Parchment & Pen Blog

Besides the obvious (enrolling in the Introduction to Theology course starting March 12), this looks like a great book to start your cultural prolegomena. I have not read it yet, but have it ordered. What a great way to get to know the culture. What courage and patience this pastor must have to adventure intellectually and missionally in such a way.

You can read it with me. Purchase it here.

Here is a review (Source: Publisher’s Weekly):

“It could be the pilot script for a sitcom: a pastor hires an atheist to help him critique several Christian churches throughout the United States. For the authors, however, this experiment was no joke. Henderson, a veteran Protestant minister, truly believes that evangelism requires listening to the good, the bad and the ugly about Christianity in order to be a better minister. So he hired Casper, an atheist copywriter and musician, to serve as “fresh eyes” and observe how a variety of Christians engage the Divine through worship. Their travels took them to a mission-minded church, an Emergent church and to Joel Osteen’s megachurch, among others. In the book, Henderson peppers his partner with questions about each service, and Casper comments on everything from preaching to music to the geographical location of the churches. The take-home point, which is simultaneously simple, profound and of great importance to Christianity, is, “Why are there such glaring discrepancies among churches regarding what it means to be a follower of Christ?” The two authors include some banal dialogue at times, but this is a minor distraction. Anyone interested in contemporary evangelism, especially pastors, will enjoy and learn from this humorous and heartening travelogue. (Apr.)”

Similar Posts:

• Dan Kimball’s They Like Jesus, but not the Church
• A Theology of Indifference
• Why Do I (A Calvinist) Go to An Arminian Church?
• America believes in God and rejects evolution
• Doing missions in your own backyard (Cultural Prolegomena)