false 19127 5 Secular liberals and religious conservatives will find things to both comfort and alarm them in Jim Wallis's <I>God's Politics</I>. That combination is actually reason enough to recommend the book in a time when the national political and theological discourse is dominated by blanket descriptions and shortsightedness. But Wallis, editor of <I>Sojourners</I> magazine, offers more than just a book that's hard to categorize. What Wallis sees as the true mission of Christianity--righting social ills, working for peace--is in tune with the values of liberals who so often run screaming from the idea of religion. Meanwhile, in his estimation, religious vocabulary is co-opted by conservatives who use it to polarize. Wallis proposes a new sort of politics, the name of which serves as the title of the book, wherein these disparities are reconciled and progressive causes are paired with spiritual guidance for the betterment of society. Wallis is at his most compelling when he puts this theory into action himself, letting his own beliefs guide him through stinging criticisms of the war in Iraq. In his view, George W. Bush's flaw lies in the assumption that the United States was an unprecedented force of goodness in a fight against enemies characterized as "evil." Indeed, although both the right and left are criticized here, the idea is that the liberals, if they would get religion, are the more redeemable lot. Wallis's line between religion and public policy may be drawn a little differently than most liberals might feel comfortable with, and while he pays some lip service to other faiths most of his prescription for America seems to come from the Bible. Still, for a party having just lost a presidential election where "moral issues" are said to have factored heavily, <I>God's Politics</I> is a sermon worth listening to. <I>--John Moe</I> 1787132 2005 God's Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It (Plus) total:831|5:149|4:315|3:252|2:90|1:25| 831 2966 1453 156 1 3 false false Sun Jun 03 10:27:51 -0700 2007 Thu Aug 02 10:40:29 -0700 2007 more...]]> 2 2 false false Wed Nov 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Tue Dec 04 11:05:12 -0800 2007 Tue Dec 04 11:07:54 -0800 2007 more...]]> 1 1 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Thu Jan 03 15:54:52 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 03 16:16:00 -0800 2008 The beginning was intriguing...what? you mean to tell me that there's others out there like me? who believe that Jesus was a radical and we Christians should be helping the poor? and that these fringe issues the Religious Ri...more...]]> 4 1 false false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Fri Dec 21 12:59:30 -0800 2007 Thu Dec 27 19:44:04 -0800 2007 God’s Politics isn’t perfect by any means. It is sometimes repetitive, and I think that there are areas in which Mr. Wallis glosses over incredibly complicated and thorny issues with too much ease for my liking. However, it did what I needed it to. I t...more...]]> 0 1 false false Sun Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Jun 19 00:44:23 -0700 2007 Tue Jun 19 00:47:40 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 16 18:25:09 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 16 18:49:11 -0800 2009
Let me start with a little background on the reader (me) because of course I can only see the book through my own particular lenses. I grew up in a very politically conse...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Feb 09 20:18:59 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 09 20:48:30 -0800 2009 all moral choices, from war and poverty to sexuality and abortion.
...more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Oct 18 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Nov 29 08:09:25 -0800 2008 Sat Nov 29 08:15:28 -0800 2008 1 more...]]> 0 0 false false Thu Feb 05 09:32:49 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 09:32:49 -0800 2009 God's Politics has struck a chord with contemporary Americans who, according to bestseller lists, are buying Wallis's book in droves. Regardless of how critics feel about the author's religious beliefs (evangelical Christian) and political leanings (traditional on family values; progressive on issue...

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One of the things I enjoyed most about this book was his d...more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Jul 07 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Jul 21 18:49:09 -0700 2009 Tue Jul 21 18:55:40 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Thu Feb 05 13:53:32 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 13:53:56 -0800 2009 more...]]> 3 1 false false Wed May 06 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 05 10:52:32 -0800 2009 Thu May 07 09:51:25 -0700 2009 1
That being said, I think I generally enjoyed the book and the challenges that Jim Wallis gives. I loved the ca...more...]]> 2 0 false false Thu Nov 06 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Thu Sep 25 10:48:50 -0700 2008 Tue Nov 11 08:49:33 -0800 2008 1 In his book, he makes a number of worthy challenges to conservative Christ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Aug 11 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Aug 07 19:33:41 -0700 2008 Tue Aug 12 08:46:33 -0700 2008
Wallis focused too much on his...more...]]> 0 0 false false Tue Oct 07 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Fri Aug 01 17:32:47 -0700 2008 Sat Oct 18 00:38:46 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Jul 29 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Jul 13 14:34:32 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 29 18:42:00 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Jun 30 16:33:36 -0700 2008 Tue Sep 23 08:47:23 -0700 2008
God’s Politics is built on the premise that God is not a republican…or a democrat. Though one tend...more...]]> 4 1 false false Wed Mar 26 09:56:14 -0700 2008 Wed Mar 26 10:04:15 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Feb 16 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Jan 20 01:55:35 -0800 2008 Sat Feb 16 11:16:50 -0800 2008 more...]]>