The Unlikely Disciple

absweetmarie
Sat, 11 Feb 2012 09:10:07 +0000

I’m about 2/3 of the way through it myself, vandygrad87. My own spiritual orientation is “atheist who doesn’t hate religion.” I appreciate the lack of snark and the open-minded perspective Roose brings to the project. What Whistle Pig says about “token ‘aha’s’” seems a little uncharitable. Roose wrote the book when he was, what, 20? The “aha moments” that any 20-year-old experiences may not be that profound in the large scheme of things. But the book is well written and the style is engaging. I do not have the slightest idea what Whistle Pig means about how Roose’s aha moments “illumine the ignorance of the author’s premise and cultural prejudices”; I don’t get that at all, and the Christians who’ve recommended the book to me didn’t recommend it with any caveats. Roose did not ridicule, he sought to understand. That he did not come out of the project considering homosexuality shameful or creationism a reasonable explanation for life on earth is not surprising. That he developed a new appreciation for the role of faith in many people’s lives is a good thing. I’ll reserve final judgment on the book’s merits until I finish.