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JR. Forasteros
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2026 Reading Challenge

JR. Forasteros

Goodreads Author


Born
in Clarion, PA, The United States
Website

Twitter
jrforasteros

Genre
Nonfiction, Fantasy, Christian

Influences
Stephen R Donaldson, Stephen King, Andy Crouch, George R. R. Martin, J ...more

Member Since
May 2011

URL


JR. Forasteros lives in Dallas, TX with his wife, Amanda. He is the author of Empathy for the Devil as well as multiple essays on preaching, church leadership and culture. He is a columnist at Sojourners and has bylines at Tor.com and Think Christian.

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Popular Answered Questions

How do you deal with writer’s block?
JR. Forasteros If I'm on a deadline, sit down and type words. Even bad words are words. They count. And they're something to work with.

I also hide my phone while I'…moreIf I'm on a deadline, sit down and type words. Even bad words are words. They count. And they're something to work with.

I also hide my phone while I'm writing - no temptations there!

And I give myself permission to take a break. Go for a walk. Get some food. Something to get the juices flowing again. (less)
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Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?
JR. Forasteros I preached a sermon on Herod the Great - the guy who ordered the deaths of all the baby boys of Bethlehem when Jesus was born. In drilling down to who…moreI preached a sermon on Herod the Great - the guy who ordered the deaths of all the baby boys of Bethlehem when Jesus was born. In drilling down to who Herod really was, I found he was a lot more like me than I was comfortable admitting.

After preaching that message, for a couple of months afterwards, my congregation kept talking about Herod, about how they were haunted by him. I knew there was something resonating with taking a closer look at these infamous villains. So I began poking at some others...(less)
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Combine Editions

Average rating: 4.45 · 152 ratings · 37 reviews · 1 distinct work • Similar authors
Empathy for the Devil
4.45 avg rating — 152 ratings — 9 editions
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JR. is Currently Reading

The Paleontologist
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by Luke Dumas (Goodreads Author)
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Jun 25, 2026 10:52PM
Glyph
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Jun 23, 2026 01:11AM
Absolute Green La...
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Jun 09, 2026 08:08PM

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JR. Forasteros rated a book it was amazing
The Flash (2023-) #33 by Ryan North
The Flash (2023-) #33
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The Flash (2023-) #32 by Ryan North
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The Flash (2023-) #32 by Ryan North
The Flash (2023-) #32
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Hello Darkness #22 by Ryan North
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The Paleontologist by Luke Dumas
The Paleontologist
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Hello Darkness #22 by Ryan North
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Angel Down by Daniel Kraus
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Glyph by Ali Smith
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Headlights by C.J. Leede
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Quotes by JR. Forasteros  (?)
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“May this journey into the hearts of the Bible’s worst villains ultimately give you a clearer picture of the God in whose image both you and they are made. May we all be quicker to listen and slower to speak. Let us rush to show mercy and be slow to anger. Let us learn to see the full humanity of the other. And as we see, may the Spirit grant understanding, that we may find forgiveness just a breath away.”
― J.R. Forasteros, Empathy for the Devil: Finding Ourselves in the Villains of the Bible
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“We make villains out of what we don’t understand. We insist they could never be like us. But a closer examination reveals we are separated by degrees, not kind. We all have the same sickness. Evil queens and femme fatales, murderous brothers and crazy kings, betrayers and devils live among us—and they are us.”
― J.R. Forasteros, Empathy for the Devil: Finding Ourselves in the Villains of the Bible
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JR.’s Quotes

“When the powers that be have decided that you are guilty of something, it does not matter if you tell the truth. In fact, it offends them.”
― T. Kingfisher, Paladin's Grace
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25x33 Q&A with Ian Morgan Cron — 19 members — last activity Apr 06, 2012 08:58AM
Join author Ian Morgan Cron as he discusses his critically acclaimed memoir Jesus, My Father, the CIA, and Me: A Memoir...Of Sorts. This group will be ...more

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