Controversial book looks at 'quit Christianity in the name of Christ'

Carol Forsloff - "Those
of us that have been paying attention the last 10 years have noticed
significant rumblings in the distance concerning Christianity, relevance
of the Christian church, and the overwhelming sense that change is
coming."


Bonar Crump raises serious issues on faith in his book Throwing Hammers: Separation of Church and Self,
maintaining a "crisis in confidence in the church"is reflected by
people leaving the church and wondering if it isn't time to "quit
Christianity in the name of Christ."



The book examines the crisis of
confidence in the church through asking key questions about why people
are leaving it, especially high profile folk like Anne Rice, wondering
if the principles of the church are leaving behind  a certain rank and
file who look at Christ as the teacher of love and not the harbinger of
anger and judgment.



In July Rice made her announcement
about leaving the Catholic church she had joined ten years ago.  Her
reasons were underlined on National Public Radio in her frustrations
between the love taught by Christ and the practice of "putting on a
face" without having the substance of love taught by Christ.



Rice said,"For those who care, and I
understand if you don't: Today I quit being a Christian.  I'm out.  I
remain committed to Christ as always but not to being a 'Christian' or
to being part of Christianity.  It's simply impossible for me to
'belong' to this quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious and deservedly
infamous group.  For ten years, I've tried.  I've failed.  I'm an
outsider.  My conscience will allow nothing else."

Crump
tells us "The recent denouncements of Christian religion in favor of a
direct relationship with Christ by authors like Anne Rice and Carol
Harper signal that the birth pains of this provocative message are at
hand,"  referring to the notion of "quit Christianity in the name of
Christ."

Attention
to Crump and his ideas is increasing as he is receiving support across
the country.   Joann Corley, a motivational speaker in Atlanta, posted a
quote from the book on her Twitter page, "We challenge the 'big dog' or
we accept the leash." Bonar Crump.

Crump
challenges his readers to ask themselves, "How have we reached a point
in which 30 million dollar churches are being built on the South side of
town while North-side churches are populated with families who aren't
able to feed their children three full meals a day?"

In
Natchitoches, Louisiana a local church leader looks at the trivial
things that seem to include the church, and its wranglings over them, as
standing in the way of Christ's light.    The minister has also
wondered about "quitting Christianity in the name of Christ" if it isn't
a reasonable notion given the sidebars that go on.

The
question is asked in Natchitoches, "who feeds the hungry" while people
argue about mosques in New York.  It goes further, "Who actually goes
there and does the hands-on work to help the helpless" but instead
stands outside the door and simply makes noise."

Recently
Green Heritage News engaged another local minister about addressing
certain spiritual values in articles concerning the needs of the
community.

"Wait
awhile," he said.  "I have so much to do with the construction of the
church."  The construction has been going on most of this year.

A
Natchitoches resident brags, "Did you see our new auditorium?" while
another stresses the beauty of "its new addition, right in line with the
Historic District of Natchitoches."

In
the meantime the animal shelter is closed for lack of funding.  The
major outlet and group for feeding folks and providing extra funds
distributions closed more than two years ago because the church that
sponsored it said, "We don't want to foster dependency."  No other
church has stepped in to fill the empty space.

These are the notions people question in their mantra of quitting Christianity in the name of Christ.

A
reviewer on Amazon.com claims that Crump's book is, "like a spiritual
AED (Automated External Defibrillator). An AED can diagnose a number of
potentially life-threatening cardiac problems and treat them with an
appropriate amount of electrical therapy. Like an AED, this book can
apply its own 'shock' to your spiritual heartbeat."

Crump
says in his book what he considers its valuable lesson, that the
churches that focus on outrageous membership growth, vast campuses and
ridiculously expensive sound systems are "making a mockery of
Christianity and all that Jesus stands for."