To quote the author in the beginning of his book, “Jesus says he came to help not those who think they’ve got it all together, but the rest of us who know we don’t. That’s good news. And if we really want to understand how his subversive spirituality gets worked out in the real world, Jesus tells us where to go and look. To the religious leaders who repeatedly misunderstood, misinterpreted, and misapplied their own Scriptures, Jesus gave them the key to see it differently: Go and learn what this means, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” If you want to understand my subversive spirituality, says Jesus, go back into the Bible and focus on figuring out the meaning of this one verse, the verse Jesus quotes as part of his answer: Hosea 6:6.
And towards the end of the book, the author writes “The final chapters of the Bible describe where God is leading the world—back to the garden, to a world where religious rituals and institutions are noticeably absent.”
And this is the just of this book. Proving that it’s not about religious perception and practices that count, it’s the relationship between God and His people.
I received an advance copy of this book through #Netgalley, but my review is of my own volition.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this title

Bruxy Cavey's The End of Religion feels like the book I needed 10 years ago when I was still in the middle of figuring out where I stood on faith. I was a little burnt out on "church" and the on-campus ministry felt a little more conservative than I wanted, but I didn't know where else to turn. In the ensuing decade, I've tried a few churches and landed on one that has a similar sola-Jesus approach that feels like the right fit, but if I was starting my search now, something like this book would put me in the right direction. It's funny, isn't afraid to make multiple Monty Python references in its aim to show you how we can move past "religion" into a relationship with Jesus, and has a bunch of great, quotable nuggets on faith.

“Between the opening and ending chapters of the Bible, a subplot unfolds of how poorly people have responded to the rules and routines of religion. Yet, ultimately, every page of the Bible points toward or reflects back on the coming of Jesus, the one who intends to put an end to religion and to point a way back to the ideal of the garden.”

Above is the premise of this book. This was a Christian book with a somewhat deceptive title. The end of what religion? Only a subset Christian legalistic view of the church and teaching of Jesus.

The writing style is very casual and I was really hoping for an academic read.

I didn't hate this book. But I also didn't love it. While the writing style was very "friendly", it also felt very repetitive to me. I connected with the author online and he's very kind, but his book is very much like his Instagram posts compiled into literary format. I understand the point of this book, but I don't think it's converting any people to an unlabeled Christianity, and I also don't think it's going to get any Christians to drop the label. It's a little too preachy for me to consider it a neutral spiritual text.
Thank you to Netgalley for the book.

I debated for a long time over whether to start or end with my criticism and finally decided I'd do both.

Likes: Bruxy Cavey is passionate about wanting people to catch a fire-breathing dragon of a relationship with Jesus. He's also a great communicator.

Dislikes: The title and every reference in the book towards it. It should have been the end of (legalistic or idolatrous) religion. The argument is draining at best and condescending at the worst. Lastly, the rhetoric of religion he tries to redeem near the end of the book falls flat because of constant hammering. I know religion gets a bad wrap but if the practices you are describing look and quack like a duck of religion.... then it's a religion.

Putting it together: I get where he's heading and coming from. I'm of like mind and Cavey has some exquisite gems. One part in particular is the way we've been idolatrous and legalistic to our religious denomination to the point of strangling the gospel from those that desperately need to hear and see it lived out today. One need not look further than the way the so-called "orthodox" Methodist Christians have decimated The United Methodist Church. They spent several years creating district and dissension to win the fight for a more legalistic and constraining representation and then when their side won at General Conference decided it wasn't enough.

Recommended for anyone wanting to break away from the legalistic and idolatrous hold your denomination may or may not have on you and for anyone stuck in a tribal religious stronghold.

**This was a review copy provided of the updated version by NetGalley for an honest review**

This was well written and interesting to read. However, it is written by a pastor who works for a church. I expected thoughts on what Christianity might look like as churches decline. This book had some interesting ideas and essays about the teaching of Jesus, but it didn't really have anything new to offer.

Bruxy Cavey’s “The End of Religion” is a book I wish I had when I was encountering the disorienting faith shift of leaving my fundamentalist roots. With a compassionate pastoral heart, keen mind, and a firm grasp of the scriptures, Bruxy brilliantly paves a way forward toward a more honest, biblically sound, and radically Christlike way of being in the world. I highly recommend this book!