Review: Future of our Faith

June 7, 2016June 4, 2016 / rtrube54 / 1 Comment

Future of Our Faith, Ronald J. Sider and Ben Lowe. Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2016.

Summary: Two activist evangelical leaders forty years apart pose critical questions for each other about issues facing the church, with responses from the other.

It often seems, as I follow social media, that there are at least two simultaneous conversations going on within generations of the evangelical community. There are those of my age in the boomer generation who are critically concerned about the future of the church–will it carry on in doctrinal, missional, and lifestyle integrity in the face of winds of culture. Likewise, younger Christians of my son’s generation are asking questions about the legacy of my generation in terms of environmental degradation, seemingly unloving treatment of LGBT people, a different kind of political engagement where the church is not captive to political parties, and more.

It seems rare that we have this conversation across generations, more often just within generational cohorts. And the danger is that we become more divided from “them” rather than learning from, collaborating with, and blessing each other. And so we add to the fault lines of social class, gender, ethnicity, and doctrinal differences that divide the church the fault line of generation.

Ronald J. Sider and Ben Lowe are separated by forty years in age, but share common commitments to social action arising from a deeply rooted evangelical faith. And they set out in this book to have conversations with each other around the issues that often seem to separate generations in the church. After an introduction discussing the importance of the conversation, each writer contributed four chapters raising questions for the other, followed by the other’s response. Woven into the chapters were “sidebar” contributions from other evangelical leaders. The contents of the discussion are as follows:

1. Why This Conversation
Part 1: Ron Sider’s Chapters (with Ben Lowe’s Responses)
2. Will You Remember Evangelism?
3. Will You Reaffirm Truth as You Learn from Postmodernism?
4. Will You Keep Your Marriage Vows Better Than My Generation?
5. Will You Lead the Church to a Better Stance on Homosexuality?
Part 2: Ben Lowe’s Chapters (with Ron Sider’s Responses)
6. Will We Live More Like Jesus?
7. Will We Renew Our Political Witness?
8. Will We Reconcile Our Divisions Better?
9. Will We Recover Our Responsibility for God’s Creation?
Conclusion: Jesus at the Center

What worked about this is that the questions of each do represent some of the issues each generation is concerned with. For example, while concerns for justice and social issues reflect ways millenials are “walking the talk” Sider raises a concern about whether “the talk” is being muted. Lowe raises issues about political witness, acknowledging both the political captivity he sees in elder generations, and the disengagement of his own generation, at times. There is a humility about the questions each asks, acknowledging the failures or struggles of each generation, rather than how one is better than another.

What also works is that these two are both leaders in thoughtful, socially progressive evangelicalism. Ben’s organization, Young Evangelicals for Climate Action arose out of Sider’s Evangelicals for Social Action, and their environmental wing, the Evangelical Environmental Network. It was clear that both of them deeply respected the other. And that led to a conversation with a high level of agreement between the two, while articulating some generational perspectives.

Some may have wished for more sparks between the two. The willingness, particularly of Sider, to acknowledge generational failures and the sincere hope that Ben’s generation get it better tended to defuse whatever sparks there might be. And this may offer a model for similar conversations of the kind of humility that leads to shared understanding and mutual support across generations. At the same time, I found myself wishing for at least one chapter from each where they just didn’t see eye to eye and modeled working that through. That would have been valuable.

The questions at the end of each chapter are quite helpful for inter-generational discussions, which I hope this book would provoke. I would say that the sidebars just seemed a distraction and really did not add to what these two leaders, both men of deep spiritual character coupled with strong track records of deeds done in the church and in social advocacy, had to offer. These are conversations every inter-generational church needs to have and these two have given us a great starting place.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The Month in Reviews: January 2015

February 3, 2015February 1, 2015 / rtrube54 / Leave a comment

January was the month of longer-than-usual books. I’m still working my way to the end of The Bully Pulpit by Doris Kearns Goodwin. But I still managed to finish an assortment of books ranging from a Tolstoy classic to the first book of an Ohio sci-fi author (John Scalzi). Among the weightier books I reviewed an exploration of the relationship of God to the natural world and a thoughtful re-appraisal of the nature of power. And I reviewed a new book by young activist Ben Lowe that was followed by my first author interview with Ben. So, without further ado, here is my list for January:

1. Doing Good Without Giving Up by Ben Lowe. Lowe, a creation care activist, shares what he has learned about sustaining a life of activisim, particularly when progress is slow and opposition is real. My author interview with Ben is here.

2. Resurrection by Leo Tolstoy. What happens when you sit on a jury and the defendant is a prostitute whose life was shaped by a careless romantic dalliance resulting in a pregnancy years before. Tolstoy explores the spiritual awakening and deepening of Prince Nekhlyudov as he seeks to make restitution for his wrong.

3. American Saint: The Life of Elizabeth Seton by Joan Barthel. Seton is the first native-born American to be canonized a saint by the Roman Catholic Church. Barthel narrates the tragedy of widowhood that led to conversion, and formation of the first community of women religious in America.

4. The God of Nature: Incarnation and Contemporary Science by Christopher C. Knight. Knight responds to the alternatives of a supernaturalist/naturalist divide by proposing an incarnational naturalism, a position akin to panentheism (all of nature in God).

5. Faith and Reason: Three Views edited by Steve Wilkins. Wilkins and three contributors explore the relationship of faith and reason under the rubrics of faith and philosophy in tension, faith seeking understanding, and the synthesis of reason and faith. Each contributor critiques the other two views yet with a spirit of grace and respect.

6. Playing God by Andy Crouch. The author re-appraises the common view that power is corrupt and corrupting. He considers God’s intention for us as image bearers to use power well to reflect being image bearers, that is “playing God.” He explores both the corrupting effects on power of sin and the redemption of power.

7. Contagious Disciple Making by David Watson and Paul Watson. The authors contend that modelling and teaching obedience to truth discovered in the scriptures and then shared with others resulting in the same obedience is critical to planting Discovery Groups and churches. A very practical book with clear descriptions of practices the authors believe are biblically rooted to build multiplying church plants.

8. Night Train to Memphis by Elizabeth Peters. This is the fifth in a series of “Vicky Bliss” mysteries involving a Nile voyage, an ingenious and huge theft of antiquities, and a hair-raising chase across Egypt.

9. Old Man’s War by John Scalzi. Imagine the possibility of human colonies in space defended by an army of seventy five year olds promised rejuvenated bodies. John Perry is one such enlistee and the book explores the surprises Perry will encounter beginning with his own body as well as the unknowns of the cosmos that can kill you before you even recognize the danger. Perhaps the greatest surprise is who he encounters after being rescued as the lone survivor of a military disaster.

I have described myself as a reading omnivore. This list probably gives you a taste of that, ranging from philosophy and theology, to activism, and to mystery and sci-fi thrillers. I hope there might be something here to pique your interest.

You can now find of all my “The Month in Reviews” posts by clicking on the link with this title at the top of this page, or in the “Categories” list on the left side of my home page. You will find monthly review summaries beginning with February 2014, with links to individual reviews.

Author Interview: Ben Lowe

January 12, 2015 / rtrube54 / 2 Comments

Ben Lowe is the author of the newly published Doing Good without Giving Up, reviewed on this blog earlier this month. He is on staff with the Evangelical Environmental Network and serves as national spokesperson for Young Evangelicals for Climate Action. He is also the author of Green Revolution. He spoke last month for the ministry with which I work, and recently connected with me over Skype for an interview concerning his new book.

Bob on Books: Tell me how you came to write Doing Good without Giving Up?

In my work within the creation care community I was traveling to lots of Christian college campuses and speaking before audiences about why we should care for God’s creation and as the years went by I found that more and more people were affirming this message and less and less people were questioning it. The questions I was getting more and more had to do with “we believe we should care for the world and we believe we should stand for justice but do we really have to engage in advocacy and activism? Why can’t we make changes in our own lifestyles? Why do we have to work together on a broader scale? It is so messy and so hard. We rarely see any progress there.” So that’s why I decided to write Doing Good without Giving Up. In many ways it was a follow-up to Green Revolution but also addresses many different questions and challenges that are facing us today.

Bob on Books: You think personal simplicity and faithfulness are not enough in addressing pressing social issues, that social action and advocacy are also important. Say more about that.

I think personal faithfulness and simplicity are very important but they are not enough. That’s because we are called to be the body of Christ. We are called to community. We are called to live in faithfulness at every level of life which includes in our own lifestyles and in our families but also how we live together with the time God has given us on the world he has placed us on. And when it comes to some of the great challenges we are facing today, whether it is climate change, on which I work a lot, or human trafficking or the immigration crisis; these are problems that we cannot fix if we are just focused on making changes in our own lives. These are problems that were caused by us together in our society and in communities working together. They are problems that will only be solved when we come together.

Bob on Books: You write in the book about moving beyond the dichotomy between evangelism and social concern and polarities of the culture wars. How do you think it is possible to do this?

I think our motivation is very important in engaging in evangelism and in social action and justice. They are the same. That is, we are motivated by love. If we truly love God and truly love our neighbor we will want to share the good news of Jesus Christ with them. He has transformed my life and saved me from things and delivered me from the brokenness I knew I was powerless to overcome on my own. In the same way he empowers us and calls us to join him in changing the world, and so I believe that to follow Jesus and to love each other means to engage in evangelism and social justice. Our motivation is important in helping us to be on the right path towards integrating these two.

And then when it comes to the culture wars, I think that a lot of our motivation there was fear. The most commonly repeated commandment in the scriptures was “have no fear” or “do not fear” yet that’s often our first posture when we engage with people in the broader society outside of the church. So what would it look like to not be so afraid but to be willing to vulnerably love our neighbors even when our neighbors are very different from us and when we don’t always agree with them?

Bob on Books: What have you learned about not giving up, about sustaining yourself as you’re engaged in social action?

These are all lessons I’m learning. Every day I find new reasons to give up and yet more reasons to keep going. And so in the book I talk about our motivation being love and the importance of prophecy and remembering Sabbath and contemplation and there are a number of different disciplines and practices that I share that have been meaningful in my life. But I think there is a scripture passage that I have written in the front of my notebook that I carry around everywhere that helps to keep me on track in life. It is 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 and it’s a passage that has become more and more meaningful over the years and it’s “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run but only one gets the prize. Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore, I do not run like someone running aimlessly. I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I’ve preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”

Bob on Books: What new projects or goals are you looking forward to in 2015?

That’s a great and somewhat tricky question. I’m looking down the “to do” list and wondering how is this all going to get done this year? On a personal level, I’m in the ordination process with the Christian and Missionary Alliance church. This has been a life-giving and faith deepening process and l look forward to continuing that and, hopefully, completing that by the end of this year. I’m also finishing up the last chapter in a book that Ron Sider and I are writing together, which will be an intergenerational dialogue about some of the key issues facing American Christianity moving forward. I’m excited about that!

In my work we have a number of projects going but one of them in particular that we started in 2014 is a Climate Leadership Fellows Program which has a vision of training up new leaders in the climate movement, new faithful leaders, and empowering them to go out and engage their communities and train up new leaders on their own. We’re looking at this as a new discipleship model and are excited to pull together the next cohort of leaders for the coming year.

Bob on Books: I’ll look forward to the next book when it comes out. Ron Sider has been a hero and I’ve appreciated your writing. I’ve appreciated your time today as well as your recent visit to our campus. Let us know when you are back in town!

Ben Lowe may be contacted via his website: http://benlowe.net/

Review: Doing Good Without Giving Up: Sustaining Social Action in a World That’s Hard to Change

January 2, 2015January 12, 2015 / rtrube54 / 2 Comments

Doing Good Without Giving Up: Sustaining Social Action in a World That’s Hard to Change by Ben Lowe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am a witness to the social activism of the sixties and the seventies. A war was ended, civil rights for Blacks where attained to a degree, a war was declared on poverty, and we began efforts to clean up our air and water. Yet many of the activists burned out and sold out. Change is hard and comes slowly. All the problems named above are still with us.

A new generation is addressing itself to these challenges. What concerns Ben Lowe is that burning out, giving up, and selling out are just as real for today’s social activists. He knows. He has been on the front lines of Christian environmental activism for ten years and has faced these issues personally and writes this book to articulate both why social activist movements are important and how they may be sustained when change comes hard and slowly.

He begins the book by acknowledging this challenge and the ways he has faced this. He contends that it isn’t enough to retreat to a life of personal simplicity and justice. This cannot change structures of inequity and injustice. Only social action movements have the potential to address change at these levels. He talks about the obstacles of scale, controversy, and complexity and the necessity of long and faithful engagement to overcome these, citing as one example the Evangelical Immigration Table that is helping lead a national conversation on immigration.

He takes on the false dichotomy of evangelism and social concern and highlights efforts (including that of InterVarsity at Ohio State!) that integrate gospel proclamation and concerns for justice issues like human trafficking. He also maps out ways we might transcend the culture wars through articulating a “third way” that is more holistic than the political visions of left or right. He articulates the necessity of an activism of courage in a political landscape of fear-mongering. This last seems especially important to me as I look back at how the politics of fear undercut many social efforts where there was substantial consensus and polarized our country around extreme political agendas of left or right.

The second part of his book explores the personal side of sustained social action. Love is foundational, particularly of enemies and opponents, and not often talked about. Maintaining a prophetic stance when opposition arises and we want to be liked (or even elected) is crucial. Learning to deal with inevitable opposition with grace and perseverance is vital. Equally, practices of repentance, sabbath, contemplation, and community allow for recalibration, refreshment and reinforcement.

What impressed me throughout this book was its honesty and practicality. Lowe talks about his struggles to deal with betrayals and with enemies, and his internal struggles with burnout and discouragement. He also tells stories of hope including the engagement of the community where he lives, Parkside, with city officials proposing taxation strategies that would have destroyed that community. Throughout, he provides very practical suggestions that come out of his own experience and practice, along with helpful questions for personal reflection and group discussion.

I would propose that this is a vital manual for Christians who are working together for social change. Lowe pierces through starry-eyed optimism to the tough realities and offers crucial guidance that I hope will result in sustained efforts in social action efforts that move the ball much further down the field than my generation has done.

View all my reviews

An interview with Ben Lowe appears here.