Reconstruct Your Faith
Ancient Ways to Make Your Relationship with God Whole Again
1. Edition July 2024
240 Pages, Hardcover
Wiley & Sons Ltd
Navigate the deepest questions of faith with the compassionate guidance of a pastor whose faith nearly fell apart
This book is a must have for anyone facing a crisis of faith. When our hearts begin to question faith, we often fear voicing our concerns and confusions aloud. But questioning is inherent in the journey as we seek truth faith, as author and pastor Kevin M. Young has learned firsthand. At a time when many lack trust in clergy--and clergy members themselves are facing burnout and disillusionment--we need an honest and accountable reckoning with the role of the church in our lives. Reconstruct Your Faith takes you back to square one, helping you reengage with the church, the clergy, and God, using methods that have been essential to Christianity from its beginnings.
* Embark on the next phase of your spiritual journey--even if you have become disillusioned with aspects of organized religion
* Receive guidance and wisdom from an open-minded pastor who has struggled with his own faith
* Examine the role of God, Evangelicalism, and the church in your past, present, and future
* Return to the foundations of faith to discover your own path through questioning to a stronger spirituality
This book guides you through the application of ancient spiritual practice in your life's journey, regardless of your denominational identity as a Christian or your belonging to a particular tradition. Anyone experiencing a crisis of faith or nagged by persistent questions about the direction of the church today will find healing and answers in Reconstruct Your Faith.
About the Author xi
Introduction xiii
PART I Deconstructing Faith 1
Chapter 1 How Did I Get Here? 3
Chapter 2 The Church 19
Chapter 3 The Bible 35
Chapter 4 Inerrancy 49
Chapter 5 Deconstruct-Reconstruct Cycle 63
PART II Reconstructing Faith 79
Chapter 6 Ancient Paths 81
Chapter 7 The Liturgy of the Hours 95
Chapter 8 The Church Year 109
Chapter 9 The Saints 123
Chapter 10 Feasts and Fasts 141
Chapter 11 Catechism 161
Chapter 12 Creeds 175
Chapter 13 Pilgrimage 187
Chapter 14 Wreckage and Mess 203
Epilogue 209
Index 213
--Rev. Dr. David P. Gushee, Distinguished University Professor of Christian Ethics, Mercer University
"For people in evangelical spaces who have always been (perhaps secretly?) curious about liturgical traditions, Young's pilgrimage into liturgical, practice-based faith offers a template for fellow sojourners to reconnect with God in an ancient way. As a privileged insider in evangelical American Christianity, Young's indictment of abusive theology - and his hope that change is possible - offers a clarion call for confession, compassion, and transformation."
--The Rev. Lizzie McManus-Dail
"If you are a sincere and fulfilled Evangelical Christian, you may not think you need Reconstruct Your Faith. Similarly, if you have walked away from religion entirely, you may feel this book is for someone else, not you. But I think just about anyone--from happy churchgoer to struggling doubter to church-wounded "none"--will find real wisdom and insight in these pages. Kevin Young tells his unique story in a way that will help you better live your unfolding story too."
--Brian D. McLaren, author of Faith After Doubt and Do I Stay Christian?
"Kevin Young is a stirring stick. He is a maestro of troubling the waters and stirring things up. I sometimes wish he were stirring the other way he's swizzling, but the church needs stirring sticks that are kind, caring, smart, and fair. After all, there was no healing at the pool of Bethesda until the waters were stirred up. Let the healing begin in Reconstruct Your Faith."
--Leonard Sweet, prolific author, professor, preacher, publisher, and proprietor of Sanctuary Seaside (Orcas Island, Washington)
