"Where Goodness Still Grows" (Amy Peterson)

TITLE: Where Goodness Still Grows: Reclaiming Virtue in an Age of Hypocrisy
AUTHOR: Amy Peterson
PUBLISHER: Nashville, TN: W Publishing, 2020, (224 pages).

The American evangelical image is going through an ugly patch right now. Believers are divided. Unbelievers are disgusted. The silent majority are shaking their heads. American evangelicalism is broken. It has split believers into more ways than one. More often than not, political allegiances dominate personal integrity. Standing up for values becomes more important than character of the person. The ends justify the means. Power trumps truth. Many people have used at least five things to demonize the perceptions of Christians these days: Judgmentalism, Legalism, Intolerance, Sexism, and Hypocrisy. Of all these five, hypocrisy has been something that haunted Christianity through the ages. Even during the time of Jesus, hypocrisy has been rearing its ugly head in the lives of the Pharisees and various religious leaders. Author Amy Peterson captures this state in American evangelicalism today. She notes: "Something has gone terribly wrong in the culture that taught me about virtue. I learned how to find truth in Scripture and orient my life around loving God and my neighbor from a community that seems to have stopped believing many of the things they taught me—things like the value of every human life, the importance of religious freedom, and the sanctity of marriage; things like hospitality, purity, modesty, truth, and love. I find myself now wondering if the ground I grew up in was radioactive all along and whether anything good can grow here. Does this hypocrisy mean I need to discard everything I learned growing up in the evangelical church?"

Thankfully, her hope of redemption is stronger than her despair. After acknowledging the state of  brokenness of American evangelicalism, she sees that there has been lots of disconnect between the virtues she had been brought up in and the reality of the current spiritual climate. In spite of all the negativity, she maintains that there is still much goodness sown within the hearts of people. This in itself makes this book a hopeful (even necessary) addition to our bookshelves. She gives us nine ways to go about to reclaim virtue in an age of hypocrisy. Beginning with LAMENT, we need to acknowledge our brokenness in the first place. Never start from perfection because of our sins. Peterson calls lament as "holy complaint." Lamenting is the first step toward any change. She takes us through some of the lament psalms in scripture to remind us that it is alright to feel down. With this renewed beginning, we enter into KINDNESS. Inspired by her reading of Janet Soskice's "The Kindness of God," Peterson learns that kindness is far stronger than weakness. It marks a point of strong connection with people, even those we disagree strongly with. HOSPITALITY is essentially welcoming the stranger, even those who are different from us. Peterson links this back to how others had shown her hospitality in the past. That is loved demonstrated in practice. In talking about PURITY, the author remembers how the word has been associated with sexual purity more than anything else, to the point that people shun the topic of sex. Truth is, purity is much more than sexual discussions. It is simply about "things being in their right places." MODESTY is beyond clothing. Noting how this virtue has been manipulated by the powerful over the weak, we are reminded that modesty is about recognizing our bodies as God's gifts for us. She highlights Eisabeth Elliot's observation when she was living among the Huaorani, a native people who wore very little clothing, but lived in greater harmony than many in America. In other words, modesty is more of the mind than the clothing we wear. AUTHENTICITY is about being real, and not conformity to unreal expectations. Peterson rounds up the set of virtues with the final three: LOVE, DISCERNMENT, and HOPE.

My Thoughts
It takes a while before one could recover from disappointment to hope. For Peterson, this book is about that personal journey. Every chapter has a story from her life experiences. It would have been tempting to wallow in the negative experiences and abandon the Church.  Thankfully, the author did not do that. Instead, we get a book that shows us the way to transition from any form of disappointment in people into hope in God. Focus our attention on people's behaviour and we will surely sink emotionally. Turn our eyes on Jesus and we see how perfect love is complete in Christ. What grabs my attention initially was the issue of hypocrisy. Peterson is spot on when she identifies the many flaws in the American evangelical image. By starting from a LAMENT perspective, Peterson is taking a leaf from the first statement of the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous that says: "We admitted we were powerless over ________." Here, lament essentially means admitting we start as broken people in a broken world. It is only when we recognize our true state can we begin a process of rebuilding and restoration.

I appreciate the way Peterson laments about her own journey of disappointment over the hypocrisy she saw. For one who had grown up in the tradition and conservative culture, it must have been tough for her to stomach. Looking at how conservative cirlces defended Trump at any cost had essentially made her flip. It is understandable that disappointment would be an understatement. There is something quite gentle and intentional about the way the virtues are arranged. The first three virtues of lament, kindness, and hospitality, are both practical and applicable for all. It is easier to show kindness instead of trying to justify one's modesty or discernment. Being kind is a no brainer. One does not need to think about whether or not to be kind. Kindness is that virtue that applies across the board. The middle three virtues of purity, modesty, and authenticity, up the ante. After practicing the basic aspects of kindness and hospitality, we are emotionally more ready to progress to the rest. This gradual ascent toward the virtues of hope and love helps us be authentic.

We need hope more than ever today. Otherwise, disappointment easily leads to disillusionment, which eventually could lead to depression or dejection. As each year passes, the world does not seem to be looking better. In such a climate, we need to hang on to hope, that one day, Christ will make all things new. Romans 8:18-19 should encourage us: "18I consider that our present sufferings are not comparable to the glory that will be revealed in us. 19The creation waits in eager expectation for the revelation of the sons of God."

Peterson's book points us to that hope even as we long for more authenticity.

Amy Peterson is a writer, teacher, and postulant in the Episcopal Church of America. She has contributed articles in the Washington Post, the Other Journal, Christianity Today, Christian Century, and many others. She also teaches creative writing, intercultural communication, and interdisciplinary honours courses at a Christian college.

Rating: 4.5 stars of 5.

conrade

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This book has been provided courtesy of W Publishing and NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.