Before You Lose Your Faith

Deconstructing Doubt in the Church

By: Ivan Mesa, Trevin Wax, Ian Harber, Brett McCracken, Hunter Beaumont, Rachel Gilson, Claude Atcho, Samuel James, Jay Y. Kim, Thaddeus Williams, Ivan Mesa - editor

Narrated by: Dan Kassis, Sarah Gammage

Length: 4 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

“I’m deconstructing.” Yet another social-media post announces departure from the Christian faith. The cause could be sex, race, politics, social justice, science, hell - or all of the above. For many, Christianity is becoming implausible, even impossible to believe. While it might be tempting to leave the church in order to find answers, Before You Lose Your Faith argues that church should be the best place to deal with doubts.

Featuring contributors such as Claude Atcho, Rachel Gilson, Jay Y. Kim, Brett McCracken, Karen Swallow Prior, Derek Rishmawy, and Jared C. Wilson, this book shows deconstructing need not end in unbelief. In fact, deconstructing can be the road toward reconstructing - building up a more mature, robust faith that grapples honestly with the deepest questions of life.

©2021 The Gospel Coalition (P)2021 The Gospel Coalition

Hit & Miss

The overall narration was well done and deserves the 5. The structure was fine and gets a 4. My issue is mostly with the way some of the information is given. Not always, but in more than a few chapters the writers seem pretty assumptive with motivations as to why people deconstruct. More-so in the first half (maybe even the first 3/4) of the book. Granted, people do leave over hurt or dislike of certain doctrines, as I have plenty of old friends that did just that. But there seemed to be an “elephant in the room” over people leaving over history, science, and/or contradictions in Scripture (or the legitimacy of the Canon). These, at least in my circles of people who are no longer believers, seem to actually be huge reasons for deconversion.

The writers touched on it here and there with some empathy, others out right insinuated that those probably aren’t the “real” reasons why.

Just came off as pretty disingenuous. This wasn’t perpetrated by all the contributors, but certainly several.

Helpful

This book aims to help people who are questioning their Christian faith to continue to do so, but to do so in a fair, fully informed way before actually taking the step to forsake their faith in Christ. It covers a lot of territory in a rather short book and in so doing raises a lot of issues in some interesting ways.

The writers don’t pretend to be mere casual bystanders with some good advice for how to give up the Christian faith in a credible way; rather they clearly hope to help people, especially those who are younger, find their way from from a faith that leaves them puzzled and/or dissatisfied to a faith in Christ that more fully conforms to the life in Christ and with his people that the Bible actually describes and to which it calls us all.

Honest people who really want answers will do well to read the book and take on the challenge it describes.

It is not a book of sure fire answers which will turn anyone contemplating leaving their faith behind back to the church of their youth. But it can help them to begin to map a course for honestly pursuing the most important trek they will ever take in their lives.

Additionally, this book is almost required reading for pastors, elders, youth leaders, and parents. In its pages the church and Christian families can begin to take inventory in order to see how we might be distorting biblical faith by a shallow enculturation which falls far short of glorifying the Christ who gives life and hope to anyone in any culture who trusts in him.

whyyyy

I wanted to bang my head against a wall throughout this book. it would say all the things wrong about christinaty and then say well it doesn't matter because Jesus/god loves you. say nothing in the bible is true and then say well it doesn't matter because God is never wrong.
I feel like they were trying to oppress people's feelings the entire time. they said question the faith but you're wrong for doing so.