After You Believe: Why Christian Character Matters by N.T. Wright
If you want to write a Christian best-seller these days, there are a few tried-and-true methods. One is to write Christian self-help; how to have your "best life now." Another is to write taking an extreme position on some theological matter or another, like how we need to change or die, or why we need to retrench in our received traditions or die. But what if the things that pique our ears are drowning out other, subtler - but absolutely crucial - themes in Christian spirituality, themes long-lost and long-overdue for recovery? This is the conviction of New Testament scholar, gentle provocateur, and Anglican bishop of Durham, England N.T. Wright. Following up on his widely-acclaimed Simply Christian and Surprised by Hope, Wright poses a simple question: What is our purpose? If that question sounds familiar (see the above discussion about Christian bestsellers), Wright's answer is decidedly unfamiliar in today's spiritual and intellectual climate: Christ-like virtue in the here and now. And if that answer sounds boring, well, you haven't heard it coming from Bishop Tom's pen. Wright dispels the common misconception that Christian living is nothing more than a checklist of dos and don'ts. Nor is it a prescription to "follow your heart" wherever it may lead. Instead, After You Believe reveals the Bible's call for a revolution—a transformation of character that takes us beyond our earthly pursuit of money, sex, and power into a virtuous state of living that allows us to reflect God and live more worshipful, fulfilling lives. In so doing, the question of what we're doing in this ambiguous time between baptism and funeral becomes much less staid and much more invigorating, as we discover the essence of Kingdom living here and now. [hide] :: Special Viral Blogger Section :: I'm so sorry, we're requested-out of this title! (You can, of course, always purchase it at your local bookseller or here [1].) But! We have two awesome [2] (and somewhat opposing) books on The Gospel [3] available for review; 'The Gospel You've Never Heard' is particularly Wright-ian. Feel free to select BOTH of these, actually, as I'd love to hear your point/counterpoint reviews on this all-important subject. ------- Requesting After You Believe Due to the high expected demand for reviewing this title, we have an additional request made for anyone who would like After You Believe: Could you have it reviewed within 10-14 days of receiving it? It’s an engaging read, and once you begin it’s doubtful you’ll want to put it down. We’re not asking you to relax your usual standards of writing and podcasting integrity; you can love the book, loathe it, or anything in between. But the publisher has requested that we get our initial reviews into the blogosphere coinciding with the book release date, and we’d like to honor this request. You’ll be among the first readers on the continent to receive a copy of this book, weeks before the release date. Link-love for your review: N.T. Wright doesn't maintain a personal web page, but a comprehensive one is maintained for him here: http://www.ntwrightpage.com/ [4] Browse inside: http://www.harpercollins.com/books/9780061730559/After_You_Believe/index.aspx [5] Interview Availability: N.T. Wright is available for a limited amount of interviews with bloggers and podcasters. If you’d like to be considered for a review, email me at zoecarnate@theooze.com [6] and I’ll connect you with his publicist. [/hide] [1] http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061730556?ie=UTF8&tag=zoecarnatecom-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=0061730556 [2] http://viralbloggers.com/tag/gospel/ [3] http://viralbloggers.com/tag/gospel/ [4] http://www.ntwrightpage.com/ [5] http://www.harpercollins.com/books/9780061730559/After_You_Believe/index.aspx [6] http://viralbloggers.commailto:zoecarnate@theooze.com
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