Authentic Communication: Christian Speech Engaging Culture

by Tim Muehlhoff, Todd V. Lewis

Part of the Christian Worldview Integration Series

Whether setting about to love our neighbor, to settle a dispute, to share in the suffering of others or to speak up on behalf of the marginalized, we inevitably must engage in communication. And what could be more natural, more human, than communication?

But we all learn quickly enough that good communication is not always natural. There is much to learn from Scripture and from the academic study of human communication. Tim Muehlhoff and Todd Lewis are able guides, aiding us in understanding the broad field of human communication in Christian perspective.

Here they offer readers a vital assessment of the power of words, perspective-taking, persuasion and conflict management--all in an effort to improve our abilities to communicate forgiveness and shape the world we live in for the good. Special attention is focused on the place of Christians as counterpublics--those who offer alternative perspectives to the dominant voices in society.

The Christian Worldview Integration Series, edited by J. P. Moreland and Francis J. Beckwith, seeks to promote a robust personal and conceptual integration of Christian faith and learning, with textbooks focused on disciplines such as education, psychology, literature, politics, science, communications, biology, philosophy, and history.

Genres: Cultural

208 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 18, 2010

About the author

Tim Muehlhoff (PhD, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) is a professor of communication at Biola University in La Mirada, California, where he teaches classes in family communication, interpersonal communication, persuasion, and gender. He is the author of I Beg to Differ and Marriage Forecasting, and the coauthor of The God Conversation: Using Stories and Illustrations to Explain Your Faith and Authentic Communication: Christian Speech Engaging Culture. Muehlhoff and his wife, Noreen, are frequent speakers at FamilyLife Marriage Conferences, and he has served with Campus Crusade since 1986. They live in Brea, California, with their three boys.

Reviews

[Michael Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Authentic Communication" by Tim Muehlhoff is a good read for especially the Christian believer wanting to improve their communication skills in life, particularly when engaging a culture that opposes Christianity.

Around 240 pages, the author addresses many topics, including:

1. Integrating the Christian viewpoint when living in today's world.
2. Different types of influences on our perception of culture and life.
3. Principles of public persuasion and ways culture views Christians.
4. Ways to pursue Christian unity.
5. Communication suggestions for confronting conflict.
6. What forgiveness is not and what can be forgotten in forgiveness.
7. Areas of concern for postmodernism.
8. Various ways Jesus, Paul, and Peter communicated in the Bible.

The title is full of good information on conversing with the culture, contains very helpful recommended reading list, general index, and scripture index, smoothly transitions from chapter to chapter, and is well-organized and thorough.

Will be read again in the future and will read more slowly and take more notes. Highly recommended.

I was given a review copy by IVP in exchange for a fair review and appreciate the opportunity.

[Seth Mcdevitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did not agree with everything in this text, but a worthy treatment of Christian Communication. If you are a Christian and you communicate for a living (salesman, manager, supervisor) it is worth your time.

[Mike B · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was well written and a good source for me as I began to process more deeply about how to winsomely engage in dialogue during this really challenging and emotionally charged season in our country.

[Jaclyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

There were some good points, but other than that, this book was ironic. It was horribly long and unfortunately, I couldn't read it at all! I had no idea what they were saying! Talk about authentic communication :)