Customer Reviews

Righteous: Dispatches from the Evangelical Youth Movement

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Judging by the blurbs on the back cover of this book, it is directed toward secularists. Sam Harris, author of "The End Of Faith," says of this book, "Our children are gleefully preparing a bright future of ignorance and religious fascism for us all. If you have any doubt that there is a culture war that must be waged and won by secularists in America, read this book." Kevin Phillips, author of "American Theocracy," describes the book as "a frightening portrait." Michael D'Antonio says, "Read this book and you will understand this Disciple Generation and the challenge it poses to a civil society."

But this book is not written as some call to action, in the way political books are. It is more like an anthropological study, where the author, an editor at Salon magazine, disturbed that George W. Bush won a second term via values voters, wanted to see who these people were, so she decided to hang out with these people and write about her experience. She limited her sample to evangelical youth culture, but within that age group, she found a wide variety of subcultures.

Apparently I'm not the target audience of this book; nevertheless, I found it to be fascinating. I was raised an evangelical and have remained an evangelical all my adult life (I'm now in my mid-forties). My interest in this book was seeing how someone from the outside would view evangelical culture, particularly the more "hip" factions of it, as opposed to the usual stereotypes of the white-dress-shirt, tie-wearing crowd. I get tired of journalists and academics spouting stereotypes about evangelicals that only reveal their ignorance about the culture. I was glad to see someone really take the time to see what these people are about.

While I was only expecting this book to be a look at how an outsider looking in views the culture, it turned out to be much more than that for me. I actually learned quite a bit about the various subcultures within the evangelical culture at large. Sandler studies a diverse group of evangelicals, from pro-lifers at a Christian rock festival and skaters, to more mainstream types like Mars Hill Church in Seattle and prosperity theology churches, to the polished business attire college students of a politically right wing Christian college. In one chapter, she covers the sons of the well-known Christian figures James & Tammy Faye Bakker, James Dobson, and the son and grandson of Billy Graham; this was an interesting contrast! I should mention that while the groups represented a wide variety of evangelical subcultures, nearly all were theologically conservative; not many liberal evangelicals (such as the Sojourners types) were included.

Throughout the book, Sandler tells of her experiences of hanging out with each of these groups, observing their behavior and speech, and talking with them herself. It appears that she was able to open a communicative connection with most of the people she encountered, that she was able to earn enough trust of those she studied so that they let her see themselves as they are, sharing their honest views with her.

Two strengths in this book that I'd like to mention. First, from time to time she includes some historical perspective that I found to be an excellent tie-in to the current situation. Secondly, she made an attempt to explain *why* such theologically and sometimes socially conservative movements appeal to youth in a post-modern world. I thought her analysis was good, although of course it misses some of the spiritual aspects that I wouldn't expect someone outside the faith to understand.

Throughout the book, though, Sandler never lets you forget her disdainful bias against these evangelicals. She says she is a secular Jew, and she makes it clear she is not impressed by what she sees, although I think she saw more positives than she expected to when she started this adventure. In fact, near the end of the book, she tells of two compelling experiences, one when a small group prayed for her, and another in a worship service.

All through the book she takes a kind of anthropological approach, albeit with sardonic comments and analysis peppered in. She seemed open to what she was learning about them, as if she were gaining a respect for them, even though she could not agree with them. Then in the last chapter she shocked me by her complete change of direction. No longer the anthropologist, she becomes a fierce preacher, with an alarmed call to arms that secularists must gather forces, unite, and fight back these frightening, dangerous people. I'm a bit baffled by this change of direction. Not that I ever thought, while reading the book, that she was going to say, "What do you know, I like these people after all," but still, I was not prepared for the nearly panicked warring cry she belts out in the final chapter, in the vein of the authors quoted on the back cover: "frightening," "great national ill," threat to "civil society," and "religious fascism"!

The tirade in the last chapter weakens her book, but you can easily skip that chapter. There are 8 chapters, 232 pages, of very informative cultural study that would be enlightening to secularists and Christians alike. For evangelicals like me, the book provides interesting material on the lifestyles and views of other evangelicals. For secularists, the variety of experiences she reports on can help inform them how evangelicals really live and think, so that they will rely less on stereotypes.

I was conflicted by this book. On the one hand, as a pro-choice atheist, I share some of Sandler's concerns -- particularly regarding issues of scientific education and creationism. On the other hand, I wish that Sandler had been able to show a bit more balance in her presentation.

To be specific, I feel she was overly alarmist throughout the book. It's the oldest game in the book -- take a large movement and focus on its most extreme elements, encouraging onlookers to extropolate that extremism throughout the movement. This is an old trick and is played by people across the political spectrum -- just a few weeks ago I listened to radio host Laura Ingraham do the exact same thing in interviews with activists at an anti-war rally -- and it irritates me whoever is playing it.

I also found the book to be maddeningly elitist -- particularly regarding the young women Sandler wrote of. Sandler claimed to have found many of these women to be intelligent and likable, but made it clear that if they really "got it," they would be making different choices -- presumably, Sandler's choices. With the abortion and creationism issues, she might have a point -- creationism, in particular, can be refutted with facts -- but her evident disapproval of stay-at-home mothering can't be explained as anything but elitism, in my opinion.

Sandler is a good writer and had an obvious connection with a number of the people she interviewed. With a little bit of restraint, it could have been a great book. Unfortunately, the elitism and alarmism overwelmed the subject matter.

As someone who has zero contact with a movement that is clearly gathering incredible momentum in this country, I raced eagerly through Lauren Sandler's book, grateful for the chance to read a first-hand account from the front lines. I especially appreciated her oft-stated self-description as an "unrepentant Jewish atheist," which served as a good reminder that Sandler was simply offering me her point of view, and not advocating some Absolute Truth. This point of view added texture and complexity to her account, allowing me to disagree with her in some places and agree in (most) others, creating the experience of a very lively conversation with an especially energetic and informed interlocutor. If you, like I, wish you knew more about where our nation is heading, I recommend you read this book.

Lauren Sandler has written an interesting profile of what she terms the "Disciple Generation"- young adults who are enthusiastic about evangelism, and increasingly conservative politics. They come from many backgrounds, but have one thing in common- they evangelize within their own lifestyles. For example, to reach the teens with a particular lifestyle (i.e., skaters, goths, etc.), evangelizers will simply hold events that appeal to them to get them hooked, then the message will be delivered.

Sandler profiles some key groups in the Disciple Generation. One of the most interesting, or disturbing, is Rock for Life, an anti-abortion rock group that tours and gives concerts. One photo in the book depicts shirtless young men "moshing against abortion" at a Rock for Life concert. Do you think that none of them have a clue what they're doing, and that they haven't studied the issue carefully? Yeah, I'd say that's a pretty safe assumption.

Mars Hill Church in Seattle, headed by the controversial Mark Driscoll, is prominently featured as well. Driscoll appeals to young adults by allowing them to have MTV, video games, etc., while still being theologically conservative. Part of his appeal is to give young adults something "real" in a consumerist world that seems fake. "They know there's more to life than waking up, eating what's in the fridge, watching what's on TVm and then going back to bed, than the rest of their porn-addicted, video-game-playing, loser friends. That's what I give them through the Bible: I say, let me give you some rules, not to be a jerk, but to help you out. And when was the last time anyone in their busted-up family did that?" Many of the Mars Hills members live in community housing, and one of the "rules" of Driscoll's is strict gender roles. He urges the women in the congregation to quit their jobs and have as many children as they can. In the community housing, the women, or "lovely helpers", are separated.

To summarize the rest of the groups/individuals that Sandler profiles would be to write a chapter-by-chapter summary, which is unnecessary. I will simply mention further Patrick Henry College, a college specifically for homeschoolers and whose express purpose is to influence government (they had more white house interns than any other college in recent years), the prosperity gospel of Creflo Dollar and others who exploit desire for wealth in the African-American community, and actor Stephen Baldwin who gets "gnarly for Jesus." Sandler's book is an impressive work of journalistic profiling. Her editorializing, while not exactly bombastic, does occasionally interfere with the narrative flow. For example, in the Rock for Life chapter, she notes that a slogan is "equality for the pre-born" and quips, "pre-born women need not apply." This doesn't happen enough to ruin the book, however. So in sum, I would recommend this to anyone who wants to understand how and why many young people who many would assume would want nothing to do with biblical literalism and political conservatism are now embracing it.

This book reads like a very personal and entertaining ethnography. The author is not content to study her subjects from the outside, and an outsider she admittedly and proudly is; rather she employs a more participatory technique, submerging herself in the communities she hopes to expose. I can't help but wonder how her subjects will feel, how many evangelical types may take offense to this. Most evangelicals feel Christianity is not a religion. It is the truth. To call it a religion and to study it as if it is one belittles it in their eyes. A Christian reading this book might feel something like Oscar Meyer reading Sinclair's The Jungle. Yet, I think to the author's credit, she did something Sinclair couldn't do. She connects with these communities as much as possible, given their vastly different world-views. We learn more about these people than their religion. We learn of their warmth, their humanity, their strengths and needs. Yes, for me this was the most commendable part of the book. The author finds common ground with her subjects; so much so that she shares with the reader when she feels her heart-strings pulled and her eyes fill with tears in more than one church service; the draw of a ready-made, accepting and loving community. She wants to know why so many people are drawn to evangelical Christianity, so she goes and finds out first-hand. She even goes so far as to admit that she could have easily converted if she was perhaps younger, and yes, sorry, more naive (my word). Her analysis: what these people are trying to escape from is the postmodern condition, the lack of love and a feeling of belonging, the overwhelming effect of relativism and information overload, lack of identity and community. Christianity answers these needs in a way that secular society has failed. But the dark underbelly is that this new generation of evangelicals will not rest until they've conquered the world, or changed it sufficiently to bring on the second coming.
Her quest seems to derive in part from being stumped on how a documented liar can lead a country into war under false pretenses and yet still be re-elected. How could this happen? If you've ever wondered this, I would highly recommend this book. It opens the lid on a community that many secularists don't take the time to engage. And not that this is entirely our fault, considering the quality of dialogue and debate one can have when one's counterpart got all the answers beforehand directly from God. But it provides a real answer to why the current political drift in this country is underway. It is alarming, and I must say more all-encompassing than I had realized.
It also plays with another interesting theory that I'm happy to see addressed in print. The affinity many evangelicals have toward the idea that we are all living in the last days (how can they not apreciate how common this belief has been since the time of Jesus?), dovetails nicely with a dismissive attitude toward 'worldy' problems. Jesus will come back before climate change wreaks havoc with the earth's populace, so there's no real reason to plan ahead; there won't be lasting peace in the middle east until the Battle of Armageddon, so why try to bring it about now? Many even consider it hubris for humankind to think they can save themselves from anything; which clarifies why so many evangelicals are unconcerned about the issues mentioned, and are content as long as a born-againer (albeit a lieing one) is in the White House. Very thoroughly researched, yet so frank, funny, and familiar in style; both entertaining and insightful. In the end it is a wake up call for secularists, more than an indictment of evangelical christianity.

Righteous is pretty much just that: righteous. It's a sobering look at a generation who have turned away from critical thinking, science, tolerance, in favor of a christianity which can never stray from the literal word of the bible. These kids and young adults attend christian colleges where their professors "debunk" evolution. Even the skate-punks in this "disciple generation," with their tattoos and baggy clothes, believe that their mission is to "save" the rest of their generation, because the end is nigh. I found all of this to be a terrifying indictment of where this country is heading. With an unparalleled access to information and technology, many of our youth are nonetheless opting for the 2,000 year-old comfort of fundamental christianity. They have agendas, as the book points out, like "repopulating cities with christian voters," or larding the halls of congress with their christian academies' grads. In the face of this terror, Sandler is never cruel to her subjects--she really tries to understand, and present to the left, how and why these people are drawn to the new fundamentalism. She says at one point that she even comes close to feeling some tinge of rebirth. (turns out it was something else, which is hilarious, but i won't spoil it here). As kind as she is to her subjects, she never lets us forget that this is the end of times in many ways--the end of the secular world's chances at building communities as connected as the fundies, before it's too late. If it sounds alarmist, that's because it is. This is a war, and the author is part journalist, part conscientious objector, part soldier. Scary world we live in, right here at home. I only hope that Sandler's kindness toward her subjects impels some of them to pick it up, and rethink some of their "values." That would be salvation to me.

Righteous is entertaining and a quick read. I found the developments she reports to be very troubling, but for a different reason than Sandler. I object to the way Sandler and many others use the term "evangelical." Evangelical used to mean that a person, church, movement, etc. was firmly committed to the gospel (the evangel) of Jesus Christ as found in the New Testament.

Sandler reports on what passes for evangelical these days, and what troubles me is that no one seems to be able to tell the difference. Sandler really reports on, for the most part, right wing religious groups that could be loosely described under the term "Christian"--that is, they are not Muslim, Hindu, secular, etc.

True evangelicals should be concerned over doctrinal error and extremism reported in this book.

As a former fundamentalist christian who was involved in the youth ministry known as Teen Mania, I can definitely relate to the scary effects that fundamentalism can have on a young mind. Sandler will obviously draw some ire for being secular, liberal, feminist, from New York(and Jewish), but as a one-time believer I can easily say she's right on the money.

When I view these masses of kids in these youth ministries, I cannot help draw comparisons to Hamas rallies in the West Bank that show little Muslim children adorned in green and camoflauge outfits, shouting angry Koranic verses they have little understanding of, and often waving toy swords and plastic AK-47's. Obviously, these evangelicals are not telling young christians to blow themselves up in the name of martyrdom, but there is a strong, confrontational element of "us against them" that is unfair to foster onto these kids. It is hypocritical of our leaders do denounce the extreme narrow-mindedness of radical Islam abroad while praising our own homegrown version of radical Christianity here in the states. To her credit, Sandler does not say it is not okay to Christian in this book, she merely points out that a giant leap backward to 18th century thinking is the last thing we need in the 21st century.

Readers who are enraged by this book should take a really good hard look at themselves. Despite the fact that I am not an atheist, if given the choice between secularism and fundamentalism, I'd opt for the former. The fact remains that in a democratic multicultural society, secularism works best (sorry!) because it leaves room for *choice*. The tone of the reviewer (AlteredBeat) below is frightening. She/he should reread this book because nowhere does the writer defend Islam. This is simply racism, paranoia and poor reading skills on the part of the reviewer. And anyone who refuses to see that Bush's administration has turned our current war into a religious (Christian) crusade is either deluded or is a fundamentalist Christian himself/herself. Ignorance is not bliss. It's time that we, as a nation, did a comprehensive body count. In it, we need to include the women who are simply "blessed" for being baby-making machines in the name of Jesus.

First of all let's stop all the "this author isn't objective" garbage. Who is objective anyway? Not me. Not you. And not the good folks who review books on this site. Let's leave objectivity to the journalists (yeah, right).

Anyway, Sandler's book is the first of it's kind. There are a lot of books looking into the intersection of right-wing religious groups and politics, but none to my knowledge have looked into how youth from a broad demographic have come to make up a wide variety of right-wing, wrath-of-god-fearing evangelical youth movements. This book is an important and much needed contribution to the larger discussion of the dangerous intersection of religion, politics and culture.

One of the most revealing and unsavory aspects of the book is how Sandler effectively reveals the contemptible recruitment tactics employed by the groups (predators) out there which take advantage of youthful fears, uncertainties, the desire for meaning and the desperate need to belong. Their insidious tactics excel at manipulating kids, teens, young adults at their weakest and most vulnerable. These things I find a deplorable.

This is a fine book which reveals how progressives must pay attention to the real emotional, existential and spiritual needs of our youth. We must help them find and use secular, enlightened means of achieving lasting value and meaning in their lives; not by means that exploit youth in vulnerable moments, but by means that are rooted in healthy questioning, open mindedness and individual choice. And as Sandler makes clear, these are certainly not the means employed by the various evangelical youth movements. By the way, if an individual makes an uncoerced decision to live by the teachings of the Bible, that's fine by me and many progressives I know.

A terrific, much needed read.