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Radically Unchurched: Who They Are-How to Reach Them

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Finally, a book that addresses the identity of the unchurched and how to reach them in a passionate tone that the reader can't help but be excited about. Alvin Reid, who through his teaching and writings has popularized the term "radically unchurched," records his thoughts, insights, and proposal for reaching today's unbelievers in Radically Unchurched: Who They Are--How to Reach Them. Readers will find this book refreshing as Reid presents his observations on postmodernism and the coming generation. He continues by higlighting ways to reach this generation for Christ through worship, your testimony, church planting, and other creative approaches to evangelism. This book will not disappoint those who are genuinely looking for a layman's understanding of who the radically unchurched are and how to effectively reach them.

The book's subtitle explains its premise: who they are and how to reach them. It is the author's contention, and rightly so, that the church is totally unprepared to reach the coming generation with the gospel of Christ, that its methods and means of reaching the radically unchurched are no longer effective. After defining who the radically unchurched are, the author reviews methodological and means of evangelism which have proven effective with the radically unchurched.

The author deals brutally and honestly with the ineptness of the evangelical church and the head in the sand attitude it has concerning its declining attendance and influence on American culture. Again and again, Reid drives home the point that things are not well with the evangelical church. The best part of the book is the How to reach them part. The author really adds nothing new to the well-read reader of evangelism; rather, he surveys the methodologies that have proven successful and presents them to the reader, with the warning that copying methodically without adaptation and a heart for evangelism will fail.

I did not like this book. I had to force myself to read it through. Yet, after doing so, I am glad that I did. There is little or no original thought or research in it. Sjogren's Conspiracy of Kindness, Rainer's Surprising Insights from the Unchurched, and Warren's Purpose Driven Church are all well quoted. The author also has an anti-charismatic bias. His ranting against Full Gospel churches on page 112 is shameful. To accuse charismatic churches as not believing the Bible is sufficient in its historic doctrine is a gross misunderstanding of charismatic theology. If my memory serves me right only one charismatic church, Brooklyn Tabernacle, was cited as a growth church, while dozens of Baptist churches were cited as growing.

Reid helped me understand that my evangelistic training taught me to share Christ with people who shared my basic values: a belief in God, reverence for the Bible, and a belief in ultimate right and wrong. Today, the radically unchurched do not believe in God, have no regard for the Bible and hold to a subjective value system. Reid points to Paul's sermon on Mars Hill for insight on how we can reach the radically unchurched. When preaching to the pre-Christian Jews, Paul spoke of Jesus and fulfilled prophecy, but when he spoke to the pagans on Mars Hill, he started with the existence of God, and told of God as creator and judge. The chapter on postmodernism is helpful. He succinctly describes what post modernism is and how it affects the way we present the gospel of Christ.

Radically Unchurched was written to remind Christians that the world we live in is no longer culturally Christian, but still can be reached with the Gospel of Jesus Christ and demonstrates practical ways one can reach out to those who are lost. Instead of lamenting the loss of a Christian culture, Reid explains that we have just as much opportunity to present the Gospel today as we did in the past. The book is split into two parts, the first dealing with the profile of those who are unchurched. The second half deals with ways to reach out to the radically unchurched.

A minor area of concern relates to the age of the book. The publication date is 2002, which is relatively new in the scholarly world. However, with the changes that happen so quickly in the world of technology, six years is a long time. Today, chat rooms have been eclipsed by blogs, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter and many other tools available on the web today. A minor update to the material would be good, although many people reading the book will make the connection between his ideas and a practical application using tools available today.

Dr. Reid successfully convinces the reader that it is imperative for believers to be obedient to the Scriptural mandate to share the gospel with everyone. He presents a large amount of evidence to prove his point and writes in a compelling manner. The idea that every believer is supposed to share the gospel is not new. It is a command from Jesus that has been repeated throughout the centuries, yet each generation must learn anew the task of reaching his own with His message.

Anyone who wants to be encouraged to be faithful in ministry and be presented with practical ways to share the gospel should read this book. Church leaders, college professors, high school teachers and many others can use the material in this book to engage their students in the effort of sharing the Gospel with those who are radically unchurched. The church grew in a culture that was very much like what ours is becoming in the USA and Europe.

This book is less a study of the radically unchurched than a book on evangelism. Some research is reported, but most of the book is teaching on how to mobilize people into effective evangelism. Reid is conversant with postmodernism, but doesn't fall for the foolishness of accommodation. His call for forsaking anti-culturalism is well put.

My objections to the book would be that he is too optimistic about churchy approaches like prayer at the poles, or worship evangelism. These and similar approaches are exciting to Christians, but I do not believe there is solid evidence that they are effective in reaching hard-core unchurched people.

This book would be a good corrective for ingrown churches.

- Dennis McCallum, author Organic Disciplemaking: Mentoring Others Into Spiritual Maturity And Leadership

All I can say about this book is WOW! This is an awesome book. The author of this book is a very genuine man of God. I have written the author several times to ask him some questions about his book and about evangelism, and he has written me back every time and answered my questions every single time. Anything by Alvin L. Reid would be a good purchase in my opinion.

This is a good book; however, I would recommend Evangelism Handbook instead of this one. if you want a quick, challenging read then stick with Radically Unchurched but if you want a more in-depth, very thorough read...get Dr. Reid's Evangelism Handbook. He uses it to teach his Evangelism Class. The only thing that would help you to enjoy this book more is if you got to spend time with Alvin Reid himself. His books don't compare to his character and heart for seeing everyone receive salvation through Christ.

Radically Unchurched is perhaps the best summary of current approaches to evangelism combined with an honest assessment of the modern church. Regardless of a person's view on evangelism, this book presents an honest view of the need for evangelism. Reid's ability to present the current need for evangelism and the disheartening state of America's Christian roots make the book a good read for churches and small groups. Radically Unchurched not only presents the need for evangelism but it also provides solutions and wise counsel to the modern church.

A great book on evangelism for the church. The author makes some very valid and striking statements about the status of today's church.

People don't want religion crammed down their throats. Quit bothering us with your weak minded ideas.