Product Description

Using unconventional examples from his own life, Shane Claiborne stirs up questions about the church and the world, and challenges readers to truly live out their Christian faith.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3770 in Books
• Published on: 2006-01-26
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. If there is such a thing as a disarming radical, 30-year-old Claiborne is it. A former Tennessee Methodist and born-again, high school prom king, Claiborne is now a founding member of one of a growing number of radical faith communities. His is called the Simple Way, located in a destitute neighborhood of Philadelphia. It is a house of young believers, some single, some married, who live among the poor and homeless. They call themselves "ordinary radicals" because they attempt to live like Christ and the earliest converts to Christianity, ignoring social status and unencumbered by material comforts. Claiborne's chatty and compelling narrative is magnetic—his stories (from galvanizing a student movement that saved a group of homeless families from eviction to reaching Mother Teresa herself from a dorm phone at 2 a.m.) draw the reader in with humor and intimacy, only to turn the most common ways of practicing religion upside down. He somehow skewers the insulation of suburban living and the hypocrisy of wealthy churches without any self-righteous finger pointing. "The world," he says, "cannot afford the American dream." Claiborne's conviction, personal experience and description of others like him are a clarion call to rethink the meaning of church, conversion and Christianity; no reader will go away unshaken. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
*Starred Review* From dressing the wounds of lepers in Calcutta to living among the homeless in Philadelphia to visiting families in Iraq, social activist Claiborne strives to live an authentic Christian life. In his view, he is a radical in the truest sense of the word, returning to the roots of Christianity by living as Jesus did and doing "small things with great love." A partner-founder of the Philadelphia-based faith community Simple Way, he presents an evangelical Christianity gentler and more inclusive than is usually seen, especially in the mass media. He describes Simple Way as a new culture that relies on radical interdependence and consists of grassroots organizations, intentional communities, and hospitality houses. Although the book isn't an autobiography, in it Claiborne reports much about his life: growing up in the Bible Belt, becoming a Jesus freak, moving to Philadelphia despite his family's misgivings, and helping the homeless there. Then he boldly requested an internship with Mother Teresa in Calcutta. She simply responded, "Come." Besides illuminating his own faith journey, Claiborne is insightful on the huge U.S. cultural and economic divide: the problem isn't that wealthy Christians don't care about the poor, he says, it's that they simply don't know the poor. A moving, often humorous account of a life of faith lived to the fullest. June Sawyers
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author
Shane Claiborne is a prominent activist and soughtafter speaker.Heis one of the founding members of The Simple Way, a community in innercity Philadelphia that has helped birth and connect radical faith communities around the world.Shane serves on the board of directorsfor the Christian Community Development Association and in his down-time is quite a dynamic circus performer.

Customer Reviews

going up for the 'alter call'...
In this book Shane gives us a chunk of himself. He speaks of the grace of God that has seduced him into becoming an extremist for grace in Philly and numerous other places. Using stories from his own experience, Shane opens up another possible world where sidewalk chalk, dancing, laughter, love, forgiveness, and grace prove to be more powerful and more real than 'smart' bombs, military 'intelligence', hatred, and darkness.
In a weird way this book reminded me a lot of Hauerwas' "With the Grain of the Universe". Both books show that violence is part of an insane world and that there is a new reality... a new world breaking into history through the resurrection of Jesus; a world where justice and righteousness meet. Shane's book is all a book could ever hope to be; a wonderful work towards inspiring and encouraging people to fall in love with Jesus and to become extremists for God's grace.

An Irresistible Revolution...the Simple Way
If you're ready to roll up your sleeves, and march in God's army, pick up a copy of The Irresistible Revolution and get ready to load up on some serious ammunition. And for good measure, you'll also get a fresh compass and a friend to help you dig out of the trenches and be counted as a radical who is courageous and foolish enough to stand out as a true follower of Christ.

From the streets of Calcutta, to war-zones of Iraq, to neighbourhood slums, to money-multiplying Wall Street, Shane Claiborne transports the face of Christ into a suffering and lonely world. In Irresistible Revolution, he converts his stories into a compelling case for the "ordinary radical" . His down to earth style will engage you, much like a conversation with an old friend. But be prepared, much of what he has to say is far from comfortable. In these pages you will be dared to take up your cross, and tear down some walls. You will hear first hand of the miracle of community, of working together, being one body in Christ. You will be asked to drop the rock of unforgiveness and embrace the poor, the needy and the "ugly". And kiss complacency good-bye.

Watch out for the gut-wrenching and heart-breaking moments laced in pain...and some joyful, triumphant ones. Watch how you never lose the distinct feeling that Jesus is right there walking through every page as you read along. You will sense his presence watching over you, holding out His hand, insisting, "Come follow me...come and see." Watch yourself capture a fresh and renewed understanding of who Jesus was and what He asks of you...and behold the absolute ironic beauty of a revolution (a heart revolv-ing around Him) that is truly irresistible.

definitely one to read
this is a phenomenal book that has the potential to change your life. give it a read.