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Daniel Radosh

Rapture Ready!: Adventures in the Parallel Universe of Christian Pop Culture Paperback – March 23, 2010

by Daniel Radosh (Author)

4.2 68 ratings

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What does it mean when a band is judged by how hard they pray rather than how hard they rock? Would Jesus buy “Got Jesus?” T-shirts or sport “witness wear”? What do Christian skate parks, raves, and romance novels say about evangelicalism — and America?
Meticulously reported, with the perfect blend of amusement and respect, Rapture Ready! is the story of Daniel Radosh’s investigation into the wondrous but deeply weird world of Christian pop culture. This sprawling subculture — a $7 billion industry and growing — provides crucial insight into the social, spiritual, and political aspirations of evangelical Christians.
In 18 towns from the Bible Belt to the outskirts of Hollywood, Radosh encounters dozens of memorable characters, including Bibleman, the Caped Christian; Rob Adonis, the founder and star of ultimate Christian wrestling; Ken Ham, the nation’s leading prophet of creationism; and Jay Baker, the son of Jim and Tammy Faye Baker and pastor of his own liberal, punk rock church.
From Christian theme parks to Passion plays and comedy nights, Radosh combines gonzo reporting with a keen eye for detail and just the right touch of wit. Rapture Ready! is a revealing survey of a parallel universe, a unique perspective on one of America’s most important social movements.

Print length

320 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Soft Skull
Publication date

March 23, 2010
Dimensions

6 x 0.86 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

159376281X
ISBN-13

978-1593762810
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Editorial Reviews

Review

Praise for Rapture Ready

“Daniel Radosh writes about evangelical culture with brilliance, humor, and understanding. Everyone should read this book.” —A.J. Jacobs, author of The Know-It-All and The Year of Living Biblically

“A rich exploration of the realm . . . Reading Radosh’s book is like coming across another planet hidden somewhere on Earth where everything is just exactly like it is here except blue or made out of plastic.” —Slate

“Radosh is open about his own biases and shortcomings, and responds with astonishing intellectual and emotional honesty to the people and ideas he encounters.” —The Boston Globe Magazine

Praise for Daniel Radosh:

“Radosh has the astute sense of a journalist and the evocative humor of a stand-up comic.” —Publishers Weekly

“Entertaining, often enlightening . . . Radosh takes his role of reporter in an unfamiliar land seriously, yet he isn’t afraid to use his well-honed wit to good advantage.” —Booklist

“What happens when a secular liberal enters a conservative Christian subculture? Yes, he’s grossed out at times, appalled at least once, amused sometimes, and cussin’ mad at other times—and maybe even a little scared on occasion. But in the end, he offers evaluations and insights that might be considered downright prophetic, and compassionate too. No evangelical insider could have down as good a job as Daniel Radosh. He’s a witty, energetic, and insightful writer who grabs your attention and interest on page one and won’t let go until he’s escorted you to a powerful conclusion in the final paragraphs.” —Brian McLaren, author of A New Kind of Christian and Everything Must Change

“Radosh has discovered a world that is hilarious, unpredictable, and lucrative! It seems there’s a foreign country in America and it’s right down the street . . . and now I’m not so sure that I’m not the foreigner.” —Sam Seder, Air America Radio

“This book . . . deserves to be a great discussion starter in Christian circles.” —Beliefnet.com

“The greatest lesson in the book is not in what Radosh says with words but what he teaches by way of his tremendous example. If Christians treated American pop culture with the same respectful criticism and discerning openness that Radosh employed when examining the evangelical universe…these two cultures could have a productive encounter.” —First Things: The Journal of Religion, Culture, and Public Life

“Opening his readers to a complex subculture with an abundance of unusual characters, Radosh’s traveling road show is riveting, side-splitting, and thoughtful.” —The Jerusalem Post

“A fascinating and funny exploration of exactly what the title indicates, leavened with empathy.” —McSweeney’s

“Radosh paints complex portraits of modern, spiritually engaged Americans struggling to define their faith and its role in the world at large and is his best in these encounters, proving himself a keen observer. He is skilled at teasing out the truths and contradictions of his subjects, many of whom he describes with lyrical precision.” —American Conservative

“The book is full of surprises and tonal shifts, and made me look at not just evangelical culture but American pop culture and Jewish culture in a new light.” —The Forward

“Written with style and sensitivity, the book is at turns comical and spiritually uplifting.” —The Salt Lake Tribune

About the Author

Daniel Radosh is a frequent contributor to The New Yorker and a contributing editor at The Week magazine. His writing has appeared in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, Playboy, Esquire, and GQ. In the early 1990s, Radosh was a staff writer and editor at Spy magazine. He lives in Brooklyn, New York with his wife and children.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Soft Skull; First Trade Paper edition (March 23, 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 159376281X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1593762810
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.4 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.86 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,074,785 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,745 in Travel Writing Reference
- #3,546 in Popular Culture in Social Sciences
- #3,726 in Communication & Media Studies

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4.2 68 ratings

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4.2 out of 5

68 global ratings

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Renee C. Ozer

Co-opted

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 13, 2010

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I was raised with Biblical fundamentalism and live in Colorado Springs, where even today sex ed content in public schools is provided by Education for a Lifetime (EFL), part of the anti-abortion group Life Network and associated with Focus on the Family. EFT gets $400K per year of your federal tax dollars for abstinence education, according to the Colorado Springs Independent newspaper.

This is a wonderful, witty book. But Daniel Radosh may have been co-opted to some extent by the Evangelicals. The book is full of conversations with intelligent, intellectually curious and reasonable people. This is natural, since it makes better reading than conversations with dolts, but it gives the skewed impression of the numbers of the intelligent and fair minded in the Evangelical ranks. Actually, much more common are people like Chuck Ambrose (who jabs at Radosh's chest as he growls that "Jesus was either a liar, a lunatic, or the Lord" and "You'd better give it some thought," but didn't recognize the name C. S. Lewis) or Frank Peretti, who characterize as wayward pastors who "endorse religious tolerance and condemn animal cruelty." Or James Dobson, who writes in the New Strong-Willed Child about beating his dachshund into submission with a belt because the dog wanted to sleep on the fuzzy toilet seat cover next to the electric heater instead of in his bed: "The only way to make Siggie obey was to threaten him with destruction" and "That tiny dog and I had the most vicious fight ever staged between man and beast" and "I eventually got him into his bed, but only because I outweighed him 200 to 12." And kids are like dogs, only more so, when it comes to defiance. The New Strong-Willed Child

Radosh thinks the progressive elements will provide a corrective, but I think part of the appeal of the whole Evangelical/Fundamentalist world is its fetishization of willful ignorance (shouting down biology teachers discussing evolution with "Were you there?!?") and dumbed-down books, music, and movies, reinforced by isolation from all "contaminants", even those of superior quality (no Anna Karenina, no Mass in B Minor). I see a link here to the increasingly vitriolic political atmosphere, and I think Radosh is way too hopeful.

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

Nick Alexander

"Gloria in excelsis Deo...

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 27, 2009

Verified Purchase

..., motherf-----r."

If the title of this post, taken verbatim from this book, offends you, you will not appreciate this book. The author's very creative use of f-bombs littered throughout the text will no doubt have the effect of placing Eskimos in a dunk tank filled with scalding, bubbling oil. No doubt, I am taking these words out of context, but then again, Radosh does the same thing to Stephen Baldwin in this book, so I guess he knew he was setting himself up for that.

THAT SAID, Radosh gives a very fair and balanced examination of the unbearably tacky, of the politically volatile, and the... surprisingly good/effective elements within the Evangelical Christian pop culture bubble.

The one reason why evangelical Christians (small 'e', incorporating all denominations) should weather the harsh language is that Radosh writes what we need to hear. We need to know where the zietgiest is, and Radosh, in his own way, contributes a voice to helping us understand how each side sees each other, and, in turn, how to make our voice in the culture that much more effective.

Plus, as an attendee of both the Cornerstone Festivals and the Christian Comedy Association conferences--two of the extremely positive portrayals in his accounts--I can attest that what he writes is quite accurate and encouraging. I can only thank God that I escaped his scrutiny, for being in the Catholic side of things.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Megan @ Tiny Orchard

Entertaining and Insightful.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 7, 2008

Verified Purchase

I am, without a doubt, a person who lives a life far apart from Christian (or any religion, for that matter) pop culture. Noone in my family attends church regularly and I can count on one hand the number of I've actually been inside a church myself.

However, I'm incredibly intrigued by religion. Its something so pervasive yet so alien to my way of thinking. As soon as I heard about this book, I knew I had to read it--lickity split.

The author, a Jewish man with fairly liberal tendancies, immerses himself in Christian pop culture: attending concerts, going to creation museums and christian theme parks, and talking with pastors of all varieties as well as members of the churches he visits.

Is it a totally unbiased report on christian pop culture? absolutely not. The author brings his background and views with him as he writes but that is part of the fun of the book. Some of it is down right frightening in its conservatism but there are, surprisingly, a few hopeful notes.

I'd recommend this book to anyone. If you are a secularist, its a good laugh mixed with a certain amount of "they really aren't all crazy, maybe you shouldn't be so judgemental." If you are a Christian, its a good way to see yourself through the eyes of a secularist. You may think your creation museum is totally factual--but really? Most people think you are nuts to believe adam and eve rode around on domesticated dinosaurs.

The "interview" with stephen baldwin alone is worth reading the book.

6 people found this helpful

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J F G Shearmur

Interesting but ultimately disappointing

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 12, 2018

Verified Purchase

Radosh’s “Rapture Ready” offers an interesting tour round various aspects of US evangelical popular culture. Some of what he covers – e.g. aspects of the popular music scene – are likely to be known about only by those with a special interest in that material, while others – e.g. Christian commercial wresting – are both odd and covered very nicely. As a survey it is interesting enough, but the book would have been improved by an index and notes about sources at the back.
What seemed to me disappointing, is that the author’s own perspective - he is liberal and Jewish (as he keeps reminding us) – is intrusive. It is fine that he writes from his own perspective. But rather than giving us a guide together with commentary, he lines up with those whom he comes across who are not conservative or fundamentalist. It is understandable that he finds sympathetic people whose views are closer to his own. I’d also share his view that the ideas of many of those with whom he disagrees are highly problematic. But rather than an exploration of – and engagement with – what he finds, his account is partisan. And while he may find sympathetic those whose interpretations of conservative Christianity are closer to his own ideas, his bias towards them is intrusive, while the substance of their views comes over as having the intellectual integrity of a wet paper bag.

Arni

Great insight

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on March 15, 2009

Verified Purchase

I thoroughly enjoyed "Rapture Ready!" Although Radosh is an outsider he speaks of the parallel universe of Christian pop culture in America with a combination of bemusement and respect I found refreshing. His journalistic skill is abundantly clear and while I was very familiar with Christian pop culture before reading the book, I found Radosh's great insight both informing, entertaining and quite impressive. I appreciated the fact that he didn't let what I think rightly can be called the Jewish fetish of many especially American Evangelical Christians go by without mention. In this regard I especially appreciated what he said about the crucifixion play he participated in. I was pleasantly surprised by the chapter on Christian comedy, which, as Radosh says, turns out to be much better than you'd expect. Some of the simplistic capitalist analyses in the concluding chapter could stand more of the insight that distinguishes the rest of the book, but since that rest is so good, Radosh is forgiven. I thoroughly recommend this book to anyone who, like me, is fascinated, and a bit terrified as well, by Christian pop culture. It's an easy, entertaining and enlightening read.

2 people found this helpful

Kindle Customer

The path that Christianity is choosing to take

Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on June 21, 2010

Verified Purchase

It all began with a Christian salesman and a wife who applied make-up by the metric ton; Jim and Tammy Faye Baker. The PTL organization felt that the religion that they held so dear could be commericialized and sold to both the Christian and secular public. Due to the scandels that arose around them, their dream quickly crumbled. But its impetus was taken up by countless entrepreneurs who quickly took up the Baker mantle. Thirty years later we have a cacophony of clanging Christian symbols that go from well done professional works to the ridiculous "Jesus junk". The theme through all of these changes remains the same, however; Christian separatism and their spiritual superiority over all other religious concepts. The range includes Christian apolgetics and works of fiction, Christian praise bands, rave dances, creationist theme parks, and abstinance education to include a few.

"Will the concept of secularizing Christianity work in the long range?" is the question the author attempts to answer throuhout his text. My sense is that it probably will not. Anytime you mix two things together, neither one of them remains the same, they both change. In this instance secular society has changed to a small degree through the quasi acceptance of pop-Christianity into its mix. Christianity, on the other hand, if it maintains its path down this road, will change significantly. The period of the peaceful, holy little church in the valley will be gone. It will be replaced by religious extravaganzas that are more confrontive and egotistical than humble and spiritual. The author shows that the percentage of young adults who turn away from the church remains at 65%. This is in spite of the pop-Christian campaign to reach a population they feel is critical to the church's future. In the mean time mainline denominatons, who were the Christian standard bearers a few decades ago, are shrinking rapidly.

This is a top quality, well written text that covers an area of social that should interest everyone. Bravo! to Daniel Radosh for bringing it to our attention,

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