Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne

Non-Fiction: Christianity. Paperback from Zondervan. Published in 2006. 368 pages. On loan from The Kent District Library.

Well, one more Hat Tip is due to Preacher Mike for bringing my attention to yet another challenging book. I certainly don't hear this type of preaching at church, but I do think I needed to hear what Mr. Claiborne had to say and to give it some serious thought. It's not likely that I will be suddenly giving away all my income and heading to the city to live with the poor - for one thing I have no income to give up, and secondly I've got a family to care for. But, I can see that I could make some changes that would make a difference. A very convicting book.

It did seem like a bit of a contradiction to me that he is advocating a simple lifestyle that spreads whatever money comes in around, yet he still has the resources to go all over the globe to hang out with the poor. I doubt most people who choose to give most of their income away will have the chance to go anywhere.

Publisher's summary:
Many of us find ourselves caught somewhere between unbelieving activists and inactive believers. We can write a check to feed starving children or hold signs in the streets and feel like we’ve made a difference without ever encountering the faces of the suffering masses. In this book, Shane Claiborne describes an authentic faith rooted in belief, action, and love, inviting us into a movement of the Spirit that begins inside each of us and extends into a broken world. Shane’s faith led him to dress the wounds of lepers with Mother Teresa, visit families in Iraq amidst bombings, and dump $10,000 in coins and bills on Wall Street to redistribute wealth. Shane lives out this revolution each day in his local neighborhood, an impoverished community in North Philadelphia, by living among the homeless, helping local kids with homework, and “practicing resurrection” in the forgotten places of our world.

Shane’s message will comfort the disturbed, and disturb the comfortable . . . but will also invite us into an irresistible revolution. His is a vision for ordinary radicals ready to change the world with little acts of love.

Online book shopping:
Powell's: Irresistible Revolution
amazon.co.uk:Irresistible Revolution
amazon.com: Irresistible Revolution
Audible.com: Not currently available as audio from Audible.