Theologian Kearns debuts with a thoughtful and intimate exploration of modern masculinity. Drawing from the experience of shaping his identity as a trans man—which involved trying on personas ranging from gentleman to “fierce protector”—he contends that modern masculinity permits men to experience few vulnerable emotions besides anger, discourages closeness with other men, and disconnects men from their bodies and minds. Meanwhile, men learn in the evangelical church that God has granted them power over their families and religious communities, but are given mixed signals about how to wield that authority—they’re told “to be loving fathers but also righteous warriors,” for example, and to adhere to purity culture, but also that they risk “being driven mad by their sexual urges” without “God’s help.” Such insights about the contradictory nature of evangelical teachings are valuable and incisively drawn, while the healthier model of masculinity suggested by Kearns—which asks men to investigate their emotions, form closer connections with other men, and eradicate “toxic behaviors”—is smart and sensible if not groundbreaking. The result is an insightful look at the complicated nexus of gender and power in the evangelical church. (Apr.)

Reviewed on 02/21/2025 | Details & Permalink

Baylor University history professor Barr (The Making of Biblical Womanhood) provides a blistering critique of the narrowing options for female leadership in the evangelical church. Barr describes how the second half of the 20th century saw the role of the pastor’s wife morph into an unpaid “extension of the husband’s ministry,” as wives became responsible for unpaid duties ranging from the official and religious (teaching Bible studies) to the unofficial (looking presentable in church to reflect well on their husbands). She attributes these developments partly to backlash over rising rates of female ordination in the 1970s, which culminated in the Southern Baptist Convention’s 1984 denunciation of female pastorship. As a result, Barr explains, “pastoral wifeship” became the only viable leadership option for evangelical women. Barr highlights prominent female Christians of the past (Benedictine nuns Milburga and Hildegard of Bingen wielded power “surpass[ing] that of queens”) to argue that women’s pastorship is historically grounded, and calls on the SBC to legitimize female pastorship and allow more flexible expectations for pastor’s wives. Barr draws on extensive research to perceptively track the evolution of women’s leadership roles and explore how a rigidly hierarchal system where “male power is privileged at the cost of women” incites broader destructive effects, including the brushing aside of sexual abuse scandals under the guise of maintaining a “redemptive community.” The result is a powerful indictment of an unequal system. (Mar.)

Reviewed on 02/07/2025 | Details & Permalink

Rabbi Cardin (Tears of Sorrow, Seed of Hope) creatively explores how Jewish traditions can help readers to reimagine their relationship with the earth amid the mounting threat of climate change. Drawing from such biblical stories as the creation narrative of Genesis 2, in which God instructs Adam and Eve to tend to the garden of Eden (an “eco-driven,” nature-centered narrative that reverses the “ego-driven” story of Genesis 1, which presents nature as a wild resource to be “used and subdued”), she sketches out an ethic of sustainability wherein humans “tend to the world’s potential, serving the needs of all.” Later chapters explore how to “renew, preserve, and reuse earth’s resources” through personal and political efforts, with suggestions for blending environmental and spiritual practices with traditions like the Tu BiShevat seder, a festive meal held on the new year of the trees that’s been revived in recent years to reflect growing environmental concerns. Cardin expertly uses ancient Jewish ethics to add moral depth and clarity to pressing discussions of environmental collapse and proffers a communal model of aid that reflects the interconnection of humans with nature and one another. Wise and empathetic, this inspires. (Apr.)

Reviewed on 02/07/2025 | Details & Permalink

Historian Salguero (Buddhish) takes readers on an accessible tour through Asian spiritual traditions. Breaking down practices that center the heart, body, and nondual perception (the awareness that there are no boundaries between humans and the divine), he covers Theravada Buddhism’s vipassana (a meditation that involves observing thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations without judgment); Hinduism’s meditative absorption (using a “deep stillness of the mind” to unlock “subtler and subtler states of concentration”); and Daoism and neo-Advaita’s doing-nothing meditation (an “unstructured” practice of “rest[ing] in the natural state”). Salguero brings a cheerful and inquisitive spirit to his exploration, inviting readers to view spirituality in an expansive, non-exclusionary way (a means of “experienc[ing] reality differently” rather than a rigid set of rules) while gently challenging them to avoid such pitfalls as spiritual materialism (focusing on external trappings, like expensive meditation retreats) and spiritual bypassing (avoiding the difficult work of self-exploration to “get to the bliss”). The result is a skillful distillation of Asian religious practices and a solid starting point for seekers. (Apr.)

Reviewed on 02/07/2025 | Details & Permalink

Data Over Dogma podcaster McClellan debuts with a smart and historically grounded look at what scripture says about some of Christianity’s most provocative questions. Drawing on the text and canonical sources, he unpacks the origins of what he argues are misconstrued symbols (the number 666 does not signify “the mark of the beast” but is more likely code for Roman emperor Nero, an infamous “persecutor of early Christians” around the time the number first appeared in scripture); debunks literalist readings (while the book of Proverbs supports corporal punishment for children, the practice should be considered a relic of the ancient world); and unravels the nuances of hot-button issues, arguing, for example, that the Bible does not condemn homosexuality because “the concept of sexual orientation” didn’t exist in ancient times—though it does prohibit same-sex intercourse. In the process, he perceptively examines how biblical tenets have been skewed or exploited by some believers to cloak their innate prejudices, which then become “identity markers” used to justify “authoritarianism and social dominance.” Combining fine-grained textual analysis with enlightening historical context, this is a valuable resource. (Apr.)

Reviewed on 02/07/2025 | Details & Permalink

Theologian Meredith (The Color of Life) provides a bruising exposé of Christian summer camps as an extension of a poisonous white evangelical culture. Drawing on her own experiences as a camper and a counselor, she depicts a religious institution that’s anchored in patriarchal ideals, including a purity culture that leads girls to believe that “their bodies [are] evil”; that preaches a “message of conformity” that excludes Black campers; and that caters primarily to the rich (a week of camp for a middle schooler can cost around $2,000). According to Meredith, the camps teach kids to believe that they’re “dirty rotten little sinners” who must seek salvation by publicly committing or recommitting their life to Christ. (In some cases, the numbers of campers who do so are tallied for donors who want to see their dollars at work—a transactional model of faith where salvation has a literal dollar value, Meredith notes.) Throughout, she offers an incisive, unsparing critique based on her own recollections and interviews with other former campers and counselors, while also acknowledging the camps’ value in sparking some Christians’ faith (one pastor notes that despite “theology and all the... fluff around it... something about camp and the mystery of camp, and meeting God there, is beyond words”). This is sure to spark debate. (Apr.)

Reviewed on 02/07/2025 | Details & Permalink

Choosing Cheer Podcaster Bell encourages dispirited Christians to adopt a sunnier attitude in her stale debut. According to the author, most people “rob themselves” of joy by comparing themselves to others, expecting relationships to bring fulfillment, and tying their happiness to external circumstances. A better bet is strengthening one’s faith, which helps people find cheer and solace amid life’s inevitable problems. Bell interweaves anecdotes about drawing on her faith to endure her own hardships, including a devastating miscarriage, with tips for stoking a joyful faith by reading scripture and praying alone or with others. While those stories are affecting, the book collapses under the weight of distracting inconsistencies, including a tone that wavers between upbeat and sermonesque, and a tendency to conflate cheer with emotions like gratitude. Despite its good intentions, this falls short of the mark. (Apr.)

Reviewed on 02/07/2025 | Details & Permalink

Day (It’s Not Your Turn) offers an intimate meditation on chasing one’s dreams in the face of disappointment. The account centers around the crisis of faith Day experienced at age 25 when her minister father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s; watching his decline caused her to rethink her belief that God blesses good people and curses the bad (her father, who’d been driven by a lifelong passion for spreading God’s word, “had been shorted on his transaction,” she writes). Considering what it means to pursue one’s passion with the aid of faith, she contemplates risk (the idea “that our passions can be pursued from a safe distance” is a “common misconception”); suffering (“The hand of God over your life is not always visible by financial measure or popularity”); and how challenges can spur spiritual growth (when “you think God has stepped back from you, eventually, you step forward toward him”). Transparent about her own spiritual doubts and flaws, Day provides a perceptive commentary on what it means to maintain and strengthen one’s faith in moments of struggle. Christians unsure of their spiritual direction will find solace here. (Apr.)

Reviewed on 02/07/2025 | Details & Permalink

Historian Meyer (Rabbi Leo Baeck) chronicles in this comprehensive account the life of Alexander Schindler (1925–2000), an American rabbi who reshaped the Jewish reform movement. Born in Munich to the son of a Yiddish poet and a businesswoman, Schindler and his family fled to Manhattan in 1938. He initially studied engineering in college, but after a stint in the U.S. Army he was inspired to become a rabbi. He ascended through the ranks in the reform movement, and in 1973 he became president of the Association of Reform Congregations—a position whose power he harnessed to push the movement into new, sometimes controversial directions (like fully accepting Jews of patrilineal descent and gay and lesbian Jews). Meyer links his subject’s life to a perceptive analysis of the growth of reform Judaism in the 20th century, as proponents like Schindler promoted the movement as a way of applying Jewish ethics directly to the world (rather than hewing strictly to ritual). As Meyer points out, however, Schindler acknowledged that the movement’s popularity stemmed in part from its convenience for Jews wishing to assimilate to American society, and also called for reform Judaism to develop its own “sense of the sacred.” The result is a scrupulous and definitive biography of a vital figure in American Judaism. (Feb.)

Reviewed on 01/31/2025 | Details & Permalink

Political philosopher Davis (Why It’s OK to Own a Gun) explores Mormon faith and community in this diffuse essay collection. The best pieces wrestle directly with the tenets of Mormonism. “Millennial Imagining,” for example, suggests that Latter-Day Saint communities have “perhaps a little by accident” created Zion—a community “of one heart and mind”—by removing cultural scripts that can get in the way of genuine human connection. One such notion is that college is solely a place to drink and party; doing away with that idea, as Mormon universities have, can preclude some “prefabricated” interactions and allow for more honest ones, Davis suggests. In “Family Home Evening, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Quietist Theological Relativism,” he argues that Joseph Smith’s claim that all other religions are “abominations” stems from a more general “anticreedalism” that asks adherents to “seek out God for themselves” rather than leaning on doctrine. Other entries are less focused, including a meandering recollection of a fishing excursion, and a meditation on how grades are counterproductive because they can create divisions among students. Davis is a wry and assured storyteller with a knack for finding touchstones of Mormon ethics in contemporary life, though the variety of tonal registers can make the collection feel a bit patchwork. Still, this offers an intriguing window into Mormon thinking. (Mar.)

Reviewed on 01/31/2025 | Details & Permalink