Cathy Higgins’ new book, Churches in Exile: Alternative Models of Church for Ireland in the 21st Century (Columba, 2013) starts from the premise that churches in Ireland are in crisis, wedded to an outdated ‘Christendom’ model of church that has not served Christianity well. But in this thoughtful and easily digestible book, Higgins reflects on [...]
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What We Talk About When We Talk About God by Rob Bell – Book Review and Talks in Manchester and Edinburgh Tues and Wed
Rob Bell’s latest book, What We Talk About When We Talk About God (Collins, 2013), can be read on a number of levels. First – there is the level of pure enjoyment, which even some of his critics are willing to concede. Whether or not you like his message, Rob Bell is simply a good [...]
Kester Brewin’s After Magic: Book Review – What can Batman Teach us about Christianity?
It turns out Batman has a lot to teach us about Christianity. The latest book from Kester Brewin, After Magic: Moves Beyond Super-nature from Batman to Shakespeare, takes us into the worlds of literature and comic book heroes in what is an engaging exploration of how religion works. But ultimately, After Magic is a plea [...]
The Deconstructed Church – Seminar at University of New Mexico, Friday 8 Feb
It’s hard to believe that nearly a month has passed since I arrived as a visiting researcher at the Southwest Institute on Religion and Civil Society at the University of New Mexico (UNM). During that time, my main task has been working on a book, co-authored with Gerardo Marti, The Deconstructed Church: The Religious Identity [...]
The Emerging Church: Religion at the Margins by Josh Packard – Book Review, or How to Maintain an Anti-Institutional Religion
A new book by Josh Packard, The Emerging Church: Religion at the Margins (First Forum Press, 2012), offers some welcome insights on questions I’ve repeatedly been asked (and have asked myself) about the Emerging Church Movement (ECM), such as: Will the ECM become “institutionalized”? Is the ECM only for a certain “type” of person – [...]
At Home in Exile by Peter McDowell – Book Review and Launch, January 15th: What if Revival Doesn’t Come?
“He felt that he had to tell them that revival had not come, and that it probably was not coming.” Peter McDowell introduces his new book, At Home in Exile: The Journey Towards a New Paradigm (Belfast: Contemporary Christianity, 2012) with a story by Roy Searle, leader of the Northumbria Community. Searle had been asked [...]
Peter Rollins’ The Idolatry of God: Book Review – An Antidote for Black Friday?
“You can’t be satisfied, life is difficult, and you don’t know the secret.” This quote is taken from the back cover of Peter Rollins’ latest book, The Idolatry of God: Breaking the Addiction to Certainty and Satisfaction (Hodder and Stoughton 2012). It’s a punchier summary of what he calls “the good news of Christianity”: “you [...]
What Would Dirk Willems Do?: Prophetic Voices from the Margins
I had never heard of Dirk Willems until last week, when I attended Irish Baptist Networks and Contemporary Christianity’s conference: ‘Prophetic Voices from the Margins: The Contemporary Witness of Celts, Anabaptists, and the New Monastic Movements,’ on Friday 9 November at Ballynahinch Baptist Church. Stuart Murray Williams of the Anabaptist Network (and author of The [...]
Phyllis Tickle Book Review: Emergence Christianity – Are Emergence Christians Making History?
In her previous book, The Great Emergence: How Christianity is Changing and Why (Baker Books, 2008), Phyllis Tickle was among the first to argue that what has been variously called the emerging church, the emergent church, fresh expressions, emergence Christianity, the church: emerging, and the missional church, among other monikers – could prove to be [...]
Emerging versus Ecumenical? More Insights from Doug Gay
As I continue to reflect on and (attempt) to write about the Emerging Church Movement (ECM), I find myself returning to Doug Gay’s 2011 book, Remixing the Church. I’ve already reviewed Remixing the Church on this blog, and have written a post called ‘Does the Emerging Church Mix with Ecumenism?’ One of the most impressive [...]
Scottish Irish Conversations on Sectarianism–New Post on Slugger O’Toole
I have a new post on the Slugger O’Toole blog about the panel discussion I participated in at the Edinburgh Festival of Politics: Scottish Irish Conversations on Sectarianism.
About me
Welcome to Building a Church Without Walls, a website for people who are excited about how Christianity is developing in the 21st Century. I am a Lecturer and Coordinator of the Conflict Resolution and Reconciliation Studies Programme at Trinity College Dublin at Belfast (the Irish School of Ecumenics).
Please note this is my personal site. All views are my own and are not representative of TCD.
I also write for the popular NI Politics site Slugger O'Toole. Click here to view my posts on Slugger...
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