Ron Rhodes
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Subjects -> Religion & Spirituality -> Christianity -> Christian Living -> General
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 11
Average rating: 3.0 of 5
Excited about this initially, but disappointed 2 out of 5 stars.
49 of 51 people found this review helpful.
I was really looking forward to this book. A book that discusses the aspects of each of the congregations in the US or world is a great reference tool in understanding what others believe. Is this book the one to choose for that purpose? First, I will discuss its contents, pros and cons before giving my final opinion.
Rhodes' book begins with a very short history of the church (4 pages). He then defines 'denomination,' 'protestant' and gives a description of how to use the book.
The books covers the following churches:
Adventists
Baptists
Brethren
Catholic
Christian
Congregational
Episcopalian and Anglican
Friends (Quaker)
Fundamentalist and Bible
Holiness
Lutheran
Mennonite
Methodist
Orthodox
Pentecostal
Presbyterian
Reformed
With each congregation, Rhodes begins with a date of origin for the church, census of members and number of congregations. He then describes their beliefs and gives a chart of fast facts for the church. There are several added "fast fact" charts that detail theologies such as Calvinist and Arminian. Each congregation gets 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 pages (except the Roman Catholic Church where 10 pages are written.) Some congregations have a robust history leading into discussion of the divisions within, such as the Orthodox church.
Pros:
--A large swath of churches is covered.
--A good index aids in finding churches. For instance, I wanted to find out what the Nazarene church was like, and the index pointed me to the Holiness section, which I was not aware they were part of.
--There is an index of persons that helps in determining which authors are from which church.
--Rhodes speaks from an unbiased viewpoint. One could not tell he is conservative dispensational Protestant from this writing.
Cons:
--Rhodes left out a couple of churches I have wanted to learn about in my town, namely Unitarian. Granted, many do not consider the Unitarian church to be strictly Christian, but it is a prominent congregation that would be helpful to have in the book.
--The book is VERY vague about church beliefs. Many of the churches described deny the inerrancy of Scripture, but that can not be determined by the wording used, as the writing makes little distinction between those that call the Scriptures inerrant and those that do not. One must read between the lines or have some knowledge of the church to discern Rhodes' writing. Views of Scripture is only one of the vagueries, but is the most prominent.
--The book does NOT discuss the issues that set the churches apart. Worship is spoken about, again, in vague terms. Is Christ present in the Eucharist of the Lutheran churches? One cannot tell from this book. (Some Lutheran churches do teach this and some don't.) Which churches put high focus on speaking in tongues? One cannot tell from this book.
My greatest critique is vagueness. Granted, Rhodes could not have been very specific without relying on some theological bias. But, more specifics could be told. From this book, it is very hard to tell why there are divisions. What divides the American Baptists from the Southern Baptists? Episcopalian from Anglican? Greek Orthodox from Orthodox Church in America? Volumes could be written, but little of it could be found out in this writing.
Is this book the one to choose for the purpose of understanding other congregations? I have to give a resounding no. The breadth of this book is a blessing and a curse. He doesn't leave many out, but the book would have to be much longer to give any insight into the differences between the congregations discussed.
Editorial Review:
Ron Rhodes has compiled his extensive research into a handy, easy–to–use manual that will provide readers with accurate, straightforward answers to their questions about various churches. In just minutes, anyone can easily find important information about a denomination, including...
- a brief history
- their most important doctrinal beliefs
- distinctive elements of their teaching and worship
Visually appealing charts highlight doctrinal differences. Membership statistics show denomination sizes and growth. A bibliography and a listing of websites give readers resources for more information.
Whether they are looking for a new church or the opportunity to fellowship with believers from different traditions, readers will be much better prepared with this thorough and user–friendly guide.
