Loving Samaritans: Radical Kindness in an Us vs. Them World

by Terry Crist

You can live a radically inclusive life without compromising your beliefs or the truth of the gospel. Humanity is more divided now than ever, gridlocked over social issues, race, gender, climate change, immigration, and our responsibility to vulnerable people. How did we get here? And what can we do to build bridges where walls exist? As a pastor committed to building deep relationships with people whose life experiences are different than his own, Terry Crist knows the beauty and challenge of connecting across dividing lines of race, economic status, faith, and much more. And in this book, he shares how you can too. Profoundly weaving the story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well with his own stories and examples from culture today, Terry addresses how we've strayed from the unity God intended and how we can trade judgment for grace, disputes for harmony, apathy for empathy, and hate for love and acceptance. By the end of this book, you will be able It doesn't have to be one or the other--you can both love God and love your neighbor.

Genres: Nonfiction

288 pages, Paperback

Published January 30, 2024

Reviews

[John Paul · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book did basically nothing for me. The ultimate message is true and important, of course, but this book's delivery of that message left me bored and frustrated. The structure of the book, which is to constantly return to the story of the Samaritan woman at the well as a guiding example, makes it feel incredibly repetitive. Much of the book is written in a very bland style which I found impossible to identify with, and even when the author brought in personal anecdotes or flairs of personality, I found them to be quaint and hokey.

I think everybody, Christian or non-Christian, could benefit from reading a book like this to wake them up and get them back on track with the mission of Christ. Maybe millions of people could benefit from this particular book. But I think I need something that makes more novel observations, has more concrete examples, or speaks to me with a more identifiable voice.

My struggle with getting through this book was a perfect opportunity to practice open-mindedness, charity, and self-reflection. I do think that I know myself better after having read it, and I really tried to look past my dislike of the style of the book to find the substance. I wish I could rate this a 1.5 to at least represent the value of that insight. But only a select few times did I read a sentence or paragraph which inspired me, or challenged my assumptions, or helped me to see what I should do next to make myself a better Christian. Maybe that's a me problem, but it would be dishonest to tell you that I thought it was a good book if I could only extract about two pages worth of value from it.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to this book!! Liked it a lot, he talked about how Jesus calls us to love our neighbor and a lot practically what that looks like. He talks about loving the people that others think is weird, and also loving the people who talk about others that we “would never be” but most definitely are.

He introduces the concept of tribalism, and how Jesus’ tribe is the only one anyone me can belong to, what tribe are you in? (Political/social/work/club/gym/literally anything can be a tribe) Can you share the Gospel and submit to the teachings of tje Bible and still hold to those views?

I’ll end with this quote:
“His act of of welcoming the strangers revealed the heart of the Gospel, loving others as we have been loved by God, embracing the stranger as our own, and recognizing that by extending hospitality, we welcome the presence of God into our midst.”

[LInda Naylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thought provoking read on who are the modern day Samaritans?

Terry Crist does a great job in getting the reader to question who are our modern day Samaritans. His questions are spot on as he takes us through the story of the woman at the well. His final point challenges us to build longer tables not higher walls. A thought provoking read from beginning to end.

[Joellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Part of the title is radical kindness in an us vs. them world- This book did a great job of showing kindness.

[Maria Gonzalez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This message is so important in todays society.