{"id":735,"date":"2007-12-04T00:05:58","date_gmt":"2007-12-04T04:05:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/grace-ed.org\/blog\/archives\/735"},"modified":"2007-11-28T17:55:04","modified_gmt":"2007-11-28T21:55:04","slug":"book-review-bass-christianity-for-the-rest-of-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/grace-ed.org\/blog\/archives\/735","title":{"rendered":"Book review: Bass, Christianity for the Rest of Us"},"content":{"rendered":"

“The most important book of the decade about emerging Christianity and the renewal of mainline congregations.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d \u00e2\u20ac\u0153This book is so full of good news that I keep it next to my Bible.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Without denying the positive contribution and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153good news\u00e2\u20ac\u009d of Diana Butler Bass\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s, Christianity for the Rest of Us: How the Neighborhood Church is Transforming the Faith, these two book jackets endorsements from religious heavy hitters: Marcus Borg and Barbara Brown Taylor, are a bit overstated. In spite of the author\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s own hyperbole about the state of Christianity and more specifically the mainline churches of America and the effect of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153neighborhood\u00e2\u20ac\u009d churches in transforming the faith (individual lives being transformed in spiritual communities is better stated), there is a wonderfully refreshing description of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Ten Signposts for Renewal.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Our GRACE group, recently discussed at length Bass\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s new book finding in it significant and hopeful pathways for church renewal. In facilitating that discussion, I noted with appreciation her grounding of the ten signposts in the rich tradition of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153the faith once delivered to the saints\u00e2\u20ac\u009d which, for me, was a much needed reclamation of these important disciplines and practices.<\/p>\n

bass.jpg<\/p>\n

Her three-year study, funded by the Lilly Endowment, surveys some fifty churches across six mainline denominations (heretofore thought of as in decline). I had the impression from the beginning, however, that Bass was already down-in-the-mouth about mainline Protestantism only to be pleasantly surprised at the vitality in these churches she discovered. They exhibited authentic Christianity, coherently expressed offering members a renewed sense of mission and identity, passion and purpose. Their stories fill the pages of the book. Though I found them overdone\u00e2\u20ac\u201coften focused too much on \u00e2\u20ac\u0153technique\u00e2\u20ac\u009d rather than processes\u00e2\u20ac\u201cthroughout the book these stories about the things Bass and her colleagues observed give anecdotal credence to her conclusions. Those conclusions, however, were succinctly stated and insightful (the annoying difficulty for me was finding them embedded in the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153illustrative material\u00e2\u20ac\u009d of each chapter; but this comment may reflect my own bias toward this kind of writing style).<\/p>\n

Complementing the book is its study guide that would engage any small group in discussions of Bass\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s salient points. There also is a helpful appendix detailing the research findings and methodology. One noteworthy section on leadership (p. 307) gives rise to the observation that her \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Ten Signposts\u00e2\u20ac\u009d do not reflect an exhaustive list of renewal paths. The anecdotal and interview material alone underscore the immense contribution of dynamic, charismatic leadership on church growth and renewal.<\/p>\n

Finally, I resonated with Bass\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s exploration of churches that avoided the dualistic, polar opposite, either\/or mentality so descriptive of a host of American churches and Christians who have sought after\u00e2\u20ac\u201cand found\u00e2\u20ac\u201ccertainty. She offers instead a via media, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153a creative third way,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d a middle way, that holds in tension the extremes that so often divide Christians and focuses on those practices that center us on \u00e2\u20ac\u0153who\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153whose\u00e2\u20ac\u009d we are as a spiritual community of faith. As one pastor she interviewed stated it, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We strive for unity in the midst of diversity.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d The healthy recovery of that kind of practice would revitalize any congregation!<\/p>\n

dibblebanner.jpg<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“The most important book of the decade about emerging Christianity and the renewal of mainline congregations.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d \u00e2\u20ac\u0153This book is so full of good news that I keep it next to my Bible.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Without denying the positive contribution and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153good news\u00e2\u20ac\u009d … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-735","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-reviews-recommendations","category-congregational-life"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/grace-ed.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/735","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/grace-ed.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/grace-ed.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/grace-ed.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/grace-ed.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=735"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/grace-ed.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/735\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/grace-ed.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=735"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/grace-ed.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=735"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/grace-ed.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=735"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}