Two books I've read recently...
Submitted by MrKris on Sun, 11/12/2006 - 14:24
Two books I've recently read that I would suggest for all Christians are
"The Last Christian Generation" by Josh McDowell
and
"Indefensible" by Sam Kastensmidt
I'm sure most of the members have heard of Josh McDowell. His latest book exposes how the Church is failing to educate children in the Foundations of Christianity. The most striking thing to me was anecodote early in the book where a youth states in effect "the Bible is true because I believe it"; rather than, as Josh explains, "I believe the Bible BECAUSE it is true".
The other book I ordered from Coral Ridge Ministries, goes into quite a bit of detail how the ACLU is systematically usurping the rights of Christians in American by manipulating the judicial system.
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I read David Limbaugh’s Persecution: How Liberals are Waging a War Against Christianity. He discusses ad nauseum the ACLU thing. I agree that the ACLU goes over board but they’re not the big threat to Christianity. (I have a neighbor whom I’m desperately trying to convince that not all Christians are hateful warmongers.) The ACLU has never interfered with my family's or church's practice of our religion so I don't worry about them.
I would actually recommend that progressive Christians read such books (but never on a full stomach). One needs to understand one’s adversaries. Sometimes I’ll hear a fundamentalist say something that I just flat out wouldn’t understand had I not read some of their books. Similar books include Ramesh Ponurru’s Party of Death, The Democrats, the Media, the Courts, and the Disregard for Human Life and even Godless, The Church of Liberalism by Ann Coulter.
A book for all Christians is Immaculee Ilibgiza’s Left to Tell, Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust. It’s a gripping 200 pages that is nerve wracking to have to put down. It has much to offer us about hate radio and bearing false witness against your enemies.
This is what passes as progressive Christianity!
Ted Michael Morgan
no McDowell is not progressive Christian
No, I don't think McDowell is a progressive Christian. user: MrKris brought his books up a few months back as must reads. I've read some of his stuff...they aren't must reads unless you want to get inside the head of fundamentalist theologian.
I don't EVER recall Josh saying the Earth was only 6000 years old.
His Evidence That Demands a Verdict is a MUST READ for all Christians.
Mcdowell is NOT a "fundamentalist"
The pleasing thing about "The Last Christian Generation" was Josh used the term "Foundational Christianity" not "Fundemantal" with all the connotatations that term represents.
One of the most telling statics from the book is that more than half of CHURCHED youth don't believe there is such a thing as "absolute truth".
And as for the ACLU, if the Church believes they are protecting the interests of Christians they have been brain-washed.
But thanks for you nearly immediate response on such a slow message board.
Glad to hear McDowell has changed!
Sounds like he's changed a bit from his days of insisting the Earth is 6,000-20,000 years old and other hostile statements to science. I think most progressive Christians believe that our faith and science are not incompatible.
I think there are times when the ACLU overreaches, but for the most part its doing its job to protect Constitutional rights and maintain the separation of chruch and state. Those European countries that have state churches have much lower percentage of religious participation and belief in God than countries like the US as Christians are to be prophetic voices to their government.
Josh McDowell's unncessary alarmism
I've read a couple of McDowell's books. He is a fundamentalist through and through. I can remember my dad handing me one of his books as a youth, and reading from him what I know not to be true. I forget which book, but he claimed that the world was created somewhere between 6,000-20,000 years ago. He tried to argue that the fossil record was somehow wrong. He further claimed that if you didn't believe his Biblical account about the age of the Earth that you could not logically accept the rest of the Bible including the notion of Jesus as Savior. I just disagree. I haven't read the book of which you speak, but I hope his thinking has matured a bit.
On the ACLU, I think most progressive Christians respect the separation between church and state. Its necessary for good government and vibrant religion.