The Evolution of Faith: How God Is Creating a Better Christianity

No one familiar with Gulley's earlier, controversial nonfiction (If Grace Is True; If the Church Were Christian) will be surprised to find that the Quaker pastor has gotten even more progressive. He argues here, among other things, that there have been "God-bearers" other than Jesus; a focus on heaven, hell, and the afterlife is theoretical and damages the credibility of Christianity; Jesus was not a means of salvation by his death but an archetype of salvation%E2%80%94and so on, heretically for many. If Gulley has any evangelical Christian fans left, their numbers will again shrink. But the low-key Quaker from Indiana does not himself shrink from speaking truth%E2%80%94an essential Quaker practice%E2%80%94derived from well-sifted pastoral and personal experience. The thoughtful pastor displays more of a Christian spirit of charity toward those who disagree with him than do his theological critics. (June)