinside.harpercollins.com/index.aspx?isbn13=9780061448706

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