Customer Reviews

Exiles: LIving MIssionally in a Post-Christian Culture

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I understand why some reviewers prefer the first half of the book to the second. And I too wonder whether Michael Frost gets a little too prescriptive in some of his second-half pronouncements.

Here's why I forgive and welcome those pronouncements:

First of all, he's made it clear enough in the earlier pages that we're not to use his opinions and guidelines as a substitute for the work of making our own.

Second, the issues he lists are not "liberal talking points," but concrete examples of applied discipleship. We may very well come to different conclusions, but at least we are watching someone try to say what being an exile means with very concrete examples. We wouldn't disagree (or agree, as I often do) if we didn't have some raw material to work with. For example, I think that his critique of the corporation is valid and worth considering by Christians who are active in the business world. Such Christians might be able to offer a good corrective to Frost's critique, but where else would they have even read such a critique (aka an invitation to dialogue) from an evangelical source?

I think his comments on the exaggerated importance of the weekly gathering, and on the vapidity (to put it charitably) of much praise music goes a little over the top. But I'm a grown-up; I can handle a passionate commentary, agree with some of it and disagree with the rest.

To those who haven't read the book yet: I highly recommend it, in part as a good extended sermon, and in part as a catalog of neglected dimensions of discipleship, some elements of which will resonate with you more than others. (The chapter on environmental stewardship is a more comprehensive summary of the issues involved than I've seen in other evangelical sources.) The "catalog" aspect is argumentative, as others have noted, and somewhat slow going, but every topic is worth considering, even if not all at once. I deeply respect the author's effort to make these real-life dilemmas of authentic discipleship accessible to his readership; the problem isn't what he says, it's how to keep the conversation going, with urgency and affection and honest conflict, beyond the fixed covers of just one book.

I read this book after being involved in an emerging church full of exiles. There's so much I recognise and agree with in this book, which I think accurately portrays the feelings, reasoning, and practical implications of those who are rejecting the current church.

My one criticism of this book is that it seemed to be so angry - not just passionate - and very hard-line. The arguments and experiences need to be heard, but you can't continue to build a church on your anger toward what you define yourself against. I think Mike's disdain for pastoral care of the hurting also assumes that exiles are happy to go from a painful, abusive church to throwing themselves into mission in a victorious, confident experiment, where my experience is that a lot of us want a rest and need to deal with our issues before we inflict our woundedness all over others. I'm not saying we should be the perfect, healed, whole Christian...I'm just aware of how bitter and angry an exile can become.

Michael Frost is a naturally gifted communicator. He is also the Vice Principal at the Baptist College of NSW (Morling College) and there he heads up the Centre for Global Mission and Evangelism. He has written several books before although has come into international prominence through the book he co-authored with Alan Hirsch, The Shaping of Things to Come.

If you are a thoroughly Christianized church going person (who for example enjoys visits to local Christian bookstores), then maybe this book is not for you. (You probably should read it but I don't want to be the one who made you mad or upset or confused) This is a strong book! But it is a truthful book and a necessary book. I can say and mean with confidence that it will either be your kind of book or it won't - there won't be many people in between!

Frost has written it particularly for those who are trying to follow Jesus but find themselves on the margins of the church or for those who simply tried church and eventually gave up - therefore it is written for many, many people! The book is broken into four sections (Dangerous Memories, Dangerous Promises, Dangerous Criticism, & Dangerous Songs).

The first half of the book is particularly brutal on the traditional, solid church at times but then again it isn't written for that wing of God's people. At times I struggled with his inability to find anything good with the form of church I have been in for most of the past 20 or so years (and I could name worthy things that the church has contributed in areas of justice, local charities, community, youth housing, youth work, family counseling, education, theological education, etc) but this is a prophetic book and the argument and experience of many needs to be heard. Anyway, I sense that these comments are more about helping vocalize the real experiences of many then writing off the whole institution! Frost even says that at one point.

Frost's interest lies with those who want to missionally engage with a Post-Christian world rather then a Christendom past. It is a wholesome, intelligent and challenging read. It calls the reader to follow Jesus with authenticity and relevance and is the fruit of many conversations and experiences by the author in this reality.

If you are an exile then this will generally be one of those books that are a bit like `coming home'. If you are in a solid church and happy with it then you will really, really struggle. You will want to throw it across the room or write all over certain pages in parts. But read on and listen to it. This is a wonderful attempt at hermeneutically reading the idea of the missional church through the lens of Post Christian culture. And that is the order that we should do our theology if we are serious about mission. But it will also explain why some of your friends have left church. And if you are a church leader (like me) then read it if for nothing else as a great guide towards pastoral care for those who leave the church and need to be understood and valued.

There can be no question that Michael Frost is a thoughtful guy, a critic with a deep and thoroughgoing desire to live victoriously after the manner of Christ. The first half of the book is a withering but good-natured critique of Christendom, especially its American, evangelical manifestations, which have departed in so many subtle ways from the liminal, exilic calling that Jesus modeled for us. Frost's extended meditation on what God's incarnation in Jesus implies for our mission on earth is passionate, moving, profound and relatively free of facile pap. His argument that the church must aggressively rid itself of unholy alliances with earthly kingdoms -- in the first half of the book, that means governments and quasi-governmental institutions -- is compelling. It is reminiscent of Roxburgh's little jewel on liminality and the church, and it is unfailingly practical.

Unfortunately, Frost apparently finds it impossible to believe that the kinds of exilic values he holds, and that he urges on the rest of us, are compatible with political conservatism, despite mountains of evidence to the contrary that he does not bother to consider or cite. The second half of the book is little more than Frost's grandstanding and rapid-fire recitation of liberal talking points. His finely tuned sensitivity to nuance and paradox in the first half of the book gives way to an incoherent strafing run fueled by contempt for George W. Bush, corporations (Frost inexplicably neglects to observe that corporations are themselves people and could not exist without the personal investments of people -- and especially the publicly held ones that are responsible for a tremendous amount of the wealth that makes global-scale benevolence possible) and the diverse, multifaceted motivations for the current Iraq war. Frost justifiably deplores Western paralysis during many of the recent humanitarian crises across the world (e. g., Rwanda, Sudan, the Balkans) for our failure to stand courageously with the voiceless and downtrodden and oppressed, but then he turns a blind eye to the liberation of thousands of silent children and dissidents imprisoned (to say nothing of the hundreds of thousands wantonly exterminated) under the Hussein regime in Iraq, implicitly and blithely writing them off as unworthy of the very blood Frost rightly wanted us to shed in those other places. These latter chapters are classic paeans to modern, liberal myopia and simplistic, utopian politics, both of which are unworthy of such a thoughtful, engaging author.

In short, the second half of the book disappoints precisely because of the wonderfully high standard he set in the first half: returning to the scandalous person of Jesus and mining His life for direction for the modern, missional church. The second half of the book could have been written to those same standards in a way that relies on hopeful, prophetic discontent with the church he loves; instead, Frost's arguments devolve into a droning recitation of the Soros party line on everything from Wal-Mart's alleged, unmitigated pillaging of small-town America to the irredeemable evils of globalization to the baseless accusation that American political conservatism is raping the environment by refusing to ratify Kyoto -- the political left's environmental Buddha. He wilfully ignores -- or, less credibly, demonstrates his ignorance of -- the market mechanisms that actually benefit the environment, such as cap-and-trade strategies that have actually reduced SO2 emissions, as well as the incredible, ecological devastation wrought on the oil-rich states of Central Asia under the repressive Soviet regimes of the 1900s.

It would seem that Frost wants to have his cake -- eco-credibility for his ecologically responsible stance on energy efficiency -- and eat it, too, betrayed by his theologically grounded emphasis on drinking good, locally made beer (a woefully energy-inefficient manufacturing process if there ever were one). Frost fails to recognize that the very economies of scale that he resents on behalf of his environmental clients actually make possible the investments that large corporations are able to make in environmental protection.

The ironies of his conflicting positions -- what if the long-term, highest and ecologically best use of crude oil and coal is to make the (recyclable!) plastics he deplores instead of the airplane fuel he guzzles as he jets around the world preaching his seductive, social gospel? -- never seem to flower into an enlightening, salutary, cognitive dissonance. And that's too bad. The first half of the book is an inspiring tour de force. And that, by itself, is reason enough for Christians -- even those evil, red-state evangelicals -- to buy the book. Perhaps in his second edition, he will return to his roots and write a second half of _Exiles_ that retains his muscular, prophetic voice without so transparently aping the Michael Moores and Ted Kennedys of the world. Unless he does, he is unfortunately less likely to get a fair hearing by the very souls he ostensibly wants to engage.

qb

Michael challenges some of the very foundations of churchdom - and builds up the concept of having to live our lives out as Christians in the world in which we live. He might offend those who hold the existing church patterns closely, but he will certainly encourage those who want to live as Christ lived.

I agree with another reviewer above. The first half of the book is a delight, until it dissapates into telling me what kind of beer to drink and to avoid Wal-Mart. There is also a slight tone of anti-reformation, emphasizing that it is dangerous to view the gospel through the lens of Paul. Perhaps that's because Paul gave us clearer boundaries for the local church (institution)? I don't know.

Also, noticably absent from the list of many espoused political causes that "exiles" should pursue is protecting the sanctity of life. Abortion, I guess because it lies with the established church ("institutional") side of things, is ignored as an important issue. I guess it's a lot easier (and a lot more popular among the relevant crowd) to have lots in common with Bono's political bent than working on issues across the board, from Darfur to stewarding the environment to challenging the status quo on abortion.

Nonetheless, the prophetic tone of the book lends to a good read, however I think the prior work "The Shaping of Things To Come" is more useful for the average ministry leader.

Michael Frost's strength of character and personality shines through each page of this book. Michael isn't afraid of offending anyone, and he boldly takes on the contemporary church, blog writers, and even some of the finest Christian musicians of our time including Matt Redman and Steve Fee.

Michael is a great story-teller, and the book is full of stories about life on the edge as a beer-drinking crowd-defying follower of Jesus. Most of the stories are effective in calling us back to a truer reflection of the lifestyle of Christ. However, Michael's story-telling style requires him to display extensive details about his subjects, and his ruminations in the fields of economics and corporations could have benefitted from more detailed research.

What Michael has to say is important and deserves to be heard. Nonetheless, in my view it does not present a complete picture, and the critiques which it presents are for the most part more convincing than the tentative suggestions which it makes. If you want some original insights into what is wrong with the church, read the book; if you want to know how to fix the problems, look elsewhere.

I have been a Christian for over 50 years. But for many years I have felt like an outcast by the leadership of the Christian community. I got great comfort from reading this book and connecting with the fact that there are millions of people around the world who are returning to true message of Jesus Christ. Jesus Himself was an "exile" and went to the masses with His message, instead of employing the "come to us" philosphy of the modern day church. Michael Frost does an outstanding job of telling you where the modern church is going wrong and helps you to find the pathway to the missional movement.

Exiles: Living Missionally in a Post-Christian Culture is Michael Frost's critique of the modern Protestant church and examination of how "exiles" live in today's culture and church. Frost commonly uses the term "exiles" to describe people who are unwilling to embrace worldly culture, yet are unable to find a home within the church. Much of the book is a critical assessment of the church, but it also contains much information about how "exiles" should live within the culture. Frost uses the first quarter of the book to establish a foundation for this critique based on the lives of Old Testament exiles and Jesus Christ. Then, Frost talks about church members, encouraging them to live in a "communitas" style life with a righteous work ethic and a continuous focus upon worshipping God. Finally, Frost talks about the failure of culture to live up to proper Christian standards of love and kindness. He encourages Christians to live in a manner that demonstrates God's justice, proper care for the earth, and kindness to those less fortunate.

Exiles accomplishes most of what Frost claims in different portions of the book. His title boasts that the book will teach "exiles" how to be missional in today's church and world culture. And, each chapter paints a poignant picture of what this looks like. One of the best examples of this is in a chapter entitled "Fashioning Collective Exiles" that dedicates itself to explaining how Christians should live in community and fellowship and how the church has, thus far, failed to do so. The chapter articulates an anthropological concept known as communitas, and provides a scriptural, logical, and experiential basis for this concept. Frost explains communitas in terms that are understandable for any reader who has experienced a job, college, a sports team, or even marriage.This is a continual pattern in Frost's book. He critiques the church, but does not leave it hopelessly suffering. Instead, he critiques the church and properly illustrates how "exiles" should remedy the problem. Frost does the same when critiquing today's post-Christian culture.

That said, Frost's book is not immune to error. Chapter 2 contains some of Frost's opinions on the importance of creeds in the early church and Frost takes a somewhat negative perspective. Personally, I respectfully disagree with his conclusion and wonder if Frost has studied the first four hundred years of the church in any detail. Frost fails to articulate how the creeds were necessary to detract people from heresies that were arising in the early church. Acknowledgement of their necessity would have made for a more fair analysis of the subject. In addition, the book does contain scriptural support for some of Frost's arguments, but some of his interpretations are probably erroneous and greatly stretched.

In the end, Frost writes an excellent critique and challenge in Exiles. He utilizes Scripture, logic, and anthropological information to weave a useful plan for an "exile" to do ministry in any situation. Traditionalists and fundamentalists will recoil at Frost's perspectives, especially if typically boring church services begin losing "exile" members. However, perhaps church leaders should embrace Frost's perspectives or at least read Exiles fairly before passing judgement.

If you sometimes feel like the desire and passion to live like Jesus puts you in unusual places doing His work and you wonder if this is "authentic", this is the read for you. I do church every Sunday, but I do more church outside of church (hiking trails, gay bars and events and business networking events) and, not only am I not alone, I am in a group of exiles who worldwide are trying to follow what Jesus would be doing were He here. He is not here in the flesh and expects us to carry on. I am an exile and I felt encouraged and unified by reading this book.