★★★★★ 5
Getting past the noise to a holistic view of the person
Format: Hardcover
In order to have effective conversations about difficult and controversial subjects such as abortion, euthanasia, and sexual ethics it is important for both parties to be on the same page. Otherwise, it is easy to make assumptions about the other person’s motives and end up talking past each other. Discussions turn into arguments where name calling and personal attacks are more common than a reasoned and thoughtful exchange of ideas. In my own experience, it has been difficult to speak up about many of these types of sensitive subjects in public because of fear that I will be labeled intolerant or bigoted. In fact, it appears our culture, as a whole, has descended into a shouting match where the loudest voice is either the secular one screaming about trigger words and safe spaces where no one can challenge your views, or a caricature of Christianity which writes off everyone who disagrees as a hopeless reprobate who is going to hell. In this cacophony, the Christian message of God’s redeeming love for humanity is drowned out in a sea of empty words. Voices shouting past one another, convincing only those who already agree with us.
This situation that many Christians find themselves in, unable or unwilling to speak for fear of being attacked and shouted down is why the new book by Nancy Pearcey Love Thy Body is so important. I have been blessed to be part of both the manuscript review and the book launch team for this amazing book and I have to say that this may be one of the most important books for all Christians to read, especially those who wish to be more effective in the public sphere. Over the course of seven very accessible chapters she addresses the most pertinent issues of our times, from abortion, and assisted suicide to the hook up culture and the LGBTQ movement which is sweeping our nation and exposes a fatal flaw in the secular narrative. This flaw that runs through all of these issues is a fractured view of the person which splits apart the body and the mind. What results is a negative view of the body which tramples on human rights and dignity. The secular narrative is that the Christian view of the person is repressive and prudish, often denigrating the authentic self. They want to claim the high moral ground because their view is based on love and acceptance. Nancy’s book gives us the tools to get past the walls and barriers built up by secular buzz words such as “death with dignity,” “marriage equality,” and “pride” to the underlying worldview so we can be on the same page as those we are speaking with. In her words: “As we face the social ills of our own day, we must move beyond denunciations that can sound harsh, angry, or judgmental and instead work to show that the biblical ethic is based on a positive view of the body as part of the image of God.”
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Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2018
