Status Updates From How to Be Evangelical witho...

Chapter 3, Celebrating America without nationalism. Written in 2008, especially relevant now.

Chapter 12 presents a helpful concept of interdependence between the genders, that "Underlying human equality is human interdependence. People who truly need each other find it difficult to oppress each other" (186). But I was disappointed that he went on for 15 pages and all he said about the biblical texts is that egalitarians have shown they're culturally conditioned (188). So much for evangelical biblicism.

I appreciated his metaphor that Scripture is a map and tradition our guide. "It's up to us to watch [the map] carefully as we follow our guide and keep looking at the territory around us to be sure the guide is really following the map and not leading us astray." In his openness to open theism Olson shows that he's not conservative. Chapeau, Roger!

Wow. Chapter 8 is terrible. I can't believe someone so well-educated can use such straw men, even in a field outside his expertise. In the words of Bono, "some people have way too much confidence, baby." Roger does in this chapter; he should try understanding his opponents better before summarizing their views.

I thought the book was a dud until I read the chapter "Transforming Culture without Domination". I guess that's what I was hoping more of the book would be about. He argues in favor of the anabaptist approach, that non-coercive influence is closer to what the Scriptures teach. I agree. "What we accept as axiomatic today--separation of church and state and tolerance of religious dissenters--began with [the Anabaptists

The more he writes, the less I think he has to say. A better title might be "How to be Conservative without being too Conservative".