There is a growing movement in evangelicalism, an exodus, if you will, of younger writers, who are discovering that the "scary Jesus" of their childhood, the Jesus of judgment and blood, punishment and violence, is not the Jesus of the Bible. And they're discovering the Jesus who liberates, the Jesus of justice, peace, kindness, and hope.
One writer gaining traction with evangelicals who are looking for an alternative to the violence of their childhood churches are discovering a friend in Diana Butler Bass, and her new book, Freeing Jesus.
I give thanks for what God seems to be doing - a massive deconstruction of American Evangelicalism, a deconstruction that occurred earlier for mainline Christianity, a deconstruction cheered on by evangelicals as "proof" of their virtue and confirmation of our failings.
Failings, indeed, and we've learned, and continue to learn, our hard lessons.
While the evangelicals were more than happy to dance on our graves.
But now evangelicals themselves are entering into a time of deconstruction. It's painful, but full of hope.
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