A new book called “Why We’re Not Emergent by Two Guys Who Should Be” is written by two guys, Kevin DeYoung an Ted Kluck and they approach the controversial movement with good hearted and often good humored approaches.
So, what is the emergent movement? Well, as the authors would tell you, finding that answer is like nailing Jell-O to the wall. The emergent/emerging church is a postmodern movement that can generally be described ( but not exclusively ) as heavily liberal and with a more a focus on experience and journey as opposed to doctrine and decision.
Unlike other books on this subject, this one tackles the subject from two angles…the academic theological view of a Pastor ( Kevin ) and the laid back “every-man” view of your average young churchgoer ( Ted ). This makes for a very enjoyable read as your brain will get a fresh intake every chapter. I found it quite difficult to put the book down!
The book emphasizes some very significant obstacles to biblical Christianity that the movement has yet to deal with…those mainly being Brian McLaren and Peter Rollins. These men, although adamantly denying any leadership role, have nonetheless become the de-facto strongmen in this new movement.
I’ll be the first to admit I’m somewhat of a doctrine geek, but I’ve also got a heavily sarcastic Scottish side! This book hit me on both levels, yet does so in a very respectful way. Is this an exhaustive resource on the emerging movement? No, but then again not everything needs to be in order to get a picture of what is going on.
Would I recommend this book to your average Evangelical? Heck yes. Would I recommend this book to someone currently in the movement? Again, a resounding yes. The book is polite, lays its facts out well, and never comes to the conclusion that the ideas behind the emergent movement are necessarily bad, just that the theology needs to be paid better attention to.
4 Stars out of 5
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