“Filled
with memorable, insightful and revealing stories. I
recommend it.”
- Marcus Borg, author of
The First Christmas
“Philip Gulley separates wheat from chaff, experience from
explanation and purpose from function in this book. He calls
the Jesus message into a new vision - one that has both
power and integrity.” - John
Shelby Spong, author of Eternal Life:
A New Vision
“Gulley
puts the Christ back in Christian. This manifesto is a call
not just to worship Jesus, but to follow him. It asks the
daring question, "What if Christians actually began to take
their Christ seriously?" The answer to that question could
change the world.” - Shane Claiborne, bestselling
author of
The Irresistible Revolution
At a recent
speech, the woman introducing me used the word iconoclast. It had
been awhile since I'd heard that word, so when I got home I looked
it up in my dictionary to discover what the woman thought of me. Iconoclast:
1.) one who destroys
religious images or opposes their veneration 2.) one who attacks
settled beliefs or institutions.
I don't recall ever
destroying a religious image, so I'm assuming she was referring to
the second description. I do enjoy dismantling settled
beliefs, not for the sake of wanton destruction, but for the sake of
building something more helpful and beautiful in their place.
For too long, American
Christianity has been poisoned by a narrowness of mind and spirit,
demanding we believe the implausible, affirm the absurd, and despise
the different. Thoughtful people are leaving the Church in
droves, unwilling to diminish their lives or the lives of others for
the sake of faith.
This website is my
ongoing effort to build a Christianity we can live with - a
Christianity that brings out the best in us, not the worst; a
Christianity at home with people of other faiths; a Christianity
grateful for scientific knowledge; a Christianity rooted in God's
grace, and informed by the example of Jesus. It is the
Christianity many of us have longed for, but haven't found.
Perhaps it's time we looked somewhere else. GraceTalks might
be just the place to start.
The focus of
GraceTalks will be wide-ranging, from peace to politics, to Biblical
interpretation, to the role of Christianity in the wider world.
If you're an iconoclast, or leaning that way, I invite you to join
me in building a new kind of Christianity, where love counts more
than rules, and reason more than fear. Enjoy this website,
read and spread its message, change yourself, then change our world.
~Philip
"His vision of Christianity is
grounded, gripping, and filled with uncommon sense."
-Father Richard Rohr
"If the church were as Philip Gulley envisions here,
people would be knocking down our doors to experience God's
love." -Diana Butler Bass,
author of Christianity for the
Rest of Us
“Gulley
puts the Christ back in Christian. This manifesto is a call
not just to worship Jesus, but to follow him. It asks the
daring question, "What if Christians actually began to take
their Christ seriously?" The answer to that question could
change the world.” - Shane Claiborne, bestselling
author of
The Irresistible Revolution
"Flat-out hilarious"
-BOOKLIST
"A wonderful account of the treasures, trials and plain old wackiness of growing up in small town Indiana. Gulley tells his stories with a bright intelligence, a wry wink and warm-hearted good humor, which are at the same time tender, thought provoking and downright hilarious." -Carrie Newcomer, singer and songwriter
"Humor
beats nostalgia and drama; this stuff is a laugh-out-loud funny tweaking of a not terribly misspent youth." –Publisher’s Weekly
"Philip Gulley's memoir is
sweet and funny - funny enough that you're tempted to read
parts aloud just to amuse yourself further."
- Jay Allison, host and curator, NPR's "This I
Believe"
"Philip Gulley gives us the
good laugh, the good cry and a good read of a world still in reach through faith
and family."
- Thomas Lynch, author of The
Undertaking
SIGN-UP
to have Philip's GraceTalk
messages sent directly to your E-mail inbox
Want to know what
Philip's up to today?
A new Facebook group has been
created for ongoing discussion about Philip's new book,
If the Church Were Christian. Join
the discussion.
UPCOMING EVENTS
September 11, 2010 5:30
p.m.
September 12, 2010 9:30 a.m., 11:00 a.m. Worship
Services
Cross Creek Community Church
667 Miamisburg Centerville Rd.
Dayton, OH 45459-6519
September 21, 2010
St. Joseph Hospital
Pastoral Care Department 40th Anniversary
1907 W. Sycamore St.
Kokomo, IN 46901
September 23, 2010,
2:00 p.m.
Westminster Village
2741 North Salisbury Street
West Lafayette, IN 47906
September 28, 2010,
12:00 p.m.
Indiana Township Association
Annual Convention and Educational Conference
Sheraton Indianapolis Hotel and Suites
Clearwater Ballroom
8787 Keystone Crossing
Indianapolis, IN 46240
September 30, 11:30
a.m.
First Baptist Church of Vincennes
Senior Adult Day
262 S. Wabash Ave.
Vincennes, IN 47591
