By Rebecca McLaughlin
If you have questions about the Christian faith or objections to the Christian faith, read Rebecca McLaughlin's Confronting Christianity: 12 Hard Questions for the World's Largest Religion. You will find honesty, depth, dialog, and answers- very compelling answers.
I would say, "McLaughlin goes toe-to-toe with Sam Harris and Stephen Hawking," but this is much less a debate and much more a conversation, and a delightful conversation at that. McLaughlin writes so well. This work is deep, clear, succinct, and convincing.
Read this book. It's obvious that these pages are not tossed from the ivory tower. They are born of deep friendships and hard conversations. The author has many friends who differ with her and have no problem questioning her beliefs:
What about science, suffering, and sexuality? What about the Crusades? How can you say there is one truth faith? How can you take the Bible literally? Does the Bible justify slavery? How could a loving God send people to hell? (p. 14)
As she notes, "If you resonate with these questions, this book is for you. . . . The book aims to look closely at important questions through the lenses these friends have given me, and to share that experience with you" (p. 14).
One of the things I appreciate about Confronting Christianity, is the way McLaughlin plays defense and offense. She answers objections, but she also exposes the flaws in the charges as well as the reason and consistency in Christianity. For example, in chapter two, "Doesn't Christianity Crush Diversity," the author pushes back on the charge that Christianity crushes diversity:
Many cultural artifacts produced in the West--paintings, plays, poems, and palaces--are infused with Christian ideas. But while Christianity held a monopoly on Western culture, Western culture never held a monopoly on Christianity. Indeed, calling Christianity "Western" is like calling literacy "Western." Western culture has undoubtedly been shaped by literacy, and Westerners have sought to impose literacy on others -- often to the detriment of traditional living. But there are at least three reasons why no one in his or her right mind would claim that literacy is innately Western: first, literacy did not originate in the West; second, most literate people today are not Westerners; and third, it is frankly offensive to the majority world to suggest that they are literate only by appropriation. The same reasons make the claim that Christianity is a Western religion indefensible. What's more, the Bible itself rejects that claim (p. 34).
There is much to appreciate in Confronting Christianity, including ways McLaughlin urges Christians to move beyond shallow thinking about Christianity. I appreciate the way she challenges Christians to rethink suffering; specifically, that God's blessing is to be free from it. She is not arguing we should stay under that suffocating hold, but she is pushing believers to see God as more than a cosmic vending machine delivering a pain-free life. Perhaps we want comfort more than God, when the answer to suffering is not comfort, but God in whom we ultimately find it (p. 202).
Here are five reason I would read this book:
1. Relational: McLaughlin obviously has many loving relationships with people whose beliefs differ greatly from hers. It feels like a "relational polemic."
2. Reasonable:The author delivers thoughtful, theological, practical, philosophical answers and not simplistic knee-jerk responses
3. Sharable:This is a book I will give to friends who struggle with the beliefs I hold. They are going to encounter an approachable author, able to dialogue at a deep level.
4. Substantial:McLaughlin is well-read. She will point you to great thinkers on both sides of an argument. I am adding a few books to my reading queue after reading hers.
5.Foundational:Confronting Christianityultimately points the reader to Christ, "in whom all things hold together" (Colossians 1:17). Read her book and you will get a little glimpse of why Paul describes the all-sufficient Christ as he does to the Colossians.
The entire book is a must read, but highlights for me were:
Chapter 8, "Doesn’t Christianity Denigrate Women?"
Chapter 9, “Isn’t Christianity Homophobic?”
Chapter 11, “How Could a Loving God Allow So Much Suffering?"
Chapter 12, “How Could a Loving God Send People to Hell?"
Rebecca McLaughlin's is receiving solid review for Confronting Christianity. Now I know why.