{Book Review} Christianish by Mark Steele

A Good Book, But Not That Original

In “Christianish: What If We're Not Really Following Jesus at All?” author Mark Steele asks us to examine our lives and see if we are really living a life that imitates Christ or if we are merely living a life that is “Christianish”. To be honest this concept is nothing new and there a handful of books out there that address the same topic. What makes Steele’s effort at this topic different than others is his presentation and style. This style can be seen as either positive or negative depending on the reader. The language is simple and lacks complex theological terms. There are not many Bible verses referenced. Chapters typically begin with a funny or interesting story out of the author’s own life. Few if any other authors or books are referenced, which I suppose is to lend that to the fact that, what is being written is all of the author’s original ideas, but it also fails to add support for the authors points/ideas. And the book references modern culture often to give an up to date feel.

This would be a good book for someone who does not enjoy or like “Religious” or “Preachy” books about Christianity. It is very accessible to the lay person and it is also very easy to understand. On the other hand this book is not for one who is looking for something deep or theologically rich. The book embraces pop culture without endorsing it and I can’t say that I say I found anything I disagreed with theologically either, however I just felt that the lack of Bible verses to support points or references to other books makes me feel that this is more the just the author’s idea of “Christianity” rather than the orthodox view. Not that this is a bad thing, I just like more support in my books so I can better understand where the author is coming from in his text.

So while the book may not be a great choice for a seminary student or mature Christian it would be a great book for a pre-teen through young undergraduate or even someone who just doesn’t like preachy overtly “Christian” books. Also I feel there are many other books out on the market that take a much more comprehensive and in depth approach to this topic, but may not appeal to the audience that this book was intended for. Keep that in mind when considering the book for yourself or others.

{Book Review} The New Christians by Tony Jones

“The best primer available for the emergent movement”


If you are even interested in reading this book I guess you may be one of three people. One, you could be an “emergent” and you are just wanted to learn a little about the movement you are involved in. Two, you have heard about “Emergent’s” and the “Emerging Church” and you wanted to learn more about what it was all about. Or third, you have heard about these heretic emergent devil worshippers and you were looking for a book that could reveal all the heresies and non-orthodox practices. Well I am glad to report that this book will satisfy the needs of all three people.

A little about Tony Jones, Tony has been at the forefront of the emergence for most of its existence and until recently was the national coordinator for the emergent village. He went to seminary at Fuller Seminary and is getting his Ph.D. from Princeton, he writes like a down to earth academic. Speaking to the normal everyday Christians who have never had a class in theology class, but every now and then he likes to drop his knowledge and you will have to break out your dictionary to look up a word or you have to scribble down the name of some obscure theologian so you can look them up later. Basically I am trying to say that Tony comes across as an everyman’s theologian. A guy you could go have a beer and talk baseball just as easily as you could discuss the early church father’s views on the doctrine of atonement.

As I mentioned above I see this book as being the best primer on the book shelf to the emergent movement. In fact if you want the full treatment, get Phyllis Tickle’s book “The Great Emergence” to tell you why the emergent movement is here and then get this book to fill in the details of what the movement is.

In the book Tony starts off by giving some background on his own personal story and where he is coming from and how he got where he is now. Then Tony gives his take of the story of how the emergent movement evolved and began from a few young pastors and theologians. Then we get a description of the kind of people that are drawn to the movement and why they are attracted to this new form of Christianity. Next Tony really shines as he lays out much of the theology of the emergence, and while it is no way a doctrinal statement or comprehensive description of what the movement believes, it is more like what they don’t believe and what they are open to. He also spends a good amount of time addressing the idea of truth and dispelling the idea that this is just relativism dressed up in trendy clothing and cool haircuts. Finally we get an inside view of several church’s that Jones feels fall inside this movement, a nice cross section of what is going on in various emergent churches across the country.

All in all I really enjoyed this book. I came in as a person who has had the thoughts of an emergent for the past few years I just didn’t know it. This book helped me see the others who feel/think about Christianity the way I do and understand how others got to this place. So if you are interested in this movement, (Although I don’t think “Movement” is a good word for it) or are just looking for something new in Christianity then I think you may like this book.