About the Book

From Goodreads

36162865In this provocative tell-all, David Gushee gives an insider’s look at the frictions and schisms of evangelical Christianity, based on his experiences that began with becoming a born-again Southern Baptist in 1978 to being kicked out of evangelicalism in 2014 for his stance on LGBT inclusion in the church. But Gushee’s religious pilgrimage proves even broader than that, as he leads his reader through his childhood experiences in Roman Catholicism, his difficult days at the liberal Union Seminary in New York, his encounters with the Christian Right, and more. In telling his story, Gushee speaks to the cultural divisions of a generation, as well as of today, and to those who have themselves been disillusioned by many battles within American Christianity. As he describes his own struggles to find the right path at different stages of his journey, he highlights the turning points and decisions that we all face. When do we compromise, and when we do we stand our ground? Is holding to moral conviction worth sacrificing friendship, jobs, and security? As he takes us through his sometimes-amusing, sometimes-heartbreaking, and always-stirring journey, Gushee shows us that we can retain our faith in Christ even when Christians disappoint us. sometimes-heartbreaking, and always-stirring journey, Gushee shows us that we can retain our faith in Christ even when Christians disappoint us.

My Review

David Gushee is not a name I’ve heard in faith circles before, so apart from the blurb, I didn’t really know what to expect when I began reading.  

This was a very interesting book especially from someone who lives outside of the U.S.A. I’m familiar with the labels of ‘religious right’ and ‘evangelical fundamentalists’ but I didn’t really know what these labels really entailed and the connection to politics. 

Through this memoir David Gushee unpacks how he become involved with these groups, although he never intended to be, and what happened when he questioned and disagreed with their ideas. It’s not a ‘kiss and tell’ type memoir though, as he is not interested in hurting people just for the sake of it. 

Considering its content this was very easy to read, although having never been a Baptist it was a bit confusing when he mentioned the different strands of the Southern Baptist Union.   

It was a fascinating, and bewildering read at times, making me realise for the first time how interlinked religion and politics really are in America. 

I definitely recommend this if you enjoy faith memoirs or if you’re at all interested in the rise of the American religious right.  

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Westminster John Knox Press for my digital copy.