Bared by Rupert., 22 Nov 2008
Rupert Short is Religious Editor of 'The Times Literary Supplement' and was formerly a staff journalist on 'The Church Times' and Assistant Editor of the liberal (Roman) Catholic magazine 'The Tablet'. He has previously authored a short "sketch" of the same subject entitled 'Rowan Williams: An Introduction' (2002), and 'Gods Advocates:Christian Thinkers In Conversation'(2005) which features a significant contribution by Rowan Williams and is probably more for those wishing to gain an insight into the Archbishops theological perpectives rather than this present volume.
'Rowans Rule' is a serious, heavy-weight study (466 pages) of the life of Rowan Williams current Archbishop of Canterbury written by someone who is (unsurprisingly given the journalistic credentials given above), profoundly sympathetic to his subjects liberal Catholicism or "Radical Orthodoxy".
This book is a traditionaly structured 'life' and although Rowans personal theology and more abstract matters are covered in Chapters 2 and 4 the emphasis is firmly on giving a full account of its subjects biography in all its fullness. It is divided into two parts and ten chapters, with the first half covering Williams early life in Wales, education, Oxford and academia; basically his life and career "pre-Lambeth". The second half covers his period as Archbishop of Canterbury from appointment in 2002 upto the 2008 Lambeth Conference and related contraverses.
As you would expect there is, thankfully, no tabloid style tittle-tattle or scandals in this volume, the nearest you get to one is the story of the tragic suicide of Lori Watson, a disturbed young women who fel in love with Rowan whilst he was a student at Oxford, and whom he tried to help.
As already noted the author is clearly sympathetic to Williams religious convictions, this knowledge plus the fact that this study was not only authorised by the Archbishop but that he also actively contributed to its contents should indicate to the potential reader the books understandable bias. Rowans detractors may characterise this as 'spin', but writing as somebody who shares the authors sympathy, I would say that if anyone in this country actually NEEDS to start 'spinning' its Rowan Williams!
That caveat aside, this is an impressive piece of sholarship, meticuluosly researched, insightful, intelligent and written with great warmth for its subject. A must read for Anglicans and recommended to anyone who wishes to see beyond the characatures and misrepresentations of both the right-wing media and the Fundamentalist plotters within Rowan Williams own Church (thats the real scandal).
Rowans Rule' is a brilliantly realised 'life' of one of the Christian worlds foremost leaders and intellectuals and (dare I say it) 'National Treasure'!


Thoughtful and helpful, 11 Nov 2008
This book is a wonderful introduction to, for me, one of the greats to have held the role as Archbishop. Thoughtful and intelligent, I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to understand the issues facing the Church of England and Anglicanism, but it is wider than that, and would make good reading. It is good to understand why, in light of Sharia comments and the gay issue, Williams can provoke such a response.

How could you refuse the polite invitation of begoggled Danny Wallace in Join Me? You don't know what you could be missing out on. It's all about living for the moment in this quirky, seemingly pointless yet addictive narrative. Finding himself with too much time on his hands after quitting his BBC job, Danny revels in "sitting around in his pants" and generally taking a break from the responsibilities of working life. Danny attends the funeral of his great uncle Gallus and finds out that he had set up a commune of like-minded people to escape Swiss small town small-mindedness in the 1940s. Intrigued by this idea, on his return to London Danny places a cryptic advert in the classified ads paper Loot and gets some surprising results.

His Norwegian radio-producer girlfriend Hanne is bemused and infuriated that this has become more than a transient interest; it takes over his life--and hers. The number of "joinees"--people replying to his ad--escalates as word gets out about this new "happy cult", but without a clue about what he wants to achieve, or do with all his newfound friends, Danny has to think fast as dissent rises in the ranks. Now the reluctant leader of a troop of random hopefuls, he maintains their interest with obscure e-mails and watches as his joinees meet and bond.

Whatever he had created, it was bigger than he had anticipated. From an initially puerile idea, it had grown into something of a social experiment--why were people willing to take the risk? What was lacking in their lives that they thought they might get out of contacting a stranger? Taking risks, no matter how big or small, is the essential crux of the matter here and of course, nothing ventured, nothing gained. --Angela Boodoo

Bared by Rupert., 22 Nov 2008
Rupert Short is Religious Editor of 'The Times Literary Supplement' and was formerly a staff journalist on 'The Church Times' and Assistant Editor of the liberal (Roman) Catholic magazine 'The Tablet'. He has previously authored a short "sketch" of the same subject entitled 'Rowan Williams: An Introduction' (2002), and 'Gods Advocates:Christian Thinkers In Conversation'(2005) which features a significant contribution by Rowan Williams and is probably more for those wishing to gain an insight into the Archbishops theological perpectives rather than this present volume.
'Rowans Rule' is a serious, heavy-weight study (466 pages) of the life of Rowan Williams current Archbishop of Canterbury written by someone who is (unsurprisingly given the journalistic credentials given above), profoundly sympathetic to his subjects liberal Catholicism or "Radical Orthodoxy".
This book is a traditionaly structured 'life' and although Rowans personal theology and more abstract matters are covered in Chapters 2 and 4 the emphasis is firmly on giving a full account of its subjects biography in all its fullness. It is divided into two parts and ten chapters, with the first half covering Williams early life in Wales, education, Oxford and academia; basically his life and career "pre-Lambeth". The second half covers his period as Archbishop of Canterbury from appointment in 2002 upto the 2008 Lambeth Conference and related contraverses.
As you would expect there is, thankfully, no tabloid style tittle-tattle or scandals in this volume, the nearest you get to one is the story of the tragic suicide of Lori Watson, a disturbed young women who fel in love with Rowan whilst he was a student at Oxford, and whom he tried to help.
As already noted the author is clearly sympathetic to Williams religious convictions, this knowledge plus the fact that this study was not only authorised by the Archbishop but that he also actively contributed to its contents should indicate to the potential reader the books understandable bias. Rowans detractors may characterise this as 'spin', but writing as somebody who shares the authors sympathy, I would say that if anyone in this country actually NEEDS to start 'spinning' its Rowan Williams!
That caveat aside, this is an impressive piece of sholarship, meticuluosly researched, insightful, intelligent and written with great warmth for its subject. A must read for Anglicans and recommended to anyone who wishes to see beyond the characatures and misrepresentations of both the right-wing media and the Fundamentalist plotters within Rowan Williams own Church (thats the real scandal).
Rowans Rule' is a brilliantly realised 'life' of one of the Christian worlds foremost leaders and intellectuals and (dare I say it) 'National Treasure'!


Thoughtful and helpful, 11 Nov 2008
This book is a wonderful introduction to, for me, one of the greats to have held the role as Archbishop. Thoughtful and intelligent, I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to understand the issues facing the Church of England and Anglicanism, but it is wider than that, and would make good reading. It is good to understand why, in light of Sharia comments and the gay issue, Williams can provoke such a response.

A good man to share a pnit with but not a good writer, 06 Oct 2008
I was really excited to get this book having read the reviews. However, although I found the concept amusing and genuinely laughed out loud at some observations, usually the relationship ones, Danny is not a good writer. The prose is overly wordy for my liking and simply not tight enough to the extent that I have added this book to my very small " will never finish" pile of books. I have no doubt that an evening down the pub with Danny would be very funny indeed, he loves people and shows genuine affection for them in this book which is endearing. However, if he does any more projects, I might just wait for the tv show to come out.....

funny, 15 Sep 2008
I think it's really funny, it seems just about all the other reviewers do as well. It probably won't take you long to read, the worst thing to happen if you do read it is you may lose bladder control while your laughing.
By the end you'll feel reassured in the goodness of people.

Be in The Collective, become a Joinee today!, 10 Dec 2007
Danny Wallace, until recently he was more famous as Dave Gorman's sidekick - but now he is a regular face on TV.

This book is in the same sort of genre as "Are You Dave Gorman" which Danny co-authored and tells the true story of how Danny Wallace starts a cult by asking people to join him....

...And people do! They have no reservations and hand over their faith to join a man in an unknown crusade. After having people join him, Danny decides what to do as the leader of a cult and comes up with the ultimate in humanistic altruism - they will all do a good deed per day for someone.

This is a very entertaining book which shows how a decent man can do good deeds and encourage others to do so to ensure the world is a more pleasant place. The same man also sees his love-life fall apart as a result.

This fails to live up to the same level of pathos of the Dave Gorman adventures, which is a shame as it has ample chance to do so given the subject matter. It doesn't ruin the book though, it still remains a very funny book and one which I strongly recommend. The tale is an interesting one, as a jape turns into a fairly large movement and gains press coverage.

Not all cults involve insane religious maniacs killing themselves to ride a comet to paradise - some are for honest people to join forces to make the world a better place. This book does that too by giving the reader a laugh and an invite to join Danny Wallace and become a member of his cult.


You Must Join Him, 05 Oct 2007
Danny Wallace a man with nothing better to do, decides one day to put an add in a local newspaper simply saying Join Me and had an address for people to send off to Join Him. Not expecting a response at all little would Danny know that, that one add would set off a chain reaction that would start a country wide cult that would eventually take the world.

If I went any further I would reveal the entire story but all I really need to tell you is that this is a fantastic read that entertains from front to back. Danny has an amazing talent to make people laugh out loud while reading his books. I can't tell you the number of times I have been sat in a quiet public place and just burst out laughing, only for it to be followed by a mountain of stares from the people around me.

Take it from me that this is a delightful read and a definite must, Danny is easily one of the best comedy writers in the UK of the last decade.

Will you Join Me?, 29 May 2007
This was the first Danny Wallace book i read, and my god, it's brilliant, i read it constantly for hours on end, laughing all the way through, if you like true funny stories, I highly recommend you read this.

If you dont enjoy it, I'll refund your money*





*not an actual offer, i dont earn enough, but trust me, its brilliant

Bared by Rupert., 22 Nov 2008
Rupert Short is Religious Editor of 'The Times Literary Supplement' and was formerly a staff journalist on 'The Church Times' and Assistant Editor of the liberal (Roman) Catholic magazine 'The Tablet'. He has previously authored a short "sketch" of the same subject entitled 'Rowan Williams: An Introduction' (2002), and 'Gods Advocates:Christian Thinkers In Conversation'(2005) which features a significant contribution by Rowan Williams and is probably more for those wishing to gain an insight into the Archbishops theological perpectives rather than this present volume.
'Rowans Rule' is a serious, heavy-weight study (466 pages) of the life of Rowan Williams current Archbishop of Canterbury written by someone who is (unsurprisingly given the journalistic credentials given above), profoundly sympathetic to his subjects liberal Catholicism or "Radical Orthodoxy".
This book is a traditionaly structured 'life' and although Rowans personal theology and more abstract matters are covered in Chapters 2 and 4 the emphasis is firmly on giving a full account of its subjects biography in all its fullness. It is divided into two parts and ten chapters, with the first half covering Williams early life in Wales, education, Oxford and academia; basically his life and career "pre-Lambeth". The second half covers his period as Archbishop of Canterbury from appointment in 2002 upto the 2008 Lambeth Conference and related contraverses.
As you would expect there is, thankfully, no tabloid style tittle-tattle or scandals in this volume, the nearest you get to one is the story of the tragic suicide of Lori Watson, a disturbed young women who fel in love with Rowan whilst he was a student at Oxford, and whom he tried to help.
As already noted the author is clearly sympathetic to Williams religious convictions, this knowledge plus the fact that this study was not only authorised by the Archbishop but that he also actively contributed to its contents should indicate to the potential reader the books understandable bias. Rowans detractors may characterise this as 'spin', but writing as somebody who shares the authors sympathy, I would say that if anyone in this country actually NEEDS to start 'spinning' its Rowan Williams!
That caveat aside, this is an impressive piece of sholarship, meticuluosly researched, insightful, intelligent and written with great warmth for its subject. A must read for Anglicans and recommended to anyone who wishes to see beyond the characatures and misrepresentations of both the right-wing media and the Fundamentalist plotters within Rowan Williams own Church (thats the real scandal).
Rowans Rule' is a brilliantly realised 'life' of one of the Christian worlds foremost leaders and intellectuals and (dare I say it) 'National Treasure'!


Thoughtful and helpful, 11 Nov 2008
This book is a wonderful introduction to, for me, one of the greats to have held the role as Archbishop. Thoughtful and intelligent, I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to understand the issues facing the Church of England and Anglicanism, but it is wider than that, and would make good reading. It is good to understand why, in light of Sharia comments and the gay issue, Williams can provoke such a response.

A good man to share a pnit with but not a good writer, 06 Oct 2008
I was really excited to get this book having read the reviews. However, although I found the concept amusing and genuinely laughed out loud at some observations, usually the relationship ones, Danny is not a good writer. The prose is overly wordy for my liking and simply not tight enough to the extent that I have added this book to my very small " will never finish" pile of books. I have no doubt that an evening down the pub with Danny would be very funny indeed, he loves people and shows genuine affection for them in this book which is endearing. However, if he does any more projects, I might just wait for the tv show to come out.....

funny, 15 Sep 2008
I think it's really funny, it seems just about all the other reviewers do as well. It probably won't take you long to read, the worst thing to happen if you do read it is you may lose bladder control while your laughing.
By the end you'll feel reassured in the goodness of people.

Be in The Collective, become a Joinee today!, 10 Dec 2007
Danny Wallace, until recently he was more famous as Dave Gorman's sidekick - but now he is a regular face on TV.

This book is in the same sort of genre as "Are You Dave Gorman" which Danny co-authored and tells the true story of how Danny Wallace starts a cult by asking people to join him....

...And people do! They have no reservations and hand over their faith to join a man in an unknown crusade. After having people join him, Danny decides what to do as the leader of a cult and comes up with the ultimate in humanistic altruism - they will all do a good deed per day for someone.

This is a very entertaining book which shows how a decent man can do good deeds and encourage others to do so to ensure the world is a more pleasant place. The same man also sees his love-life fall apart as a result.

This fails to live up to the same level of pathos of the Dave Gorman adventures, which is a shame as it has ample chance to do so given the subject matter. It doesn't ruin the book though, it still remains a very funny book and one which I strongly recommend. The tale is an interesting one, as a jape turns into a fairly large movement and gains press coverage.

Not all cults involve insane religious maniacs killing themselves to ride a comet to paradise - some are for honest people to join forces to make the world a better place. This book does that too by giving the reader a laugh and an invite to join Danny Wallace and become a member of his cult.


You Must Join Him, 05 Oct 2007
Danny Wallace a man with nothing better to do, decides one day to put an add in a local newspaper simply saying Join Me and had an address for people to send off to Join Him. Not expecting a response at all little would Danny know that, that one add would set off a chain reaction that would start a country wide cult that would eventually take the world.

If I went any further I would reveal the entire story but all I really need to tell you is that this is a fantastic read that entertains from front to back. Danny has an amazing talent to make people laugh out loud while reading his books. I can't tell you the number of times I have been sat in a quiet public place and just burst out laughing, only for it to be followed by a mountain of stares from the people around me.

Take it from me that this is a delightful read and a definite must, Danny is easily one of the best comedy writers in the UK of the last decade.

Will you Join Me?, 29 May 2007
This was the first Danny Wallace book i read, and my god, it's brilliant, i read it constantly for hours on end, laughing all the way through, if you like true funny stories, I highly recommend you read this.

If you dont enjoy it, I'll refund your money*





*not an actual offer, i dont earn enough, but trust me, its brilliant

a call to reckless generosity and selfless love, 03 Oct 2008
Shane Claiborne has found a different Jesus in the gospels than the mainstream church. He's found a Jesus who is homeless, a friend of the poor, who rails against authority and undermines the empire, who tells a rich man to sell everything he owns and give the money away. This is Claiborne's model, and he has done his best to find it, live it and prove such a life is possible.

The book follows his journey, from the disillusionment with the church of his youth, and the ambitious and wealthy `megachurches' where he trained. He talks about how he came to bond with the poor in Philadelphia, and then travelled to Calcutta to see if Mother Theresa offered a better demonstration of Christ than the ones around him. He visits Iraq in the middle of the war, testing Jesus' call to be a peacemaker. He helps stage a `re-distribution' on Wall Street and heckles George W Bush at the Republican conference. He is, in his own words, an `ordinary radical' - radically different, but rooted in real people and real situations.

Claiborne rejects the idea that Christianity has nothing more to offer than some distant and otherworldly heaven. It's a great reminder that the church is a missionary agency: we're meant to go to the poor and the hungry, not wait for them to come to us. There's loads of good stuff about power, simplicity, and community, that's worth coming back to. It's a call to reckless generosity and selfless love in a world of "big beasts and little prophets." It is hopeful, expectant, uncompromising.

'The Irresistable Revolution'is a provocative book, raising more issues than it answers. That's not an approach that everyone will appreciate, but for those ready to ask difficult questions of themselves and their faith, this is a challenge you'll want to take seriously.

An absolutely essential read, 17 Sep 2008
If Shane Claiborne keeps writing books like this he is going to get himself assasinated. I can think of no greater accolade then that.

refreshing, 07 Sep 2008
I found this book really encouraging. It gave me a lot to think about and reminded me of lots of things I believe are important in terms of the two principle commandments of the Bible "Love God with all your heart, mind and soul. Love your neighbour as yourself" 15 to 20 years ago I had read books by Jim Wallis, Ron Sider and Tony Campolo which seemed to call many Western Christians to thinking about justice and a simpler lifestyle.

Shane Claiborne starts to understand what God says about the poor and loving others almost by accident when he is studying theology at a US Bible school - one that I guess would be described as liberal rather than conservative in US terms. Some friends invite him to come and hang out with some of their friends who happen to be homeless.

The book is SC's story and the story of some of the people he meets along the way with whom he shares part of his life. It includes much of his struggles as he evaluates Scripture trying to see it afresh and not within all the confines of his background in church culture. He works a few months with Mother Theresa, was involved in living with the homeless, lives in a poor community in Philadelphia, went to Iraq with a group promoting peace and is astonished by the love and risks that Iraqi Christians would take to protect their American brothers.

It reminded me of the community that followers of Christ should be developing and not just with one another. It made me go back and read Matt 25 when Jesus talks about God's judgement involving the way we treat the poor, the sick, the foreigner, the criminal etc. It is uncomfortable.

I did not think SC was proposing everyone do what he does. He is not trying to recruit followers. He is prompting us to think about how we live as followers of Christ an to be more open to those marginalised in society, accepting people unlike us in our homes and lives.

There were parts of the book which annoyed me and I felt that he perhaps did some things just to provoke a reaction. I felt it possibly could have
been 100 pages shorter and still got the same message over. The style with frequent asides in parenthesis, which work if you are giving a speech, but are irritating when used over and over in a written work got a bit wearing. The style seemed written for students and early twenties, although the content should actually be for all ages.

However overall I found it deeply encouraging and challenging. I am reminded of how community with the poor is not just about justice or improving their situation, it is also about the rich getting the opportunity to know God more in profound ways through individuals who come into our lives. That seemed to be the way Mother Theresa saw it and I remember one incident in my own life of seeing God's image more clearly through a severly disabled, poor beggar who sat patiently waiting for gifts. He apalled me at first, until I saw the loving way some other interacted with him and despite the fact he could not speek his openess to others.

Community in the love of God is not a duty, it is a gift for all, but requires a lot of work.



Serious about being the change you want to see ? Read this., 08 Jul 2008
One of the most powerful and engaging autobiographical works from a `frontline' Christian activist I've read in a long time. It's impossible not to like Shane Claiborne, whose infectious love for Jesus and total commitment to bringing his love to all, whether North Philadelphia's poor or the bombed citizens of Iraq, is plain to see. Claiborne is someone all Christians (and others) could learn from for sheer breadth of sympathy across the Christian traditions, sense of vocation, and depth of theological understanding blended with sassy political commitment to bringing about change. A must-read.

Where is the gospel?, 23 Feb 2008
I should say at the outset, I think I'm out on a limb here. Everyone else seems to raving about this book. But I'm not so sure.

First, the good stuff. I think Shane Claiborne (SC) writes boldly and strikingly about various topics. Much of the book is a wake-up call for those who have got used to dull, timid, worldly, 'big', Christianity. He is immensely quotable: "Most of the time when I see Christian superstars like Jerry Falwell or Al Sharpton, I feel I'm watching professional wrestling. There's a lot of shouting and sweating, but the people seem too superhuman, and I'm not convinced all the moves are real." (p27)
He has some excellent material on the value of singleness. (p109-111) That's humbled me, and reminded me that I need to try to promote that in a Biblical way. Then there's some good stuff about the worthlessness of "cool": "...we must be either hot or cold, because if we are lukewarm (an old-school way of saying "cool"), we will be spit out of God's mouth"! (p230) There are lots of other helpful areas too, mostly only a few pages at a time.
He has lots of great stories, many of which would be excellent sermon-illustration material!

Now the bad stuff:
1) It's *very* Ameri-centric. Big chunks of the book are spent critiquing the Christian Right. Most of that didn't resonate with my experience of the Church in the UK. We don't do flags on the platform, singing anthems, rallying our troups into war or party politics. All that felt a bit meaningless to me as a Brit - who am I to criticise Christians living in another country and culture?

2) Because it's the experiences of a single guy, living in community, doing some wild and crazy things, I just don't see how much of what he says relates to me. I mean, I have a wife and 3 kids. I can't exactly move to Iraq for a while, or open up my house as a homeless shelter (not that I think there's nearly so much need here anyway - see point 1!). What he has effectively done is to abandon his entire culture. Now that's great for him, because he was in a position to do it. But the huge, vast, majority simply aren't. I'm not prepared to because I don't see that there's anything inherently wrong with having a house, or a car, or a job, or food. Parts of our culture are good (schools, hospitals, homes). If you want to live outside popular culture, fine. But I'd rather live out the Christ-life within it. Which is equally as difficult, and arguably more so. He's advocating a form of monastic asceticism that I'm not convinced is Biblical.

3) He redefines well-established theological terms. What he means by words like "evangelical", "conversion" and "gospel" are simply not the same as orthodox, Biblical, Christianity. For example: "Conversion is not an event but a process, a process of slowly tearing ourselves away from the clutches of the culture." No it isn't. Conversion has nothing to do with releasing oneself from the bonds of culture. It's the act of repentance and faith, when we repond to the gospel. Forgive me if I can't see the link between historic conversion and SC's. I suppose "sanctification" would be a more correct word for what he's talking about.

4) He caricatures the church.
"...if someone had a heart-attack on Sunday morning, the paramedics would have to take the pulse of half the congregation before they would find the dead person" (p43) OK, very funny. But certainly not my experience of good, Biblical, modern church. He gives the impression that churches are all navel-gazing, introverted, holy huddles with no interest or ability to communicate with the outside world. Well, again, there are loads of churches that care for the poor, the lonely, the disposessed. In Ipswich, UK, we have "Street Pastors" who are out in the clubs and pubs at the weekend, looking after the drunks and the dropouts; there is a pregnancy crisis centre, a drug rehab centre is soon to open. There's work amongst prostitutes and the homeless. We do care. Perhaps not enough, perhaps we could do with being better resourced. But we *are* trying to live out a life of faith in our culture, and it hurts a bit to be told we aren't.

5) He minimises the importance of theology:
"I learnt more about God from the tears of homeless mothers than a systematic theology ever taught me" (p51) Now, I know the guy is a firm post-modern and that post-moderns like stories more than facts etc etc. But, that kind of statement calls into question the whole value of theology. What did the tears of homeless mothers *actually* teach him? That sharing is good? That we should care for each other? Great - but not much about God. What can those things *possibly* teach us about God? We are made in his likeness, not he in ours. We don't learn about God by looking at fallen sinners (no matter how vulnerable or holy); we learn about God from the Word. SC has it the wrong way around.
Again, "When people ask me if I am Protestant or Catholic, I just answer 'yes.'. And when people ask me if we are evangelicals, I...say, 'Absolutely, we want to spread the kingdom of God like crazy.'" Well, I'm sorry, but the differences between Protestant and Catholic theology *are* important. They espouse completely different ideas about how to relate to God, the authority of the Bible, the meaning of salvation etc etc. They're not just minor tertiary issues, they affect the central tennets of the faith. Theology matters!

6) I'm not sure what his "gospel" is. Throughout the whole book, I could find barely a mention of sin, salvation, or the cross. What there was a lot of is loving our neighbours. Which of course, is good. But surely it's not the whole picture? He seems to see Jesus as an inspirational figure, who showed us how to live and love well. But that's not the gospel of Paul, or of evangelicalism. One story will serve to illustrate the point: It was the time when a bunch of his friends slept on Wall Street, New York, as an act of solidarity with the poor. (p118-119) Then at a certain time, they unfurled banners which read, "Stop terrorism", "Share", "Love", and a quote from Ghandi about greed. They drew pictures on the pavements and blew bubbles, and hugged and laughed. And SC describes it as "bringing God and Mammon together". Forgive me, but, if you look carefully, where is God in that? Where is the Biblical gospel in there? Sure, it's a worthwhile enterprise to stand in solidarity with the poor, and to stand up against corporate greed. But don't make out that this was some sort of outreach with the gospel.

If the church adopted SC's ideas, then we would probably be more happy, more loving, more radical, and probably bigger. We would be nicer people. But would those things lead to more being saved from an eternity without God? I somehow doubt it. What we really need is to be motivated by the truth of the Jesus-filled, Biblical gospel, and to reach out to people with the saving message of the cross.

Bared by Rupert., 22 Nov 2008
Rupert Short is Religious Editor of 'The Times Literary Supplement' and was formerly a staff journalist on 'The Church Times' and Assistant Editor of the liberal (Roman) Catholic magazine 'The Tablet'. He has previously authored a short "sketch" of the same subject entitled 'Rowan Williams: An Introduction' (2002), and 'Gods Advocates:Christian Thinkers In Conversation'(2005) which features a significant contribution by Rowan Williams and is probably more for those wishing to gain an insight into the Archbishops theological perpectives rather than this present volume.
'Rowans Rule' is a serious, heavy-weight study (466 pages) of the life of Rowan Williams current Archbishop of Canterbury written by someone who is (unsurprisingly given the journalistic credentials given above), profoundly sympathetic to his subjects liberal Catholicism or "Radical Orthodoxy".
This book is a traditionaly structured 'life' and although Rowans personal theology and more abstract matters are covered in Chapters 2 and 4 the emphasis is firmly on giving a full account of its subjects biography in all its fullness. It is divided into two parts and ten chapters, with the first half covering Williams early life in Wales, education, Oxford and academia; basically his life and career "pre-Lambeth". The second half covers his period as Archbishop of Canterbury from appointment in 2002 upto the 2008 Lambeth Conference and related contraverses.
As you would expect there is, thankfully, no tabloid style tittle-tattle or scandals in this volume, the nearest you get to one is the story of the tragic suicide of Lori Watson, a disturbed young women who fel in love with Rowan whilst he was a student at Oxford, and whom he tried to help.
As already noted the author is clearly sympathetic to Williams religious convictions, this knowledge plus the fact that this study was not only authorised by the Archbishop but that he also actively contributed to its contents should indicate to the potential reader the books understandable bias. Rowans detractors may characterise this as 'spin', but writing as somebody who shares the authors sympathy, I would say that if anyone in this country actually NEEDS to start 'spinning' its Rowan Williams!
That caveat aside, this is an impressive piece of sholarship, meticuluosly researched, insightful, intelligent and written with great warmth for its subject. A must read for Anglicans and recommended to anyone who wishes to see beyond the characatures and misrepresentations of both the right-wing media and the Fundamentalist plotters within Rowan Williams own Church (thats the real scandal).
Rowans Rule' is a brilliantly realised 'life' of one of the Christian worlds foremost leaders and intellectuals and (dare I say it) 'National Treasure'!


Thoughtful and helpful, 11 Nov 2008
This book is a wonderful introduction to, for me, one of the greats to have held the role as Archbishop. Thoughtful and intelligent, I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to understand the issues facing the Church of England and Anglicanism, but it is wider than that, and would make good reading. It is good to understand why, in light of Sharia comments and the gay issue, Williams can provoke such a response.

A good man to share a pnit with but not a good writer, 06 Oct 2008
I was really excited to get this book having read the reviews. However, although I found the concept amusing and genuinely laughed out loud at some observations, usually the relationship ones, Danny is not a good writer. The prose is overly wordy for my liking and simply not tight enough to the extent that I have added this book to my very small " will never finish" pile of books. I have no doubt that an evening down the pub with Danny would be very funny indeed, he loves people and shows genuine affection for them in this book which is endearing. However, if he does any more projects, I might just wait for the tv show to come out.....

funny, 15 Sep 2008
I think it's really funny, it seems just about all the other reviewers do as well. It probably won't take you long to read, the worst thing to happen if you do read it is you may lose bladder control while your laughing.
By the end you'll feel reassured in the goodness of people.

Be in The Collective, become a Joinee today!, 10 Dec 2007
Danny Wallace, until recently he was more famous as Dave Gorman's sidekick - but now he is a regular face on TV.

This book is in the same sort of genre as "Are You Dave Gorman" which Danny co-authored and tells the true story of how Danny Wallace starts a cult by asking people to join him....

...And people do! They have no reservations and hand over their faith to join a man in an unknown crusade. After having people join him, Danny decides what to do as the leader of a cult and comes up with the ultimate in humanistic altruism - they will all do a good deed per day for someone.

This is a very entertaining book which shows how a decent man can do good deeds and encourage others to do so to ensure the world is a more pleasant place. The same man also sees his love-life fall apart as a result.

This fails to live up to the same level of pathos of the Dave Gorman adventures, which is a shame as it has ample chance to do so given the subject matter. It doesn't ruin the book though, it still remains a very funny book and one which I strongly recommend. The tale is an interesting one, as a jape turns into a fairly large movement and gains press coverage.

Not all cults involve insane religious maniacs killing themselves to ride a comet to paradise - some are for honest people to join forces to make the world a better place. This book does that too by giving the reader a laugh and an invite to join Danny Wallace and become a member of his cult.


You Must Join Him, 05 Oct 2007
Danny Wallace a man with nothing better to do, decides one day to put an add in a local newspaper simply saying Join Me and had an address for people to send off to Join Him. Not expecting a response at all little would Danny know that, that one add would set off a chain reaction that would start a country wide cult that would eventually take the world.

If I went any further I would reveal the entire story but all I really need to tell you is that this is a fantastic read that entertains from front to back. Danny has an amazing talent to make people laugh out loud while reading his books. I can't tell you the number of times I have been sat in a quiet public place and just burst out laughing, only for it to be followed by a mountain of stares from the people around me.

Take it from me that this is a delightful read and a definite must, Danny is easily one of the best comedy writers in the UK of the last decade.

Will you Join Me?, 29 May 2007
This was the first Danny Wallace book i read, and my god, it's brilliant, i read it constantly for hours on end, laughing all the way through, if you like true funny stories, I highly recommend you read this.

If you dont enjoy it, I'll refund your money*





*not an actual offer, i dont earn enough, but trust me, its brilliant

a call to reckless generosity and selfless love, 03 Oct 2008
Shane Claiborne has found a different Jesus in the gospels than the mainstream church. He's found a Jesus who is homeless, a friend of the poor, who rails against authority and undermines the empire, who tells a rich man to sell everything he owns and give the money away. This is Claiborne's model, and he has done his best to find it, live it and prove such a life is possible.

The book follows his journey, from the disillusionment with the church of his youth, and the ambitious and wealthy `megachurches' where he trained. He talks about how he came to bond with the poor in Philadelphia, and then travelled to Calcutta to see if Mother Theresa offered a better demonstration of Christ than the ones around him. He visits Iraq in the middle of the war, testing Jesus' call to be a peacemaker. He helps stage a `re-distribution' on Wall Street and heckles George W Bush at the Republican conference. He is, in his own words, an `ordinary radical' - radically different, but rooted in real people and real situations.

Claiborne rejects the idea that Christianity has nothing more to offer than some distant and otherworldly heaven. It's a great reminder that the church is a missionary agency: we're meant to go to the poor and the hungry, not wait for them to come to us. There's loads of good stuff about power, simplicity, and community, that's worth coming back to. It's a call to reckless generosity and selfless love in a world of "big beasts and little prophets." It is hopeful, expectant, uncompromising.

'The Irresistable Revolution'is a provocative book, raising more issues than it answers. That's not an approach that everyone will appreciate, but for those ready to ask difficult questions of themselves and their faith, this is a challenge you'll want to take seriously.

An absolutely essential read, 17 Sep 2008
If Shane Claiborne keeps writing books like this he is going to get himself assasinated. I can think of no greater accolade then that.

refreshing, 07 Sep 2008
I found this book really encouraging. It gave me a lot to think about and reminded me of lots of things I believe are important in terms of the two principle commandments of the Bible "Love God with all your heart, mind and soul. Love your neighbour as yourself" 15 to 20 years ago I had read books by Jim Wallis, Ron Sider and Tony Campolo which seemed to call many Western Christians to thinking about justice and a simpler lifestyle.

Shane Claiborne starts to understand what God says about the poor and loving others almost by accident when he is studying theology at a US Bible school - one that I guess would be described as liberal rather than conservative in US terms. Some friends invite him to come and hang out with some of their friends who happen to be homeless.

The book is SC's story and the story of some of the people he meets along the way with whom he shares part of his life. It includes much of his struggles as he evaluates Scripture trying to see it afresh and not within all the confines of his background in church culture. He works a few months with Mother Theresa, was involved in living with the homeless, lives in a poor community in Philadelphia, went to Iraq with a group promoting peace and is astonished by the love and risks that Iraqi Christians would take to protect their American brothers.

It reminded me of the community that followers of Christ should be developing and not just with one another. It made me go back and read Matt 25 when Jesus talks about God's judgement involving the way we treat the poor, the sick, the foreigner, the criminal etc. It is uncomfortable.

I did not think SC was proposing everyone do what he does. He is not trying to recruit followers. He is prompting us to think about how we live as followers of Christ an to be more open to those marginalised in society, accepting people unlike us in our homes and lives.

There were parts of the book which annoyed me and I felt that he perhaps did some things just to provoke a reaction. I felt it possibly could have
been 100 pages shorter and still got the same message over. The style with frequent asides in parenthesis, which work if you are giving a speech, but are irritating when used over and over in a written work got a bit wearing. The style seemed written for students and early twenties, although the content should actually be for all ages.

However overall I found it deeply encouraging and challenging. I am reminded of how community with the poor is not just about justice or improving their situation, it is also about the rich getting the opportunity to know God more in profound ways through individuals who come into our lives. That seemed to be the way Mother Theresa saw it and I remember one incident in my own life of seeing God's image more clearly through a severly disabled, poor beggar who sat patiently waiting for gifts. He apalled me at first, until I saw the loving way some other interacted with him and despite the fact he could not speek his openess to others.

Community in the love of God is not a duty, it is a gift for all, but requires a lot of work.



Serious about being the change you want to see ? Read this., 08 Jul 2008
One of the most powerful and engaging autobiographical works from a `frontline' Christian activist I've read in a long time. It's impossible not to like Shane Claiborne, whose infectious love for Jesus and total commitment to bringing his love to all, whether North Philadelphia's poor or the bombed citizens of Iraq, is plain to see. Claiborne is someone all Christians (and others) could learn from for sheer breadth of sympathy across the Christian traditions, sense of vocation, and depth of theological understanding blended with sassy political commitment to bringing about change. A must-read.

Where is the gospel?, 23 Feb 2008
I should say at the outset, I think I'm out on a limb here. Everyone else seems to raving about this book. But I'm not so sure.

First, the good stuff. I think Shane Claiborne (SC) writes boldly and strikingly about various topics. Much of the book is a wake-up call for those who have got used to dull, timid, worldly, 'big', Christianity. He is immensely quotable: "Most of the time when I see Christian superstars like Jerry Falwell or Al Sharpton, I feel I'm watching professional wrestling. There's a lot of shouting and sweating, but the people seem too superhuman, and I'm not convinced all the moves are real." (p27)
He has some excellent material on the value of singleness. (p109-111) That's humbled me, and reminded me that I need to try to promote that in a Biblical way. Then there's some good stuff about the worthlessness of "cool": "...we must be either hot or cold, because if we are lukewarm (an old-school way of saying "cool"), we will be spit out of God's mouth"! (p230) There are lots of other helpful areas too, mostly only a few pages at a time.
He has lots of great stories, many of which would be excellent sermon-illustration material!

Now the bad stuff:
1) It's *very* Ameri-centric. Big chunks of the book are spent critiquing the Christian Right. Most of that didn't resonate with my experience of the Church in the UK. We don't do flags on the platform, singing anthems, rallying our troups into war or party politics. All that felt a bit meaningless to me as a Brit - who am I to criticise Christians living in another country and culture?

2) Because it's the experiences of a single guy, living in community, doing some wild and crazy things, I just don't see how much of what he says relates to me. I mean, I have a wife and 3 kids. I can't exactly move to Iraq for a while, or open up my house as a homeless shelter (not that I think there's nearly so much need here anyway - see point 1!). What he has effectively done is to abandon his entire culture. Now that's great for him, because he was in a position to do it. But the huge, vast, majority simply aren't. I'm not prepared to because I don't see that there's anything inherently wrong with having a house, or a car, or a job, or food. Parts of our culture are good (schools, hospitals, homes). If you want to live outside popular culture, fine. But I'd rather live out the Christ-life within it. Which is equally as difficult, and arguably more so. He's advocating a form of monastic asceticism that I'm not convinced is Biblical.

3) He redefines well-established theological terms. What he means by words like "evangelical", "conversion" and "gospel" are simply not the same as orthodox, Biblical, Christianity. For example: "Conversion is not an event but a process, a process of slowly tearing ourselves away from the clutches of the culture." No it isn't. Conversion has nothing to do with releasing oneself from the bonds of culture. It's the act of repentance and faith, when we repond to the gospel. Forgive me if I can't see the link between historic conversion and SC's. I suppose "sanctification" would be a more correct word for what he's talking about.

4) He caricatures the church.
"...if someone had a heart-attack on Sunday morning, the paramedics would have to take the pulse of half the congregation before they would find the dead person" (p43) OK, very funny. But certainly not my experience of good, Biblical, modern church. He gives the impression that churches are all navel-gazing, introverted, holy huddles with no interest or ability to communicate with the outside world. Well, again, there are loads of churches that care for the poor, the lonely, the disposessed. In Ipswich, UK, we have "Street Pastors" who are out in the clubs and pubs at the weekend, looking after the drunks and the dropouts; there is a pregnancy crisis centre, a drug rehab centre is soon to open. There's work amongst prostitutes and the homeless. We do care. Perhaps not enough, perhaps we could do with being better resourced. But we *are* trying to live out a life of faith in our culture, and it hurts a bit to be told we aren't.

5) He minimises the importance of theology:
"I learnt more about God from the tears of homeless mothers than a systematic theology ever taught me" (p51) Now, I know the guy is a firm post-modern and that post-moderns like stories more than facts etc etc. But, that kind of statement calls into question the whole value of theology. What did the tears of homeless mothers *actually* teach him? That sharing is good? That we should care for each other? Great - but not much about God. What can those things *possibly* teach us about God? We are made in his likeness, not he in ours. We don't learn about God by looking at fallen sinners (no matter how vulnerable or holy); we learn about God from the Word. SC has it the wrong way around.
Again, "When people ask me if I am Protestant or Catholic, I just answer 'yes.'. And when people ask me if we are evangelicals, I...say, 'Absolutely, we want to spread the kingdom of God like crazy.'" Well, I'm sorry, but the differences between Protestant and Catholic theology *are* important. They espouse completely different ideas about how to relate to God, the authority of the Bible, the meaning of salvation etc etc. They're not just minor tertiary issues, they affect the central tennets of the faith. Theology matters!

6) I'm not sure what his "gospel" is. Throughout the whole book, I could find barely a mention of sin, salvation, or the cross. What there was a lot of is loving our neighbours. Which of course, is good. But surely it's not the whole picture? He seems to see Jesus as an inspirational figure, who showed us how to live and love well. But that's not the gospel of Paul, or of evangelicalism. One story will serve to illustrate the point: It was the time when a bunch of his friends slept on Wall Street, New York, as an act of solidarity with the poor. (p118-119) Then at a certain time, they unfurled banners which read, "Stop terrorism", "Share", "Love", and a quote from Ghandi about greed. They drew pictures on the pavements and blew bubbles, and hugged and laughed. And SC describes it as "bringing God and Mammon together". Forgive me, but, if you look carefully, where is God in that? Where is the Biblical gospel in there? Sure, it's a worthwhile enterprise to stand in solidarity with the poor, and to stand up against corporate greed. But don't make out that this was some sort of outreach with the gospel.

If the church adopted SC's ideas, then we would probably be more happy, more loving, more radical, and probably bigger. We would be nicer people. But would those things lead to more being saved from an eternity without God? I somehow doubt it. What we really need is to be motivated by the truth of the Jesus-filled, Biblical gospel, and to reach out to people with the saving message of the cross.

Excellent book, 21 Sep 2008
This is an excellent book for those who would like the basic issues set out in a way that is accessible. Yes it is not a thesis but I don't think the author intended it to be so - I have plenty of books I can go to to support his arguments in more depth and who argue both sides and look at objections in depth.
But I bought this book as an access way to these issues for young Christians or those who are searching. And that it exactly what it does.

If this was a real trial case there would be a mis-trial, 05 Aug 2008
At the start of the book I though what a unique spin to put on the argument about Christ and his life.
A few times I threw the book down after realising that the questions I wanted answering weren't.
The book is a Pro christian book which at time seem there just to back up the mainstream christian belief, in no way does it challenge or really try to affirm if Christ was a God or a Man.

A poor attempt and was in no way independant, heavens all the Proffesionals he talked to were Pro mainstream christians!

SJ Tanner, 13 Mar 2008
It must be remembered, whether or not one agrees with Lee Strobel's writing, that he wasn't a Christian when he began writing this book. He isn't biased towards Christianity; on the contrary he asks tough questions of the people he interviewed whilst researching this book.
As an academic and a Christian, I was fascinated by the depth of his research and the answers he found. It is a well-written book, filled with evidence to back up his findings, along with discussions with highly-respected academics. It is certainly challenging, and aims for historical accuracy which is sadly lacking in so many recent novels claiming to secrets about the life of Christ, which are often nothing more than mere speculation or opinion. At least the Case for Christ has solid historical, academic and archaeological evidence, which other fiction novels ignore or distort.
Many Christians will find their faith supported and strengthened by this book; other who are not yet decided may find it helpful, and others will inevitably dismiss it as rubbish. Personally, I found it a wonderful piece corroborating evidence for my own faith.


Contemptuously thinly veiled propaganda, 04 Jun 2007
Even someone with a second-rate R.S. A-level such as myself can see the falsehoods presented in this garbage. The author sets up evangelical christians with complete softballs and utterly refuses to criticise the answers, which, such as with the dating of the gospels, are far from widely accepted. There is no critical thinking displayed anywhere here, no dialogue or riposte from non-christian scholars, just a pathetic propaganda piece that will sadly influence and manipulate those looking for easy answers and haven't enough knowledge of the subject matter to separate objective analysis from subjective, bias crap like this. Read this with its "response" companion, or view from the other side of the argument, or not at all.

Very biased, 23 Dec 2006
This is a very biased book for Christianity.
Yes it is a 'case for Christ' as the title suggests but those thinking this is proper investigation of whether Christ existed or not are wrong.
All the people Lee interviews about the subject are Christians. So (unsurprisingly) are very biased!
And Lee never then goes and investigates for himself to find out what he's been told is true, he just seems to believe everything that he's told! Hardly a personal 'investigation'!
The reason I've given this 2 stars and not 1 is that it does raise some interesting points for further study.

Bared by Rupert., 22 Nov 2008
Rupert Short is Religious Editor of 'The Times Literary Supplement' and was formerly a staff journalist on 'The Church Times' and Assistant Editor of the liberal (Roman) Catholic magazine 'The Tablet'. He has previously authored a short "sketch" of the same subject entitled 'Rowan Williams: An Introduction' (2002), and 'Gods Advocates:Christian Thinkers In Conversation'(2005) which features a significant contribution by Rowan Williams and is probably more for those wishing to gain an insight into the Archbishops theological perpectives rather than this present volume.
'Rowans Rule' is a serious, heavy-weight study (466 pages) of the life of Rowan Williams current Archbishop of Canterbury written by someone who is (unsurprisingly given the journalistic credentials given above), profoundly sympathetic to his subjects liberal Catholicism or "Radical Orthodoxy".
This book is a traditionaly structured 'life' and although Rowans personal theology and more abstract matters are covered in Chapters 2 and 4 the emphasis is firmly on giving a full account of its subjects biography in all its fullness. It is divided into two parts and ten chapters, with the first half covering Williams early life in Wales, education, Oxford and academia; basically his life and career "pre-Lambeth". The second half covers his period as Archbishop of Canterbury from appointment in 2002 upto the 2008 Lambeth Conference and related contraverses.
As you would expect there is, thankfully, no tabloid style tittle-tattle or scandals in this volume, the nearest you get to one is the story of the tragic suicide of Lori Watson, a disturbed young women who fel in love with Rowan whilst he was a student at Oxford, and whom he tried to help.
As already noted the author is clearly sympathetic to Williams religious convictions, this knowledge plus the fact that this study was not only authorised by the Archbishop but that he also actively contributed to its contents should indicate to the potential reader the books understandable bias. Rowans detractors may characterise this as 'spin', but writing as somebody who shares the authors sympathy, I would say that if anyone in this country actually NEEDS to start 'spinning' its Rowan Williams!
That caveat aside, this is an impressive piece of sholarship, meticuluosly researched, insightful, intelligent and written with great warmth for its subject. A must read for Anglicans and recommended to anyone who wishes to see beyond the characatures and misrepresentations of both the right-wing media and the Fundamentalist plotters within Rowan Williams own Church (thats the real scandal).
Rowans Rule' is a brilliantly realised 'life' of one of the Christian worlds foremost leaders and intellectuals and (dare I say it) 'National Treasure'!


Thoughtful and helpful, 11 Nov 2008
This book is a wonderful introduction to, for me, one of the greats to have held the role as Archbishop. Thoughtful and intelligent, I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to understand the issues facing the Church of England and Anglicanism, but it is wider than that, and would make good reading. It is good to understand why, in light of Sharia comments and the gay issue, Williams can provoke such a response.

A good man to share a pnit with but not a good writer, 06 Oct 2008
I was really excited to get this book having read the reviews. However, although I found the concept amusing and genuinely laughed out loud at some observations, usually the relationship ones, Danny is not a good writer. The prose is overly wordy for my liking and simply not tight enough to the extent that I have added this book to my very small " will never finish" pile of books. I have no doubt that an evening down the pub with Danny would be very funny indeed, he loves people and shows genuine affection for them in this book which is endearing. However, if he does any more projects, I might just wait for the tv show to come out.....

funny, 15 Sep 2008
I think it's really funny, it seems just about all the other reviewers do as well. It probably won't take you long to read, the worst thing to happen if you do read it is you may lose bladder control while your laughing.
By the end you'll feel reassured in the goodness of people.

Be in The Collective, become a Joinee today!, 10 Dec 2007
Danny Wallace, until recently he was more famous as Dave Gorman's sidekick - but now he is a regular face on TV.

This book is in the same sort of genre as "Are You Dave Gorman" which Danny co-authored and tells the true story of how Danny Wallace starts a cult by asking people to join him....

...And people do! They have no reservations and hand over their faith to join a man in an unknown crusade. After having people join him, Danny decides what to do as the leader of a cult and comes up with the ultimate in humanistic altruism - they will all do a good deed per day for someone.

This is a very entertaining book which shows how a decent man can do good deeds and encourage others to do so to ensure the world is a more pleasant place. The same man also sees his love-life fall apart as a result.

This fails to live up to the same level of pathos of the Dave Gorman adventures, which is a shame as it has ample chance to do so given the subject matter. It doesn't ruin the book though, it still remains a very funny book and one which I strongly recommend. The tale is an interesting one, as a jape turns into a fairly large movement and gains press coverage.

Not all cults involve insane religious maniacs killing themselves to ride a comet to paradise - some are for honest people to join forces to make the world a better place. This book does that too by giving the reader a laugh and an invite to join Danny Wallace and become a member of his cult.


You Must Join Him, 05 Oct 2007
Danny Wallace a man with nothing better to do, decides one day to put an add in a local newspaper simply saying Join Me and had an address for people to send off to Join Him. Not expecting a response at all little would Danny know that, that one add would set off a chain reaction that would start a country wide cult that would eventually take the world.

If I went any further I would reveal the entire story but all I really need to tell you is that this is a fantastic read that entertains from front to back. Danny has an amazing talent to make people laugh out loud while reading his books. I can't tell you the number of times I have been sat in a quiet public place and just burst out laughing, only for it to be followed by a mountain of stares from the people around me.

Take it from me that this is a delightful read and a definite must, Danny is easily one of the best comedy writers in the UK of the last decade.

Will you Join Me?, 29 May 2007
This was the first Danny Wallace book i read, and my god, it's brilliant, i read it constantly for hours on end, laughing all the way through, if you like true funny stories, I highly recommend you read this.

If you dont enjoy it, I'll refund your money*





*not an actual offer, i dont earn enough, but trust me, its brilliant

a call to reckless generosity and selfless love, 03 Oct 2008
Shane Claiborne has found a different Jesus in the gospels than the mainstream church. He's found a Jesus who is homeless, a friend of the poor, who rails against authority and undermines the empire, who tells a rich man to sell everything he owns and give the money away. This is Claiborne's model, and he has done his best to find it, live it and prove such a life is possible.

The book follows his journey, from the disillusionment with the church of his youth, and the ambitious and wealthy `megachurches' where he trained. He talks about how he came to bond with the poor in Philadelphia, and then travelled to Calcutta to see if Mother Theresa offered a better demonstration of Christ than the ones around him. He visits Iraq in the middle of the war, testing Jesus' call to be a peacemaker. He helps stage a `re-distribution' on Wall Street and heckles George W Bush at the Republican conference. He is, in his own words, an `ordinary radical' - radically different, but rooted in real people and real situations.

Claiborne rejects the idea that Christianity has nothing more to offer than some distant and otherworldly heaven. It's a great reminder that the church is a missionary agency: we're meant to go to the poor and the hungry, not wait for them to come to us. There's loads of good stuff about power, simplicity, and community, that's worth coming back to. It's a call to reckless generosity and selfless love in a world of "big beasts and little prophets." It is hopeful, expectant, uncompromising.

'The Irresistable Revolution'is a provocative book, raising more issues than it answers. That's not an approach that everyone will appreciate, but for those ready to ask difficult questions of themselves and their faith, this is a challenge you'll want to take seriously.

An absolutely essential read, 17 Sep 2008
If Shane Claiborne keeps writing books like this he is going to get himself assasinated. I can think of no greater accolade then that.

refreshing, 07 Sep 2008
I found this book really encouraging. It gave me a lot to think about and reminded me of lots of things I believe are important in terms of the two principle commandments of the Bible "Love God with all your heart, mind and soul. Love your neighbour as yourself" 15 to 20 years ago I had read books by Jim Wallis, Ron Sider and Tony Campolo which seemed to call many Western Christians to thinking about justice and a simpler lifestyle.

Shane Claiborne starts to understand what God says about the poor and loving others almost by accident when he is studying theology at a US Bible school - one that I guess would be described as liberal rather than conservative in US terms. Some friends invite him to come and hang out with some of their friends who happen to be homeless.

The book is SC's story and the story of some of the people he meets along the way with whom he shares part of his life. It includes much of his struggles as he evaluates Scripture trying to see it afresh and not within all the confines of his background in church culture. He works a few months with Mother Theresa, was involved in living with the homeless, lives in a poor community in Philadelphia, went to Iraq with a group promoting peace and is astonished by the love and risks that Iraqi Christians would take to protect their American brothers.

It reminded me of the community that followers of Christ should be developing and not just with one another. It made me go back and read Matt 25 when Jesus talks about God's judgement involving the way we treat the poor, the sick, the foreigner, the criminal etc. It is uncomfortable.

I did not think SC was proposing everyone do what he does. He is not trying to recruit followers. He is prompting us to think about how we live as followers of Christ an to be more open to those marginalised in society, accepting people unlike us in our homes and lives.

There were parts of the book which annoyed me and I felt that he perhaps did some things just to provoke a reaction. I felt it possibly could have
been 100 pages shorter and still got the same message over. The style with frequent asides in parenthesis, which work if you are giving a speech, but are irritating when used over and over in a written work got a bit wearing. The style seemed written for students and early twenties, although the content should actually be for all ages.

However overall I found it deeply encouraging and challenging. I am reminded of how community with the poor is not just about justice or improving their situation, it is also about the rich getting the opportunity to know God more in profound ways through individuals who come into our lives. That seemed to be the way Mother Theresa saw it and I remember one incident in my own life of seeing God's image more clearly through a severly disabled, poor beggar who sat patiently waiting for gifts. He apalled me at first, until I saw the loving way some other interacted with him and despite the fact he could not speek his openess to others.

Community in the love of God is not a duty, it is a gift for all, but requires a lot of work.



Serious about being the change you want to see ? Read this., 08 Jul 2008
One of the most powerful and engaging autobiographical works from a `frontline' Christian activist I've read in a long time. It's impossible not to like Shane Claiborne, whose infectious love for Jesus and total commitment to bringing his love to all, whether North Philadelphia's poor or the bombed citizens of Iraq, is plain to see. Claiborne is someone all Christians (and others) could learn from for sheer breadth of sympathy across the Christian traditions, sense of vocation, and depth of theological understanding blended with sassy political commitment to bringing about change. A must-read.

Where is the gospel?, 23 Feb 2008
I should say at the outset, I think I'm out on a limb here. Everyone else seems to raving about this book. But I'm not so sure.

First, the good stuff. I think Shane Claiborne (SC) writes boldly and strikingly about various topics. Much of the book is a wake-up call for those who have got used to dull, timid, worldly, 'big', Christianity. He is immensely quotable: "Most of the time when I see Christian superstars like Jerry Falwell or Al Sharpton, I feel I'm watching professional wrestling. There's a lot of shouting and sweating, but the people seem too superhuman, and I'm not convinced all the moves are real." (p27)
He has some excellent material on the value of singleness. (p109-111) That's humbled me, and reminded me that I need to try to promote that in a Biblical way. Then there's some good stuff about the worthlessness of "cool": "...we must be either hot or cold, because if we are lukewarm (an old-school way of saying "cool"), we will be spit out of God's mouth"! (p230) There are lots of other helpful areas too, mostly only a few pages at a time.
He has lots of great stories, many of which would be excellent sermon-illustration material!

Now the bad stuff:
1) It's *very* Ameri-centric. Big chunks of the book are spent critiquing the Christian Right. Most of that didn't resonate with my experience of the Church in the UK. We don't do flags on the platform, singing anthems, rallying our troups into war or party politics. All that felt a bit meaningless to me as a Brit - who am I to criticise Christians living in another country and culture?

2) Because it's the experiences of a single guy, living in community, doing some wild and crazy things, I just don't see how much of what he says relates to me. I mean, I have a wife and 3 kids. I can't exactly move to Iraq for a while, or open up my house as a homeless shelter (not that I think there's nearly so much need here anyway - see point 1!). What he has effectively done is to abandon his entire culture. Now that's great for him, because he was in a position to do it. But the huge, vast, majority simply aren't. I'm not prepared to because I don't see that there's anything inherently wrong with having a house, or a car, or a job, or food. Parts of our culture are good (schools, hospitals, homes). If you want to live outside popular culture, fine. But I'd rather live out the Christ-life within it. Which is equally as difficult, and arguably more so. He's advocating a form of monastic asceticism that I'm not convinced is Biblical.

3) He redefines well-established theological terms. What he means by words like "evangelical", "conversion" and "gospel" are simply not the same as orthodox, Biblical, Christianity. For example: "Conversion is not an event but a process, a process of slowly tearing ourselves away from the clutches of the culture." No it isn't. Conversion has nothing to do with releasing oneself from the bonds of culture. It's the act of repentance and faith, when we repond to the gospel. Forgive me if I can't see the link between historic conversion and SC's. I suppose "sanctification" would be a more correct word for what he's talking about.

4) He caricatures the church.
"...if someone had a heart-attack on Sunday morning, the paramedics would have to take the pulse of half the congregation before they would find the dead person" (p43) OK, very funny. But certainly not my experience of good, Biblical, modern church. He gives the impression that churches are all navel-gazing, introverted, holy huddles with no interest or ability to communicate with the outside world. Well, again, there are loads of churches that care for the poor, the lonely, the disposessed. In Ipswich, UK, we have "Street Pastors" who are out in the clubs and pubs at the weekend, looking after the drunks and the dropouts; there is a pregnancy crisis centre, a drug rehab centre is soon to open. There's work amongst prostitutes and the homeless. We do care. Perhaps not enough, perhaps we could do with being better resourced. But we *are* trying to live out a life of faith in our culture, and it hurts a bit to be told we aren't.

5) He minimises the importance of theology:
"I learnt more about God from the tears of homeless mothers than a systematic theology ever taught me" (p51) Now, I know the guy is a firm post-modern and that post-moderns like stories more than facts etc etc. But, that kind of statement calls into question the whole value of theology. What did the tears of homeless mothers *actually* teach him? That sharing is good? That we should care for each other? Great - but not much about God. What can those things *possibly* teach us about God? We are made in his likeness, not he in ours. We don't learn about God by looking at fallen sinners (no matter how vulnerable or holy); we learn about God from the Word. SC has it the wrong way around.
Again, "When people ask me if I am Protestant or Catholic, I just answer 'yes.'. And when people ask me if we are evangelicals, I...say, 'Absolutely, we want to spread the kingdom of God like crazy.'" Well, I'm sorry, but the differences between Protestant and Catholic theology *are* important. They espouse completely different ideas about how to relate to God, the authority of the Bible, the meaning of salvation etc etc. They're not just minor tertiary issues, they affect the central tennets of the faith. Theology matters!

6) I'm not sure what his "gospel" is. Throughout the whole book, I could find barely a mention of sin, salvation, or the cross. What there was a lot of is loving our neighbours. Which of course, is good. But surely it's not the whole picture? He seems to see Jesus as an inspirational figure, who showed us how to live and love well. But that's not the gospel of Paul, or of evangelicalism. One story will serve to illustrate the point: It was the time when a bunch of his friends slept on Wall Street, New York, as an act of solidarity with the poor. (p118-119) Then at a certain time, they unfurled banners which read, "Stop terrorism", "Share", "Love", and a quote from Ghandi about greed. They drew pictures on the pavements and blew bubbles, and hugged and laughed. And SC describes it as "bringing God and Mammon together". Forgive me, but, if you look carefully, where is God in that? Where is the Biblical gospel in there? Sure, it's a worthwhile enterprise to stand in solidarity with the poor, and to stand up against corporate greed. But don't make out that this was some sort of outreach with the gospel.

If the church adopted SC's ideas, then we would probably be more happy, more loving, more radical, and probably bigger. We would be nicer people. But would those things lead to more being saved from an eternity without God? I somehow doubt it. What we really need is to be motivated by the truth of the Jesus-filled, Biblical gospel, and to reach out to people with the saving message of the cross.

Excellent book, 21 Sep 2008
This is an excellent book for those who would like the basic issues set out in a way that is accessible. Yes it is not a thesis but I don't think the author intended it to be so - I have plenty of books I can go to to support his arguments in more depth and who argue both sides and look at objections in depth.
But I bought this book as an access way to these issues for young Christians or those who are searching. And that it exactly what it does.

If this was a real trial case there would be a mis-trial, 05 Aug 2008
At the start of the book I though what a unique spin to put on the argument about Christ and his life.
A few times I threw the book down after realising that the questions I wanted answering weren't.
The book is a Pro christian book which at time seem there just to back up the mainstream christian belief, in no way does it challenge or really try to affirm if Christ was a God or a Man.

A poor attempt and was in no way independant, heavens all the Proffesionals he talked to were Pro mainstream christians!

SJ Tanner, 13 Mar 2008
It must be remembered, whether or not one agrees with Lee Strobel's writing, that he wasn't a Christian when he began writing this book. He isn't biased towards Christianity; on the contrary he asks tough questions of the people he interviewed whilst researching this book.
As an academic and a Christian, I was fascinated by the depth of his research and the answers he found. It is a well-written book, filled with evidence to back up his findings, along with discussions with highly-respected academics. It is certainly challenging, and aims for historical accuracy which is sadly lacking in so many recent novels claiming to secrets about the life of Christ, which are often nothing more than mere speculation or opinion. At least the Case for Christ has solid historical, academic and archaeological evidence, which other fiction novels ignore or distort.
Many Christians will find their faith supported and strengthened by this book; other who are not yet decided may find it helpful, and others will inevitably dismiss it as rubbish. Personally, I found it a wonderful piece corroborating evidence for my own faith.


Contemptuously thinly veiled propaganda, 04 Jun 2007
Even someone with a second-rate R.S. A-level such as myself can see the falsehoods presented in this garbage. The author sets up evangelical christians with complete softballs and utterly refuses to criticise the answers, which, such as with the dating of the gospels, are far from widely accepted. There is no critical thinking displayed anywhere here, no dialogue or riposte from non-christian scholars, just a pathetic propaganda piece that will sadly influence and manipulate those looking for easy answers and haven't enough knowledge of the subject matter to separate objective analysis from subjective, bias crap like this. Read this with its "response" companion, or view from the other side of the argument, or not at all.

Very biased, 23 Dec 2006
This is a very biased book for Christianity.
Yes it is a 'case for Christ' as the title suggests but those thinking this is proper investigation of whether Christ existed or not are wrong.
All the people Lee interviews about the subject are Christians. So (unsurprisingly) are very biased!
And Lee never then goes and investigates for himself to find out what he's been told is true, he just seems to believe everything that he's told! Hardly a personal 'investigation'!
The reason I've given this 2 stars and not 1 is that it does raise some interesting points for further study.

Unassuming and understated, 05 Jun 2008
Much to the embarassment of many, including his superiors, Monsignor Hugh O'Flaherty rescued many from faschism and certain death in Rome during World War II. He did it all with a twinkle in his eye and a sense of humour that kept him sane throughout it all.

A man who is largely unrecognised in Ireland. I wonder if he would like the idea that he has a commemorative grove of trees and a poem dedicated to him by Brendan Kennelly. He was never a man who sought fame, just a man who thought he was doing a job, the job he became a priest to do and that it was only right to do it as best he could. With co-operation of many people around him he ensured the survival of many.

A touching portrait of a man who should be held as an example to many.

Bared by Rupert., 22 Nov 2008
Rupert Short is Religious Editor of 'The Times Literary Supplement' and was formerly a staff journalist on 'The Church Times' and Assistant Editor of the liberal (Roman) Catholic magazine 'The Tablet'. He has previously authored a short "sketch" of the same subject entitled 'Rowan Williams: An Introduction' (2002), and 'Gods Advocates:Christian Thinkers In Conversation'(2005) which features a significant contribution by Rowan Williams and is probably more for those wishing to gain an insight into the Archbishops theological perpectives rather than this present volume.
'Rowans Rule' is a serious, heavy-weight study (466 pages) of the life of Rowan Williams current Archbishop of Canterbury written by someone who is (unsurprisingly given the journalistic credentials given above), profoundly sympathetic to his subjects liberal Catholicism or "Radical Orthodoxy".
This book is a traditionaly structured 'life' and although Rowans personal theology and more abstract matters are covered in Chapters 2 and 4 the emphasis is firmly on giving a full account of its subjects biography in all its fullness. It is divided into two parts and ten chapters, with the first half covering Williams early life in Wales, education, Oxford and academia; basically his life and career "pre-Lambeth". The second half covers his period as Archbishop of Canterbury from appointment in 2002 upto the 2008 Lambeth Conference and related contraverses.
As you would expect there is, thankfully, no tabloid style tittle-tattle or scandals in this volume, the nearest you get to one is the story of the tragic suicide of Lori Watson, a disturbed young women who fel in love with Rowan whilst he was a student at Oxford, and whom he tried to help.
As already noted the author is clearly sympathetic to Williams religious convictions, this knowledge plus the fact that this study was not only authorised by the Archbishop but that he also actively contributed to its contents should indicate to the potential reader the books understandable bias. Rowans detractors may characterise this as 'spin', but writing as somebody who shares the authors sympathy, I would say that if anyone in this country actually NEEDS to start 'spinning' its Rowan Williams!
That caveat aside, this is an impressive piece of sholarship, meticuluosly researched, insightful, intelligent and written with great warmth for its subject. A must read for Anglicans and recommended to anyone who wishes to see beyond the characatures and misrepresentations of both the right-wing media and the Fundamentalist plotters within Rowan Williams own Church (thats the real scandal).
Rowans Rule' is a brilliantly realised 'life' of one of the Christian worlds foremost leaders and intellectuals and (dare I say it) 'National Treasure'!


Thoughtful and helpful, 11 Nov 2008
This book is a wonderful introduction to, for me, one of the greats to have held the role as Archbishop. Thoughtful and intelligent, I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to understand the issues facing the Church of England and Anglicanism, but it is wider than that, and would make good reading. It is good to understand why, in light of Sharia comments and the gay issue, Williams can provoke such a response.

A good man to share a pnit with but not a good writer, 06 Oct 2008
I was really excited to get this book having read the reviews. However, although I found the concept amusing and genuinely laughed out loud at some observations, usually the relationship ones, Danny is not a good writer. The prose is overly wordy for my liking and simply not tight enough to the extent that I have added this book to my very small " will never finish" pile of books. I have no doubt that an evening down the pub with Danny would be very funny indeed, he loves people and shows genuine affection for them in this book which is endearing. However, if he does any more projects, I might just wait for the tv show to come out.....

funny, 15 Sep 2008
I think it's really funny, it seems just about all the other reviewers do as well. It probably won't take you long to read, the worst thing to happen if you do read it is you may lose bladder control while your laughing.
By the end you'll feel reassured in the goodness of people.

Be in The Collective, become a Joinee today!, 10 Dec 2007
Danny Wallace, until recently he was more famous as Dave Gorman's sidekick - but now he is a regular face on TV.

This book is in the same sort of genre as "Are You Dave Gorman" which Danny co-authored and tells the true story of how Danny Wallace starts a cult by asking people to join him....

...And people do! They have no reservations and hand over their faith to join a man in an unknown crusade. After having people join him, Danny decides what to do as the leader of a cult and comes up with the ultimate in humanistic altruism - they will all do a good deed per day for someone.

This is a very entertaining book which shows how a decent man can do good deeds and encourage others to do so to ensure the world is a more pleasant place. The same man also sees his love-life fall apart as a result.

This fails to live up to the same level of pathos of the Dave Gorman adventures, which is a shame as it has ample chance to do so given the subject matter. It doesn't ruin the book though, it still remains a very funny book and one which I strongly recommend. The tale is an interesting one, as a jape turns into a fairly large movement and gains press coverage.

Not all cults involve insane religious maniacs killing themselves to ride a comet to paradise - some are for honest people to join forces to make the world a better place. This book does that too by giving the reader a laugh and an invite to join Danny Wallace and become a member of his cult.


You Must Join Him, 05 Oct 2007
Danny Wallace a man with nothing better to do, decides one day to put an add in a local newspaper simply saying Join Me and had an address for people to send off to Join Him. Not expecting a response at all little would Danny know that, that one add would set off a chain reaction that would start a country wide cult that would eventually take the world.

If I went any further I would reveal the entire story but all I really need to tell you is that this is a fantastic read that entertains from front to back. Danny has an amazing talent to make people laugh out loud while reading his books. I can't tell you the number of times I have been sat in a quiet public place and just burst out laughing, only for it to be followed by a mountain of stares from the people around me.

Take it from me that this is a delightful read and a definite must, Danny is easily one of the best comedy writers in the UK of the last decade.

Will you Join Me?, 29 May 2007
This was the first Danny Wallace book i read, and my god, it's brilliant, i read it constantly for hours on end, laughing all the way through, if you like true funny stories, I highly recommend you read this.

If you dont enjoy it, I'll refund your money*





*not an actual offer, i dont earn enough, but trust me, its brilliant

a call to reckless generosity and selfless love, 03 Oct 2008
Shane Claiborne has found a different Jesus in the gospels than the mainstream church. He's found a Jesus who is homeless, a friend of the poor, who rails against authority and undermines the empire, who tells a rich man to sell everything he owns and give the money away. This is Claiborne's model, and he has done his best to find it, live it and prove such a life is possible.

The book follows his journey, from the disillusionment with the church of his youth, and the ambitious and wealthy `megachurches' where he trained. He talks about how he came to bond with the poor in Philadelphia, and then travelled to Calcutta to see if Mother Theresa offered a better demonstration of Christ than the ones around him. He visits Iraq in the middle of the war, testing Jesus' call to be a peacemaker. He helps stage a `re-distribution' on Wall Street and heckles George W Bush at the Republican conference. He is, in his own words, an `ordinary radical' - radically different, but rooted in real people and real situations.

Claiborne rejects the idea that Christianity has nothing more to offer than some distant and otherworldly heaven. It's a great reminder that the church is a missionary agency: we're meant to go to the poor and the hungry, not wait for them to come to us. There's loads of good stuff about power, simplicity, and community, that's worth coming back to. It's a call to reckless generosity and selfless love in a world of "big beasts and little prophets." It is hopeful, expectant, uncompromising.

'The Irresistable Revolution'is a provocative book, raising more issues than it answers. That's not an approach that everyone will appreciate, but for those ready to ask difficult questions of themselves and their faith, this is a challenge you'll want to take seriously.

An absolutely essential read, 17 Sep 2008
If Shane Claiborne keeps writing books like this he is going to get himself assasinated. I can think of no greater accolade then that.

refreshing, 07 Sep 2008
I found this book really encouraging. It gave me a lot to think about and reminded me of lots of things I believe are important in terms of the two principle commandments of the Bible "Love God with all your heart, mind and soul. Love your neighbour as yourself" 15 to 20 years ago I had read books by Jim Wallis, Ron Sider and Tony Campolo which seemed to call many Western Christians to thinking about justice and a simpler lifestyle.

Shane Claiborne starts to understand what God says about the poor and loving others almost by accident when he is studying theology at a US Bible school - one that I guess would be described as liberal rather than conservative in US terms. Some friends invite him to come and hang out with some of their friends who happen to be homeless.

The book is SC's story and the story of some of the people he meets along the way with whom he shares part of his life. It includes much of his struggles as he evaluates Scripture trying to see it afresh and not within all the confines of his background in church culture. He works a few months with Mother Theresa, was involved in living with the homeless, lives in a poor community in Philadelphia, went to Iraq with a group promoting peace and is astonished by the love and risks that Iraqi Christians would take to protect their American brothers.

It reminded me of the community that followers of Christ should be developing and not just with one another. It made me go back and read Matt 25 when Jesus talks about God's judgement involving the way we treat the poor, the sick, the foreigner, the criminal etc. It is uncomfortable.

I did not think SC was proposing everyone do what he does. He is not trying to recruit followers. He is prompting us to think about how we live as followers of Christ an to be more open to those marginalised in society, accepting people unlike us in our homes and lives.

There were parts of the book which annoyed me and I felt that he perhaps did some things just to provoke a reaction. I felt it possibly could have
been 100 pages shorter and still got the same message over. The style with frequent asides in parenthesis, which work if you are giving a speech, but are irritating when used over and over in a written work got a bit wearing. The style seemed written for students and early twenties, although the content should actually be for all ages.

However overall I found it deeply encouraging and challenging. I am reminded of how community with the poor is not just about justice or improving their situation, it is also about the rich getting the opportunity to know God more in profound ways through individuals who come into our lives. That seemed to be the way Mother Theresa saw it and I remember one incident in my own life of seeing God's image more clearly through a severly disabled, poor beggar who sat patiently waiting for gifts. He apalled me at first, until I saw the loving way some other interacted with him and despite the fact he could not speek his openess to others.

Community in the love of God is not a duty, it is a gift for all, but requires a lot of work.



Serious about being the change you want to see ? Read this., 08 Jul 2008
One of the most powerful and engaging autobiographical works from a `frontline' Christian activist I've read in a long time. It's impossible not to like Shane Claiborne, whose infectious love for Jesus and total commitment to bringing his love to all, whether North Philadelphia's poor or the bombed citizens of Iraq, is plain to see. Claiborne is someone all Christians (and others) could learn from for sheer breadth of sympathy across the Christian traditions, sense of vocation, and depth of theological understanding blended with sassy political commitment to bringing about change. A must-read.

Where is the gospel?, 23 Feb 2008
I should say at the outset, I think I'm out on a limb here. Everyone else seems to raving about this book. But I'm not so sure.

First, the good stuff. I think Shane Claiborne (SC) writes boldly and strikingly about various topics. Much of the book is a wake-up call for those who have got used to dull, timid, worldly, 'big', Christianity. He is immensely quotable: "Most of the time when I see Christian superstars like Jerry Falwell or Al Sharpton, I feel I'm watching professional wrestling. There's a lot of shouting and sweating, but the people seem too superhuman, and I'm not convinced all the moves are real." (p27)
He has some excellent material on the value of singleness. (p109-111) That's humbled me, and reminded me that I need to try to promote that in a Biblical way. Then there's some good stuff about the worthlessness of "cool": "...we must be either hot or cold, because if we are lukewarm (an old-school way of saying "cool"), we will be spit out of God's mouth"! (p230) There are lots of other helpful areas too, mostly only a few pages at a time.
He has lots of great stories, many of which would be excellent sermon-illustration material!

Now the bad stuff:
1) It's *very* Ameri-centric. Big chunks of the book are spent critiquing the Christian Right. Most of that didn't resonate with my experience of the Church in the UK. We don't do flags on the platform, singing anthems, rallying our troups into war or party politics. All that felt a bit meaningless to me as a Brit - who am I to criticise Christians living in another country and culture?

2) Because it's the experiences of a single guy, living in community, doing some wild and crazy things, I just don't see how much of what he says relates to me. I mean, I have a wife and 3 kids. I can't exactly move to Iraq for a while, or open up my house as a homeless shelter (not that I think there's nearly so much need here anyway - see point 1!). What he has effectively done is to abandon his entire culture. Now that's great for him, because he was in a position to do it. But the huge, vast, majority simply aren't. I'm not prepared to because I don't see that there's anything inherently wrong with having a house, or a car, or a job, or food. Parts of our culture are good (schools, hospitals, homes). If you want to live outside popular culture, fine. But I'd rather live out the Christ-life within it. Which is equally as difficult, and arguably more so. He's advocating a form of monastic asceticism that I'm not convinced is Biblical.

3) He redefines well-established theological terms. What he means by words like "evangelical", "conversion" and "gospel" are simply not the same as orthodox, Biblical, Christianity. For example: "Conversion is not an event but a process, a process of slowly tearing ourselves away from the clutches of the culture." No it isn't. Conversion has nothing to do with releasing oneself from the bonds of culture. It's the act of repentance and faith, when we repond to the gospel. Forgive me if I can't see the link between historic conversion and SC's. I suppose "sanctification" would be a more correct word for what he's talking about.

4) He caricatures the church.
"...if someone had a heart-attack on Sunday morning, the paramedics would have to take the pulse of half the congregation before they would find the dead person" (p43) OK, very funny. But certainly not my experience of good, Biblical, modern church. He gives the impression that churches are all navel-gazing, introverted, holy huddles with no interest or ability to communicate with the outside world. Well, again, there are loads of churches that care for the poor, the lonely, the disposessed. In Ipswich, UK, we have "Street Pastors" who are out in the clubs and pubs at the weekend, looking after the drunks and the dropouts; there is a pregnancy crisis centre, a drug rehab centre is soon to open. There's work amongst prostitutes and the homeless. We do care. Perhaps not enough, perhaps we could do with being better resourced. But we *are* trying to live out a life of faith in our culture, and it hurts a bit to be told we aren't.

5) He minimises the importance of theology:
"I learnt more about God from the tears of homeless mothers than a systematic theology ever taught me" (p51) Now, I know the guy is a firm post-modern and that post-moderns like stories more than facts etc etc. But, that kind of statement calls into question the whole value of theology. What did the tears of homeless mothers *actually* teach him? That sharing is good? That we should care for each other? Great - but not much about God. What can those things *possibly* teach us about God? We are made in his likeness, not he in ours. We don't learn about God by looking at fallen sinners (no matter how vulnerable or holy); we learn about God from the Word. SC has it the wrong way around.
Again, "When people ask me if I am Protestant or Catholic, I just answer 'yes.'. And when people ask me if we are evangelicals, I...say, 'Absolutely, we want to spread the kingdom of God like crazy.'" Well, I'm sorry, but the differences between Protestant and Catholic theology *are* important. They espouse completely different ideas about how to relate to God, the a