Just a word about Michael’s book. I had anticipated it through the past year and read it in just a couple days when it finally arrived.
I had expected to post a bunch about it here, but alas, I find I have nothing to say that hasn’t been said 100 times better himself.
Unfortunately, the book really didn’t do anything for me since I’ve been reading all his other stuff for the past (is it four?) years.
I would quickly recommend the book to a newcomer as a great quick introduction to some of his thoughts.
All the best stuff though, where he goes into (the most useful) depth of all the topics he brings up in the book are contained in somewhat disorganized essays written on his blog over the past decade.
To someone looking for some heavier material right away, I would point them to a few specifics.
A comment on what some other folks are saying: Michael was not as anti-institutional church as he appears to be in the book. The many nuances of his position on that appear to have been lost in editing.
Still, it’s a good book. I bought a couple copies and plan to pass ’em around. Even if you don’t agree with his conclusions, it’s a healthy reality check for contemporary American church culture.
He’s constantly bringing it back around to Jesus and we can always use some more of that, from every angle.