Apologetics is a part of theology that defends religious doctrines, not apologizing for them as one might think. But Scott Bessenecker’s new book is an apology. And also a defense of the Christian church.
The book is called Bad Religion Good News, An Honest Guide for the Spiritually Disappointed (Herald Press). Bessenecker is a 40-year Madison resident and employee of Madison-based InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, where he currently serves as director of global engagement and justice.
“The book is me working through my repulsion, my complicity in the sins of the church,” he told a group of about 50 who gathered for a release reception at Upper House on the UW campus on May 29, 20026.
It’s not hard to identify the sins of the church, from the crusades and anti-Semitism of past centuries, to the clergy sex abuses and materialism of today. Religious/political wars in Europe sent disaffected parishioners to the US seeking religious freedom and once again, today, politics is alienating people in the pews.
Bessenecker has seen Christian friends from several decades ago who have left the faith, while others have become passionate Christian nationalists. “Where are my friends like Jesus?” he asked, noting that Jesus commanded, yes commanded, that his followers love one another.
He freely acknowledged that he could be faulted for not focusing on the good things that the church and its people are accomplishing. He says there are plenty of good books that do that.
“I”m interested in the healing that comes from confessing our wrongdoing,” he said. He offers reflection questions at the end of each chapter to encourage healing. Publishers Weekly called his accounting of the church’s sins “bold, thorough, and evenhanded.”
In the book, Bessenecker wrote that imperfect people with a genuine faith can still do wicked things. Betsy Ezell, a friend and colleague, who dialogued with him about the book, admitted that in reading the book “I was seeing my own participation in bad religion exposed.”
To avoid perpetrating bad religion, Bessenecker suggested believers be more open to nuance, more open to mystery and not be too dogmatic about having all the answers. Seek also the growth of shalom, peaceful coexistence in their communities.
Some people who have been hurt by the church will need more than this book, Bessenecker also acknowledged. Therapy might be necessary.
Pastors, in their sermons, are now addressing the reality that people have been hurt by the church. Perhaps that is a hopeful sign. Bessenecker believes the church is still a source of real hope in spite of its flaws.
“We need to cultivate an affection for those who are different from us,” he concluded. “If we’re a Christian, our job is to love them.”