unChristian

Starred review from August 13, 2007
Kinnaman, president of the Barna Institute, was inspired to write this book when Lyons (of the Fermi Project) commissioned him to do extensive research on what young Americans think about Christianity. Lyons had a “gut-level sense that something was desperately wrong,” and three years of research paints exactly that picture. Mosaics and Busters (the generations that include late teens to early 30-somethings) believe Christians are judgmental, antihomosexual, hypocritical, too political and sheltered. Rather than simply try to do a PR face-lift, Kinnaman looks at ways in which churches' activities actually may have been unchristian and encourages a return to a more biblical Christianity, a faith that not only focuses on holiness but also loves, accepts and works to understand the world around it. It would be possible to get lost in the numbers, but the authors use numerous illustrations from their research and life experiences and include insights at the end of every chapter from Christian leaders like Charles Colson, John Stott, Brian McLaren and Jim Wallis. This is a wonderful, thoughtful book that conveys difficult truths in a spirit of humility. Every Christian should read this, and it will likely influence churches for years to come.

October 1, 2007
Acknowledging that Christians have an image problem, Kinnaman and Lyons survey the opinions of the group they call outsiders, those looking at the Christian faith from the outside, which includes atheists, agnostics, followers of Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, and other unchurched adults; significantly, Mormons figure in, too. In particular, they focus on two American generations, the Mosaics, born between 1984 and 2002, and the Busters, born between 1965 and 1983, and especially, the oldest Mosaics and the youngest Busters. By their estimation, there are 24 million outsiders in the U.S. They sense in these younger Americans growing hostility toward Christianity. They discuss six broad themes raised by outsiders: the hypocrisy of Christians, their too-strong focus on getting converts, their antihomosexual stance, the perception of Christians as sheltered and out of touch, Christian political conservatism, and Christian judgmentalism. In essence, the outsiders criticize Christians as being un-Christian. Anyone interested in Christianity in the U.S.believer or nonbeliever, Christian or non-Christianwill find much to ponder in this intriguing study.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2007, American Library Association.)

September 15, 2007
In the last decade, respect for contemporary Christianity has taken a nosedive, especially among those under 30. Weaving together polling data, interviews, and personal anecdotes with biblical commentary, evangelical pollster Kinnaman (president, Barna Grp.) and conservative Christian organizer Lyons (Fermi Project) allow outsider young people to mirror back to born-again Christians what they see. The resulting portrait is unflattering. Six unChristian characteristics are highlighted: Christians are hypocritical, hostile to homosexuals, overly political, judgmental of others, out of touch with reality, and merely interested in converting people. Each chapter concludes with short reflections written by prominent evangelicals that are aimed at identifying steps insiders can take toward changing the perceptions of outsiders. Insiders will be challenged to examine how far they fall short of the ideals they espouse. Outsidersreligious or notwill feel at times patronized and be left wondering whether evangelical dogma is not itself in some ways complicit in shaping the attitudes the authors consider unChristian. Nonetheless, this is an engaging, challenging, and morally compelling study, and it deserves a wide readership. Recommended for all libraries. [Commissioned by Fermi Project, www.fermiproject.com.Ed.]Steve Young, McHenry Cty. Coll., Crystal Lake, IL

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