I first heard of John Pavlovitz sometime in 2016 when someone recommended him to me as “another pastor speaking out against the evangelical obsession with Trump.” I clicked the like button Facebook and followed him for a bit. And basically, if you’ve followed him on social media, then you’ve got a pretty good idea of the tone, structure, and content of If God is Love, Don’t Be a Jerk.

I have two primary criticisms of the book. First, it’s not really substantive. That’s not to say that Pavlovitz doesn’t engage with deep issues. He does. All the hot-button issues of sexuality, gender identity, abortion, politics, eternal judgment, and more get Pavlovitz’s signature treatment. But it’s all done at a superficial level. The exact same thing he does on Facebook, he does here. You can excuse it on social media for being social media, but the context of publication in book format deserves more depth and nuance.

Pavlovitz is ostensibly writing to his “opposition” on the Christian right, telling them hey, If God is Love, Don’t Be a Jerk. But there’s nowhere in this book where Pavlovitz tries to understand evangelicals. There’s nowhere that he even tries exegeting Scripture or providing solid argumentation for interpretational differences. He just states it blunt “Nope. You’re wrong about the Bible and silly for holding that interpretation.” To be quite honest, Pavlovitz sometimes comes across like a jerk.

Second, he uses language and terminology meant to evoke feeling rather than precision. When I read this book, I shared a quote from it in a fairly progressive pastor’s group that I’m involved with without any of my thoughts so as not to influence first thoughts and it received a fair amount of pushback. Here’s the quote: “God is decidedly nonbinary and that is really good news, because it means that we can discover the character of that God in every human being we encounter without exception.” On the surface, that might resonate with some believers. But there’s a difference between being nonbinary and transcending gender. God isn’t part of the binary because he’s the image of the full spectrum of humanity. It’s an emotionally evocative sentence, but in the end it exploits nonbinary people for the purpose of making an edgy and ultimately not very meaningful statement.

A third more minor point that I might bring up is that Pavlovitz presents himself as an insider critiquing Christianity, particularly evangelicalism. However, it’s important to note that Pavlovitz has stepped outside orthodox belief and currently practices Unitarian Universalism. UU is a unity faith that incorporates elements of most major religions and sees them all as being equally valid. Thus, Pavlovitz has moved outside of the orthodox bounds of faith and his criticisms then, are as an outsider rather than an insider.

In the end, if you’re a fan of Pavlovitz’s writings on social media. This is more of the same repackaged and edited into book form. If you’re looking for something a bit more nuanced or substantial, you’ll find yourself unfortunately disappointed.

If God is love, don’t be a jerk John Pavlovitz, Westminster John Knox Press
As I read this book, I imagined a conversation between the author and Rob Bell, the author of Love Wins.
Rob, I read your book and it really got me thinking. I was thinking I could write about the same topics, but I would make it clearer.
Rob responds, “My book isn’t clear?”
John, “Not really, you dance around the topics of hell and salvation but when I finished reading, I wasn’t sure where you stood. Do you believe everybody goes to heaven or are you just questioning whether a God of love and a place of eternal judgment are compatible?”
Rob challenges him, “If you think you can do a better job, then have at it.”
John takes up the challenge and this book is the result. ( My imagination)
There is no hell. We are all good people. Most evangelicals are white republicans, and they don’t give a damn about anybody else. Also, the Bible would have been written differently if there were some women on the editorial board.
Now, in case you get the impression that I didn’t get anything out of the book. That is not accurate.
I think every Christian should read the first chapter, “You had one job”. (Spoiler alert) We are to love God and love others. That preaches.
As the author states at Kindle location 35 “…I often envision an exasperated Jesus coming back, and the first words out of his mouth to his followers as his feet hit the pavement being, ‘You had one job: Love. So, what happened’.” I wonder the same thing.
I also wonder if lack of love was the impetus for the rest of the book. In other words, would the writer have fled orthodoxy if we all loved our neighbors as commanded?
In calling us to love the author has given away too much ground, even questioning the authority of the very Scripture that gives the command to love.
I agree that many of the messages that are preached and many that I have heard have not oozed love. I have heard it said that Jesus taught more about hell than heaven so we should preach more about hell than heaven. Just simple math. I would counter that with some other statistics—Jesus says more about finances than he does about hell so let’s hear more about our finances and stewardship thereof.
But the solution is not to do away with hell.
I agree with the author’s point that much that is heard from evangelicals demeans or, in some way, does not appreciate the gifts God has given women. However, suggesting this is because the Bible was written by men questions the inspiration of Scripture.
Didn’t God oversee the writing?
The author in another chapter makes a big deal that God is not male and at the same time writes of God’s feminine qualities. So, getting back to the point about the Bible authors foisting their male gender on the words of the Bible it occurred to me that, as the author states, the Hebrew word “ruach” (spirit) is feminine. That being the case can’t we say the feminine was represented on the Bible’s editorial board. If the Spirit didn’t like what was being written, if it were too male, the Spirit of God could have it removed.
Besides the issue just raised Mr. Pavlovitz doesn’t clearly state that the Bible is not superintended or inspired by God but he does take a few digs at the authority of the Bible for today. For example, when speaking of Genesis 1-2 he questions whether this 4000 year old poem is clear enough for us today. If we throw out Gen 1-2 because the chapters are a poem, what can we get from the Psalms that Jesus quoted with authority?
Two other things had me scratching my head, and he may just be exaggerating to make a point, but…. he states that “81% of white evangelicals ended up passionately embracing both him (Donald Trump) and that message (Make America Great Again). As far as I know there no survey has measured the passion or the real reason so many evangelicals supported Trump.
He also writes that the expression, “Love the sinner, hate the sin” was an invention of the Religious Right (location 1072), When did Augustine join the religious right? It appears he was one of the first to say something like that and I heard the expression long before Mr. Pavlovitz was born.
It seemed to me that the author less than humble in claiming he has heard all the arguments against what he has to say and don’t bother me with your concerns. However, when I got to Chapter 17 High Horses and Better Angels the author is clear that we need to hold our opinions without a sense of moral superiority. (Kindle location 2205). That reminds me of a quote from Anne Lamott (I think) “Our opinions may not be right, but we think they are, or we would change them.”
As I read the book I kept asking if the message of the Bible, the good news, spoken in love, and not with the judgmental, hateful timbre often heard, would have kept the author within the boundaries of orthodoxy.
In making a point about the lack of love Mr. Pavlovitz, by his own admission, has stepped over the rather expansive lines of orthodoxy.(Kindle location 508) So what basis does he have for, Love your neighbor as yourself?
I hear what he is saying, and it should affect every message I preach, every word I say and every interaction I have. We have one job, Love.

The odds are fairly strong that you're either a fan of John Pavlovitz or you're not a fan of John Pavlovitz. With Pavlovitz, there's really not much in the way of a middle ground.

Though, I suppose you could say that even among those who identify as more progressive among Christians Pavlovitz is still an acquired taste who can be simultaneously maddening and endearing.

All of these qualities are, of course, on full display in Pavlovitz's latest book "If God Is Love, Don't Be a Jerk: Finding a Faith That Makes Us Better Humans."

Only a few years ago, Pavlovitz was a newly unemployed former megachurch pastor whose blog post that he'd support his children if they were gay went viral. This spiraled into more blog posts, essays, and the now Unitarian pastor has millions of blog readers and over 300,000 followers on Twitter with an approach to Christianity that finds its foundation in the very theme of this book - love should be at the center of our faith. If it's not? We're doing it wrong.

A lot of us are doing it wrong.

Even among Unitarians, Pavlovitz is a bit unusual. The entire Unitarian-Universalist movement, of which I have been a member, leans more toward humanists, atheists, and agnostics than it does those who still lay claim to the Christian identity.

But, I think it's firmly established that John Pavlovitz is unafraid to be different.

Truthfully, I found the first 1/4 of "If God Is Love, Don't Be a Jerk" to be a bit of a mishmash with an uneven tone that far too often crossed the line into rambling lectures that often felt like off the cuff remarks after a beer or two by an angry theologian.

I didn't hate it. Far from it. In fact, I agreed with most of it. I just didn't find it to be a particularly engaging read.

However, something happened at exactly the 26% (Thanks Kindle!) mark. Pavlovitz found his groove and what had previously been rambling exhortations suddenly felt more grounded in humanity and compassionately communicated.

It's not that there's anything wrong with anger, an actual subject within the book, but as Pavlovitz himself would likely note if that anger causes you to be a jerk you're doing it wrong. Early on here, I couldn't escape the feeling that Pavlovitz was coming off like a bit of a jerk.

Then, it went away and the "If God Is Love, Don't Be a Jerk" that followed was engaging, compelling, and a call for Christians to become better humans.

"If God Is Love, Don't Be a Jerk" demands an open-mindedness that is seemingly not that present these days within the Christian community, a willingness to hear differing opinions and a willingness to be called up toward Christ's teachings rather than getting settled into our baser instincts that allow for hatefulness, separation, division, and all those other things Christ never, ever taught.

Pavlovitz imagines a world where Christians live into the basic concept of "Thou Shalt Not Be Horrible" is a basic foundation of faith and where one's living out of Christianity builds people up and creates a sense of belonging rather than tears people down and sows division. Pavlovitz explores such basic concepts as the existence of hell, the utility of prayer, the way people of faith treat people who are LGBTQ, the value of anger, and a myriad of other subjects in "If God Is Love, Don't Be a Jerk." While I at times wished that Pavlovitz would weave into the book's tapestry more theological and scriptural discussions, the truth is that so much of what Pavlovitz writes here is absolutely fundamental within Christianity that it's kind of disturbing that a book even needs to be written about it.

Alas, here we are.

While I struggled early on with "If God Is Love, Don't Be a Jerk," once I got into Pavlovitz's rhythm I found the book to be unapologetically and relentlessly compassionate, purposeful, and aimed squarely toward imagining a faith more like Christ and a whole lot less like Donald Trump and, quite honestly, anyone who would hijack Christianity with a vision toward power rather than people.

An important and timely work, "If God Is Love, Don't Be a Jerk" finds John Pavlovitz at his most passionate and fiery and precise and willing to ask the questions and have the conversations so desperately needed in the Christian church today and amongst those who call themselves Christians.

I started with - when Jesus comes back, he asks..."You had one job: love. So, what happened?"
what would my response be, how have I followed the greatest commandment
These times this world is hungry for love.
Theologically we don't need to match to be more compassionate.

Those of us who struggle should reflect on- those who were w/ Jesus, close enough to touch Him -had disbelief
Stay teachable and you'll be able to stay loving

I am still getting my thoughts together on this book
There is a lot to think about - even on the points that I do not agree w/ author on.

With blogger, author, and pastor Pavlovitz (Hope and Other Superpowers), what you see is what you get. Fans of his Twitter account or his blog Stuff That Needs To Be Said know that he’s a progressive plain talker in his writing, religion, and politics; his latest book is no exception. Pavlovitz identifies dangerous and destructive paths that the United States has taken, particularly in the early 21st century, as the result of the union of the MAGA movement and Evangelical Christianity. Pavlovitz was raised Catholic and now identifies as a Unitarian Universalist, and he points out that by some right-wing standards, neither he nor Jesus is a Christian. With candor, the former megachurch pastor states that we can all do better; he powerfully advocates for a more equitable and loving society and emphasizes that Christians shouldn’t oversimplify or cherry-pick from Scripture in order to justify beliefs. Pavlovitz decries mistreatment of LGBTQ people, immigrants, and other marginalized groups, while exploring the purpose of prayer and the value of anger. The basic tenet of his personal and professional philosophy is “Thou shalt not be horrible.”VERDICT Complete with a discussion guide, this is a sobering yet inspiring discourse for open-minded, thoughtful readers.

I could write a book about why I don't agree with this book, but unfortunately I don't have enough time or space to do that. I was disappointed, because I actually think there are many times when every Christian (including me) acts like a jerk, and needs to be reminded that the great commandment, the one that sums up all the others is: love God and love your neighbor as yourself. However, this author takes a simplistic approach, seeming to believe that there are only two kinds of Christians: those who "love" others by accepting just about any sort of behavior, and those who prefer to "judge" others and consign them to Hell. All of those law-oriented, judgmental Christians also voted for Donald Trump, are racist (even if they don't realize it), dislike immigrants, idolize the United States and believe that God is an old, white man.

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I don't fit into either of Pavlovitz's categories. As a conservative Lutheran, I have always been told that good teaching must include both law and gospel. The law shows us we are all sinners, and the gospel gives us the good news that we can be forgiven. God is loving, but He is also just. It's not an either-or situation, but a balance-- and yes, there are individual Christians and denominations that err on one side or the other.

I believe that the Mr. Pavlovitz has sincerely wrestled with faith questions, and since he states that no proof texts will change his mind, I'm puzzled about how to counter his claims. He does not accept the Bible is the foundation or final authority, but relies on his personal experience of God. Yet, he himself uses the Bible as the starting point for his assertion that we are to love one another. Isn't this a contradiction? As we are made in God's image, the author believes we are basically good. Yet, if we go by experience, my experience is that my default setting is sin, not holiness. In fact, if we are basically good, why do we need to be told not to be jerks?

Another issue I have with this book is the use of profanity. Pavlovitz actually notes and defends such language as being more "authentic" and a way of removing the "mask" most of us wear. I believe that being courteous and avoiding offensive words is part of being loving and setting a good example for others.

The Lutheran Ladies Connection blog received a free e-copy of this book in return for a fair and honest review.

This book covers a lot of specific examples of ways that areas in which Christians can re-examine their biases and the fallacies of clinging tightly to religious traditions. As a Christian who has an on-again, off-again relationship with formal religion, I appreciated the way Pavlovitz addresses many instances in which religious teachings and actions of those who loudly proclaim their devoutness run contrary to the Jesus' essential teachings. Although I liked that different examples were given, reading them sometimes felt repetitive and I would much rather have listened to them in a sermon than read them in a book.

I really loved this book. I've been thinking about my feedback for a few days, because I don't want my personal Christian beliefs, especially where I disagree with the author, to negatively impact my review. The book is very well written. The author is a well-known (in liberal, Christian circles, anyway) pastor who truly believes we need to treat all humans as Jesus would if He were still here in physical form. Each chapter covers a different topic (race, religion, gender, etc.) and offers Scripture references (in footnotes) to support the author's beliefs. I think one mark of an excellent book in this genre is that it changes the reader's behavior, or makes the reader think about something differently. I came to the realization that despite my faith, I definitely acted like a jerk to someone a couple of years ago and need to ask forgiveness from that person. I think anyone who wants to be more like Jesus, or who thinks Christians are judgmental, arrogant, hateful people should read this book to see how we're supposed to act.

This book was my first introduction to John Pavlovitz, and l am beyond impressed. By the time I read the second chapter I was already researching who he was and following him on social media. Not only did John's words resonate with my own beliefs, I was challenged with how I live it out as well.

In this day and age, being a progressive Christian should be something that is more widely known and accepted. Especially if we claim to grasp Jesus' two commandments "1) Love God and 2) Love others" (Mark 12:29-31 MSG). Yet, unfortunately, that is not what is being done, which this past year (2020) has made abundantly clear. Instead of a year of turmoil, racism, death, and isolation bringing out the compassion of those following Christ we were shown more hate, violence, and segregation. People are literally being thrown out on the streets, beaten, and killed just for being different. Although aren't we all supposed to be brothers and sisters? John's book not only makes one question how the world is today, but he compares it to how it was during the biblical times. The parallels he points out are uncanny.

I personally believe that all people no matter their race, sexual orientation, religion, gender, or any way a person identifies themselves should be shown respect, equality, and ultimately love. None the less, I also value others opinions and understand we may not agree. Does that mean you should not read this book? That's up to you, but let me ask you this... do you believe "God is love"? Then, read this book and "Don't be a Jerk".

If God is Love, Don't Be a Jerk is a book on faith unlike any I've read before; Reading this book was enjoyable, not painful as some I've attempted to read. It's like curling up with the only person you can trust to express your honest feelings and thoughts regarding God and your faith. Stripped bare the essence of this book is "Thou Shall Not Be Horrible" a phrase that I have thought to myself often when encountering certain types of Christians.

This book isn't stuffy or scary, nor does it make false promises. One thing that is made very clear from the very first page is this will NOT be quick and easy so if you're looking for something you can just change instantly move right along and keep searching for what does not exist. Ideally you'll read this book instead and realize that while it may not be easy or quick it is the most inspirational relevant and desperately needed call to transformation.

John Pavlovitz writes with soul and it shines though every section of this book. Pavlovitz is humble, honest, and knows the meaning of humility; He bares his uncomfortable and frightening experience of the evolution of his Faith and leaves no room for mistaking his message. With simple sounding prose that flows naturally you'll find yourself nodding "mmhmming" and turning the page after page with no sense of time passing because you needed this book even if you didn't know it.

Before I even finished the book I was recommending it to my family and every friend I was in touch with and they are all excited at the idea of what this book can do for them, for their relationship with God and with themselves and their community. I am confident that they won't be disappointed and neither will you.

Do not ignore the call of this book. Make the time to give it a try and let your soul soar as you're led to a place in your Faith that you've been longing for (likely for quite some time)

Thank you so much to Netgalley and to John Pavlovitz for letting me preview an advance e-copy in exchange for my review. I am a much better person for the opportunity and I am beyond thrilled to have this blessing to pass on to every individual I can.