Bibliofreakblog

If the Church Were Christian by Philip Gulley

I knew I was going to be worth while when I read the Marcus J Borg blurb on the back, “Filled with memorable, insightful, and revealing stories.  I recommend it.”  Borg is a Christian scholar who has published many books about the life of Jesus.

I knew though that I was actually going to like this book when I read the table of the contents.  Each chapter finishes the sentence, which is the title of the book, If the Church Were Christian.  Chapters include:

“Jesus Would Be a Model for Living Rather Than an Object of Worship”

“Encouraging Personal Exploration Would Be More Important Than Communal Uniformity”

“Meeting Needs Would Be More Important Than Maintaining Institutions”

“It Would Care More About Love and Less About Sex”

“This Life Would Be More Important Than the Afterlife”

Philip Gulley is a Quaker pastor, and includes anecdotes from his many experiences with Quakers, as well as other Christian denominations.  He notes in the beginning that what he calls “the church” includes all of Christianity.

However, because he focuses so much on church life, his scope tends to be rather narrow.  In the chapter called “Peace Would Be More Important Than Power” he doesn’t touch on politics, the responsibility of politicians, or the world-wide role that the church plays.  Instead, he talks about some ladies he knew who ran the church pantry, which was for poor people, and how stingy they were.  A valid point, it’s true, but as I say, limited in scope.

I was most excited to read the chapter “It Would Care More About Love and Less About Sex”.  Towards the end of the chapter he sums it up, saying,

“The church’s failure to deal openly, graciously, and maturely with sexual matters will allow the old patterns of abuse, rejection, sexual discrimination, and homophobia to persist.  Sexual intimacy will continue to be a taboo topic; abuse will remain part and parcel of the church experience for some of our women, youth, and children; gay people will continued to be spurned, divorced people will be rejected, and those faithful couples who don’t believe a formal church ceremony can make their bond any deeper will continue to be less valued.  In the end, the only people comfortable in such a church will be emotionally and sexually repressed.  People searching for fullness of life and joy, for a relevant and reasonable faith, will look elsewhere, probably to those spiritual movements whose worldviews have advanced beyond puberty.”

Take that, judgmental bitches!

Of course, he doesn’t really say HOW this can be done.  Just that, you know, it should.

Yo FTC!  I received this book as part of a TLC tour.  To find out more about it, visit TLC’s If the Church Were Christian page.
Buy If the Church Were Christian: Rediscovering the Values of Jesus on Amazon

If you like this book/author, you might like:

(my reviews in blue)

Dakota by Kathleen Norris
The Cloister Walk by Kathleen Norris
Thou Art That by Joseph Campbell
Traveling Mercies by Ann Lamott
Why I Became an Atheist by John Loftus
Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography by John Dominic Crossan
The Third Jesus by Deepak Chopra
A New Kind of Christianity: Ten Questions That Are Transforming the Faith by Brian D McLaren
If Christians Were Really Christian by John Killinger
Living Buddha, Living Christ by Thich Nhat Hanh
Thomas Merton: Essential Writings by Thomas Merton
The Varieties of Religious Experience by William James

Other works by Philip Gulley:

Home to Harmony 
Home Town Tales
For Everything a Season: Simple Musings on Living Well
Porch Talk: Stories of Decency, Common Sense, and Other Endangered Species
Front Porch Tales
I Love You, Miss Huddleston: And Other Inappropriate Longings of My Indiana Childhood

With James Mulholland:

If Grace Is True: Why God Will Save Every Person 
If God Is Love: Rediscovering Grace in an Ungracious World