Reviews
Confronting Christianity: 12 Hard Questions for the World's Largest Religion by Rebecca McLaughlin
emmawissman's review
4.0
This book was immensely helpful and I’m glad I read it. But
it was sooooo dense so I had to read it in little chunks and it took me forever.
it was sooooo dense so I had to read it in little chunks and it took me forever.
robgreen's review
5.0
BEST book I’ve read responding to Tough Questions!!
Very Thankful @RebeccMcLaugh for the heart, mind, time, love, care you put into the Brilliant book
Very Thankful @RebeccMcLaugh for the heart, mind, time, love, care you put into the Brilliant book
bubbajones1221's review
5.0
This uh... this is how you write a Christian book.
She deals intelligently and graciously with the most relevant questions people levy against Christianity in our modern day.
There's a couple second-tier interpretations that may differ in some ways from my own, but I'd definitely recommend this for my non-Christian friends who have questions about Christianity.
“If Jesus is the Bread of Life, loss of Jesus means starving. If Jesus is the Light of the World, loss of Jesus means darkness. If Jesus is the Good Shepherd, loss of Jesus means wandering alone and lost. If Jesus is the resurrection and the life, loss of Jesus is eternal death. And if Jesus is the Lamb of God, sacrificed for our sins, loss of Jesus means paying that price for ourselves.”
She deals intelligently and graciously with the most relevant questions people levy against Christianity in our modern day.
There's a couple second-tier interpretations that may differ in some ways from my own, but I'd definitely recommend this for my non-Christian friends who have questions about Christianity.
“If Jesus is the Bread of Life, loss of Jesus means starving. If Jesus is the Light of the World, loss of Jesus means darkness. If Jesus is the Good Shepherd, loss of Jesus means wandering alone and lost. If Jesus is the resurrection and the life, loss of Jesus is eternal death. And if Jesus is the Lamb of God, sacrificed for our sins, loss of Jesus means paying that price for ourselves.”
shelfreflectionofficial's review
4.0
I finished this book with mixed feelings and had a hard time putting my finger on it. I've read a lot of apologetics books and I think the issue was that McLaughlin just presented the information in a different way than I was used to and caused me to approach the questions in a new way. Which is a good thing. She has a fresh perspective. It's similar to Tim Keller's book- The Reason for God, but I would say his book is more accessible to the general population and this book was a little more academic. It felt like she was writing this book for her academic colleagues- those who work at universities- yet I found it to still be helpful.
Rebecca McLaughlin is a British female with a PhD from Cambridge who has put aside her same-sex attractions and is in a happy marriage to a man, together having 3 children. Her journey to faith was heavily influenced by these factors and speaks into how she answers these 12 hard questions.
This book was well-researched. She provides plenty of resources for further reading as each topic could be an entire book in itself. I will say that some of her statistics, analogies, or examples didn't always connect for me. And a lot of her sentences I had to read multiple times to understand what she was saying. I have a fairly large vocabulary and there were several times I had to consult a dictionary. It's not necessarily a light read, but it is very helpful. Probably best read an entire chapter at a time and then verbally processed with someone else to get the most out of the material.
I especially liked her chapter on a loving God allowing suffering. Everyone has experienced grief and pain, and she brilliantly uses the story of Jesus and Lazarus to show us the reality of suffering and our relationship to God. She also:
- reminds us of the diversity of Christianity and its global reach. We tend to see it as an American institution and miss out on a lot when our perspective originates from there.
- won't let us take the easy way out of truth finding by letting us think all faith paths are true, but calls us to respect others as thinking human beings who have thought about their beliefs.
- is honest and doesn't gloss over the stains on Christianity's history, but provides plenty of evidence to the contrary.
- wrote her chapters on science, women, homosexuality, and slavery sensitively, yet blunt. Informatively, logically, and persuasively.
I would say, read this book, but don't ONLY read this book. I could recommend a specific book for each chapter that would expound more than her space allowed and that draws on more Scripture. She did a great job and I believe accomplished what she set out to do. This book is a great resource that touches on all the most common questions for Christianity, but if a chapter leaves you unsatisfied, I urge you to look for another book to inform your thinking. These questions are too important not to.
See more of my reviews at www.shelfreflection.com!
Rebecca McLaughlin is a British female with a PhD from Cambridge who has put aside her same-sex attractions and is in a happy marriage to a man, together having 3 children. Her journey to faith was heavily influenced by these factors and speaks into how she answers these 12 hard questions.
This book was well-researched. She provides plenty of resources for further reading as each topic could be an entire book in itself. I will say that some of her statistics, analogies, or examples didn't always connect for me. And a lot of her sentences I had to read multiple times to understand what she was saying. I have a fairly large vocabulary and there were several times I had to consult a dictionary. It's not necessarily a light read, but it is very helpful. Probably best read an entire chapter at a time and then verbally processed with someone else to get the most out of the material.
I especially liked her chapter on a loving God allowing suffering. Everyone has experienced grief and pain, and she brilliantly uses the story of Jesus and Lazarus to show us the reality of suffering and our relationship to God. She also:
- reminds us of the diversity of Christianity and its global reach. We tend to see it as an American institution and miss out on a lot when our perspective originates from there.
- won't let us take the easy way out of truth finding by letting us think all faith paths are true, but calls us to respect others as thinking human beings who have thought about their beliefs.
- is honest and doesn't gloss over the stains on Christianity's history, but provides plenty of evidence to the contrary.
- wrote her chapters on science, women, homosexuality, and slavery sensitively, yet blunt. Informatively, logically, and persuasively.
I would say, read this book, but don't ONLY read this book. I could recommend a specific book for each chapter that would expound more than her space allowed and that draws on more Scripture. She did a great job and I believe accomplished what she set out to do. This book is a great resource that touches on all the most common questions for Christianity, but if a chapter leaves you unsatisfied, I urge you to look for another book to inform your thinking. These questions are too important not to.
See more of my reviews at www.shelfreflection.com!
jonathancrites's review
5.0
A very fresh, readable and concise apology for 12 common questions regarding the Christina faith. Written with perspective from a variety of backgrounds, I would definitely recommend this to both believer and non-believer alike.