Why I Left, Why I Stayed: Conversations on Christianity Between an Evangelical Father and His Humanist Son - Hardcover

Campolo; Anthony

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0062415379 ISBN 13: 9780062415370

Publisher: HarperOne, 2017

Synopsis

Bestselling Christian author, activist, and scholar Tony Campolo and his son Bart, an avowed Humanist, debate their spiritual differences and explore similarities involving faith, belief, and hope that they share.

Over a Thanksgiving dinner, fifty-year-old Bart Campolo announced to his Evangelical pastor father, Tony Campolo, that after a lifetime immersed in the Christian faith, he no longer believed in God. The revelation shook the Campolo family dynamic and forced father and son to each reconsider his own personal journey of faith--dual spiritual investigations into theology, faith, and Humanism that eventually led Bart and Tony back to one another.

In Why I Left, Why I Stayed, the Campolos reflect on their individual spiritual odysseys and how they evolved when their paths diverged. Tony, a renowned Christian teacher and pastor, recounts his experience, from the initial heartbreak of discovering Bart's change in faith, to the subsequent healing he found in his own self-examination, to his embracing of his son's point of view. Bart, an author and Humanist chaplain at the University of Southern California, considers his faith journey from Progressive Christianity to Humanism, revealing how it affected his outlook and transformed his relationship with his father.

As Why I Left, Why I Stayed makes clear, a painful schism between father and son that could have divided them irreparably became instead an opening that offered each an invaluable look not only at what separated them, but more importantly, what they shared.

About this title

About the Author

Tony Campolo (left) is a bestselling author, speaker, and professor emeritus of sociology at Eastern University. He has written more than thirty books, including The Kingdom of God Is a Party, It's Friday But Sunday's Comin', and Red Letter Christians. He is also the cofounder of RedLetterChristians.org. He and his wife Peggy live in Philadelphia.

Bart Campolo (right) is a community builder, counselor, and humanist chaplain at the University of Southern California. He is also the founder of Mission Year and host of the popular Humanize Me podcast. He and his wife Marty live in Los Angeles.

From the Back Cover

Over a Thanksgiving dinner, Bart Campolo announced to his famous evangelical father, Tony Campolo, that, after a lifetime immersed in the Christian faith, Bart no longer believed in God. The revelation plunged the Campolo family into an increasingly common spiritual dilemma and forced father and son to each reconsider his own personal journey of faith. Yet it also allowed for a new opportunity: to openly discuss religious questions across their differences.

In Why I Left, Why I Stayed, Tony, a renowned Christian teacher and apologist, and Bart, a humanist chaplain at the University of Southern California, seek to provide a safe space for anyone wrestling with their own--or a loved one's--decision to stay in or leave the church, providing compelling arguments in both directions and modeling for everyone how to strongly but lovingly disagree about the things that matter most.

"We haven't stopped talking--or caring," they write. "Hopefully, this book will model a graceful way to process what has become an increasingly common crisis, while also serving as a safe forum for those struggling with doubts and questions about the Christian faith."

For anyone who has questions about the viability and truth of the Christian life or wonders what life looks like after Christianity, this book promises to be challenging, inspiring, and highly informative.

From the Inside Flap

Over a Thanksgiving dinner, Bart Campolo announced to his famous evangelical father, Tony Campolo, that, after a lifetime immersed in the Christian faith, Bart no longer believed in God. The revelation plunged the Campolo family into an increasingly common spiritual dilemma and forced father and son to each reconsider his own personal journey of faith. Yet it also allowed for a new opportunity: to openly discuss religious questions across their differences.

In Why I Left, Why I Stayed, Tony, a renowned Christian teacher and apologist, and Bart, a humanist chaplain at the University of Southern California, seek to provide a safe space for anyone wrestling with their own--or a loved one's--decision to stay in or leave the church, providing compelling arguments in both directions and modeling for everyone how to strongly but lovingly disagree about the things that matter most.

"We haven't stopped talking--or caring," they write. "Hopefully, this book will model a graceful way to process what has become an increasingly common crisis, while also serving as a safe forum for those struggling with doubts and questions about the Christian faith."

For anyone who has questions about the viability and truth of the Christian life or wonders what life looks like after Christianity, this book promises to be challenging, inspiring, and highly informative.

--Rev. Dr. David P. Gushee, author of Changing Our Mind

Edition details

• Publisher: HarperOne
• Publication date: 2017
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0062415379
• ISBN 13: 9780062415370
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 256