Christ in Crisis audiobook

As a long term Jim Wallis reader I started this book, chosen by our church book group, with a certain level of frustration seeing it initially as a reworking of previous ideas but narrowly focused on the Presidency of Donald Trump and the crisis that has prompted in American church life and civil society, thus failing to see any great application beyond that. However I hadn't finished the book when the book group met, and a comment there encouraging us to see it as a case study with Trump not as the cause of the crisis but the symptom helped me to broaden my view and apply it more fully to our own local political contexts including Brexit and the NI stalemate. In the light of that the concluding statements could and perhaps should be adapted and adopted by people of faith operating in a contested public square. Also the section on abortion was probably the most nuanced I have read and again might be helpful in the vacuum created in NI by Westminster's removal of previous draconian sanctions against abortion without introducing detailed replacement legislation. However I doubt it. Sections of the church like wider society have dug themselves do deep into opposing trenches in this and other issues that there is little room for constructive dialogue. The thinking is, on both Conservative (or more accurately reactionary) and supposedly Liberal (yet often profoundly intolerant) wings, that unless you tick all of the boxes on our checklist and are unwavering in your public support you are not one of us. If I didn't believe in a transcendent and compassionate God I might just despair. Having now read it a second time in the midst of the covid-19 lockdown, with disastrous management by the US and UK governments, and an unraveling of the recently re-established NI Executive after a bad decision by the Deputy First Minister re a political ally's funeral, the ethos behind this book is even more important. But on all of those fronts the recent evidence has tended to suggest that the political establishments are only interested in the perspective of the churches (or any other civic stakeholder) when that perspective supports their own, with little consultation being done with civic stakeholders in response to the crisis and short term economic issues being the primary drivers of policy. In that context Wallis' exposition on resurrection hope and the vision of the Sermon on the Mount towards the conclusion of the book is vital.

I read this book (digital advance copy). I'm buying a copy of it to read it again. It is profound, it is life-changing, and it is a scathing criticism of the current administration on the basis of the teachings of Jesus. There's a logical arrangement of chapters, excellent commentary and discussion of the topics. My full review (and it's long) is here: https://readersforecast.blogspot.com/....My second reading was for an online book discussion through the Episcopal Partnership (the dioceses of Western NY and Northwest PA), and it was an excellent book to discuss, especially once we got rolling, and everyone got used to Zoom.

Christ in Crisis by Jim Wallis is a deeply personal, timely and relevant response to the crisis in which our nation finds itself. This is a very powerful and provocative read. I was amazed at the way in which the author recounts the many disturbing and unacceptable actions by our current leadership and administration and the anger and incivility in our nation at the current time, and yet my overall feeling throughout this book was one of hope and empowerment. Wallis reminds us that while the monsters under the bed are real, it will not serve us, or our neighbor or our Lord well to sit paralyzed in the darkness hoping that in two or six years they will go away. Instead he shines light upon the evil and danger that currently surrounds us and reminds us that we are called to boldness and to witness to the light. The crisis that the title of the book refers to is one that holds great opportunity.I genuinely appreciate the structure of the book. By designing the content around questions, there are handles to hold on to while swimming around in some very complex and emotional waters. With these questions of Jesus as a road map, Wallis walks with the reader through a prophetic and theologically grounded journey that addresses some very important and emotionally charged issues that are essential to who we are as people of faith, yet have become sources of division within the church and have become weaponized to cause great pain and suffering by those in power on both sides of the political spectrum. Wallis speaks with clarity and integrity regarding the treatment of the LGBTQ community by people of faith, the deeper issues of abortion and pro life, who is our neighbor, and what does it truly mean to be a servant leader in a world where power is used to isolate and victimize the poor and vulnerable. Wallis engages his audience in a powerful exploration into what it would mean to live a life that is Christ like in a world where anti-Christ behaviors are too often the norm.

This is an important book. It’s target audience, I suspect, is Evangelical Christians and I hope it reaches them. I’m not one, but I am heartened that a very prominent, well respected and influential Evangelical leader, an elder, whose advice, guidance and ministering has been sought out in this politically tumultuous time has written such a direct, prophetical warning and, more importantly, provided a clear Biblically based corrective course of action. Wallis pulls no punches. Donald Trump, what he stands for, and his administration is a threat to not only our democratic republic, but to the moral standing of the Christian Church. Jim Wallace does not stand alone in this condemnation and in the suggested corrective action. Evangelical Christians make up the core of Donald Trump’s base and only Evangelicals can speak to them in terms they will understand and hopefully be swayed by. I don’t agree with everything Wallis says or all the positions he takes. In some cases I strongly disagree, but I certainly agree with the major thesis and feel that whatever points of disagreement we may have could be discussed and worked through with the intention of returning our country to a foundation of moral and ethical principles that are Biblically supported and which would serve the common good and recognize the value, dignity and rights of all people equally. Our country and the world desperately need that redemption.

This book has made me feel a part of a community I hadn't hoped was available to me at this crucial time in our American history. Jim Wallis gives voice to what I could only feel deep in my gut and in my soul. I was thinking Matthew 25 when I didn't know it was Matthew 25, just that it was what I had been taught to believe about being a Christian. For anyone who feels abandoned by current Washington rhetoric and the divisive, cruel policies being enacted by this current administration, read this book and regain your hope for our future. Together we CAN make a difference!

I am not the person who needed to read this book. Sadly, anyone who does need to read it will not, and if they do, would likely ignore the message anyway. It was however, very thoughtfully written, and gives a lot of talking points to those resisting the un-Christian values of the current US regime. It's a good reminder to us that, in order to re-claim Jesus we need not go left nor right, but "go deep.

Initially, this was going to be three stars, because it is heavy, heavy going. It was also not quite what I expected. Rather than being an examination of empire and how it contradicts Christianity at the root, Mr. Wallis focuses on Donald Trump. One chapter, in particular, was illuminating to me. That is chapter four, "The Truth Question". After examining Our Lord Jesus's words about truth (to take one famous example, "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free"), Mr. Wallis points out that our current leader lies constantly. There is another saying I'm sure we all know: The devil is a liar and the father of lies. What impact is this barrage of lies having on us? On the world we live in?Oh, there have been other bad presidents in my lifetime. Every leader of this country in the last fifty years has, arguably, committed war crimes. But Mr. Wallis convinced me that our current leader's constant lies are indeed deeply harmful and divisive--and completely opposed to Christ.The book was well worth reading for this chapter alone. There is much more, including, in the final section, a pledge and a call to action. It took me a long time to read this book and I can't say I found it consoling, but I am glad I tackled it.

Much needed read for the church.

I thought this was an extremely important book for this time we are all struggling through....

Jim Wallis gives the church and people of faith a lot to think about in a difficult time. Wallis has a way of digging deep into the matters of faith in a way that all people can understand. This is the best book by Wallis that I have read.

This was an awesome look into how Christianity can become compassionate again in our tumultuous time.

"We are living through perilous and polarizing times as a nation,...". This statement, coming near the end of the book, opens the RECLAIMING JESUS Declaration but also tells us why that document and this book were written. The United States, under the tyrannical thumb of President Donald J. Trump, is, perhaps, more divided now than at any time since the Civil War. So divided are we that I have stopped using Facebook because I cannot tolerate the political comments of many of my friends. It is becoming difficult for me to work one of my jobs because of the partisanship displayed by coworkers. As a pastor, I am frustrated because I may not speak out against the President without jeopardizing my church's tax status or alienating some of my congregation. I very much appreciate how Jim Wallis has brought numerous issues into the light, at the same time exposing the President for the charlatan he truly is. And yet, he will likely be reelected for a second term with major assistance by evangelical Christians who have been duped and conned. A friend of mine, a supporter of Trump, told me that she is afraid of our nation becoming socialist or communist under a Democratic president. What she fails to see is that the nation is closer to fascism under this president than it has ever been. On this Transfiguration Sunday 2020, the words of God from the cloud ring like the bells of Notre Dame but are more akin to the Liberty Bell,THIS IS MY BELOVED SON, WITH WHOM I AM WELL PLEASED. LISTEN TO HIM. It is time for our nation to do just that. This book is a wonderful guide for finding Jesus' words. Four stars waxing

Wallis is a leader of the Red Letter Christian movement, that takes a more social justice, social activist approach to the world. Wallis believes that many Christians have become disconnected from Christ, and that explains why so many are perfectly content to support public policies that go against the teachings of Christ in the Bible. He thinks in times of stress or crisis, we should go back to the basics and focus on the central meaning. He also notes that when Christians talk more about Christ, studies show that everyone seems to prefer it - Christians, Jews, Muslims, non-religious all find Christian talk less threatening when it focuses on the words of Christ. Among other things, this book gave me a new appreciation for Chapter 25 of the Gospel of Matthew.

Jim Wallis revisits some old themes and present some of his new thinking of how Christians can resist the Trump administration in a Christian way. He identifies key biblical principles to discern what Christ-followers should do when faced with a government that pretends to be Christian, but for all the wrong reasons. Wallis is a gifted progressive Christian author and speaker who is one of the founders of the Red Letter Christians. He asks the question of what would it be like if we took the words of Jesus seriously.

I first picked up a Jim Wallis book many years ago, probably during the years of the second Bush Administration. That was God’s Politics, which for whatever reason I never read. This then was my first exposure. It might be easy to assume this is a work primarily directed at the current regime in Washington or perhaps more generally at the religious right. That would be incorrect. The latter part of this book is more about challenge to those of us who claim to aspire to following the Way of Christ. I found I was particularly challenged relative my feelings of helplessness and complacency.