A Jew Among the Evangelicals: A Guide for the Perplexed (Paperback)

~ (Author) "The evangelical Christians I have met over the past ten years in my life and my work, in Florida and throughout the Sunbelt, are quite..." (more)
Key Phrases: evangelical support, white evangelicals, Holy Land, Southern Baptist, New York Times (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. What's a nice Jewish boy doing at a Baptist church on Sunday? This is not the first line of a joke, but the raison d'être of Pinsky's account of American evangelicalism. Pinsky (The Gospel According to the Simpsons) is a reporter for the Orlando Sentinel, and his beat—religion in the Sunbelt—draws him into close contact with evangelical Christians. Here, he examines evangelical pop culture and asks hard questions about evangelicalism's attitudes toward Judaism. But it is Pinsky's treatment of evangelicals in politics that distinguishes his book from countless other journalistic forays into the land of megachurches and Veggie Tales. Pinsky shows that evangelicalism is much more politically diverse than is often acknowledged. To illustrate, Pinsky takes readers to Calvin College, where a furor erupted when President Bush was invited to speak at graduation; many of the faculty and students at this decidedly evangelical school were appalled, and some boycotted commencement rather than give tacit approval of a president they disdained. Pinsky charts a growing evangelical environmental movement and shows that though many people who believe in a literal six-day Creation are evangelicals, many evangelicals do not hold to creationism. Kudos to Pinsky for offering nuanced reporting instead of stereotypes. (Aug.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Product Description

In this insightful and accessible book, religion journalist Mark Pinsky takes the curious reader on a tour of the fascinating world of Sunbelt evangelicalism. Pinsky, religion reporter for the Orlando Sentinel, uses his unique position as a Jew covering evangelical Christianity to help nonevangelicals understand the hopes, fears, and motivations of this growing subculture and breaks down some of the stereotypes that nonevangelicals have of evangelicals.

"I hope you’ll find laughter, perhaps puzzlement, and heartfelt interest in how people just like you wrestle with feelings, values, and beliefs that touch the core of their beings. And I hope you’ll catch a glimpse of someone learning to understand and get along with folks whose convictions differ from his own," Pinsky writes in the introduction.

This book will appeal to Jews, mainline and liberal Christians, and curious blue-staters, as well as evangelicals who want to read an outsider’s perspective on their culture. As the country takes to the polls for midterm congressional elections, this book will shed light on how and why evangelical culture is becoming increasingly entwined in American politics.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press (August 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0664230121
• ISBN-13: 978-0664230128
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: No customer reviews yet. Be the first.
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,150,674 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)