Meyers - The underground church : reclaiming the subversive way of Jesus

Praise for The Underground Church

Is there a way to cut through the tiresome and antiquated divisions between the so-called conservative and liberal wings of American Christianity? Robin Meyerss book not only argues that there is, but demonstrates it with sparkling examples from contemporary church life. Readable and engaging, this book will also keep the healing process going and open new possibilities.Harvey Cox, author, The Future of Faith

Do not read this book alone; read it in the company of a group able to have a conversation. This is to say, in a group with enough in common to be able to talk but with enough differences to need to talk. Then, if everyone is not changed, read it again, this time from end to beginning. Dr. Meyers wont mind.Fred B. Craddock, Bandy Distinguished Professor of Preaching and New Testament, Emeritus, Candler School of Theology at Emory University; author, As One Without Authority

DANGER: The contents of this book are explosive and could turn the world upside down. About time!Bill Moyers

When was the last time you thought of going to church as dangerous? Once we challenged the status quo; now we mostly defend it. The Underground Church tells the story of how we forgot where we came from and why we must recover our subversive roots. Read it if you dare. Become part of the movement if you are daring.Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Read this book. Written by a wordsmith, it is a passionate and challenging call to churches to be liberated from the cultural captivity of convention and into the underground church. Marcus Borg, canon theologian, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral; author, Speaking Christian

The Underground Church invites Christians to encounter a radical Jesus, to practice a subversive way of life, and to move beyond belief to love. This is no longer merely churchrather it is a movement that many are aching to join!Diana Butler Bass, author, Christianity After Religion: The End of Church and the Birth of a New Spiritual Awakening

As I read Robin Meyerss new book, I felt afresh how subversive the Christian way of life should be in relation to todays partisan ideologies and consumerist assumptions. He depicts a subversive, transformative, and hopeful identity for followers of Christone that I hope will be increasingly contagious.Brian McLaren, author, speaker, activist (www.brianmclaren.net)

This beautifully written manifesto, grounded in the authors deep faith and faithful ministry, is manna for those of us who love what the church is called to bebut who have a lovers quarrel with the way it too often distorts the good news about love, justice, mercy, and care for the least of these. May The Underground Church rise up and flower everywhere!Parker J. Palmer, author, The Courage to Teach and Healing the Heart of Democracy

Copyright 2012 by Robin Meyers. All rights reserved.

Published by Jossey-Bass

A Wiley Imprint

One Montgomery Street, Suite 1200, San Francisco, CA 94104-4594www.josseybass.com

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400, fax 978-646-8600, or on the Web at www.copyright.com. Requests to the publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, 201-748-6011, fax 201-748-6008, or online at www.wiley.com/go/permissions.

Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages. Readers should be aware that Internet Web sites offered as citations and/or sources for further information may have changed or disappeared between the time this was written and when it is read.

Jossey-Bass books and products are available through most bookstores. To contact Jossey-Bass directly call our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 800-956-7739, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3986, or fax 317-572-4002.

Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats and by print-on-demand. Some material included with standard print versions of this book may not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand. If the version of this book that you purchased references media such as CD or DVD that was not included in your purchase, you may download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com. For more information about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com.

Unless otherwise noted, quotations are taken from Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the Holy Bible, King James Version, Cambridge, 1769.

Credits are continued on page 272.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Meyers, Robin R. (Robin Rex), date.

The underground church : reclaiming the subversive way of Jesus / Robin Meyers.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references (p. ).

ISBN 978-1-118-06159-6 (cloth); 978-1-118-17588-0 (ebk); 978-1-118-17589-7 (ebk); 978-1-118-17590-3 (ebk)

1. Church history. 2. Christianity. I. Title.

BR145.3.M495 2012

262.001'7dc23

2011039903

House of Light by Mary Oliver Beacon Press, Boston. Copyright 1990 by Mary Oliver. Reprinted by permission of The Charlotte Sheedy Literary Agency Inc.

Reprinted by permission of the publishers and the Trustees of Am. Franklin, Cambridge, Mass.: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, Copyright 1998 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College. Copyright 1951, 1955, 1979, 1983, by the President and Fellows of Harvard College.

The Onion, News in Brief, January 10, 2011, http://www.theonion.com/articles. Used with permission.

Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front. Copyright 1998 by Wendell Berry from The Selected Poems of Wendell Berry. Reprinted by permission of Counterpoint.

This is how the conservative and liberal forms of religion will meet, when desire and hope for the kingdom of God and fellowship with the spirit of Jesus again govern them as an elementary and mighty force, and bring their world-views and their religion so close that the differences in fundamental presuppositions, though still existing, sink, just as the boulders of the river bed are covered by the rising flood and at last are barely visible, gleaming through the depths of waters.