Customer Reviews

The New Tolerance: How a cultural movement threatens to destroy you, your faith, and your children

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This book is a "must read" for anyone who wants to understand the reasons underlying our nation's cultural collapse. It also explains why our society tolerates everything EXCEPT Christianity.

Basically, McDowell explains how today's definition of "tolerance" differs radically from the traditional dictionary definition. He discusses how and why the definition of tolerance has changed, how the new tolerance manifests itself in our society, and concludes by giving concrete ideas for Christian witness in the midst of today's culture.

The traditional definition of tolerance means to "endure" or put up with something, such as a person's behavior, attitudes or beliefs, without necessarily agreeing with them. In other words, love the sinner, hate the sin. However, today's definition of tolerance is more like "love the sinner, love the sin." Today's definition of tolerance states that a person's behavior, beliefs and attitudes are inseparable from who he or she is. Therefore, any attack on behaviors, beliefs or attitudes is seen as a personal attack.

The evolution of tolerance is the result of the evolution of other aspects of human existence, including the concept of truth, over three distinct eras. During the first era, ethical theism, people believed that all truth was revealed by God. In the second era, modernism, the emphasis shifted from God to mankind, and the concept of truth changed from being something that is revealed by God to being something that is discernable by man. Finally, in the third and present era, post-modernism, truth has changed from being something that is collectively true for human beings to something that is determined by each individual person, based on that person's culture, which in turn consists of behaviors, attitudes and beliefs.

Because each person's idea of truth is based on their unique culture, and because all people are created equally, the new tolerance decrees that no one person can claim to possess a superior truth, or a truth that is "more true" than other people's truths. Rather, all truth claims are equally valid.

The idea of equal truth claims has profound implications for those of us who believe in Jesus Christ and absolute standards of right and wrong. These implications include the death of truth, the disappearance of virtue, the demise of justice, the loss of conviction, the privatization of faith, the tyranny of the individual, the disintegration of human rights. the dominance of feeling, the exaltation of nature, and the descent into extremes.

Furthermore, it especially targets Christians because Christians believe that their truth claim -- Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior -- is in fact superior to any other truth claims. Because Christianity claims to have "The Way, the Truth and the Life" and does not accept other truth claims as equally valid or actively condone or participate in them, it is therefore "intolerant." And because Christianity is intolerant, it is therefore okay for a "tolerant" society to persecute it in any way necessary to force it to become tolerant. That is why the mere mention or presence of Christian concepts or symbology provokes rage and concerted efforts to obliterate them.

McDowell explains some of the "tactics of tolerance" and how these are being applied to make Christians conform. These include equating nonagreement with phobia, nonconformity with hate, conviction with fanaticism, Christian creeds, prayers and symbols with discrimination, and selective segregation with justice.

Having laid that groundwork in the early chapters of the book, McDowell goes on to cite how the "new tolerance" has invaded every sphere of our society and how it underlies just about every factor contributing to our culture's breakdown. He shows that the new tolerance is the common thread that explains why a crucifix suspended in urine is considered art, why animals and the environment are more important than people, why sexual perversion is encouraged while traditional families are discouraged, and a host of other societal phenomena. Following that, McDowell gives practical advice for witnessing to Christ without giving in to the new tolerance.

The entire book is fascinating, but what helped me most personally are two things. First, McDowell articulates the new tolerance using concrete terminology; he gives names and a new vocabulary for describing the effects of the new tolerance. Second, he shows how the new tolerance relates to and is responsible for a vast array of problems in society, how it is the common thread running between all of them.

I strongly recommend this book to any of you who would like to understand the new tolerance better and what you can do to fight it.

This is a must read.

When asked,

"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: "`Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: `Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (Matthew 22:36-40)

He did not say, "tolerate your neighbor." He did not say "accept sinful behavior so as not to be judgemental."

Tolerance and political correctness are eroding the fiber of our society.

The New Tolerance tells us how and teaches us what our response, as Christians, should be to lovingly address it.

Most Christians acknowledge that the world does not tolerate Christians. This book is an excellent tool that can be used for teaching your family to live as God has commanded, even when the world around us denies us the right to live as Christians.

The "New Tolerance" is not true tolerance. It is acceptance and appreciation for whatever you want to believe, think and do. One cannot be a Christian and believe in the "new Tolerance" movement. One must uphold the truths written in the Bible and live as such.

This book offers hope of a brighter future, assistance in how to live in a world that does everything BUT tolerate Christians and guidance on how to teach your children to survive in this world.

This book describes very well the shift that has occurred in American society over the past twenty or so years. The authors correctly portray the new tolerance as a new state religion, a belief system that demands allegiance by everyone who desires to be seen as civilized and cultured. The result is that absolute, propositional truth becomes a relic of an unenlightened past.

For Christians who are seeking to defend their biblical faith and values from the onslaught of relativism, this book is a must-read. It helps make sense of the mindset present in so much of American society today. Most importantly, it also offers solid, sensible ways to respond.

If you become a Christian, you're going to be accused of being arrogant, self-righteous, hate-filled, fanatical, extreme, bigoted - and perhaps most horrific of all in today's culture, intolerant. You'll feel better about the accusations once you've joined these authors for a birds'-eye view of how our entire culture has been brainwashed into calling good evil and evil good. They do a great job of explaining why our culture tolerates anything but Christianity ... and how our collective embrace of tolerance is damaging our nation.

Excellent analysis on the spin the cultural elite have placed on the word tolerance. Absolutely essential for those with traditional beliefs particularly in understanding how the new tolerance is nothing short of an attack on all traditional belief systems.

I had to laugh at the several rather intolerant reviews of this excellent book. Mind you, I suppose it's asking a bit much for those who don't agree with what Josh McDowell says to be "accepting" and "respecting" of somebody else's opinion...unless it's on their terms.

I guess that's what makes this book so frightening, but so essential for Christians to read. I'm only heartened that in ten years the dictionary definitions of tolerance are largely unchanged, or at least recognizable from the 1998 Websters definition quoted by Josh.

I guess also that if Christians are to be uncompromising and stand up for our faith, it is only to be expected that we will be (falsely) branded as intolerant and bigoted, but if we are to remain true to the truth, then that is the way it will have to be.

This book may be ten years old, but it is as relevant as ever in our new age of all-encompasing acceptance.

Must read! The authors have done a superb job in making a difficult subject understandable to the average Christian reader. A subtle reign of terror has descended upon America and America's conservative Christians and few are prepared to endure, much less counter the hate and pseudo-tolerance (intolerance) sweeping our society. In addition to their thorough analysis of the problem of the "new tolerance" (brought on by postmodernist thinking), McDowell and Hostetler offer in chapters 6 & 11 sound advice on how to lovingly respond to the growing hostility. However, a fundamental, subtle weakness of the authors' theology is their failure to grasp the full consequence of the Fall (p.42, 87); for them mankind is, not was, created in the image of God. In their desire to establish a basis for genuine tolerance (self-esteem), they crack open the door to the serious error of Christian humanism. This is further seen in their total emphasis upon sins and forgiveness, with no discussion of man's history in the First Adam (sin) and the Cross. Consequently, the authors remain committed to the unbiblical tenets of neo-evangelicalism (p. 183), which can be argued made Christian churches unnecessarily vulnerable to the postmodernist tidal wave in the first place. The answer to the psychological "needs" listed on page 184 cannot exclude dealing with them via the Cross! Nevertheless, the book is powerful in its diagnoses and written at a level which will earn it wide acceptance in conservative Christian circles. While there is no guarantee that Christian "love" will stem the cultural collapse, their advice will surely equip the Christian reader to better face the growing persecution with integrity.

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This book is not only highly recommended, but highly necessary.

Criticisms that the book denounces tolerance are irrelevant.

Tolerance is neither good nor evil. It is a neutral act. Its entire value is determined by the nature of what is being tolerated.

Germans in the 1930s and 1940s tolerated Hitler and the holocaust. Was tolerance good? The doctrine of separate but equal facilities based on race was tolerated in America. Was that tolerance good?

The idea that tolerance in and of itself has become worthy of worship is precisely the perversion that McDowell addresses in this book.

To tolerate evil is a sin, as any born again Christian knows. And indeed, unless one is born again he is lost, agonizingly and eternally condemned, which incidentally is the ultimate measure of being a failure as a human being.

"... he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. - John 3:18 [KJV]

The sweeping, uncritical acceptance of tolerance irrespective of what is being tolerated is one of the greatest threats to civilization and to Christianity.

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Since I live in L.A., I see the "new tolerance" first hand. From having to "tolerate" illegal aliens and them literally invading our country and demanding that we become a bilingual society to homosexuals who insist that we give them a legal right and allow them to get married. It is a very frustrating time that we live in because of that. For standing up to what is right and bibilical, we are told that we are "racist" or "prejudice". Every christian should take a look at this book. It isn't written perfectly but it does bring out the fact that this new politally correct society is totally destroying our country and our basic values. We need to become a nation again under God. And now as I am writing this review, we are having difficulty electing a president one holding the "liberal tolerant" views and the other having more of the traditional moral standards. I'm praying that the right one is chosen for the sake of our country.