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Baal and the Gods of More Rescuing Church Growth from Idolatry Andrew Root
In this moment of church decline, we often believe that what will save us is getting more—more people, more influence, more reach, more money. But this modern temptation opens us up to an ancient idolatry. This book reorients us toward a deeper relational and theological way of thinking about the future. “Root delivers a stinging rebuke to Western Protestantism, exposing how our fixation on growth has succumbed to a relentless logic of escalation that mirrors the ancient worship of Baal. He argues that our frantic obsessions with innovation and identity politics are merely two sides of the same capital- ist coin, driving the church to trade the obedience of faith for the exhausting pursuit of ‘doing better.’ To escape this instrumental fertility cult, Root calls leaders to look to Mary as the clearest teacher of a noninstrumental, relational ecclesiology revealed in the scandalous weakness of the cross.” —Gerardo Martí, Davidson College “Root calls pastors to trust in the God who gives rest, to practice relational ministry as the work of the Spirit, and to believe that such faithfulness is enough.” —Rev. Carol McEntyre, senior minister, First Baptist Greenville, South Carolina “In this tour de force, Root shows how our chasing of the fertility gods ancient and contemporary underwrites a sterile faith. Take and read!” —Derek Nelson, Wabash College
NOW AVAILABLE • 272 pp. • $29.99p • 9781540970060
Andrew Root (PhD, Princeton Theological Seminary) is Carrie Olson Baalson Professor of Youth and Family Ministry at Luther Seminary.
Check Out the Ministry in a Secular Age Podcast from ANDREW ROOT and DEREK TRONSGARD Sponsored by Luther Seminary and Baker Academic
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