Overview

Too many Christians are religious - their faith is more a human endeavor than a response to God's loving initiative. Such religion assumes that our value comes not from God but from what we do. It absorbs principles and postulates from the surrounding society, leading to further misconceptions about God and our relation to our Creator. All this hinders people from experiencing vibrant Christian community, where they could freely love and be loved. Mark Baker suggests that just as car companies test automobiles under severe conditions to uncover weaknesses, North American Christians may detect fallacies in their gospel by examining how it plays out under the challenges of poverty, injustice, and entrenched religiosity. Baker's test case is drawn from his ten-year missionary experience in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, at churches born out of North American mission work. Baker observes Honduran church life, draws parallels to the dangers of religion in the North American church and mines from Galatians exciting possibilities of robust Christian grace and freedom. The result is a bracing and refreshing approach to Christian community for laypersons, pastors, missionaries, and mission strategists.

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9781597521055

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Reviews

""""This is biblical theology at its best: timely, integrative, liberating."""" Richard B. Hays, Professor of New Testament, The Divinity School, Duke University """"Potent for both its prophetic challenge and its pastoral encouragement toward the transformation of evangelical faith and life. Do we have ears to hear?"""" Joel B. Green, Associate Dean of the School of Theology and Professor of New Testament, Asbury Theological Seminary """"Baker's powerful book explores the complex dynamic between the apostolic message in its original setting, the community that hears and reads it in scriptural form and the evangelist or preacher who interprets it by word and deed in the present situation. This is no abstract study in hermeneutical theory but rather an engaging instance of a living encounter with the divine Word in all its concreteness."""" Geoffrey Wainwright, Cushman Professor of Christian Theology, Duke University """"One of the first significant steps to build on and weave together liberation concerns, serious biblical exploration, and evangelical theology. Baker has written a book that will become seminal for . . . scholars interested in contextual, biblical, and theological studies."""" Willie James Jennings, Associate Dean of Academic Programs, Research Professor of Systematic Theology and Black Church Studies, The Divinity School, Duke University Mark Baker's 'Religious No More' is a sheer delight. Approachable, easy to read . . . passionately showing us a vision of what the church can be, it is a refreshing sight indeed. Kevin Taylor, Fair Haven United Methodist Church, Houston TX in """"Perspectives in Religious Studies""""

"""""This is biblical theology at its best: timely, integrative, liberating."""" Richard B. Hays, Professor of New Testament, The Divinity School, Duke University """"Potent for both its prophetic challenge and its pastoral encouragement toward the transformation of evangelical faith and life. Do we have ears to hear?"""" Joel B. Green, Associate Dean of the School of Theology and Professor of New Testament, Asbury Theological Seminary """"Baker's powerful book explores the complex dynamic between the apostolic message in its original setting, the community that hears and reads it in scriptural form and the evangelist or preacher who interprets it by word and deed in the present situation. This is no abstract study in hermeneutical theory but rather an engaging instance of a living encounter with the divine Word in all its concreteness."""" Geoffrey Wainwright, Cushman Professor of Christian Theology, Duke University """"One of the first significant steps to build on and weave together liberation concerns, serious biblical exploration, and evangelical theology. Baker has written a book that will become seminal for . . . scholars interested in contextual, biblical, and theological studies."""" Willie James Jennings, Associate Dean of Academic Programs, Research Professor of Systematic Theology and Black Church Studies, The Divinity School, Duke University Mark Baker's 'Religious No More' is a sheer delight. Approachable, easy to read . . . passionately showing us a vision of what the church can be, it is a refreshing sight indeed. Kevin Taylor, Fair Haven United Methodist Church, Houston TX in """"Perspectives in Religious Studies"""""

This is biblical theology at its best: timely, integrative, liberating. Richard B. Hays, Professor of New Testament, The Divinity School, Duke University Potent for both its prophetic challenge and its pastoral encouragement toward the transformation of evangelical faith and life. Do we have ears to hear? Joel B. Green, Associate Dean of the School of Theology and Professor of New Testament, Asbury Theological Seminary Baker's powerful book explores the complex dynamic between the apostolic message in its original setting, the community that hears and reads it in scriptural form and the evangelist or preacher who interprets it by word and deed in the present situation. This is no abstract study in hermeneutical theory but rather an engaging instance of a living encounter with the divine Word in all its concreteness. Geoffrey Wainwright, Cushman Professor of Christian Theology, Duke University One of the first significant steps to build on and weave together liberation concerns, serious biblical exploration, and evangelical theology. Baker has written a book that will become seminal for . . . scholars interested in contextual, biblical, and theological studies. Willie James Jennings, Associate Dean of Academic Programs, Research Professor of Systematic Theology and Black Church Studies, The Divinity School, Duke University Mark Baker's 'Religious No More' is a sheer delight. Approachable, easy to read . . . passionately showing us a vision of what the church can be, it is a refreshing sight indeed. Kevin Taylor, Fair Haven United Methodist Church, Houston TX in Perspectives in Religious Studies

Author Information

Mark D. Baker (Ph.D. in theology and ethics, Duke University) is associate professor of mission and theology at Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary in Fresno, California. He was a missionary in Honduras for ten years and has written 'Dios de ira o Dios de amor?' and (with Joel B. Green) 'Recovering the Scandal of the Cross: Atonement in New Testament and Contemporary Contexts'.

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