I initially gravitated towards "What Are Christians For?" (WACF) because I had seen the author on twitter and a lot of his thoughts intrigued me. With all of the political conversations coming from a post-Donald Trump world, I was looking forward to seeing what a whole life/pro life perspective that was anti racist would look like, as someone always wanting to learn.

In WACF, Meador looks at various points in Christian history and discusses perspectives informed by natural law (governing ourselves through a philosophy informed by nature) and historic views from the Christian faith. This gives Meador the ability to give an alternative view of how we are to live than what is typically seen through the binary thinking of American politics.

While WACF was well written and insightful, there's a couple things that could have made it a bit better. I know authors often don't have the ability to pick their title, but it is worth mentioning that the question of what Christians are for is never really answered in the book. I know the question could be asked multiple different ways (what Christians stand for vs what the purpose of being a Christian is). The description of the book also mentions a perspective rooted in historic Protestant confessions; however, the confessions were barely referenced in the book (though there was mention of a few of the Reformers, most substantially Martin Bucer, a favorite of mine). Sadly, there was even fewer references to scripture as informing Meador's perspective, despite the fact that I know scripture could be used to support many of Meador's positions.

Additionally, this book is really only suited for current Christians or people who are already informed towards some of the controversies permeating the church today. While Meador makes it clear that he is not interested in discussing the culture wars and he does go heavier on history than theology, if you don't already have some level of familiarity towards what he's writing about, it could be easy to get lost in the shuffle.

That said, I do think that Meador brings up valid criticisms and concerns throughout the book, yet I do disagree with many of his proposed solutions. I think WACF is still a worthwhile read if you are open minded towards different perspectives and would like to learn from a different point of view.

Thank you to NetGalley and IVP for gifting a digital copy in exchange for this review!

Deeply challenging, thought provoking and a prophetic rallying cry to the kind of radical Christian living which should be the basic standard of Christians anyway. This book is worth getting for the Introduction alone. Recommended.

In a self-driven, self-seeking, and self-centered world, it is common to ask questions about one's identity, purpose, and significance. Who am I? What am I called to do? What is my purpose in life? These are all familiar questions about the self. What if we take some time to think about our role in the community we are in? What if we take it even further to think about our role as believers in Christ? What if more of us recognize that the individual is incomplete without the whole body of believers? What if we begin not with the self in mind, but with the people, the very people that God has called us to love and to be a part of? That changes everything. In a powerful reminder of how interdependent we truly are, author Jake Meador shares with us the simple but powerful effects of simply being faithful to our calling no matter where we are. Called the "whole life approach," Meador draws our attention to the need for believers to be active in social justice and everyday spirituality. Like how Father Ted played his part in supporting the persecuted during the apartheid in South Africa, or how Frederick Douglass helped battle slavery in the 19th Century. Why are not more people stepping up to do the good that they ought to do? Why are we not seeing more of such radical practices in our modern world? Why are we increasingly disenfranchised with society, with political divisions, and isolated? Meador uses the title of the book as a veiled challenge to all Christians to do something about authentic discipleship. This book is a guide to help us understand the reasons why we fail to live up to the expectations of our callings; to remind us once again of our need for interdependency, and the courage we need to step up.

Meador points out several reasons for our failure to live out our calling. He says that many believers have been so conditioned to "wealth, comfort, and prejudice" that they have neglected the practice of Christian discipleship. This has lulled them into a false sense of satisfaction which prevents them from seeing outside the box. They have forgotten the great inheritance that we had from God. They are also constantly on a crusade to cut all forms of apron strings, such as debt-free living. This popular notion believes that debt is bad and the goal is to get out of debt. The trouble is, when we are truly living debt-free, we unwittingly cut off the formal relationships that form the basis of interdependency. This desire to uproot ourselves from anything that binds us also gives us a new problem: loss of identity and eventually a loss of faith in humankind and in God. That is not all. He urges us not to fall into either of the two extremes: Neither the overly simplistic accusations that society has declined nor the "over-optimistic theories of cultural progression." Instead, he argues for the position of relational integration, to connect with one another. That means the technologies we use should be used with interdependence in mind. That is not all. He observes that the root of the sexual revolution is not about feminism or discrimination. It is a reaction against the historical separation of the sexes and the stigmatization of sexual roles in various places. It is also a result of Industrialization. Even the deprivation of our natural sense of wonder has become a factor behind our disenfranchisement. Humanity has exiled people from one another under false presumptions.

Thankfully, the author does not leave us hanging on the segregated pieces of analysis. He calls for a new beginning of what he calls a "Christian social doctrine." It is about re-establishing a sense of belonging. He describes this using the Christian hospitality lived out by the L'Abri organization. In fact, this organization opens its doors not only to familiar people but also to strangers, as long as they too are willing to accept the rules of the community. He discusses some approaches in our society and political circles: "defensive against," "relevance to," "purity from," and "faithful presence" before urging us to consider adopting the latter.

My Thoughts
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Meador covers a lot of ground in this book about the need for co-existence and interdependence. I wonder about what was the trigger for this book. Is it the political divisions happening in North America these days? Is it a lament on how few role models we see nowadays of radical Christian discipleship? Is it some cultural critique to show us how we arrive at the mess we are in? Or maybe it is a desire to shine a path for us to adopt so that we can practice a faithful presence wherever we are? It is fair to say that it is a combination of all, and especially the last aspect. All of these are attempts to answer the very question he poses as the book title: What are Christians for? Let me summarize three general thrusts? First, it is a wake-up call to our normative mode of living. Learn to question our commonly accepted presumptions. His example of our never-ending quest to reach a debt-free lifestyle is worth pondering. This is food for thought in a world that seems to assume negativity on all kinds of debt. The truth is, we are all in debt. Most of us owe our parents a great amount of debt, for how they freely brought us up. Gradually, Meador shows us that we are all indebted to God. Thus, we should not see the liberation from debt as our final landing pad. We need to challenge philosophies like this and critique our normally accepted practices. Second, Meador shows us that if we fail to change, we lose more than we gain. Like the politics that have divided the Christian community. On the one hand, everyone agrees on the path of peacemaking. On the other hand, they cannot tolerate dissent or alternative viewpoints. The political scene is one big problem altogether. Even the separation of Church and politics could be overplayed into some form of abandonment of political activity altogether. We need a constructive way to think of these matters and learning to live faithfully in spite of these differences is a key motif. Finally, I appreciate the vision of hope. We need to learn to see one another as neighbors that God loves rather than enemies that our human instincts hate. Recognizing the roots of our separation is important so that we could mend our broken fabrics and restore relationships. This calls for community involvement, not just individual. It calls for a greater sense of interdependence rather than isolated independence. Whether it is a place, a vocation, a position, or opportunity to reach out to a human neighbour, our true identity cannot be found alone. We need people. We need to bring back community life. We need to learn the rules of engagement and actively engage. Make room for people. Carve out time for one another. Care to belong by starting to belong to a community of care.

This book is an excellent call to action. It is a challenge to remember what Christianity is all about.

Jake Meador is the editor in chief of Mere Orthodoxy, an online magazine covering the Christian faith in the public sphere, and a contributing editor with Plough. His first book was In Search of the Common Good: Christian Fidelity in a Fractured World. Jake's work has been published in First Things, National Review, Books and Culture, Commonweal, Christianity Today, Front Porch Republic, and the University Bookman. He lives with his wife and children in his hometown of Lincoln, Nebraska.

Rating: 4.5 stars of 5.

conrade
This book has been provided courtesy of InterVarsity Press and NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

What Are Christians For?
Life Together at the End of the World
by Jake Meador
Pub Date 22 Feb 2022
InterVarsity Press, IVP
You Are Auto-Approved
Christian | Nonfiction (Adult) | Religion & Spirituality


I am reviewing a copy of What Are Christians For through InterVarsity Press and Netgalley:


In What Are Christians For, it is asked What a Christian political witness look like in our day? It is pointed out that politics should be defined by by fidelity to the common good of all the members of society. But our modern Western politics are defined by a determination to bend the natural world and human life to its own political and economic ends. The Wholesale rejection of the natural order is behind the dominant revolutions in our history, and defines our experience in Western society today—our racialized hierarchy, modern industry, and the sexual revolution. In What Are Christians For?


In this book Jake Meador lays out a proposal for a Christian politics rooted in the givenness and goodness of the created world. He is uninterested in the cultural wars that have so often characterized American Christianity. Instead he casts a vision for an ordered society that rejects the late modern revolution at every turn and is rooted in the natural law tradition and the great Protestant confessions. Here is a political approach that is antiracist, anticapitalist, and profoundly pro-life. A truly Christian political witness, Meador argues, must attend closely to the natural world and renounce the metallic fantasies that have poisoned common life in America life for too long.



I give What Are Christians For five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

I enjoyed this book because of it's writing style, unique topic, and the fact that it really provided a thought-provoking experience. Recommended for readers who want to read slowly so as to take time to process.

Jake Meador has shown in the past that he can take a big topic that concerns everyone, then break it down and describe the problem and solution in sensible terms. No cheap emotional pleas, no casting blame without substantiating his claims. He does that again here, and it's through-provoking while also being deeply refreshing.

At times I struggled to follow along, not sure how what I was reading fit in with the larger narrative. Nevertheless, Jake Meador writes an encouraging, broad call for Christians participate in thoughtful, political engagement rooted in the idea of it being an out working of God’s love for his creation.