Testimony: Inside the Evangelical Movement That Failed a Generation - Hardcover

Jon Ward

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1587435772 ISBN 13: 9781587435775

Publisher: Brazos Press, 2023

Synopsis

"Ward is consistently clear-sighted and perceptive as he charts a genuinely fascinating personal and spiritual evolution."--Publishers Weekly

Jon Ward's life is divided in half: two decades inside the evangelical Christian bubble and two decades outside of it.

In Testimony, Ward tells the engaging story of his upbringing in, and eventual break from, an influential evangelical church in the 1980s and 1990s. Ward sheds light on the evangelical movement's troubling political and cultural dimensions, tracing the ways in which the Jesus People movement was seduced by materialism and other factors to become politically captive rather than prophetic.

A respected journalist, Ward asks uncomfortable but necessary questions, calling those inside and outside conservative Christian circles to embrace truth, complexity, and nuance. He recounts his growing alarm and grief over the last several years as evangelical conservatives attacked truth, rejected personal character, and embraced authoritarianism and conspiracism. He shares his search for a faith that embodies the values he was taught as a child.

Ward's experience and reflections will resonate with many readers who grew up in the evangelical movement as well as all those who have an interest in the health of the church and its impact on American life.

About this title

About the Author

Jon Ward is the chief national correspondent at Yahoo! News. He has covered American politics and culture for two decades, including as a White House correspondent traveling aboard Air Force One and as a national affairs correspondent writing about two presidential campaigns. He is the author of Camelot's End: Kennedy vs. Carter and the Fight That Broke the Democratic Party and hosts The Long Game podcast. Ward has written for the Washington Post, the New Republic, Politico, Vanity Fair, HuffPost, and the Washington Times and lives in Washington, DC.

From the Back Cover

"A must-read for anyone seeking to navigate the fault lines of our polarized moment"

In Testimony, Jon Ward recounts his upbringing and eventual break from an influential evangelical church to diagnose broader political and cultural issues.

Ward spent two decades of his life inside evangelical Christian circles and two decades outside as a journalist covering politics, government, culture, and the nature of power. Through his story, Ward explores how the evangelical church lost its witness--and how it can regain it by laying aside grasps at power to serve with Christlike love.

"With raw honesty, deep insight, and a self-deprecating sense of humor, Jon Ward offers an insider's view into the White evangelical world in which he was raised. Testimony will be illuminating for those who have walked this path and for those struggling to understand the world of conservative evangelicalism from the outside."
--Kristin Kobes Du Mez, New York Times bestselling author of Jesus and John Wayne

"Testimony demonstrates the power of truth--no matter who it comes from or where it leads. This book will make you ponder, discuss, and testify about your own journey and beliefs."
--Jemar Tisby, New York Times bestselling author of The Color of Compromise and How to Fight Racism; professor, Simmons College of Kentucky

"An illuminating work that shines light into the fissures of spiritual abuses in the church and that documents Ward's journey as a Christian to move forward and find a better way."
--Makoto Fujimura, artist and author of Art and Faith: A Theology of Making

"Jon's meticulous reporting has always brought nuance and life to his writing about politics; his thoughtfulness about faith is the secret weapon he's now sharing with the world. This book is honest, vulnerable, scrupulous, and surprising; a must-read for anyone seeking to navigate the fault lines of our polarized moment."
--Ana Marie Cox, New York Magazine columnist

"Testimony will be for this generation and moment what Don Miller's Blue Like Jazz was for that moment. This is a work that will connect."
--Michael Wear, author of Reclaiming Hope: Lessons Learned in the Obama White House about the Future of Faith in America

From the Inside Flap

Jon Ward's life is divided in half: twenty years inside the evangelical Christian bubble and twenty years outside of it.

In Testimony, Ward tells the engaging story of his upbringing in, and eventual break from, an influential evangelical church in the 1980s and 1990s. He sheds light on the evangelical movement's troubling political and cultural dimensions, tracing the ways in which the Jesus People movement was seduced by materialism and other factors to become politically captive rather than prophetic.

A respected journalist, Ward asks uncomfortable but necessary questions as he calls those inside and outside conservative Christian circles to embrace truth, complexity, and nuance. Ultimately, he longs for a return to the way, the truth, and the life of Christ.

"Testimony is the book I have been waiting for. I suspect there are millions more like me who will resonate with Jon's powerful witness. To read it is to participate in a circle of trust where you are not alone, you're not going crazy, and all is not well. This is a form of setting things right--a move toward healing. I'm listening and grateful."
--Charlie Peacock, Grammy Award-winning music producer; founder and director emeritus of Commercial Music Program, Lipscomb University School of Music

"Ward's personal story--of faith and family and things left behind--is also the story of how our culture came unglued. Testimony is a deeply moving book, and deeply important."
--Matt Bai, author of All the Truth Is Out: The Week Politics Went Tabloid

"Ward's honest, meditative, and beautifully written memoir shines a bright light on the often-obscured links between religion and politics in America."
--Yuval Levin, author of A Time to Build

Edition details

• Publisher: Brazos Press
• Publication date: 2023
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1587435772
• ISBN 13: 9781587435775
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 256