October 15, 2021
As the title indicates, The Rebel Christ invites readers to consider Jesus as something more than the traditionally passive founder of what some perceive to be an increasingly intolerant and irrelevant Christianity. Coren, a British-Canadian author (Epiphany, 2016), columnist, and Anglican cleric, takes a journalistic and theological approach to assessing what Jesus and scripture say--and don't say--about such crucial and timely issues as politics, homosexuality, abortion, and injustice. Emphasizing the importance of understanding historical and textual context of biblical writings, the author considers the question of what compassion looks like and challenges widely held views of Jesus and his actions, as well the actions of those who follow him. Coren's blunt writing style may stretch the ideas of his conservative readers while bolstering those of his more progressive audience; the personal anecdotes sprinkled throughout the text complement his conclusions. In the fourth chapter, Coren asserts that Christ "challenged and prodded, even provoked, all the time;" his work emulates this well. For thoughtful theologians and lay people alike.
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