The Future of Faith in American Politics: The Public Witness of the Evangelical Center

I really like this book--and I really like the man who wrote the book!! Notably absent, however, is attention to gender in the political landscape. That's likely less Gushee's fault than the gifted women who don't step forward because there are few women LEADING evangelical organizations and Gushee only concentrates on key organizations. However, it is a notable absence that the only two women discussed in the entire "landscape" are from Concerned Women for America and Eagle Forum and both are grouped together (besides a passing reference to Vera Mae Perkins as he discusses her husband, John). Gushee said women were involved in the Left and Center, but that's it--no mentions of real names or real people or lengthy descriptions of their work (in a book that had 100+ pages of bibliography, index, and appendices). It's a notable silence--which evangelical women should seek to fill. It's also one that Gushee should acknowledge and then perhaps mention some key women in the left and center that he's worked with (and he has) who are involved, even if not heading political groups or at least truly acknowledge the absence of women's presence in his landscape, instead of just saying "they're involved at CCCU" or wherever--For example, he could have mentioned the four women he works with at the New Evangelical Partnership for the Common Good or others that worked on projects/resolutions with him or someone like Marian Wright Edelman who has worked with Ron Sider on projects and closely linked to Hilary Rodham Clinton. He attempted to do this with black/Latino evangelicals at least, although self-acknowledging his own lack of knowledge at times. I think this is particularly important since a large number of evangelical voters are women (even if their leaders are men). He does extensively quote female scholars in the second half of the book, so it isn't as if he doesn't value women. He just doesn't acknowledge or explain their absence, for the most part, in this one particular book. Other than that, it's a great book--although if you are a Gushee fan, you're probably going to already be familiar with much of the last half of the book. The forthright discussion on homosexuality was much needed, and the previous reviewer is correct that one of Gushee's strengths is his attention to children.

What comes to mind when you think of the relationship between evangelicals and American politics? Fervent opposition to abortion and gay marriage? The convolution of God and Country? Culture wars and single-issue litmus tests? Whatever the prevailing image, it can probably be characterized more by partisan reaction than carefully nuanced, non-partisan reflection. Piggybacking on the groundswell of opposition to George W. Bush's policies on issues like torture, climate change and the Iraq War, numerous books in recent years have critiqued the strong ties between evangelical Christianity and the Republican Party. Among the most influential of these bestsellers has been God's Politics by Jim Wallis, which captured this wave of frustration and energized a younger generation of Christians (myself included) to pursue social justice and fight global poverty. Wallis has often proclaimed the decline of hard-line social conservatism with phrases like, "the monologue of the Religious Right is over." But with 74% of evangelicals voting for John McCain in 2008, is American Christianity really shifting from right to left or is something more subtle and less reactionary taking place? Evangelical scholar David Gushee, Distinguished University Professor of Christian Ethics at Mercer University, argues for the latter in The Future of Faith in American Politics: The Public Witness of the Evangelical Center (Baylor Press, 2008). He begins with a thoughtful and dispassionate survey of the political spectrum within evangelicalism: right, left and center. With surgical precision and refreshingly independent sensitivity, Gushee dissects and examines the strengths, flaws, key figures and organizations comprising each perspective. Based on his analysis of the evangelical right (including James Dobson of Focus on the Family, Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council and Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention among others) and evangelical left (Wallis, and influential author/speakers Tony Campolo and Brian McLaren), Gushee observes that both camps lack the independence to offer a biblically consistent approach to political engagement. Gushee concludes most evangelicals do not identify with the either partisan extreme. As such, they increasingly seek to think holistically about a broader range of issues, transcending the polarizing dichotomies expressed on cable news and talk radio. While the vast majority of evangelicals still take conservative positions on gay marriage and abortion rights, traditionally "liberal" concerns like reducing poverty, defending human rights, fighting HIV/AIDS, expanding health care access and promoting environmental responsibility have become important factors in the discussion. Pointing to the work of "centrists" like Ron Sider of Evangelicals for Social Action, Gary Haugen of International Justice Mission, Rich Stearns of World Vision and Joel Hunter of Northland Church, Gushee makes a strong case that the moderate middle is the

Dr. David Gushee has made an immense contribution to the world of Evangelical politics with the publication of his most recent book, The Future of Faith in American Politics: The Public Witness of the Evangelical Center. Gushee not only provides an in-depth look at the current Evangelical political spectrum, but he also clearly articulates a vision for an emerging "Evangelical Center," a moderate approach to politics that more fully embraces the whole of biblical counsel, not merely a partisan outlook on political life. In the first half of his work, Gushee details the major players, organizations and worldviews that constitute what he sees as a distinct Evangelical Right, Left and Center. On the Right he chronicles the rise of such influential organizations as Focus on the Family and the American Family Association, among others. Gushee agrees with the way in which the Right is able to speak out on abortion and the sanctity of marriage, but faults them for at times having too narrow of an issue base, and at other times for merely adopting the Republican Party platform wholeheartedly. The Evangelical Left consists mainly of the personalities of Jim Wallis and Tony Campolo and the organizations that they have built around them, but there are many other organizations that embody a liberal approach to politics as well. While the Left, and especially Wallis, tend to view themselves as a mediator between the Secular Left and the Evangelical Right, Gushee rightly points out that most of the ire of those on the Left is directed at the Right. As is to be expected, Gushee praises the Left for being able to widen the agenda of the Evangelical world, especially in the realm of social justice and their reliance on Jesus and His message in the Sermon on the Mount. However, they can fall vulnerable to losing their self-proclaimed prophetic roll when they refuse to speak out on issues that make them feel uncomfortable, most notably homosexuality and abortion. The thrust of Gushee's argument comes in his description and advocacy for the Evangelical Center. He notes the many different venues from which the Center is emerging, the more prominent of which would be the National Association of Evangelicals, Christianity Today, activist Ron Sider, and mega-church pastors such as Rick Warren and Joel Hunter. The hallmark of the Center is their ability to hold to the traditional Evangelical stances on the issues of abortion and protecting marriage, but also being able to include a broader scope of concerns that includes poverty, the environment, torture, and racism just to name a few. Gushee takes a much different approach in the second half of his book, using it to articulate the centrist position on a few key issues, including: torture, the environment, marriage and war. While at times it could be argued that Gushee is approaching the subject with a more leftward leaning stance than centrist, all in all he does a good job of promoting both a biblical argument and

If you only have time to read one book, and you want to get caught up on what's been going on with evangelicals who are politically engaged, then choose this one. It's very easy to read. Though it isn't comprehensive with regard to every issue, it does give a glimpse of the big picture. It's detailed, but not tedious. Descriptive, but not polemical--though Gushee is unambiguous about letting the reader know where he personally stands. In fact, I commend the writer for being forthcoming, revealing his personal history and explaining his involvements that have shaped his point of view. He really doesn't try to pull a fast one on anybody. On the contrary, he encourages evangelicals to become more astute and less naive. On another note, I appreciate how consistent Gushee is in exhorting evangelicals to be more protective of children. Overall, I loved this book. I'm not convinced by all of Gushee's arguments for standing in the center as opposed to the right or left, but I am very grateful for his commentary. Moreover, I agree with his thesis that we, as Christians, are called to follow Christ--and that is very differnt from aligning ourselves uncritically with Republicans or Democrats or any political candidate we might vote for.