cover image Big Christianity: What's Right with the Religious Left

Big Christianity: What's Right with the Religious Left

Jan G. Linn, . . Westminster John Knox, $14.95 (126pp) ISBN 978-0-664-23015-9

A blend of social commentary, biblical reflection, statement of faith and polemic, this feisty broadside is as much a defiant response to the recent dominance of conservative Christians in the political arena as it is an apologia for "liberal Christianity." Formerly a professor at Lexington Theological Seminary, Linn, who describes himself as a "recovering fundamentalist," is the author of What's Wrong with the Christian Right and How to Be an Open-Minded Christian Without Losing Your Faith . Again and again, he contrasts the perceived deficiencies of conservative Christianity with the regenerative power of his optimistic creed. Some of the basics of Linn's "liberal Christianity" include an embrace of religious pluralism, a rejection of a creed-based faith and a strong defense of the separation of church and state. Comparing "bigger Christianity" with the "small" worldview of those he terms fundamentalists, Linn argues that his communitarian vision is based on being "on the journey" with Jesus rather than worrying so much about the destination. Liberal readers who have long felt sidelined in the culture wars may forgive his tendency to make broad and sometimes incorrect generalizations about the Christian right and a lack of clarity about what makes his vision of a Christian left distinctively Christian, rather than distinctively left. (June)