Something that I have begun thinking about more and more lately is the idea of how much of my view of what being a "Christian" looks like is intertwined tightly with my American culture. I still have a lot of thinking to do, related to this title, but I appreciate that it provoked me to take those thoughts a little further.

This was a hard book for me to read. Not because of the author's writing style, that was fine. It was because of the subject matter. I am a white female evangelical Christian. I was shocked by the honesty of Walton's thoughts and feelings about the United States and its previous and current political leaders. Reading this book may be the closest I'll ever get to understanding the experiences of an Ivy League educated black Christian in America.

One of the lies Walton identifies is saying the United State is a Christian nation. He does a great job of showing that many actions taken by national leaders in the past and now are not “Christian” by any means. He also points out that calling the United States a Christian nation neutralizes the only people actually capable of critiquing the nation – followers of Jesus. (Loc. 451/2867) Christians have exchanged the mantle of truth and justice for the mantle of political power and have compromised their integrity.

And that is only the first lie. Another is identifying the slaves brought here against their will as “immigrants.” (Ben Carson's first address to federal workers, March 6, 2017.) (Loc 471/2867) Other lies he identifies include that we are a great democracy, that we are the land of the free and the brave, that America is the greatest nation on earth, and more.

Walton is not afraid to name irresponsible Christian leaders who have bowed to political power at the expense of their faithfulness to the gospel. He is not afraid to point out where the church has denied the Savior for the gain of worldly power and influence. He calls Christians to task for promoting what he calls white American folk religion, a far cry from true Christianity.

I highly recommend this hard hitting book. I must say I did not understand all of it. Walton's experiences and thoughts are so very different from mine. I did not agree with everything he said. However, I did see the United States through another person's eyes, a valuable experience indeed.

It would be a great book for a group study. Walton has included questions for discussion or personal reflection at the end of each chapter. He also includes a number of exercises for further reflection and action in Appendixes. You must be willing to have your eyes opened to the truth of what has happened and is happening in the United States, seen through the eyes of a black Christian.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

I was really excited to read this book, however I did not realize it would be SO religious.

I anticipated the chapter about America being a Christian nation to have religious key points, and I understand that people write what they know, Walton is obviously a very religious person, so I can appreciate his books having a religious tone.
But I sometimes found myself forgetting the theme of the chapter I was reading, the 'lie' being dissected was getting lost amid the religious connotations. Because of this I found myself struggling through some of the book.

I really enjoyed the personal stories in the book and I found Waltons views on politics and society insightful and enlightened. The religious tie ins did offer another view on many topical situations, but it was just a little overwhelming.