The Last Christian on Earth: Uncover the Enemy's Plot to Undermine the Church
In one of the world's great ironies, the Christian faith contributed decisively to the rise of the modern world, but has been undermined decisively by the modern world it helped to create. The Christian faith has become its own gravedigger. In the 25 years since philosopher and social critic Os Guinness first published The Gravedigger Files, much has happened: the fall of the Soviet Union, the rise of the computer age, the reemergence of China and India, the rise of Islamic terrorism, and the worldwide revitalization and politicization of religion. The central mystery of Dr. Guinness's spy novel inspired by his affection for John le Carré thrillers remains unsolved: Can Christians regain the full integrity of faith in Christ while fully and properly engaged in the advanced modern world? This new edition of The Last Christian on Earth, which includes previously unpublished top-secret memos, is Dr. Guinness's parable about the future of the Christian church in the West. Written in the grand tradition of le Carré, Fleming, and Clancy, this thriller pays homage to the genre while transcending it--because the real-life ending has yet to be written!
Top Highlights
“It’s common knowledge now that people have non-rational, psychological grounds for believing and disbelieving things” (source)
“Can we regain the full integrity of faith in Christ while fully and properly engaged in the advanced modern world?” (source)
“This process of explosive diversification has a secularizing effect on religion, which is felt as displacement.” (source)
“First, the Christian faith is now captive to the very modern world it helped to create. Second, our interests are best served, not by working against the Church, but by working with it. The more the Church becomes one with the modern world, the more it becomes compromised, and the deeper the grave it digs for itself.” (source)
“Secularization is a silent process that simply happens, rather than a philosophy that can be chosen or rejected. So, it subtly shapes even those people (Christians included) who would never knowingly subscribe to such a philosophy and turns them into subconscious secularists.” (source)
Product Details
- Title : The Last Christian on Earth: Uncover the Enemy's Plot to Undermine the Church
- Author: Guinness, Os
- Publisher: Baker
- Publication Date: 2010
- ISBN: 9781441223890
Os Guinness is a philosopher, social critic, and the author of many books, including Time for Truth, The Call, and Long Journey Home. He was born in China, educated in England, and has worked in the Washington, DC, area for more than 25 years. He has been a freelance reporter for the BBC, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution, and a guest scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Studies. In 1991, Dr. Guinness founded the Trinity Forum, which hosts discussions with senior leaders in business and politics. He speaks widely at universities and business and political conferences around the world. He lives in McLean, Virginia, with his wife, Jenny.