Customer Reviews

The Jesus Machine: How James Dobson, Focus on the Family, and Evangelical America Are Winning the Culture War

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This book is packed with information about how politics and religion intersect in today's politics. The unusual thing about the Jesus Machine is that Gilgoff doesn't seem to lean one way or the other. It seems like folks on both sides trust him and talk. That's cool. And it will be fun to watch what happens in the '08 elections now that I feel like I know so much more inside stuff.

First let it be said that this book is not a criticism of Dr. Dobson, Focus on the Family, or Evangelical Christians. This book is an account of how Focus on the Family and Dr. Dobson have grown over the years.
Dan Gilgoff offers insight to how the Movement has grown and changed from its origins, as well as Dobson's roots and how Dobson's radio broadcasts can influnce the American voter as it did in the last direction.
Gilgoff has written a non partisan book which can be enjoyed by followers and adversaries.

Great read for all followers of (or those interested in) Dobson and Focus on the Family, as well as Evangelicals (to learn more about Dobson) and anyone who is into politics (might be a good read for a poly sci class or perhaps a modern religions course)

If you barely recognize the America we're living in and want to know how we got here, this book is revelatory. Gilgoff calmly and dispassionately explicates the rise to power of the religious right. The Moral Majority, the Christian Coalition, Focus on the Family are the showy vehicles--there's a whole lot more beneath the hood. Gilgoff has meticulously researched how congregations, pastors, think tanks, lobbiests, GOP operatives have combined into an awesomely effective political machine. This is the definitive how-done manual. And it's a great read too.

I am so glad I read this book. It is difficult for someone like me who believes that the intersection of religion and government is dangerous to the liberties I believe our country was founded on to understand why this movement acts in the way it does. This book helped me to see where they are coming from, without the divisive rhetoric that pervades most discussions of this topic.

I still found the evangelical vision for America a frightening one, and one I do not support, but a little knowledge about the movement helps remind me that these are human beings with deeply held beliefs, however frightening I may find them.

Before reading this book, I expected that it would inevitably take sides on what has proven to be one of the most controversial issues in politics. I am pleased to report, however, that Gilgoff does an excellent job of keeping his own views and opinions (whatever they may be) out of the book, and instead relies on the facts he collected during extensive researching and interviewing. In addition, the book reads very well and flows smoothly; not at all like a textbook. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to learn more about the influence of religion in today's politics.

I grew up in a family that listened to Dobson's radio program religiously, almost from the day it began. My parents read his child-rearing books and my first education in adolescence was courtesy his book on the topic. So as an adult I am intrigued by this man who shaped much of my upbringing. This book does the necessary job of acquainting the public with this influential person.

I read this book as a "recovering Christian" who didn't particularly enjoy (to put it mildly) being raised by Dobson's philosophies. I picked it up expecting it to fan the flames of my displeasure, but surprisingly and refreshingly it didn't. It explained in a very even-handed way who Dobson is, how he got to where he is today, and described in great detail the quiet influence he's had on American life. The knowledge seems essential whether you are a conservative Christian follower, or a Liberal thinker.

No matter which side of the fence you're reading this book from, I think it does a fair and honest job of revealing Dobson, like him or loathe him. It lets the reader form their own opinion, and personally, I realized I kinda do like the guy... After all, who can resist the kind grandfatherly voice that's won over middle America?

This is a remarkably even-handed account of the political rise of certain factions within the evangelical Christian community. Although James Dobson's name is front and center, it's not simply about him or Focus on the Family, although there's enough information about them to make your head spin. Paul Weyrich, the Christian Coalition, the Family Research Council and the Arlington Group are all major players.

I tend to agree most with Genevieve Wood, who as she leaves the Arlington Group, claims there's too much fire and brimstone amidst the more politically motivated and not enough grace and mercy. And perhaps even more telling is that despite the even-handedness of the book, James Dobson STILL manages to come off as a mean-spirited, petulant bully...or, when he doesn't get his way, a petulant baby.

This book clearly explains the growth of Dobson's influence and its relation to other evangelicals. In the end, it points out the current challenge to his focus on only two issues.

I am fascinated with the intersection of religion and politics, having grown up in a fundamental (they no longer use because of the connotation, now they use evangelical) Christian home. The book fairly represents my own interactions with family members. This book is a great look inside the keyhole of the fundamental Christian culture.

Readers who pick up this book based on its provocative title are likely to be disappointed. It literally is a book about "how" evangelicals are winning, and definitely not a book about "why" they are winning. Gilgoff does an excellent job of talking about how the Evangelicals have grown and expanded, but doesn't provide very much analysis on how they were able to accomplish this beyond surface issues.

The book does not address the core question of whether this expansion is appropriate, nor does it really delve into the history of religion and politics in America. The book begins, essentially, by suggesting that before the modern evangelical movement, there was no serious or organized religious-political force in America, which is somewhat historically oblivious, particularly because Evangelicals themselves assert that religion has been a prominant aspect of our society since the beginning.

I would not say this is even a neutral book, because the net-effect of the book is simply to offer flattery and praise on the expansion of evangelicals because it doesn't touch any of the sensitive issues along the way.

All in all, I would not suggest that people read this book if they are looking for analysis on the subject of evangelicals in America, unless they are looking for a broad, decontextualized survery of the topic.