07/29/2024
The Christian church has so thoroughly enmeshed itself in American politics and culture that it risks losing its “distinct personality,” according to this forceful debut from pastor Bezner. Since its founding, Christianity has deviated from the status quo, Bezner writes, noting that Jesus had women disciplines and embraced disabled people and other marginalized groups. But the rise of Christian nationalism has seen the church and some of its members adopting a “self-serving” ethos that directly contradicts the religion’s focus on “the public good,” according to Bezner. He urges readers to reclaim the “kingdom values” Jesus espoused: caring for the poor, forgiving enemies, and serving the community rather than its rulers—for example, by advocating “for those who may have less of a voice... within the corridors of power.” Things get trickier, he acknowledges, with a two-party system in which “kingdom values” won’t necessarily align with a single candidate, but Christians can “study the available candidates and their stances on major issues, pray, and then follow the leading of the Spirit.” Bezner constructs a robust theology that seamlessly links biblical principles with lucid discussions of today’s politics and interrogates the role of power and morality in the public sphere. It’s an invigorating look at the current state of the American church and what might be done to move it forward. (Oct.)
