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Leaven Leaven
Volume 1 Issue 4 Evangelism Article 17
1-1-1990
Various books about evangelism Various books about evangelism
Mark Love [email protected]
Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/leaven
Part of the Biblical Studies Commons, Christianity Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology
and Philosophy of Religion Commons
Recommended Citation Recommended Citation Love, Mark (1990) "Various books about evangelism," Leaven: Vol. 1 : Iss. 4 , Article 17. Available at: https://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/leaven/vol1/iss4/17
This Book Review is brought to you for free and open access by the Religion at Pepperdine Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Leaven by an authorized editor of Pepperdine Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected], [email protected].
Ewmgdism 57
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GENTLE PERSUASION: Creative Waysto Introduce Your Friends to Christ, byJOSEPH C. ALDRICH, Portland, OR;Multnomah Press, 1988. (Paperback -$10.95)
Continuing his appeal for lifestyle evangelism,Joseph Aldrich calls Christians to "love people untilthey ask you why." He employs witty, imaginarydialogue between himself and the reader to answerobjectives of the would-be evangelist who personifiesthe fears attendant to the idea of soul winning.
The premise that God intends to use peopleaccording to their own gifts, even if those gifts don'tinclude formal teaching, forms the backdrop for insis-tence that all Christians take their place in the evan-gelistic process. It is noted that research indicates thatmost evangelistic training classes present methodssuitable to the gifts of only about 10% of the people.Aldrich seeks to support that group while helping theother 90% to use their own gifts for redemptive pur-poses.
Aldrich is careful to emphasize that lifestyleevangelism is not merely a pleasant sounding designa-tion with no real expectation of results. "Evangelismis not throwing a hamburger in a fan and hopingsomeone opens his mouth." One must have deter-
Jack Reese is the Director of Graduate Studies andteaches homiletics in the College of Bibilical Studiesat ACU.
Jack Reese, Editor
mined strategy. The strategy is enumerated by notingvarious points taken from Jesus' sending out of theseventy-two in Luke 10. There is some room forcriticizing his exegesis and the organization of hispoints, but they are nonetheless encouraging remind-ers to live as light in the world, to allow the glory ofGodto determine our priorities and to focus on beingredemptive persons.
Thoughtful attention is given to the realitythat not all soil is good. Still the evangelist is called tocultivate, sow and reap. Aldrich is realistic about thetime commitment needed for these three things to beaccomplished. His advice is to work in one's web ofrelationships with awareness of different types even ofgood soil. Evangelism, he says, should be tailor-made.
The value of the book is on two levels. First,the reader is presented with a case for self-examina-tion. Here is exhortation to personal holiness and self-sacrifice. Second, valuable observations about thenon-believer give guidance as the Christian plans andimplements the task ofbringing him to the Lord. Eachof these emphases is underscored with recognition ofGod's sovereignty in the process.
Charme RobartsAbilene, Texas
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Love: Various books about evangelism
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58 LEAVEN Fall 1990
MINE EYES HAVE SEEN THE GLORY: AJOUR-NEY INTO THE EVANGELICAL SUBCULTUREIN AMERICA, by Randall Balmer. Oxford: OxfordUniversity Press, 1989. 246 pp.
Most of us find media depictions of conserva-tive religion rather repugnant. The general Americalpopulation would be hard pressed to give an accurateor realistic assessment of evangelical Christianity.
Randall Balmer, a church historian in theReligion Department at Columbia University, pro-vides glimpses into several evangelical sub-groupswithin American religion. His perspective is sympa-thetic-his own roots are Christian fundamentalist--but he is not uncritical of the failings of conservativegroups, especially their exclusiveness and tendencytoward polemics.
Rather than providing a macro-analysis ofevangelicalism as a whole, Balmer gives almost ananecdotal picture. He examines a wide variety ofsettings, all of which he would classify as looselyevangelical, including the vestiges ofthe Jesus Move-ment at Calvary Chapel in Southern California, thedoctrine and influence ofDallas Theological Seminary,fundamentalism at a Bible Camp within the shelteredhills ofthe Adirondacks, the campaign workers ofPatRobertson, a holiness camp meeting in Florida, mis-sionary work on an Indian Reservation in the Dakotas,a Trinity College extension program in Oregon, andmore.
While many will be uncomfortable with a defi-nition of evangelicalism so sweeping, most will befascinated with Balmer's investigative work and tightwriting style. And his indictment ofevangelical "sanc-tification of American consumerism" may hit close tohome to many of us.
HOW DOES AMERICA HEAR THE GOSPEL? byWilliamADyrness. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1990.164pp.
No one can completely escape his or her ownculture. How we receive information, how we under-stand truth, how we respond to the gospel, are influ-enced in subtle ways by perspectives we have learnedfrom our culture.
William Dyrness examines the American cul-tural context which shapes how we understand faithand Scripture. He focuses on three dominant Ameri-can values-pragmatism, optimism, and individual-ism -and shows how each impacts Christian disci-pleship.
Dyrness analyzes the works and ministry oftwo prominent religious spokesmen, Walter Rausch-enbush of the 19th century, and popular preacher and
author Robert Schuller. While obviously diverse intheir religious orientation and methods, both Rausch-enbush and Schuller attempted to use relevant cul-tural forms in communicating the gospel. Dyrness isgenerally critical of both.
Dyrness attempts to establish a methodologyfor allowing the gospel to impact cultural values, andhe offers churches and individuals some specific direc-tions for becoming more faithful disciples in our paganAmerican culture.
THE STRUGGLE FOR AMERICA'S SOUL:EVANGELICALS, LmERALS, AND SECULAR-ISM, by Robert Wuthnow. Grand Rapids:Eerdmans, 1989. 189 pp.
Robert Wuthnow, in a sterling book, examinesthe influence of secularism on conservative and liberalAmerican religion. As a sociologist (and professor ofsociologyat Princeton University) he has a keen graspon the social forces which are significantly influencingAmerican religious life.
He examines several of the social and politicalbattles that religious liberals and conservatives havefought in recent years, including prayer in publicschools, abortion, equal rights for women, nucleararms negotions, nominations to the Supreme Court,and others.
Wuthnow then focuses on three areas thatimpact American religion: the state, the mass media,and higher education. He demonstrates how theseaffect American religion and how religious groups usetheme for their own purposes.
His analysis is crisp. His understanding ofthecomplexity of religion and secular life is broad. Hissuggestions (though not far-reaching enough) arehelpful.
DEFENDERS OF GOD: THE FUNDAMENTAL-IST REVOLT AGAINST THE MODERN AGE, byBruce B. Lawrence. New York: Harper & Row,1989.
Bruce Lawrence, professor of the history ofreligion at Duke University, chronicles the rise ofworld fundamentalism in these last years of the 20thcentury. This rise offun damentali sm can be witnessednot only in American Christianity but also within Ju-daism and Islam.
Lawrence suggests that these movementshave common roots and intellectual orientations. Inhis words, "Fundamentalists do not deny or disregardmodernity; they protest as moderns against the here-sies of the modern age." They oppose rationalism and
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relativism, pluralism and secularism and call for val-ues and practices that the modern world finds out-dated.
Lawrence's work is thoroughly researched. Heis able to clarify issues within American religionthrough comparisons with similar developmentswithin other religious movements across the world.
He is not particularly sympathetic to themotives and values of fundamentalist groups, but hiswork should be helpful to leaders within conservativeChristian groups in describing the radical extremes, inmethods and philosophy, to which fundamentalism isprone.
CONGREGATION: STORIES AND STRUC-TURES, by James Hopewell, Fortress Press, 1986.
Hopewell served as the Director for the Centerfor Congregational Studies at Emory University'sCandler School ofTheologyuntil his recentdeath. Thiswork is Hopewell's signature on an expandingdiscipline that one might term "congregationalstudies." This discipline is concerned withunderstanding the components that go into themakingofa congregation, or as Hopewell might say, acongregational culture.
Hopewell begins Congregation by com-paring congregational analysis to the purchasing of ahome. When one purchases a home several factorsenter into the decision. There are contextual mattersto consider. How is the neighborhood? What kind ofschools will our children attend? Are there industrialareas nearby?
There are mechanical factors to consider.Does the roofleak? Is the foundation cracked? Howisthe wiring? In other words, will this house perform thefunctions required of it in a satisfactory manner?
There are organic matters. My wife likes tosew. Will there be an area that will allow her to cutpatterns, etc.? Will our three children have to sharebedrooms? Are there areas where the family can betogether to read, watch television, play games? Inother words, will this house support the relationshipsthat constitute our family? Can this house become ahome?
There are symbolic matters to consider. Whatdoes this house say about me? This is the hardestfactor to quantify. Yet, it is a common experience forone selling a house to hear the buyer exclaim, "Nowthis house is me!" In fact, while being the hardestfactor to quantify, the symbolic nature of a home maybe the most determinative in the selection. The sameis true for congregations.
E.••••gdism 59
For the most part, persons who have studiedcongregations have been concerned with contextualand mechanical aspects of congregational life. Whatare the demographics of the neighborhood sur-rounding the church? Is the church sign visible fromthe street? Are classes easy to find? Is there enoughparking to facilitate growth? These are the kinds ofquestions that have been the primary focus andconcern of the church growth movement.
While some have been concerned to studyorganic aspects of congregational life, the symbolicworld of a congregation has gone largely ignored.Hopewell is convincing in establishing this factor asthe most significant aspect ofcongregational identity.Each congregation creates a culture full ofmeaningfulmetaphors and symbols that constitutes whatHopewell calls a congregational idiom. One of thetasks of ministry is to uncover and understand theidiom of a congregation so that the gospel can beproclaimed in a more effective and powerful manner.
The last half of Congregation focuses ondiscovering a congregations worldview. Borrowingarchetypal categories from literature and anthro-pology, Hopewell invites observers of congregationallife to the task ofuncovering the root metaphors ofthecongregations of which they are a part.
This book is extremely valuable for those wholead churches because it expands our concepts ofwhatmakes a church tick. The new preacher who comes inand makes some mechanical decisions as to wherefurniture might be placed in the "auditorium" mayfindhimselfin contemptofthe congregation's symbolicworld. It is not enough to know a few generalizedcharacteristics of"successful "churches so as to imposethem on every congregational setting. Leaders mustvalue a congregation's idiom, or way of being, if theyare to transform a congregation's existence. Whilemechanical considerations have their place incongregational evaluation, Hopewell's work removesthe need to define success in exclusively mechanicaland numerical terms.
The second half of the book is interestingthough not as useful to members or'the Churches ofChrist. Our world view is much more uniform thanwhat one might find in a mainline Protestant church,thus making many of the observations irrelevant toour congregational settings. While Hopewell's bookintroduces us to the need to understand the symbolicstories and structures ofour congregations, it does notprovide those in the Churches of Christ with manyuseful tools for uncovering these aspects. Thankfully,however, this book has generated a great deal ofthoughtful discussion on how a congregation'ssymbolic world can be understood.
Mark LoveGresham,OR
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