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A review by ellenauer
The Myth of the American Dream: Reflections on Affluence, Autonomy, Safety, and Power by D.L. Mayfield
2.0
I really want to agree with what Mayfield is saying. I think she’s onto something and though she says many concerning things, I can appreciate some of the ways that she challenges the lazy Christian to wake up. I actually thoroughly support her point in chapter 14, which after the first 13 chapters was a pleasant surprise. But overall, though I know where she is trying to go, she missed it. It’s just close enough to true that I fear this book could mislead many, and I highly recommend reading the 3-star review on here by Grace for more on that.
My brief review is: She gives a partial solution to a problem she partially addresses, and by omitting the most crucial part of the Biblical solution, failed to make a Biblical point. It’s a spiritual, mystic book that mentions Jesus, but not a Christian one.
My extensive review is... She has valid points about our tendency to believe in a passive Christ. He wasn’t passive or distant. He really did call out the elitist Pharisees. He really did care for the oppressed. He really did take tangible action and do miraculous ministry. He didn’t come just to get through those 30 years and die and resurrect so we could get through our 80 years and die and have eternal life. She’s right there. I also agree with her that many American Christians have sought affluence, autonomy, safety, and power over Christlikeness. Idolatry of the self is rampant in our culture, and we’d do well to evaluate Jesus’ life and teachings. He wasn’t teaching others to seek security and comfort. American ideals are not Christian ideals.
The problem is, disagreement with culture doesn’t mean you discount doctrine. Along with some offhand theological claims, somehow she has defined the “American Dream” as anything different than how people in poverty live, and made it evil. No mention of the blessing or benefit or anything else about the middle class that could possibly be used to glorify God. It’s all bad to her. The biggest fallacy is (follow me here)... Biblical doctrine = her middle-class upbringing, and her middle class upbringing = The American Dream, so Biblical doctrine = The American Dream, which is evil... She somehow drew these unequal things into one entity, and banished it all. But that’s not how it works. The Bible sets the precedent and is the unchanging truth, not the culture. People misinterpret and become lazy and prideful, and cultures change in minute ways that lead to dramatic differences over time. She throws the baby out with the bath water, which is clearly very dangerous when it regards the Bible. Over and over and over again, cultural norms and misguided values are to blame, but not once does she mention sin as a cause for anything. But... sin is the reason these happen. The corrupt systems and selfish agendas and misconstrued beliefs she addresses aren’t the problem; the sin that built the systems and agendas and misconstrued the Truth is. She found part of an issue but didn’t look deep enough to find the root, and thereby completely missed the point.
Mayfield loves to use the “If Jesus we’re here today, He would...” line, and I think she gets it halfway right. He would be with the least of these, He would graciously show us the ways that shame affect our ability to give and receive. However, He would also share the hope we can receive through Him. There’s no mention of the gospel’s importance, and she makes multiple references to God and Allah being the same, which is deeply concerning. Non-Christians can show us kindness, but they cannot “show us Christ’s love” as she states, because they don’t know Christ. She also goes so far as to say her neighbors are the ones “who have the keys to truly liberating us all...” YIKES. Jesus is portrayed as just a good guy we should be like, but not the Savior. Honestly, she kind of writes herself as the savior. The entire book is about her, and there’s not an inkling of HOPE in Christ in it. It’s pretty clear that she wants to be sad at the world and angry at everyone for not doing anything to help.
She hits hard on Christian responsibility to fight unjust systems of oppression. I completely agree that that is PART of our job here. Christians have commands to obey, and it’s not gonna happen if we all seek comfort just to get by in this life. However, again, she missed the Biblical why behind that responsibility. Our first responsibility to those around us is not to feed them or clothe them or teach them English. Yes, we should sacrifice, be strategic, and carry one another’s through the hardships of difficult ministry. We should do these things and more, but in order to share the gospel. Learning about the neighborhood and meeting tangible needs are good, but not the point. Our #1 responsibility to our neighbors, as commanded in Scripture, is to tell them about Christ. With that we take care of tangible needs- we don’t say “Jesus” and move on- but we cannot neglect the Gospel in our care for others. Meeting needs of someone’s 70-80 year experience on earth at the expense of their eternal soul is completely irresponsible and the most unloving thing we could do. Yet that is Mayfield’s solution. She straight up says “God’s dream” is for “every single person in the world to [to be] safe, happy, and flourishing”... Nope, sorry. Happiness now is not the end goal. I don’t think she even mentioned eternity in the entire book... 100% of her solutions regard physical needs on earth. This book is a quintessential example of the social gospel, so in the end, it’s incomplete.
My brief review is: She gives a partial solution to a problem she partially addresses, and by omitting the most crucial part of the Biblical solution, failed to make a Biblical point. It’s a spiritual, mystic book that mentions Jesus, but not a Christian one.
My extensive review is... She has valid points about our tendency to believe in a passive Christ. He wasn’t passive or distant. He really did call out the elitist Pharisees. He really did care for the oppressed. He really did take tangible action and do miraculous ministry. He didn’t come just to get through those 30 years and die and resurrect so we could get through our 80 years and die and have eternal life. She’s right there. I also agree with her that many American Christians have sought affluence, autonomy, safety, and power over Christlikeness. Idolatry of the self is rampant in our culture, and we’d do well to evaluate Jesus’ life and teachings. He wasn’t teaching others to seek security and comfort. American ideals are not Christian ideals.
The problem is, disagreement with culture doesn’t mean you discount doctrine. Along with some offhand theological claims, somehow she has defined the “American Dream” as anything different than how people in poverty live, and made it evil. No mention of the blessing or benefit or anything else about the middle class that could possibly be used to glorify God. It’s all bad to her. The biggest fallacy is (follow me here)... Biblical doctrine = her middle-class upbringing, and her middle class upbringing = The American Dream, so Biblical doctrine = The American Dream, which is evil... She somehow drew these unequal things into one entity, and banished it all. But that’s not how it works. The Bible sets the precedent and is the unchanging truth, not the culture. People misinterpret and become lazy and prideful, and cultures change in minute ways that lead to dramatic differences over time. She throws the baby out with the bath water, which is clearly very dangerous when it regards the Bible. Over and over and over again, cultural norms and misguided values are to blame, but not once does she mention sin as a cause for anything. But... sin is the reason these happen. The corrupt systems and selfish agendas and misconstrued beliefs she addresses aren’t the problem; the sin that built the systems and agendas and misconstrued the Truth is. She found part of an issue but didn’t look deep enough to find the root, and thereby completely missed the point.
Mayfield loves to use the “If Jesus we’re here today, He would...” line, and I think she gets it halfway right. He would be with the least of these, He would graciously show us the ways that shame affect our ability to give and receive. However, He would also share the hope we can receive through Him. There’s no mention of the gospel’s importance, and she makes multiple references to God and Allah being the same, which is deeply concerning. Non-Christians can show us kindness, but they cannot “show us Christ’s love” as she states, because they don’t know Christ. She also goes so far as to say her neighbors are the ones “who have the keys to truly liberating us all...” YIKES. Jesus is portrayed as just a good guy we should be like, but not the Savior. Honestly, she kind of writes herself as the savior. The entire book is about her, and there’s not an inkling of HOPE in Christ in it. It’s pretty clear that she wants to be sad at the world and angry at everyone for not doing anything to help.
She hits hard on Christian responsibility to fight unjust systems of oppression. I completely agree that that is PART of our job here. Christians have commands to obey, and it’s not gonna happen if we all seek comfort just to get by in this life. However, again, she missed the Biblical why behind that responsibility. Our first responsibility to those around us is not to feed them or clothe them or teach them English. Yes, we should sacrifice, be strategic, and carry one another’s through the hardships of difficult ministry. We should do these things and more, but in order to share the gospel. Learning about the neighborhood and meeting tangible needs are good, but not the point. Our #1 responsibility to our neighbors, as commanded in Scripture, is to tell them about Christ. With that we take care of tangible needs- we don’t say “Jesus” and move on- but we cannot neglect the Gospel in our care for others. Meeting needs of someone’s 70-80 year experience on earth at the expense of their eternal soul is completely irresponsible and the most unloving thing we could do. Yet that is Mayfield’s solution. She straight up says “God’s dream” is for “every single person in the world to [to be] safe, happy, and flourishing”... Nope, sorry. Happiness now is not the end goal. I don’t think she even mentioned eternity in the entire book... 100% of her solutions regard physical needs on earth. This book is a quintessential example of the social gospel, so in the end, it’s incomplete.