Secret Thoughts of an
Unlikely Convert: An English Professor's Journey into Christian Faith
By: Rosaria Champagne
Butterfield
(If I may borrow John Barber’s word
“bragamony” from his book My Almost for His Highest.)
This book is not about
the “bragamony” of an English Professor’s journey into Christian faith. It is
about God’s grace being manifested in a sinner’s life.
“When I was 28 years
old, I boldly declared myself lesbian. I was at the finish of a PhD in English
Literature and Cultural Studies. I was a teaching associate in one of the first
and strongest Women’s Studies Departments in the nation” (p. X).
What would your church
do if someone like Rosaria came to your church for help? There are churches out
there that don’t believe that gay people can be transformed by Christ (p. 25), there
are churches out there that would encourage her to think that it is okay to “have
Jesus and her lesbian lover” (p. 16), and there are churches that would have
farmed her out to para-church ministries, “specializing” in “gay people”, in
which Rosaria was thankful that her pastor did not do, but remained faithful in
shepherding (p. 24).
This is a book I
highly recommend all pastors, church leaders, and those who serve in the mercy
ministry to read. I have learned this from my personal life—that many church
leaders are quick to write off anyone that comes to them for help, and they
will send that person elsewhere (i.e. professional help) or make quick decisions
without thinking about how to help that person in the long run.
It is sad to see that
there are churches that have sublet their Sunday School classes to so-called
“Psychotherapy Specialists”. Please buy a few copies of this book and pass them
out, first to your pastor and church leaders, and then to those who serve in
the mercy ministry.
1 comment:
I also saw this book while browsing over the net. I was searching for a book that can be helpful in evangelizing to my homosexual friends. I have been praying for them and I wanted to give them a book that they could read for them to see that there is hope and not to the point that they would feel that I 'am persecuting them. I saw this at the collection of resources in http://booksforevangelism.org/category/resources/homosexuality/ and been searching for more reviews. Thank you for sharing this post and God bless you more! :)
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