On God's Side: What religion forgets and politics hasn't learned about serving the common good - Softcover

Jim Wallis

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0745956122 ISBN 13: 9780745956121

Publisher: Lion Books, 2013

Synopsis

"My concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God's side" said Abraham Lincoln. Reading his words today, it is clear we still have much to learn concerning what it means to be on God's side. Bestselling author, public theologian, and leading Christian activist Jim Wallis speaks to our current context, revealing the spiritual compass we need to effect lasting change in our society. He explains how Jesus' message transforms not only our individual lives but also our public lives. The gospel of the kingdom of God helps us recover a personal and social commitment to the common good and shows us - in concrete ways - how to be both personally responsible and socially just. Working together, we can reshape our churches, society, politics, and economy.

About this title

Review:

"Personal/political, religion/politics, faith/power, ideology/pragmatism ... Jim Wallis is a wrestler of values, ideas, and policies and how they interact to shape the world we live in. His deep, melodious voice is easy to listen to, but what he says takes a harder commitment to live by." -- Bono, lead singer of U2; cofounder of ONE.org

"Jim Wallis and I have a variety of differences on domestic and international policy, but there is no message more timely or urgent than his call to actively consider the common good." -- Michael Gerson, op-ed columnist, The Washington Post

"I love the work and books and existence of Jim Wallis. His is a profound and always-entertaining voice of reason, reconciliation, and passion for social justice and peace. Each of his books makes me wish I could get it into the hands of more politicians, right-wing Christians, left-wing Christians, secular humanists, economists, and regular people--everyone--so we could see how much we have in common and how much is at stake." -- Anne Lamott, author of Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers

"I have read all of Jim Wallis's books, books that call evangelicals to full conversion and an ecclesial faith that works. On God's Side is Jim's best book; it is personal, pastoral, and prophetic--a summons to a a deeper conversion, to bridge-building commitments to the common good, and to a family life that grounds active faith in a common, caring community." --Scot McKnight, Northern Seminary

"No one cuts through the confusion of our times with clarity and compassion like Jim Wallis. He is at his best in this book--bridging a cosmic vision of what humankind could be with a concrete plan for how we get there." -- Eboo Patel, founder and president, Interfaith Youth Core; author of Sacred Ground

"This sweeping tour de force by America's most prominent religious social justice activist is at once deeply personal and powerfully universal. A must-read book for policy makers, religious leaders, and anyone looking for a moral basis to address America's urgent problems." --Rabbi David Saperstein, director, Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism

"There are few people on the scene who can put together mature Christianity with mature politics without compromising either. Jim Wallis does it best--and does it again here." -- Richard Rohr, OFM, Center for Action and Contemplation, Albuquerque, New Mexico

"Jim Wallis is asking a question whose time has come. Are we pursuing a national agenda that seeks the common good or are we seeking to baptize our political agendas with faith? Leaders both religious and political must take Wallis's challenge seriously when pondering the future of our life together." -- Rev. Gabriel Salguero, president, National Latino Evangelical Coalition

"Addresses with wisdom and clarity crucial issues that we must grapple with in the decade ahead: economics, ecology, polarization, peace making, the role of government, and more... Arguably Jim's best book." --Brian D. McLaren

From the Back Cover:

Finding Common Ground for the Common Good

"Personal/political, religion/politics, faith/power, ideology/pragmatism . . . Jim Wallis is a wrestler of values, ideas, and policies and how they interact to shape the world we live in. His deep, melodious voice is easy to listen to, but what he says takes a harder commitment to live by."
--Bono, lead singer of U2; cofounder of ONE.org

"Jim Wallis and I have a variety of differences on domestic and international policy, but there is no message more timely or urgent than his call to actively consider the common good."
--Michael Gerson, op-ed columnist, The Washington Post

"I love the work and books and existence of Jim Wallis. His is a profound and always-entertaining voice of reason, reconciliation, and passion for social justice and peace. Each of his books makes me wish I could get it into the hands of more politicians, right-wing Christians, left-wing Christians, secular humanists, economists, and regular people--everyone--so we could see how much we have in common and how much is at stake."
--Anne Lamott, author of Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers

"This is the finest of all Jim Wallis's writings. Jim's comprehension of how Scripture and political issues relate to each other is surpassed only by the number of bridges he builds so that we can all solve problems together. Reading this book will help you be more like Jesus, especially in the public square."
--Joel C. Hunter, senior pastor, Northland--A Church Distributed

"I have read all of Jim Wallis's books, books that call evangelicals to full conversion and an ecclesial faith that works.On God's Side is Jim's best book; it is personal, pastoral, and prophetic--a summons to a deeper conversion, to bridge-building commitments to the common good, and to a family life that grounds active faith in a common, caring community."
--Scot McKnight, Northern Seminary

"Thank God this is not just another book about God blessing us. It's a book about us blessing God by caring for God's people, especially the most vulnerable ones among us."--Shane Claiborne, author, activist, and recovering sinner; thesimpleway.org

"Jim Wallis is this country's major prophetic evangelical Christian voice. He has a sense of urgency and hope seldom seen in our cynical time. I hope and pray his voice resounds across this land--and that we pay heed to it."
--Cornel West, Union Theological Seminary

About this edition

• Publisher: Lion Books
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0745956122
• ISBN 13: 9780745956121
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320