In this house we believe that:
Black Lives Matter
Love Is Love
Gay Rights Are Civil Rights
Women’s Rights Are Human Rights
Transgender Women Are Women
You may have seen signs with some of these messages in your neighborhood. They offer us an all-or-nothing package deal—in short, a secular creed.
In this provocative book, Rebecca McLaughlin helps us disentangle the beliefs Christians gladly affirm from those they cannot embrace, and invites us to talk with our neighbors about the things that matter most. Far from opposing love across difference, McLaughlin argues, Christianity is the original source and firmest foundation for true diversity, equality, and life-transforming love.
Endorsements
“Addressing five key cultural topics of the day in this vital book, Rebecca McLaughlin deftly examines the pernicious lies that have insidiously infiltrated our world, including the church, and gives a solid and biblical rebuttal to each lie. Every Christian needs to read this book.”
— Becket Cook, author of A Change of Affection: A Gay Man’s Incredible Story of Redemption and host of The Becket Cook Show
“In this book, Rebecca McLaughlin offers a gentle, yet powerful biblical corrective that calls readers to holistic Christian love—a higher calling than the call of the culture, and, often, a harder calling. She examines popular cultural mantras and answers each one with the truth and application of the gospel of Christ. In her balanced and gracious approach, she paints our culture's arguments in the most compassionate light possible—and then shows the beauty of a more excellent way!”
— Jasmine Holmes, author of Mother to Son: Letters to a Black Boy on Identity and Hope
“Rebecca McLaughlin’s first book was the best all-round defense of the Christian faith I had read in a decade. This one is the perfect complement. In it the author points the way to a different kind of ‘muscular’ Christianity, one that is able to flex the muscle of conviction and the muscle of compassion at the same time. For a church—and a world—too often forced to choose between smug conservatism and acquiescing liberalism, McLaughlin recovers the genius of Jesus Christ, showing us how to love the truth and humans with equal passion. The result is an utterly compelling and humane treatment of five vital contemporary issues.”
— John Dickson, author and historian, Distinguished Fellow in Public Christianity at Ridley College, Australia
“This book is so powerful on a thousand levels. It’s compelling, accessible, informative, captivating, convicting, and empowering. It gives Christians understanding and language to be able to engage and not retreat, love and not compromise, accept and not affirm, empathize and not sympathize. It moves the conversation forward not just left or right. This is a discipleship book, not just an apologetics book. It’s incredible.”
— Christine Caine, founder, A21 & Propel Women
“There are few whose voices I trust more in translating the claims of Christ for a new generation than Rebecca McLaughlin. She writes with a gospel clarity, keenness of insight, and personal winsomeness that make her one of the best apologists of our generation. As with her debut book, Confronting Christianity, I enthusiastically endorse this one.”
— J. D. Greear, pastor, The Summit Church, Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina; president, Southern Baptist Convention
“Rebecca McLaughlin goes where few dare to go—head first into the hardest questions and issues of our cultural moment, with compassion, clarity, and conviction in order to show the beauty and cogency of the Christian faith. She is one of the most important writers serving the church today. She proved this with Confronting Christianity and has cemented that status with The Secular Creed. A potent blend of cultural analysis and biblical reflection, this is the rare book that’s vital for believers and skeptics alike. I’m eager to get The Secular Creed into the hands of both my congregants and non-Christian friends.”
— Claude Atcho, pastor, Fellowship Memphis in Memphis, Tennessee; author of a forthcoming book on African American literature and theology (Brazos)
“The people around us care deeply about diversity, equality, and justice—and many think Christians stand against those values. As a pastor of a diverse, urban church, I need help to wisely and winsomely address their concerns. This is why I’m thankful for the major assist I’ve gotten from this book. McLaughlin knows today’s issues well and has the biblical, historical, and sociological knowledge to help us understand them and be equipped to answer them well.”
— Vermon Pierre, lead pastor, Roosevelt Community Church in Phoenix, Arizona; council member of The Gospel Coalition
