Book
The evolution of faith : how God is creating a better Christianity / Philip Gulley.
Record details
- ISBN: 9780060736606
- ISBN: 0060736607
- Physical Description: xi, 212 p. ; 22 cm.
- Edition: 1st ed.
- Publisher: New York, NY : HarperOne, c2011.
Content descriptions
| General Note: | Questions for small-group discussion. |
| Summary, etc.: | "For too many people, the concepts of original sin, a God who sends people to hell, and Jesus as the only path to God can no longer be stomached. But rather than throwing the baby out with bath water, Philip Gulley, famous for his own controversial theology that affirms universality, urges us to consider letting go of our tightly held beliefs and start the journey towards a dynamic faith. Gulley teaches us to embrace the freedom to let go of those tenets of Christianity that are no longer furthering the faith, and reimagine a Christianity we can believe in. Despite religions insistence on unchanging truths and static dogma, Gulley introduces the concept of a fluid, dynamic theology, a faith that grows and changes with you. In this book, Gulley provides a useful vernacular and starting point for those looking to explore what they really believe, rather than what they've always been taught. Instead of looking for answers outside of oneself, Gulley encourages us to develop our own apologetics, a belief system that is open to evolution as new ideas are presented and new realities experienced. Faith should always be seen as a work in progress, and this accessible guide will be a must-have tool for those interested in where the Christian faith is going today"-- Provided by publisher. |
Search for related items by subject
| Subject: | Universalism. Christianity > Essence, genius, nature. Christian life > Quaker authors. |
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BookList Review
The Evolution of Faith : How God Is Creating a Better Christianity
Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
The faith that writer and Quaker pastor Gulley sees as evolving is personal as well as historical. A cradle Catholic who as a teenager traded Mass for Friends worship, he was something of a fundamentalist by the time he reached adulthood. He hasn't stayed that way, largely because of his now long pastoral experience. In each chapter of a book more somber than usual for the author of the warm, funny stories set in Harmony, Indiana, Gulley assays a particular subject revelation, God, suffering and evil, salvation, prayer, the afterlife, and others about which he has moderated his views because of his continued learning about Christian and religious history and his experience with good people, Christians and others. He's now a progressive Christian, he concludes, as long as that means one devoted to helping make the world new, as Jesus though not only Jesus and not only Christianity, he stresses promised. Because of the gentle intelligence of his storytelling as much as his homely, experiential theology, he may convince many that they are progressive Christians, too.--Olson, Ra. Copyright 2010 Booklist
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Publishers Weekly Review
The Evolution of Faith : How God Is Creating a Better Christianity
Publishers Weekly
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
No one familiar with Gulley's earlier, controversial nonfiction (If Grace Is True; If the Church Were Christian) will be surprised to find that the Quaker pastor has gotten even more progressive. He argues here, among other things, that there have been "God-bearers" other than Jesus; a focus on heaven, hell, and the afterlife is theoretical and damages the credibility of Christianity; Jesus was not a means of salvation by his death but an archetype of salvation-and so on, heretically for many. If Gulley has any evangelical Christian fans left, their numbers will again shrink. But the low-key Quaker from Indiana does not himself shrink from speaking truth-an essential Quaker practice-derived from well-sifted pastoral and personal experience. The thoughtful pastor displays more of a Christian spirit of charity toward those who disagree with him than do his theological critics. (June) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
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