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A Faith of Many Rooms: Inhabiting a More Spacious Christianity
Disillusioned by narrow theologies, church dysfunction, and constricted readings of Scripture, people are leaving Christianity in droves. But Jesus describes the reign of God as a house with many rooms, writes Debie Thomas, one of the most auspicious voices in religious writing today. In this work of sprawling spiritual and literary imagination, Thomas claims that wherever God dwells, there is expansiveness and belonging.
Thomas knows what a cramped faith feels like, what it's like to wrestle your way out of fundamentalism and toward a more capacious faith. From the diasporic church in which she grew up, to the disorientations of a deconstructing faith, to an ample yet orthodox Christianity that makes room for all her identities, Thomas takes listeners on a deeply personal and profoundly theological odyssey. In A Faith of Many Rooms, she talks back to jaundiced versions of faith and finds evidence that the gospel insists on its own roominess.
The kind of God who decided to experience the world as a guest likely feels constrained by our pinched theologies too. What sorts of ruptures and revisions would it take to find a more spacious faith—and then to inhabit it with authenticity and joy? Fans of Christian Wiman, Cole Arthur Riley, and Barbara Brown Taylor will find in this book an ardent, lyrical take on a faith transfigured.
Thomas knows what a cramped faith feels like, what it's like to wrestle your way out of fundamentalism and toward a more capacious faith. From the diasporic church in which she grew up, to the disorientations of a deconstructing faith, to an ample yet orthodox Christianity that makes room for all her identities, Thomas takes listeners on a deeply personal and profoundly theological odyssey. In A Faith of Many Rooms, she talks back to jaundiced versions of faith and finds evidence that the gospel insists on its own roominess.
The kind of God who decided to experience the world as a guest likely feels constrained by our pinched theologies too. What sorts of ruptures and revisions would it take to find a more spacious faith—and then to inhabit it with authenticity and joy? Fans of Christian Wiman, Cole Arthur Riley, and Barbara Brown Taylor will find in this book an ardent, lyrical take on a faith transfigured.
184 pages, Hardcover
Published March 19, 2024
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March 31, 2024
Too often Christians have lived in narrow/exclusive dwellings. We fail to truly understand God's gracious and welcoming nature. So we need reminders that Jesus was and is a welcoming person. We see this in his eating habits and messages of love and mercy. Thus, it is appropriate that our theologies reflect the openness that Jesus exhibited as he revealed the nature of God in his life, death, and resurrection.
Those who seek a more open and "spacious" Christianity will be blessed if they choose to read Debie Thomas's "A Faith of Many Rooms." This is a beautifully written and compelling exploration of a spacious Christianity. Thomas brings her own spiritual journey into the conversation, sharing with us her background as an Indian-American Christian whose roots back to the Christian community in India that is claimed to be founded by St. Thomas. Though she is Protestant and raised in Protestant churches (her father was a pastor serving both predominantly white and Indian congregations), she looks back to her Christian roots in the state of Kerala in Southern India, a region that speaks the Malayalam language (her first language as a child). It is in this region that Thomas is said to have planted the church, and thus the homeland for many Indian Christians. It is Thomas' story of doubt and service that permeates Thomas' book.
This is a book about belonging. Thomas begins by introducing the reader to the word Nadhe, a word that is treasured by her immigrant family, a word roughly translated as birthplace, mother country, heart of belonging, or home. It is a word that brings to mind her ancestry in a region where she was born, but from which her family immigrated shortly thereafter. Nevertheless, though growing up in Boston, she spent many a summer in Kerala, and so it serves as the foundation, the homeland for her own journey. She speaks of experiencing dislocation, of finding it difficult to belong, a situation that she shares with many bicultural persons. So this is in part the story of her own path to experiencing a sense of belonging. But it's not just bicultural persons, many others find it difficult to find a spiritual home, especially as church membership shrinks. So, even as she shares own story, she explores the changing geography of belief. Part of the story is Thomas's own path of discovery of a faith of her own, that is different from what she inherited, which was rather male/patriarchal and narrow. Like many, she eventually found that she no longer fit in the evangelical house of her spiritual origins.
Following a lengthy introduction that sets the parameters of the book, Thomas takes us on a pilgrimage to India. In a chapter titled "A St. Thomas Pilgrimage: Doubt," we journey to Kerala. At the time Thomas was a graduate student in creative writing attempting to write a thesis about her faith, but at the time she was experiencing a spiritual crisis. Thus, she returns to "the ancient police that birthed my relationship with God" (p. 13). We take a trip with her to the Mount of St. Thomas, a place that Indian Christians consider sacred. On that mountain, there is a giant statue of the founding saint. At the base of the statue one finds the words from the Gospel of John, where Thomas declares of Jesus: "My God, my God." By taking us to Kerala and this sacred place, we who know the name and biblical story of Thomas learn something important about this one known for doubting who becomes a missionary and a martyr. Whether the story is true or not it is a foundation story for Indian Christians. If no other reason, this opening chapter is worth the price of the book.
From Kerala and St. Thomas, in chapter 2 we join the family as they first immigrate to Switzerland, where her father will attend seminary. From there the family moved to the United States, where her father would serve as a pastor. The Chapter draws on Jesus' statement to prospective disciples that the Son of Man has "Nowhere to Lay His Head." Thomas uses this imagery to describe her own and her families experiences as immigrants. It speaks to the reality of feelings of not belonging as well as leaving behind past homes, which for her includes leaving behind her evangelical home. She notes that "much of the Bible is written by, for, and about wanderers. Clearly, there is something powerful, instructive, and transformative about leaving home" (p. 40). I sense that many will resonate with this chapter.
From "leaving" we move in Chapter 3 "Into the Wilderness: Lost." Here Thomas describes her own season of wandering in the wilderness. This is a season of lostness, where the landing spot is not yet known, but the feelings of what is left behind remain strong. So how might one experience the life of the pilgrim, to hold things lightly as one continues down a path uncertain as to the destination?
One way of navigating this spiritual reality is through storytelling. So Chapter 4 is titled "Beyond Belief: Story." She writes that "Stories hold memory and identity, seasons and secrets, sorrows and joys. They give our lives texture and depth, roundedness and fullness" (p. 60). She describes some of the stories that had formed her life, from the Christian rock music she listened to as a youth to the creed that gave a foundation to her faith. But she also shares how she resisted other stories that eventually became hers. She reminds us that belief-centered Christianity isn't necessarily wrong, but it can be "divorced from our enfleshed and storied lives," and thus isn't enough to sustain faith. (p. 65). She writes that the "best stories affirm that life is complicated, that easy answers rarely satisfy, and that even the shiniest 'happily ever after' endings exact a price" (p. 71).
Chapter 5 is titled "She Blows Where She Wills: Spirit." In this chapter Thomas shares her discovery of the way language and stories function, often surprising us. So here Thomas draws on the story of Pentecost and the gift of the Spirit. She speaks of the diversity of languages present at Pentecost, such that "there is no single language, story, creed, or mother tongue on earth that can fully capture the spaciousness and the hospitality of God" (p. 77). It's not to say that all paths are the same and that the differences between faiths are surface level. So she rightly speaks of recognizing and honoring spiritual differences as being genuine and meaningful. Thus, we can be open without trying to make everything look the same. We can share our story as being meaningful to us and perhaps to others, but following Jesus we don't engage in manipulation or coercion. Chapter 6 is titled "Getting Saved: Sin." Here Thomas explores the question of sin, her own wrestling with feeling that she was a sinner and striving for acceptance by God and others. She speaks of living in fear that she was not right with God. Many will resonate with her description of her past experiences. So, what is sin and salvation? These are questions she points out that many Progressive Christians shy away from. She writes, helpfully, that "Rightly understood, sin and salvation are precisely the roomy, expansive words we need to ground our vocations as Christ's hands and feet in a pain-filled world. Walking away from these core tenets of our faith grants us no more freedom, spaciousness, resilience, or hope than my anxious childhood sprints to the altar" (p. 89).
From sin, we move to lament in Chapter 7. Thomas writes that too often we find it difficult to embrace lament, even though the Psalms are filled with Laments. She notes her own past practicing a grief-averse faith, a faith that ends up being rather shallow. Lament is not faithlessness, but an act of faith, recognizing that things are not yet as they should be. So, even though we are Easter People, "the Easter stories we cherish in the Gospels make room for ache, fear, regret, and sorrow."(p. 119).
Earlier Thomas noted that the faith she inhabited when she was young was very male-centered. As she matured spiritually and left behind a narrow evangelicalism, she began to recognize that women bear the image of God, the subject of Chapter 8. This is the story of Thomas discovering the feminine side of God and what that means for her as a woman. A roomy church, she suggests has room for this message that God is not male, but allows for differing imagery that empowers rather than restricts. She finds her foundation for embracing her own identity as a bearer of God's image in the incarnation. Thus, "he takes on the particular flesh of a first-century itinerant Jewish peasant: poor, colonized, and criminalized. It is out of this radical specificity that Jesus includes, embraces, and saves us, in all our specificity" (p. 133).
In Chapter 9 Thomas invites to embrace dissonance and paradox. Thus, she writes "Again and again, the way of Jesus invites us to hold opposing truths together, in pairings that seem impossible. This is not to confound us but to show us how wide and spacious the realm of God really is." (p. 141). There is no greater paradox than the Trinity, that God is both three and one.
So, we can approach uncertainty not with fear but curiosity, such that we can recognize that the Christian faith is not a religion of easy answers. If we embrace this truth then perhaps we might be open to loving those whom we find it difficult to love.
Finally, we come to Chapter 10: "Limps and Worms: Wrestling." Here she draws on one of my favorite biblical stories, the story of Jacob's wrestling match. A truly spacious faith needs to allow for spiritually wrestling matches with God. She writes that "wrestling keeps God relevant in our lives; it keeps God personal. It makes sure that God remains a force to reckon with rather than a dusty relic we stick on a shelf." (p. 168). She also includes the story of Jonah who runs away from God and then finally gives in, preaches doom, and then gets mad when God doesn't destroy the Ninevites. Thus, we are left with Jonah wrestling with God's "scandalous compassion and mercy toward Jonah's sworn enemies."
In her epilogue, Thomas concludes the story by affirming that there comes a time when we stay, when we discover a home. She stays in Christianity because she found that roomy house where she belongs. As we walk with her, perhaps we will find that we too belong.
I suppose it shouldn't surprise how fluid and beautifully written Thomas's "A Faith of Many Rooms" is. After all, she has a master's degree in creative writing. But she also brings exceptional spiritual and theological insight into the book. The chapter on paradox fits so well because she holds together perspectives that many progressive Christians struggle with, such as the Trinity or the resurrection of Jesus. I invite you to read and enjoy and be encouraged to find your place in the spacious Christianity Thomas describes in her "A Faith of Many Rooms."
Those who seek a more open and "spacious" Christianity will be blessed if they choose to read Debie Thomas's "A Faith of Many Rooms." This is a beautifully written and compelling exploration of a spacious Christianity. Thomas brings her own spiritual journey into the conversation, sharing with us her background as an Indian-American Christian whose roots back to the Christian community in India that is claimed to be founded by St. Thomas. Though she is Protestant and raised in Protestant churches (her father was a pastor serving both predominantly white and Indian congregations), she looks back to her Christian roots in the state of Kerala in Southern India, a region that speaks the Malayalam language (her first language as a child). It is in this region that Thomas is said to have planted the church, and thus the homeland for many Indian Christians. It is Thomas' story of doubt and service that permeates Thomas' book.
This is a book about belonging. Thomas begins by introducing the reader to the word Nadhe, a word that is treasured by her immigrant family, a word roughly translated as birthplace, mother country, heart of belonging, or home. It is a word that brings to mind her ancestry in a region where she was born, but from which her family immigrated shortly thereafter. Nevertheless, though growing up in Boston, she spent many a summer in Kerala, and so it serves as the foundation, the homeland for her own journey. She speaks of experiencing dislocation, of finding it difficult to belong, a situation that she shares with many bicultural persons. So this is in part the story of her own path to experiencing a sense of belonging. But it's not just bicultural persons, many others find it difficult to find a spiritual home, especially as church membership shrinks. So, even as she shares own story, she explores the changing geography of belief. Part of the story is Thomas's own path of discovery of a faith of her own, that is different from what she inherited, which was rather male/patriarchal and narrow. Like many, she eventually found that she no longer fit in the evangelical house of her spiritual origins.
Following a lengthy introduction that sets the parameters of the book, Thomas takes us on a pilgrimage to India. In a chapter titled "A St. Thomas Pilgrimage: Doubt," we journey to Kerala. At the time Thomas was a graduate student in creative writing attempting to write a thesis about her faith, but at the time she was experiencing a spiritual crisis. Thus, she returns to "the ancient police that birthed my relationship with God" (p. 13). We take a trip with her to the Mount of St. Thomas, a place that Indian Christians consider sacred. On that mountain, there is a giant statue of the founding saint. At the base of the statue one finds the words from the Gospel of John, where Thomas declares of Jesus: "My God, my God." By taking us to Kerala and this sacred place, we who know the name and biblical story of Thomas learn something important about this one known for doubting who becomes a missionary and a martyr. Whether the story is true or not it is a foundation story for Indian Christians. If no other reason, this opening chapter is worth the price of the book.
From Kerala and St. Thomas, in chapter 2 we join the family as they first immigrate to Switzerland, where her father will attend seminary. From there the family moved to the United States, where her father would serve as a pastor. The Chapter draws on Jesus' statement to prospective disciples that the Son of Man has "Nowhere to Lay His Head." Thomas uses this imagery to describe her own and her families experiences as immigrants. It speaks to the reality of feelings of not belonging as well as leaving behind past homes, which for her includes leaving behind her evangelical home. She notes that "much of the Bible is written by, for, and about wanderers. Clearly, there is something powerful, instructive, and transformative about leaving home" (p. 40). I sense that many will resonate with this chapter.
From "leaving" we move in Chapter 3 "Into the Wilderness: Lost." Here Thomas describes her own season of wandering in the wilderness. This is a season of lostness, where the landing spot is not yet known, but the feelings of what is left behind remain strong. So how might one experience the life of the pilgrim, to hold things lightly as one continues down a path uncertain as to the destination?
One way of navigating this spiritual reality is through storytelling. So Chapter 4 is titled "Beyond Belief: Story." She writes that "Stories hold memory and identity, seasons and secrets, sorrows and joys. They give our lives texture and depth, roundedness and fullness" (p. 60). She describes some of the stories that had formed her life, from the Christian rock music she listened to as a youth to the creed that gave a foundation to her faith. But she also shares how she resisted other stories that eventually became hers. She reminds us that belief-centered Christianity isn't necessarily wrong, but it can be "divorced from our enfleshed and storied lives," and thus isn't enough to sustain faith. (p. 65). She writes that the "best stories affirm that life is complicated, that easy answers rarely satisfy, and that even the shiniest 'happily ever after' endings exact a price" (p. 71).
Chapter 5 is titled "She Blows Where She Wills: Spirit." In this chapter Thomas shares her discovery of the way language and stories function, often surprising us. So here Thomas draws on the story of Pentecost and the gift of the Spirit. She speaks of the diversity of languages present at Pentecost, such that "there is no single language, story, creed, or mother tongue on earth that can fully capture the spaciousness and the hospitality of God" (p. 77). It's not to say that all paths are the same and that the differences between faiths are surface level. So she rightly speaks of recognizing and honoring spiritual differences as being genuine and meaningful. Thus, we can be open without trying to make everything look the same. We can share our story as being meaningful to us and perhaps to others, but following Jesus we don't engage in manipulation or coercion. Chapter 6 is titled "Getting Saved: Sin." Here Thomas explores the question of sin, her own wrestling with feeling that she was a sinner and striving for acceptance by God and others. She speaks of living in fear that she was not right with God. Many will resonate with her description of her past experiences. So, what is sin and salvation? These are questions she points out that many Progressive Christians shy away from. She writes, helpfully, that "Rightly understood, sin and salvation are precisely the roomy, expansive words we need to ground our vocations as Christ's hands and feet in a pain-filled world. Walking away from these core tenets of our faith grants us no more freedom, spaciousness, resilience, or hope than my anxious childhood sprints to the altar" (p. 89).
From sin, we move to lament in Chapter 7. Thomas writes that too often we find it difficult to embrace lament, even though the Psalms are filled with Laments. She notes her own past practicing a grief-averse faith, a faith that ends up being rather shallow. Lament is not faithlessness, but an act of faith, recognizing that things are not yet as they should be. So, even though we are Easter People, "the Easter stories we cherish in the Gospels make room for ache, fear, regret, and sorrow."(p. 119).
Earlier Thomas noted that the faith she inhabited when she was young was very male-centered. As she matured spiritually and left behind a narrow evangelicalism, she began to recognize that women bear the image of God, the subject of Chapter 8. This is the story of Thomas discovering the feminine side of God and what that means for her as a woman. A roomy church, she suggests has room for this message that God is not male, but allows for differing imagery that empowers rather than restricts. She finds her foundation for embracing her own identity as a bearer of God's image in the incarnation. Thus, "he takes on the particular flesh of a first-century itinerant Jewish peasant: poor, colonized, and criminalized. It is out of this radical specificity that Jesus includes, embraces, and saves us, in all our specificity" (p. 133).
In Chapter 9 Thomas invites to embrace dissonance and paradox. Thus, she writes "Again and again, the way of Jesus invites us to hold opposing truths together, in pairings that seem impossible. This is not to confound us but to show us how wide and spacious the realm of God really is." (p. 141). There is no greater paradox than the Trinity, that God is both three and one.
So, we can approach uncertainty not with fear but curiosity, such that we can recognize that the Christian faith is not a religion of easy answers. If we embrace this truth then perhaps we might be open to loving those whom we find it difficult to love.
Finally, we come to Chapter 10: "Limps and Worms: Wrestling." Here she draws on one of my favorite biblical stories, the story of Jacob's wrestling match. A truly spacious faith needs to allow for spiritually wrestling matches with God. She writes that "wrestling keeps God relevant in our lives; it keeps God personal. It makes sure that God remains a force to reckon with rather than a dusty relic we stick on a shelf." (p. 168). She also includes the story of Jonah who runs away from God and then finally gives in, preaches doom, and then gets mad when God doesn't destroy the Ninevites. Thus, we are left with Jonah wrestling with God's "scandalous compassion and mercy toward Jonah's sworn enemies."
In her epilogue, Thomas concludes the story by affirming that there comes a time when we stay, when we discover a home. She stays in Christianity because she found that roomy house where she belongs. As we walk with her, perhaps we will find that we too belong.
I suppose it shouldn't surprise how fluid and beautifully written Thomas's "A Faith of Many Rooms" is. After all, she has a master's degree in creative writing. But she also brings exceptional spiritual and theological insight into the book. The chapter on paradox fits so well because she holds together perspectives that many progressive Christians struggle with, such as the Trinity or the resurrection of Jesus. I invite you to read and enjoy and be encouraged to find your place in the spacious Christianity Thomas describes in her "A Faith of Many Rooms."
May 7, 2025
This fine memoir joins the growing list of books that tell the story of growth into a "more spacious Christianity." The chapter "Consenting to Brokenness: Lament" is the most personal and provocative in the book. Read it and weep, because grief, darkness, doubt, and pain are not inimical to trust (a better word for faith).
March 3, 2025
Like a glass of cool water- this book is simple and beautiful and tells great stories with ample nuance. Lots of good pull quotes ‼️
May 2, 2024
Debie is a gifted writer and storyteller. She weaves beautiful descriptions of place and heritage into rich tapestries I can see in my mind as if I were standing in front of them. In A Faith of Many Rooms, she shares her journey into a more spacious faith in such an inviting and transparent way.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book the whole way through. It has a resonance and an intersectionality to it that I appreciated. I loved the way she spoke of Thomas and his story in one of the chapters too.
Here are a couple of the quotes that I marked in my copy:
“God’s response to every form of oppression, enslavement, marginalization, and diminishment is specific, enfleshed solidarity. Full-bodied bridging, joining, and becoming. Whenever and wherever specific human bodies are deemed “less than,” Jesus says, “Here. Right here. This is my body.”
“What’s the point of a gospel that claims to topple earthly kingdoms, powers, and hierarchies if it simply baptizes those same hierarchies and reasserts them within the beloved community of the church?”
“Wrestling…is not an irreverent thing, because it’s the opposite of apathy, the opposite of resignation, the opposite of quitting, the opposite of complacency… To fight is to stay close, to keep my arms wrapped tight around my opponent. Fighting means I haven’t walked away - and God hasn’t, either.”
I wish I could share the whole epilogue with you here as well because it’s lovely, but you’ll just have to read it for yourself. I think you’ll be glad you did! It’s a thoroughly wonderful book.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book the whole way through. It has a resonance and an intersectionality to it that I appreciated. I loved the way she spoke of Thomas and his story in one of the chapters too.
Here are a couple of the quotes that I marked in my copy:
“God’s response to every form of oppression, enslavement, marginalization, and diminishment is specific, enfleshed solidarity. Full-bodied bridging, joining, and becoming. Whenever and wherever specific human bodies are deemed “less than,” Jesus says, “Here. Right here. This is my body.”
“What’s the point of a gospel that claims to topple earthly kingdoms, powers, and hierarchies if it simply baptizes those same hierarchies and reasserts them within the beloved community of the church?”
“Wrestling…is not an irreverent thing, because it’s the opposite of apathy, the opposite of resignation, the opposite of quitting, the opposite of complacency… To fight is to stay close, to keep my arms wrapped tight around my opponent. Fighting means I haven’t walked away - and God hasn’t, either.”
I wish I could share the whole epilogue with you here as well because it’s lovely, but you’ll just have to read it for yourself. I think you’ll be glad you did! It’s a thoroughly wonderful book.
April 7, 2024
An incredible read from Debie Thomas. Her writing is so lush and unexpected— her metaphors for faith are truly outstanding. I was expecting a lot after reading “Into the Mess” and this did not disappoint!
November 13, 2024
I really enjoyed this book. As Christian who has been in church my whole life, it was refreshing to hear about someone else’s experiences who mirror my own. Building faith is a never ending journey and I’m thankful to know a God who loves us enough to ask the all the questions.
April 13, 2024
If you are looking for a book to challenge and strengthen your spirituality this is not that book. It is extremely evangelical and full of regurgitated bible verses and unsupported claims. The audiobook is read in a voice more suitable for preschool children and it took everything in me to finish it, which I did out of respect for St. Marks Episcopal Church in Palo Alto, CA, which put this book on their reading list because the author is the Minister of Lifelong Formation and Discipleship at this church. As I forced myself to continue listening to this book, I realized that St. Marks is no longer the same church I knew it to be since the retirement of their Rector in summer 2023. Life happens. Blaming it on “gods plan” is equivalent to sticking one’s head in the sand and crying about being the victim. It’s how we respond that matters and scapegoating one’s response on one’s faith or lack of it has never been a meaningful answer. I realize everyone is on their own path so perhaps this book will speak to some, but as someone who was steeped in Christianity growing up, it is the type of lazy thinking outlined in this book that I drives my lifelong learning about what it means to be human. I don’t subscribe to kneeling before god meekly but to join the energy that IS god and “become the change” in the world. “The kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:21) was not a part of the multiple scriptures quoted in this book. Instead, there was a lot of self blame for not being good enough for god, which is the same thoughtless drivel I grew up listening to.
July 1, 2025
2.25/5
I was unfortunately disappointed with this book. I'm not in the habit of dragging Christian authors who are trying in good faith, but that being said I had a lot of issues with this book.
The author does talk about Thomas's purported influence on Indian Christianity, as well as apocryphal texts, and does that decently well with a very appropriate qualification of the likelihood of historicity, but also how his story was so impactful on her life as an Indian Christian.This is completely undercut by he author's analysis/psychoanalysis of Thomas which follows. It was quite generous for someone mentioned in ~8 total verses of the Bible. She goes on and on projecting her own feelings and experiences onto him with the slimmest of evidence to back it up.
I'll admit this next critique may be nitpicky, or seem like I'm some anti-woke reactionary, but her working to justify feminine pronouns for deity is pretty weak. If the argument is that gender neutral language is more appropriate, then I don't see why they use gendered pronouns either way. I personally come from a Christian belief in a gendered Godhead and that does not subscribe to the Nicene creed (I'm Latter-day Saint) so I'm certainly the outlier. Her justification for her choice to use feminine language at time varies incredibly from Jesus comparing himself to a mother hen (I wouldn't always agree but I think this is quite logically sound) to the she-bears that maul the children in the old testament (to my knowledge they are never identified with God and this felt frankly absurd).
The throughout the book the author at times engages in some rather wishy washy, feel-goodification of God which honestly, some of which would be lovely if true but is starkly abiblical. The author claims God is never dominating, true on a personal level, but the same God we cry with in our deepest moments is still the same one who saw the injustice of ancient cities and wiped them off the map. Reasonable people may debate the reliability of the Old Testament's narrators, but I believe that sanitizing our God to fit our contemporary sensibilities does a disservice. Portraying God as someone who came to Earth with prejudice or who may need our forgiveness felt rather agendized, he's always been the God of oppressed, pained, and marginalized people, we have a pretty good sample size in the Bible of what that relationship looks like.
Her redefinition of sin was rather wishful, but again I'm sure my views on the matter are much more traditional.
One thing I did appreciate was her reputation of the belief that all spiritual paths lead to the same place, I think that if we're honest we cannot say everything is of equal spiritual merit, and given the central thesis of the book, I'm glad that the author tactfully and intentionally addressed this point. I feel she did a good job on this point.
In summary, it brings me no pleasure to say that this book felt like a progressive Christian's exercise in self-justification.
I am glad this outlook has been so meaningful to the author, it appears to have been productive for her, but even as someone who considers theirself both progressive and Christian (obviously an oversimplication of anyone's identity, including the author's), this book wasn't my favorite .
I was unfortunately disappointed with this book. I'm not in the habit of dragging Christian authors who are trying in good faith, but that being said I had a lot of issues with this book.
The author does talk about Thomas's purported influence on Indian Christianity, as well as apocryphal texts, and does that decently well with a very appropriate qualification of the likelihood of historicity, but also how his story was so impactful on her life as an Indian Christian.This is completely undercut by he author's analysis/psychoanalysis of Thomas which follows. It was quite generous for someone mentioned in ~8 total verses of the Bible. She goes on and on projecting her own feelings and experiences onto him with the slimmest of evidence to back it up.
I'll admit this next critique may be nitpicky, or seem like I'm some anti-woke reactionary, but her working to justify feminine pronouns for deity is pretty weak. If the argument is that gender neutral language is more appropriate, then I don't see why they use gendered pronouns either way. I personally come from a Christian belief in a gendered Godhead and that does not subscribe to the Nicene creed (I'm Latter-day Saint) so I'm certainly the outlier. Her justification for her choice to use feminine language at time varies incredibly from Jesus comparing himself to a mother hen (I wouldn't always agree but I think this is quite logically sound) to the she-bears that maul the children in the old testament (to my knowledge they are never identified with God and this felt frankly absurd).
The throughout the book the author at times engages in some rather wishy washy, feel-goodification of God which honestly, some of which would be lovely if true but is starkly abiblical. The author claims God is never dominating, true on a personal level, but the same God we cry with in our deepest moments is still the same one who saw the injustice of ancient cities and wiped them off the map. Reasonable people may debate the reliability of the Old Testament's narrators, but I believe that sanitizing our God to fit our contemporary sensibilities does a disservice. Portraying God as someone who came to Earth with prejudice or who may need our forgiveness felt rather agendized, he's always been the God of oppressed, pained, and marginalized people, we have a pretty good sample size in the Bible of what that relationship looks like.
Her redefinition of sin was rather wishful, but again I'm sure my views on the matter are much more traditional.
One thing I did appreciate was her reputation of the belief that all spiritual paths lead to the same place, I think that if we're honest we cannot say everything is of equal spiritual merit, and given the central thesis of the book, I'm glad that the author tactfully and intentionally addressed this point. I feel she did a good job on this point.
In summary, it brings me no pleasure to say that this book felt like a progressive Christian's exercise in self-justification.
I am glad this outlook has been so meaningful to the author, it appears to have been productive for her, but even as someone who considers theirself both progressive and Christian (obviously an oversimplication of anyone's identity, including the author's), this book wasn't my favorite .
March 15, 2024
The one thing that has kept me in the faith is deconstructing from the brand of Christianity in which I was raised and trained and, amid the smoke and ashes, finding it but one cramped and cluttered room in a very spacious house. The same is true for Episcopal minister Debie Thomas and A Faith of Many Rooms: Inhabiting a More Spacious Christianity is her story.
An important element of the story is the ethnic church in which Thomas grew up. Though she grew up in Boston, her family is from South India. She writes in the introduction that many of her childhood summers were spent in Kerala, that Malayalam was her native tongue, and that her childhood faith was steeped in South Asian culture. While this is crucial to the storyline in that it forms Thomas’s sense of belonging and informs some of the conservatism that connection to evangelicalism that her faith upbringing had, it isn’t central to the story. You don’t have to have been raised in an ethnic church to feel solidarity and connection with Thomas’s experience. At least I didn’t.
I also appreciate that, while Thomas has come out from the evangelicalism in which she was raised, she writes that she still has elements that she loves about the faith tradition she came from and speaks of the positive values it instilled in her that remain to this day. With so many stories of religious trauma and deconstruction—more like demolition than deconstruction—it is refreshing to hear someone give voice to the good of evangelicalism or the good it tried to be.
Each chapter of the book follows a different thematic element and offers a more spacious contrast between the narrow confines of her upbringing and the more spacious beliefs she carries now. There are chapters about learning to doubt well, about changing views on sin and salvation, about learning to lament, about gender equality, and more.
I found the chapter on sin and salvation to be especially poignant, as Thomas details her childhood as one riddled with anxiety that they had sinned and constantly asking for salvation—never sure or confident in the relationship they have with God. This is a huge part of evangelicalism and A Faith of Many Rooms gently leads to a bigger, more welcoming interpretation that recognizes the brokenness of sin but does not seek to break the person further.
A Faith of Many Rooms is engaging and beautifully-written. Thomas has a way with words and her ability to weave her personal story together with the larger story of so many raised like her creates a work that is both personal and communal. I read this hearing Thomas’s story. I read this reflecting my own. I’ve never met Debie, yet it felt like we were walking hand-in-hand together on this liberating journey. If you are struggling in your faith, if you want to leave your faith but not Jesus, Thomas tears down the walls and reveals to you that Christianity has always been bigger than you imagined.
An important element of the story is the ethnic church in which Thomas grew up. Though she grew up in Boston, her family is from South India. She writes in the introduction that many of her childhood summers were spent in Kerala, that Malayalam was her native tongue, and that her childhood faith was steeped in South Asian culture. While this is crucial to the storyline in that it forms Thomas’s sense of belonging and informs some of the conservatism that connection to evangelicalism that her faith upbringing had, it isn’t central to the story. You don’t have to have been raised in an ethnic church to feel solidarity and connection with Thomas’s experience. At least I didn’t.
I also appreciate that, while Thomas has come out from the evangelicalism in which she was raised, she writes that she still has elements that she loves about the faith tradition she came from and speaks of the positive values it instilled in her that remain to this day. With so many stories of religious trauma and deconstruction—more like demolition than deconstruction—it is refreshing to hear someone give voice to the good of evangelicalism or the good it tried to be.
Each chapter of the book follows a different thematic element and offers a more spacious contrast between the narrow confines of her upbringing and the more spacious beliefs she carries now. There are chapters about learning to doubt well, about changing views on sin and salvation, about learning to lament, about gender equality, and more.
I found the chapter on sin and salvation to be especially poignant, as Thomas details her childhood as one riddled with anxiety that they had sinned and constantly asking for salvation—never sure or confident in the relationship they have with God. This is a huge part of evangelicalism and A Faith of Many Rooms gently leads to a bigger, more welcoming interpretation that recognizes the brokenness of sin but does not seek to break the person further.
A Faith of Many Rooms is engaging and beautifully-written. Thomas has a way with words and her ability to weave her personal story together with the larger story of so many raised like her creates a work that is both personal and communal. I read this hearing Thomas’s story. I read this reflecting my own. I’ve never met Debie, yet it felt like we were walking hand-in-hand together on this liberating journey. If you are struggling in your faith, if you want to leave your faith but not Jesus, Thomas tears down the walls and reveals to you that Christianity has always been bigger than you imagined.
January 2, 2025
Thomas accomplishes in A Faith of Many Rooms what most Christians can only dream of doing-- speaking honestly about relevant issues with a graceful, non-incendiary language and an earnestly ecumenical spirit.
To use Thomas' language, I grew up in and around deeply "small" theology and have spent the past years learning to inhabit a "roomier" faith. She took a lot of the things I've been thinking about and saying for a long time and articulated them much better than I could. I think she does a good job balancing goodness in people all along the spectrum of the narrow to expansive Christianities while inviting everyone to something gloriously spacious.
While the writing and themes of the book are good, the reason this book gets 5 stars from me is the ending. It made me WEEP in a way that I have done only once or twice before at a book. The ending is a letter about why she stays in the church and faith, and I'd like to share a part here:
To use Thomas' language, I grew up in and around deeply "small" theology and have spent the past years learning to inhabit a "roomier" faith. She took a lot of the things I've been thinking about and saying for a long time and articulated them much better than I could. I think she does a good job balancing goodness in people all along the spectrum of the narrow to expansive Christianities while inviting everyone to something gloriously spacious.
While the writing and themes of the book are good, the reason this book gets 5 stars from me is the ending. It made me WEEP in a way that I have done only once or twice before at a book. The ending is a letter about why she stays in the church and faith, and I'd like to share a part here:
"Here is why I stay: ... Because I'm Eve, and the apple makes sense. I'm Sarah, and my barrenness hurts. I'm Rachel, and I won't surrender my sacred objects. I'm Leah, and I long to be loved. I'm Hagar, and I need to name You in the desert. I'm Miriam, and I'm ever watchful. I'm Mary with the jar, who weeps at your feet. I'm the Magdalene, and I bear witness at tombs. I'm Junia, and my story aches to be told...
Because sorrow has come too many times, and there had better be an afterword to explain it. Because I've stood at gravesides and raged. Because my children have suffered and You have watched. Because bodies failed, minds cracked, hearts broke, and we didn't live happily ever after like the fairy tales promised. Because "on earth as it is in heaven" is all I've got, and if it's not enough, then I am lost. Because "Death, where is thy sting?" feels like a mockery but "Jesus wept" does not...
Because I am still your stubborn child and I insist on resurrection.”
April 6, 2024
Author Debie Thomas tells her readers that Jesus describes the kingdom of God as a house of “many rooms.” Jesus also says that the kingdom of God is within and among us, here and now. Thomas argues for a much wider application of the metaphor found in these scriptures. She explains that the idea of Jesus delighting in preparing many rooms for us means that, “the realm of God is by nature wide, abundant, and capacious. Where God dwells—and where we dwell—there is expansiveness. Where God reigns, there is generosity, variety, and plenitude.” This beautifully written book brings a breath of fresh air to those who have experienced the presentation of God and the Bible in a rigid black and white manner.
Thomas tackles the topics of sin, salvation, grief, lament, and brokenness, with wisdom and grace. Her words are gently persuasive, asking us to consider engaging in a more generous, inclusive faith.
Her writing is gorgeous, filled with poignant vignettes. She says, “I lacked a world spacious enough to accommodate all of me: the American me, the Indian me, the fragmented me, the conflicted me….what I hungered for was coherence. Space. Belonging.”
In her gem of a book, Debie Thomas describes how she’s come to an understanding of God’s welcome. She offers all of us the opportunity to consider God’s invitation to a journey’s end, a place to rest, to a home where we are embraced in unconditional love.
Thomas tackles the topics of sin, salvation, grief, lament, and brokenness, with wisdom and grace. Her words are gently persuasive, asking us to consider engaging in a more generous, inclusive faith.
Her writing is gorgeous, filled with poignant vignettes. She says, “I lacked a world spacious enough to accommodate all of me: the American me, the Indian me, the fragmented me, the conflicted me….what I hungered for was coherence. Space. Belonging.”
In her gem of a book, Debie Thomas describes how she’s come to an understanding of God’s welcome. She offers all of us the opportunity to consider God’s invitation to a journey’s end, a place to rest, to a home where we are embraced in unconditional love.
November 4, 2025
My first thought upon finishing A Faith of Many Rooms was, "Why didn't I read this sooner?"
I really appreciated Debie Thomas's description of a roomier faith. Like Debie, I feel like I grew up around a black-and-white version of faith with cookie-cutter interpretations of salvation, grace, etc. This idea was laid to rest when I read about how "wrestling with our faith" shows that we still prioritize God above all else. Debie takes a compassionate approach to interpreting faith and uses her experience as an Indian/Malayalam immigrant to inform her perspectives. I believe this is precisely how the larger church should address contemporary issues—by adopting a grassroots, compassion-driven approach instead of simply reacting to surface-level problems.
It's no secret that I've wrestled with my faith. I'm a born-again Christian who is unapologetically supportive of the LGBTQ+ community, abortion rights, and is hypercritical of the influence of colonialism, privilege, and white supremacy on American Evangelicalism. Theologians and writers such as Rachel Held Evans, Debie Thomas, and Dr. Cornel West have been pivotal voices for me, particularly in light of how Christianity is portrayed in 2025.
I really appreciated Debie Thomas's description of a roomier faith. Like Debie, I feel like I grew up around a black-and-white version of faith with cookie-cutter interpretations of salvation, grace, etc. This idea was laid to rest when I read about how "wrestling with our faith" shows that we still prioritize God above all else. Debie takes a compassionate approach to interpreting faith and uses her experience as an Indian/Malayalam immigrant to inform her perspectives. I believe this is precisely how the larger church should address contemporary issues—by adopting a grassroots, compassion-driven approach instead of simply reacting to surface-level problems.
It's no secret that I've wrestled with my faith. I'm a born-again Christian who is unapologetically supportive of the LGBTQ+ community, abortion rights, and is hypercritical of the influence of colonialism, privilege, and white supremacy on American Evangelicalism. Theologians and writers such as Rachel Held Evans, Debie Thomas, and Dr. Cornel West have been pivotal voices for me, particularly in light of how Christianity is portrayed in 2025.
May 21, 2025
Audio Book Review
This book was the spring assigned reading for the book club at my church! I found it very insightful and I enjoyed it. I really loved learning about Christianity from the Indian point of view and I learned quite a bit.
The author uses her personal experiences as examples throughout the book to explain her theology which I enjoyed. The chapter on ‘lament’ in particular really spoke to me and caused me to reflect back on moments in my own life. Overall, reading this book allowed me a moment to reflect on the times when I really felt God working in my life and made me realize that most of the time it is when I am lamenting. I really resonated with the message.
The chapter about God being not only Father but also Mother, also made me think. The church I go to now uses both titles for God but this book really made me think about what I am comfortable using. The author quotes multiple times throughout Scripture where God is referred to as Mother, and that does honestly make more sense to me. Mothers create. The author really provoked thought within me concerning this topic.
Overall, I enjoyed the book and a few themes within it really did challenge me to hold a more spacious faith of my own.
This book was the spring assigned reading for the book club at my church! I found it very insightful and I enjoyed it. I really loved learning about Christianity from the Indian point of view and I learned quite a bit.
The author uses her personal experiences as examples throughout the book to explain her theology which I enjoyed. The chapter on ‘lament’ in particular really spoke to me and caused me to reflect back on moments in my own life. Overall, reading this book allowed me a moment to reflect on the times when I really felt God working in my life and made me realize that most of the time it is when I am lamenting. I really resonated with the message.
The chapter about God being not only Father but also Mother, also made me think. The church I go to now uses both titles for God but this book really made me think about what I am comfortable using. The author quotes multiple times throughout Scripture where God is referred to as Mother, and that does honestly make more sense to me. Mothers create. The author really provoked thought within me concerning this topic.
Overall, I enjoyed the book and a few themes within it really did challenge me to hold a more spacious faith of my own.
May 2, 2024
As a self-proclaimed christian agnostic, this book brought me immense comfort. For years I’ve felt completely isolated on my faith journey. I thought my compassion for others and unrelenting desire to stand by and protect the broken meant I was on my own. The church I’ve known and grown up in completely let me down because of their unwillingness to protect POC, refugees, trans, and queer people, etc. I’m comforted by the fact that I’m not the only one who worries over the tough questions and has no place to go with thoughts of inadequacy as a believer. Thomas brilliantly reminds readers that God does not fit into the confines of our narrow minds and that if we chose to view him through such a small lens, he will always be small and our faith, too will never grow
July 9, 2024
This book wasn't revolutionary by any means and I didn't come to all of Thomas's same conclusions, but I still found it beautiful and compelling. At first, the whole book felt confused and haphazard, but I think that is kind of her whole point. That faith isn't always straightforward and that God dwells in paradox and uncharted territory. I appreciated Thomas's perspective and I'd recommend this book.
April 5, 2024
Such an easy ready but at the same time thought provoking. This will dwell in my mind and my heart for a long time to come. I’m grateful to Debie Thomas for sharing so openly her history, her faith and her struggles with me. I want to share this with all my fellow readers, people of faith and those unsure what they believe because the “many rooms” means there is space for all of us!!
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June 21, 2024Through his multicultural perspective, Thomas provides insight into how we can see Christianity in a more expansive way. Her own experiences growing up in an Indian Christian family, her own questions, and her deconstruction open up a faith that is growing rather than narrowing. This is a great book for those struggling with faith that seems too confining.
January 13, 2025
This book was a lovely journey, well-written, warm, and thought-provoking. The author's nourishing metaphors and writing will expand your view of what's possible. Caught my attention and I enjoyed it the whole way through.
I won a free copy from Goodreads.
I won a free copy from Goodreads.
March 22, 2024
I’ve loved Debie’s online commentaries and this book felt like an added, elongated bonus. Her thoughts on the many “rooms” of God was just gorgeous.
April 23, 2024
Loved this book. Debie’s writing is beautiful, engaging and what she writes about is real. I particularly resonated with the chapter about wrestling. Very grateful for this book. Thank you Debie.
May 7, 2024
I devour everything written by Ms. Thomas. She provides wise insight into Scripture, offering Biblical truth in light of real-life experiences. This is a must read!
January 6, 2025
Highly recommend for those searching, journeying and or wrestling. I feel so calm and at home having read this.
April 8, 2025
… a spring of water welling up to eternal life.
Bravo and thank you Debi Thomas… much needed.
Bravo and thank you Debi Thomas… much needed.
December 5, 2025
This was our book study for Bishop's Committee and there were things I liked about it and things I didn't. Overall, it's a great conversation-starter and was really good for us as a community!
August 11, 2024
Good thoughts from this theologian on growing up in two worlds and two churches.
September 26, 2024
This one really challenged me and made me think a lot. Sometimes I just kind of give up and throw my hands in the air and think maybe what I "believe" isn't that important since I can't figure out any good answers lately, but Thomas forced me to do some thinking about that as an idea, and that is probably good even if I still don't get it figured out lol.
September 13, 2024
Thank you to Debie Thomas for writing this honest and insightful book. I feel so keenly that she wrote it for me—taking me by the hand as she asks the unasked and challenges the narrow scope of what she grew up believing.
In this spiritual memoir, Thomas recounts her own (and still unfolding) journey into a growing understanding that our God is bigger than our doubts. She talks about faith as being both expansive and inclusive as she reconciles her diasporic faith background with western faith practices. She handles difficult questions with grace and compassion, looking to the truth of God’s character as she wrestles with the complexities and contradictions of human life.
I found her writing to be refreshing and relatable in a time when we see people leaving the faith left and right. A truly encouraging look at what it means to have faith in a God Who is deeply personal and greater than our greatest need.
In this spiritual memoir, Thomas recounts her own (and still unfolding) journey into a growing understanding that our God is bigger than our doubts. She talks about faith as being both expansive and inclusive as she reconciles her diasporic faith background with western faith practices. She handles difficult questions with grace and compassion, looking to the truth of God’s character as she wrestles with the complexities and contradictions of human life.
I found her writing to be refreshing and relatable in a time when we see people leaving the faith left and right. A truly encouraging look at what it means to have faith in a God Who is deeply personal and greater than our greatest need.
October 27, 2024
I don’t have the words to capture this book accurately. If you’re searching for answers, understanding, or simply a broader perspective, this book is for you.
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