Deborah Jian Lee

If you read one book this year about the future of Christianity, then choose this book. Five hundred years ago the Protestant Reformation claimed the Bible as the authoritative guide for Christian living ("Sola Scriptura " Only Scripture ). In this groundbreaking work, Emily Swan and Ken Wilson claim the authority of the church is shifting back to where it should be: in Jesus (Solus Jesus ). As co-founders of Blue Ocean Faith, Swan and Wilson are pioneering what it means to be post-evangelical--post-Protestant, even--in a time when such re-imagining is desperately needed.Solus Jesus not only grapples with the authority question in Christianity, but also provides a massive re-think of traditional atonement theories. Leaning on the work of Ren Girard, they conclude that the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus together reveal a completely good, non-violent God who is on the side of the oppressed and scapegoated of this world. As a work of queer theology, the book is intersectional in its understanding of justice, and invites readers to reconsider our understanding of what it means to follow Jesus.This book is timely, to say the least. For Christians looking for guidance on how to address distressing issues of injustice; for help understanding how they can faithfully follow Jesus and love their neighbors as themselves; and for practices for how to experience the living Jesus and his Spirit of love--Solus Jesus is the book for you."Born in a cauldron of faith and pain, Solus Jesus: A Theology of Resistance is a highly original, deeply provocative first stab at a post-evangelical, post-'gay debate' pastoral theology," writes David P. Gushee, author of Changing Our Mind and Director of the Center for Theology and Public Life at Mercer University. "Drawing from personal experience and those who have long carved out theologies far from power, Swan and Wilson show how Solus Jesus can open a portal to the divine communion that is possible between all people," writes Deborah Jian Lee, author of Rescuing Jesus: How People of Color, Women and Queer Christians are Reclaiming Evangelicalism."Ken and Emily's book is loving and courageous, compelling and convicting, scholarly and personal all at once. ... This book held up a mirror to my heart, asking me to forsake my anxious need for certainty, to repent of all the rivalries that cripple me, and to rest again like a child, at the breast of a God in whose fierce and fearless love there is home for us all," writes the Rev. Susan K. Bock of Grace Episcopal Church in Mount Clemens, Michigan."Solus Jesus challenges us to see the authoritative Jesus in a fresh light, so that his life, message, death, and rising summon us to live in a new way as individuals and congregations," writes Brian D. McLaren, author of The Great Spiritual Migration."Around the world, tension and conflict are signaling a shift in our socio-political conditions. To remain relevant, Christianity must have a response to this moment. Grounding themselves in their lived experience, Ken and Emily are leaning into the conversation and offering a powerful response to the travails of our time. A must-read for Christians looking to discern where the Spirit is leading us in the 21st Century," writes Rev. Mariama White-Hammond, AME Church Planter, Boston.

An inside look at the young, diverse, progressive Christians who are transforming the evangelical movement Deborah Jian Lee left the evangelical world because she was frustrated by its conservative politics. But over the years she stayed close to those in the movement, and she has come to realize that evangelical culture and politics are changing, and changing fast. Friends had stopped voting based on wedge issues. Believers of color were changing church demographics and political interests. Women were rising in the ranks despite familiar sermons about female submission. LGBTQ Christians were coming out, staying in the church, and leading ministries. What Lee came to find is that most of what we think we know about evangelicals is wrong, or is well on its way to becoming dated. In "Rescuing Jesus," she ventures into the world of progressive evangelicalism and tells the stories of the young women and men at the forefront of a movement that could change both the face and the substance of religion in the United States. Generational changes and the shifting racial make-up of evangelicals are transforming the movement and pushing it in a more progressive direction. A young and diverse array of people on this leading edge of progressive evangelicalism LGBTQ and straight; white, black, Asian, Hispanic, and indigenous are working to wrest political power away from conservatives. Today s young evangelicals are more likely than their elders to accept same-sex marriage, more inclined to think of pro-life issues as being about supporting society s disenfranchised, and more accepting of equality between men and women. With empathy, journalistic rigor, and powerful storytelling, Lee unpacks the diverse and complex strands of this movement and what it means for the rest of us. Given the clout that evangelicals still hold in national politics, Lee argues, this movement is important not only for the future of evangelicalism but also for the future of our country. "From the Hardcover edition.""

An inside look at the young, diverse, progressive Christians who are transforming the evangelical movement Most of what we think we know about evangelicals is wrong, or is well on its way to being outdated. Generational changes and the shifting racial make-up of evangelical Christians are changing what we think of as evangelical culture and politics. Today s young evangelicals are more likely than their elders to accept same-sex marriage, more inclined to think of pro-life issues as being about support for the poor, and more accepting of equality between men and women. Those on the leading edge of progressive evangelicalism white, black, Asian, and Hispanic, as well as straight and LGBTQ, believers are working to change the substance of evangelicalism and to wrest power away from conservative Christians. In"Rescuing Jesus," Deborah Jian Lee, a journalist and former evangelical, brings readers deep inside this progressive movement and tells the stories of the young women and men at the forefront of it. Given the clout that conservative evangelicals still hold in national politics, Lee argues, this movement is important not only for the future of evangelicalism but for the future of our country."