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A review by 19paws
A Bigger Table: Building Messy, Authentic, and Hopeful Spiritual Community by John Pavlovitz
2.0
This book addresses issues that are important to me and I wanted to love it. Sadly, I could not.
It’s not just that the book is painfully repetitive. Or that it failed to provide any real guidance for creating the bigger table. The biggest concern for me is that John Pavlovitz seems completely unfamiliar with the breadth of philosophies and perspectives among Christian denominations. He speaks of “The Church” without seeming to realize that this includes large mainstream denominations like the Episcopal Church, the Lutheran Church (ELCA), the Presbyterian Church, and the United Church of Christ which all sanction same-sex marriage, ordain gay ministers, and often participate in interfaith communities. (In fact, according to a Pew Research Center Survey, 62% of white mainline Protestants support same-sex marriage.)
I’m not suggesting that this represents Christianity everywhere in America. Clearly and sadly it does not. And I’m not saying that the topics tackled in this book aren’t important. But I came away with the impression that John Pavlovitz believes that the Christian church overwhelmingly endorses bigotry and a small table. It left me feeling that he was ignoring what is happening in mainstream Christianity, choosing instead to foster the same biased (or uninformed) image of Christian churches that the media promotes (as it focuses on the Christian right and pretty much ignores the progressive voices among Christians). I suspect that it’s because this other Christian demographic doesn’t fit his narrative. Or maybe it doesn’t fit his self-image as some sort of pioneer in the movement to build a more inclusive church. Alternatively, he may be simply ignorant of what is occurring outside of his own experience in southern evangelical churches. (Truthfully, it’s hard to know what exactly his experience is or even if he is actually an ordained minister since he is extraordinarily secretive about his background.)
I’m glad that Pavlovitz is tackling these issues. But I wish he had pointed out that others are doing the same and that there are many, many churches that are working hard to create a bigger table. At best, his perspective comes across as naïve and uninformed. At worst, it seems arrogant.
It’s not just that the book is painfully repetitive. Or that it failed to provide any real guidance for creating the bigger table. The biggest concern for me is that John Pavlovitz seems completely unfamiliar with the breadth of philosophies and perspectives among Christian denominations. He speaks of “The Church” without seeming to realize that this includes large mainstream denominations like the Episcopal Church, the Lutheran Church (ELCA), the Presbyterian Church, and the United Church of Christ which all sanction same-sex marriage, ordain gay ministers, and often participate in interfaith communities. (In fact, according to a Pew Research Center Survey, 62% of white mainline Protestants support same-sex marriage.)
I’m not suggesting that this represents Christianity everywhere in America. Clearly and sadly it does not. And I’m not saying that the topics tackled in this book aren’t important. But I came away with the impression that John Pavlovitz believes that the Christian church overwhelmingly endorses bigotry and a small table. It left me feeling that he was ignoring what is happening in mainstream Christianity, choosing instead to foster the same biased (or uninformed) image of Christian churches that the media promotes (as it focuses on the Christian right and pretty much ignores the progressive voices among Christians). I suspect that it’s because this other Christian demographic doesn’t fit his narrative. Or maybe it doesn’t fit his self-image as some sort of pioneer in the movement to build a more inclusive church. Alternatively, he may be simply ignorant of what is occurring outside of his own experience in southern evangelical churches. (Truthfully, it’s hard to know what exactly his experience is or even if he is actually an ordained minister since he is extraordinarily secretive about his background.)
I’m glad that Pavlovitz is tackling these issues. But I wish he had pointed out that others are doing the same and that there are many, many churches that are working hard to create a bigger table. At best, his perspective comes across as naïve and uninformed. At worst, it seems arrogant.