Book review: The Post Evangelical

Reading can be hard work. I was in a book club recently that delved into some fairly imposing books. (Particularly Newbigin's The Gospel in a Pluralist Society). At the time, I lacked some "hooks" to hold some of the concepts covered. Fortunately, I’ve found this book by Dave Tomlinson (originally in the Ngati Awa library), and its set me up with a framework that will help with any future book clubs. One of the reasons its been an important read for me, is it’s ability to articulate some of the questions and doubts I hadn’t quite put my finger on. In what is a relatively simple book, he’s taken those doubts and identified some alternative possibilities that are easy to grasp and quite encouraging. Despite racing through the development of western political thought, philosophy, theology and various other ologies, I wasn’t caught up in the terminology and concepts like I sometimes am. You know, when you read five lines and realise you have no idea what the author just wrote! That didn’t happen. In fact, this book is a mere 145 pages!

As a brief background, Tomlinson is the vicar of St. Luke’s Anglican Church in North London. He was the former leader of Holy Joe’s, an unconventional church group that met in a London pub. That pub setting was a neutral ground for many conversations with people who were heading in a “post-church” direction. Tomlinson could see a trend, people struggling to identify with their evangelical home base while trying to engage in a new cultural era. This context was the catalyst for the book. He starts off by setting the scene, with a few chapters on the current state of evangelicalism, (circa 1995 but I’m not sure things have changed that much!) then delves into some historical context. This part goes a good way towards explaining why church (and society for that matter) has developed the way it has, without getting bogged down in the detail. From premodern feudalism and Enlightenment to modernity and Reformation through to a new cultural era (postmodern is the term he uses). The Post Evangelical helps clear up a bunch of isms like liberal, fundamental and conservative evangelical and how they came to exist.

Within this broader context, Tomlinson identifies a number of useful models to help describe and understand some of the dynamics in play and the doubts they bring to the surface. It can be incredibly empowering to read of a psychological model that gives insight to some of those power dynamics that hover around in the background, never quite sticking their neck out far enough to be identified. He also delves into some fairly relevant questions throughout the book like, what is truth? Are there absolutes? What about the Bible, is it the word of God? Is it really inerrant? Is God bigger than Christianity? What about new age spirituality? Why is Christian art/music often so disappointing!? And plenty more questions that arise from engagement in a changing cultural era. An era in which the spiritual dimension is back on the agenda. Where there is “deep suspicion of institutions, bureaucracies and hierarchies.” Where there is a rejection of absolute truth claims and where there is a “close affinity to the environment”. All of these cultural elements lead to major changes in the place of church in our lives and the way we engage with society.

If all of this is old hat to you, you may find the book a little too simple. Even Tomlinson said, “the subject matter covered is all rather basic, and begs many more questions than it answers”. Which may well be the case, especially if you’ve recently studied theology, history, psychology and philosophy! However, if some of the questions raised in the previous paragraph perk your interest, and an introduction to all those ologies might be helpful, then I highly recommend this book. It’s certainly aimed at people who have questions, and despite the 19 years, it’s lost none of its relevance! Evangelicals and not so Evangelicals, are still seeking to find a new way forward, and Tomlinson provides more than a few pointers on that journey. And with that, I’m going to end with the same Rudolph Baro quote he uses: “When the forms of an old culture are dying, the new culture is created by a few people who are not afraid to be insecure.”

The Post Evangelical

Dave Tomlinson

1995