Rescuing Jesus: How People of Color, Women, and Queer Christians Are Reclaiming Evangelicalism

In this braided work of reporting, storytelling, and personal reflection, journalist Lee, herself a former evangelical, explores progressive movements—for racial reconciliation, women’s rights, and LGBTQ equality—within American evangelicalism. Unlike mainline Protestants, whose social engagement is integrated into denominational structures, evangelicals’ efforts for justice seem to come in response to pressure from within, as leaders such as Lisa Sharon Harper, Soong Chan-Rah, Jennifer Crumpton, and Matthew Vines are emerging from conservative grassroots movements, working to connect their faith with their minority identities, and moving toward a more expansive understanding of evangelical faith. The road is not always easy for these self-declared “prophetic Christians”; for example, in order to earn and retain influence within evangelicalism, they tend to shy away from questions surrounding reproductive rights, despite promoting equality for women in the church. Additionally, in spite of larger church organizations’ professed support for women in leadership, female leadership in evangelical nonprofits continues to lag well behind their male counterparts. The book’s structure feels meandering at times, perhaps because it’s tricky to define evangelicalism and to trace its progressive strains. This makes it difficult to accept the author’s assertion that there are signs of a broadly accommodating evangelical future. Agents: Larry Weissman and Sascha Alper, Larry Weissman Literary LLC. (Nov.)