A Lover's Quarrel with the Evangelical Church by Warren Cole Smith
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(Paperback)
- Pub. Date: May 2009
- 288pp
- Sales Rank: 63,476
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Product Details
- Pub. Date: May 2009
- Publisher: Authentic Media
- Format: Paperback, 288pp
- Sales Rank: 63,476
- ISBN-13: 9781606570289
- ISBN: 1606570285
Synopsis
My name is Warren and Im a recovering evangelical.
With these words, Warren Cole Smith begins his book A Lovers Quarrel with the Evangelical Church.
Since World War II, there has been a flowering of evangelical activity and parachurch organizations. But something troubling has happened in spite of this growth and the political and financial power it has created. Overall church attendance is not growing. Americas high divorce rate is just one of many melancholy cultural indicators. Is it possible that the evangelical movement has not been an antidote for this decline but has actually caused this decline in the health and vigor of the true body of Christ?
Using solid research and original interviews with some of Americas leading Christian thinkers, journalist and editor Warren Smith examines the condition of the evangelical movement, offering an assessment of whats gone wrong as it has grown in power and size and what must be done if it is to be salt and light in a culture in need of redemption. Smith isnt afraid to name the names of many evangelical leaders but it is because he loves the church that he calls her to repentance. He develops the argument that instead of evangelizing and making obedient disciples of Christ, the church has become part of the cultural decline of the West. A Lovers Quarrel is a penetrating look at the current state of theology and practice in the American evangelical movement and offers a helpful, if difficult, way forward.
Biography
Warren Cole Smith is a writer, editor and publisher of the Evangelical Press News Service. He has written more than 1000 articles for a wide range of print and online publications, including WORLD Magazine, the Dallas Morning News, BeliefNet.com, Sports Afield, Alaska Magazine. As a commentator and observer of modern religious life he has been quoted by the New York Times, CBS News and many others. He lives in Charlotte with his wife and four children.
Customer Reviews
A Lovingly Critical Examinationby rockconner
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August 02, 2009: To which standards should churches and other Christian organizations be held accountable, and by whom? What are the roles of such groups, and the individuals of whom they are constituted? Do American churches and parachurch organizations further the Kingdom of God? More importantly, does your local church serve God in the manner of those in the early body of Christ? Most importantly, are you serving God in the ways in which you are gifted?
These and many other questions are engaged lovingly & sternly by Warren Cole Smith in his successful effort to challenge Evangelicals and all Christians to critically examine their organizations, their ministries, and their lives. This is not a feel-good book, but a swift kick in the pants of the all too comfortable. Dare to submit prayerfully to the process.What Others Are Saying About "A Lover's Quarrel With The Evangelical Church"by Anonymous
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April 24, 2009: Luder Whitlock, President Emeritus, Reformed Theological Seminary:
Evangelicalism needs more books like A Lover's Quarrel to challenge its complacent acculturalization -- because the gradual changes that have occurred during the last 40 years have not always been beneficial.Dr. Alex McFarland, president of Southern Evangelical Seminary, and author of "The Ten Most Common Objections To Christianity":For those who are truly serious about the implications of Christ's Great Commission, I highly recommend "A Lover's Quarrel." Reading it reminded me of what a doctor said to my father as he was about to undergo chemotherapy: "What you're about to experience will be painful, but it is necessary to save your life." I applaud Warren Smith's scholarship and courageous candor. Marion Montgomery, author of more than two dozen works of criticism, fiction, and poetry:Warren Cole Smith's Lover's Quarrel With The Evangelical Church recalls us to a once known but largely forgotten truth: that bad ideas have bad consequences despite good intentions. He is charitable with the Evangelical Church, but he reveals its deconstructions of orthodox understandings of Christianity. He speaks arrestingly of what it means to recover a valid sense of Christian community in its reality, not the technological spectacle of "virtual reality," however sincerely pursued. Dinesh D'Souza, best-selling author of What's So Great About Christianity:Both thoughtful and courageous.Dr. Marvin Olasky, editor-in-chief, WORLD Magazine, and provost, The King's College:Words exchanged in lover's quarrels are best quickly forgotten, but the terms Warren Cole Smith uses to critique current evangelical excesses - "the Christian Industrial Complex," "Body-Count Evangelism" - should long be remembered. Smith's call for churches to emphasize spiritual depth is worth hearing. Dr. Michael Horton, Westminster Seminary California:This is an important book for a crucial moment in our history as Christians in the United States. I highly recommend this book.
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