I have a little bit of history with Progressive Christianity. Not a big hero or supervillain defining moment, but a history nonetheless. Of course, back then, it was just the Emergent Church and the majority of the philosophical underpinnings were attributed to Brian McLaren and not too many else. A pastor/friend of mine was looking into the Emergent Church movement as a way of possible church growth/communicating with a different generation kind of thing. So, inquisitive little bugger that I was, I read a few of the books and wrote a little paper, explaining why I disagreed with some of the major tenets of the book. We eventually moved on before anything was resolved. But years later, the Progressive Christian element reared its ugly head in a church I was familiar with and a pastor I had always believed was fairly well grounded. Now, however, I heard he had started preaching the non-existence of hell and some other questionable doctrine.
So, you could say, I know first hand why this book is not only needed but extremely helpful. There have been other books, to be certain, but the autobiographical element mixed with strong apologetic answers to some of the largest Progressive doubts make this book stand up way in front of the crowd. Heck, the chapter on the atonement of Christ and the wrath of God is more than sufficient reason to buy and read this book.
So, what exactly is Progressive Christianity and what do they believe? Well, it's a movement that's been around for at least 15-20 years in one form or another...and maybe longer than that. It began with questions and doubts about historical Christianity, its practices and its doctrine and morphed from there. Alisa Childers in her book "Another Gospel?" directly addresses the main doctrinal discrepancies, like the authority of the Bible, the concepts of hell, the atonement and who exactly Jesus was and what he taught. If anything, Progressive Christianity looks at historical Christianity and the main doctrines of the church through the lens of secular scholarship.
Alisa documents her introduction to Progressive thought as it slowly eroded her confidence in the Christian doctrine she was raised upon. The brilliance of Childer's approach is that not only does she introduce the Progressive doubt behind each of the historic Christian doctrine and then explain how those doubts affected her previously held beliefs, but then she goes on to explain how she overcame those doubts to possess a stronger faith and assurance.
Childers presents a concise apologetic for each of the doubted doctrines, but doesn't go into a depth already covered in other well-established books. But she doesn't need to go into as much depth as her main concern is to demonstrate that doubts, while real and persuasive, can and should only temporarily setback any believer. Why? The questions addressed by Progressive Christian authors have very real and solid answers. Instead of drowning in doubt, the questioning believers have only to reach out to well-established apologists whose hands have been reaching out to the drowned for decades.
Childers has a flare for presenting biblical truth and defense of that truth is an easy and thorough manner, which makes for great reading for any level of maturity. She peppers her examples and knowledge with amazing word pictures that serve to illuminate her main points and flesh out her material. Childers certainly knows what it feels to have her faith deconstructed and then reconstructed into a firm and unshakable foundation. She gives real hope to those who have been floundering in doubt about the Christian faith and doctrine they may have learned and she presents a step by step process to remaking that faith into the rock-certain worldview it was always meant to be.
With Childers' help, any believer who has bought into the lie that Progressive Christianity is an evolution of the Christian faith can truly come to see it for what it is: a worldview that has nothing at all to do with the historic Jesus or the historic Christian faith. As her quote from noted atheist Christopher Hitchens clearly illuminates, "I would say that if you don't believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ and the Messiah, that he rose again from the dead and by his sacrifice our sins are forgiven, you're really not in any meaningful sense a Christian."
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Popular Highlights in this book
Unbelief is a decision of the will, but doubt tends to bubble up within the context of faith.Highlighted by 1,647 Kindle readers- In progressive Christianity, doubt has become a badge of honor to bask in, rather than an obstacle to face and overcome.Highlighted by 1,478 Kindle readers
- We can’t allow truth to be sacrificed on the altar of our feelings. We can’t allow our fear of offending others to prevent us from warning them that they’re about to step in front of a bus.Highlighted by 1,307 Kindle readers
- I would later learn that biblical faith is trust—and that trust is based on good evidence.Highlighted by 1,117 Kindle readers
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Reviews with images
I did'nt expect this.
Shame on me for having lower expectations. Shame!!! I did not choose this book, my book club did. I wasn't a fan of ZoeGirl the band, and I usually only read books by "bigger names". Now, I am doing the recommending...Alisa Childers is a fantastic writer. This book helped me safeguard the truth that I already knew, and separate out the false thinking that quietly crept into my thinking. Alisa carefully balances rich and important theological issues with history, modern "Christian" culture, and her own personal journey dealing with major doubts and progressive challenges. It kept me engaged, and I found myself underlining and annotating on almost every page. Don't underestimate Alisa because she doesn't have fancy letters after her name–she has a very sharp and creative mind and she's using it to help the us think clearly, and weed out the false junk that's been floating around the Church. I will definitely read other books she writes. I am so thankful my book club choose this title!
Top reviews from other countries
Gideon
Highly recommended for anyone who wants to reclaim the passion of their faith.
Reviewed in Germany on March 20, 2023Brad Broadhead
An accessible defense of orthodoxy
Reviewed in Canada on December 15, 2020
Jeremiah Kirkman
Christian or not, strong in your faith, having doubts or searching, this book is for you!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 8, 2020
Jeremiah Kirkman
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 8, 2020
She tells of how she prayed in her struggles, ‘“God, I know you’re there. Please send me a lifeboat.”’. Now in search of clear answers to the challenging questions levelled at the core beliefs of her faith. God did in fact send a number of lifeboats, in the form of solid bible teachers and defenders of the faith.
She went on a journey of in-depth study into the (strong) evidence for Christianity. Ministries like ‘Stand to Reason’, ‘Cross Examined' and ‘Cold Case Christianity’ helped along the way, as well as reading/studying theology and aplogetics books and the church fathers writings. This journey and its results are so evident throughout the book.
This is a much-needed resource in light of the distorted ideas subtlety making their way into segments of the church. This is a book which clearly defends Historic Christianity, but does so within the narrative of Alisa's story, engaging the heart as well as the intellect, serious in tone, but with injections of humour. I highly recommend it to you! Whoever you are, Christian or not, whether you feel you have a strong faith or your having serious doubts, whatever your view of life is, this book is for you! There is nothing wrong with having doubts, if you are genuinely looking for answers and a better grounding in the truth!
'I’m more convinced than ever that Christianity is not based on a mystical revelation or self-inspired philosophy. It’s deeply rooted in history. In fact, it is the only religious system I can think of that depends on a historical event (the resurrection of Jesus) being real—not fake—news.'
Ch.1 p.10
'Christians have always seen the Cross as the ultimate picture of divine love, but they also recognize that a righteous God cannot abide sin—not because he’s intolerant but because of his goodness and holiness, and because of the havoc sin wreaks on his creation.'
Chapter 11 p.212
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Karen Lovering
absolutely eye opening and amazing
Reviewed in Australia on November 5, 2022