Summary: A People’s History Of Christianity by Diana Butler Bass is a cursory view of the development of Christianity over the last 2,000 years. It provides a few telling insights but suffers from a terrible comparison because of its title.
Review: A People’s History tells the development of Christianity over the last 2,000 years. Butler Bass breaks the book up into five sections: The Way (100-500), The Cathedral (500-1450), The Word (1450-1650), The Quest (1650-1945), and The River (1945-Now). Each section takes a look at a specific period in the development of the church. In many ways it felt like a circular pattern as the church began with the central premise of love, then worked itself into different illogical but almost expected progressions and then back to love in the present day.
There were a few things that I really liked about this book. First, Butler Bass staked a claim that the Way was based on love and a specific way of following Jesus through love. It was remarkable as it was transforming. It longed and even yearned for that kind of reflection of God into the world. In many ways it felt like my understanding of a missional approach to Christianity. This first section is easily worth the cost of the book.
Second, the book took a look at the redemptive side of Christendom, exploring the subversive side of the churches development through the dark ages. Butler Bass highlights some of the radicals that helped progress the faith, even in the face of significant challenges.
Third, the book delves into the necessity of language and the impact of literacy on the church. It was interesting reading about Luther’s conversion from law to grace and his own struggle with the specific meaning of words in the Bible.
Fourth, the book does cover the present day, although in striking brevity. Butler Bass explores the desire of the church to live out both the word and the deed, getting beyond dichotomies of conservative and liberal. This section has been better covered by Phyllis Tickle or Brennan Manning.
Unfortunately the book suffers from a large shadow. In naming the book after Zinn’s A People’s History of United States, Butler Bass has created an unfortunate comparison to what many consider one of the best history books available. I have to imagine this was a marketing decision, hoping to capture on Zinn’s idea and use it for Christianity, but in doing so, the book sets itself up for failure in that regard. I took a Western Civilization class in college on the development of the church and could easily think of 50 development points she missed.
I would recommend this book, but caution you to get past the title.
