The Beliefnet® Guide to Evangelical Christianity

April 11, 2005
Here we have evangelical Christianity in a nutshell, written by a former Time
and Christianity Today
journalist who describes herself as an evangelical. Using Beliefnet's characteristically breezy and accessible writing style, Zoba tells the truth about evangelical Christians. They are not all in agreement on political issues such as abortion and homosexuality; they don't all reject the theory of evolution; and while most believe in the inerrancy of the Bible ("when scripture says something, it is telling the truth"), they interpret scripture in a variety of ways. This guide claims that evangelicals share certain core religious values: they believe humans must have a "born again" experience to become Christians, emphasize a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, trust in the reliability of the Bible and "feel obliged to share their faith in Jesus (which they believe saves them from eternal damnation) with other people, in order to save them, too, from eternal damnation." The book works overtime to rescue evangelical Christianity from the notion that it promotes only individual concerns, with Zoba emphasizing the many ways evangelicals are working hard toward social justice and the alleviation of poverty. This guide delivers what it promises—a broad view of evangelicalism designed to help readers be more tolerant and accepting of this branch of Christianity.

May 1, 2005
Bearing the imprimatur of Beliefnet, a multifaith web site, this short book is an easy read that answers many questions about the different expressions of evangelicalism: who are evangelicals? Why have they become such a dominant voice? What do they really believe? What do current events have to do with the "Left Behind" books? What makes them so judgmental? What is the meaning of "fundamentalist"? Why do gay rights and abortion top some evangelical agendas? Why are faith-based social programs so effective? And why do some evangelicals have opposing views with respect to the environment and women's issues? Zoba ("Day of Reckoning: Columbine and the Search for America's Soul"), a "Time" magazine regional reporter, a senior writer for "Christianity Today", and an award-winning journalist, covers a lot of ground carefully and without apparent bias. A short suggested reading list is included as well. Recommended for all libraries. -George Westerlund, formerly with Providence P.L.

Copyright 2005 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 15, 2005
Citing a 2003 poll, Zoba reports common knowledge: "Americans generally" dislike evangelicals "more than any other social sector, except for prostitutes." In response, she says she will dispel confusion about evangelicals and point out evangelical strengths. She lists four evangelical essentials and thereafter sketches evangelicals' spin on Christian theology and evangelical history. The four basics are the born-again experience, a personal relationship with Jesus, the ultimate authority of the Bible, and sharing the faith to promote others' salvation. Really, she says later, the four are shared by virtually all Christians, certainly including Catholics, Orthodox Christians, and mainstream Protestants. By then, she has so illuminated evangelical perspectives and history--especially the fact that, since the Reformation, there have been, besides the expected Baptists and Anabaptists, evangelical Lutherans, Presbyterians, Anglicans, and even Catholics--that it seems perverse not to concur without dumping Christianity, or at least theism, altogether. She has also shown that the apoplectic anti-abortion and anti-gay demonstrators so beloved by the media are a waning phenomenon, and that evangelicals modestly doing good works vastly outnumber them.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2005, American Library Association.)