Publisher's Synopsis
At 28 years old, Christopher was an enthusiastic Catholic priest. He was working at a local parish as an associate pastor. He was starting a youth group and organizing a Sunday evening youth Mass. He was tumbling into bed in the evening tired but hopeful he had made a positive difference. The Catholic Church was his spiritual home in the world, and it was also his full-time job. He approached this work with the urgency of a man who believes he can change the world, or at least, transform a small part of it.
The reality of ministry, however, fell short of his expectations. People appreciated the prayers and blessings he offered, but most were not one hundred percent committed to the Catholic faith. Instead, they were living somewhere on the fence in between Catholic life and the secular world. They showed up to Mass irregularly, opted out of Confirmation, chose to live together before marriage, and often used birth control. Many had children who were not married in the Church and grandchildren who were not baptized. They had friends who were Lutheran, non-Denominational and Atheist. Many were divorced and remarried, and some had children or siblings who identified as gay or queer. The Church might have been their safe and warm place, but their comfort came at a cost-it left many of their beloved ones outside the walls.
A few years after ordination, his journey took an unexpected turn. Father Christopher had become entangled in an affair with a woman. When the affair was reported, the bishop removed him from the priesthood. Father Christopher was devastated. He tried to cut off the relationship and make amends, but it was already too late. Christopher found himself outside those very same Catholic fences he had preached and promoted.
Catholic religion offers grace for the faithful sheep, but what will become of the unfaithful goats?
Christopher began to look into the life of Jesus to understand what, if any, grace might be available to the sinners and unbelievers. Jesus himself did not fit comfortably inside his own religious rules, and he frequently reached out and connected with people who lived outside those lines, the sinners and unbelievers. Jesus was able to do this because he was using a spiritual framework different from what you are likely find in a typical Christian church. This book explores the framework Jesus was using and shows how it can connect God directly to the so-called sinners and unbelievers, the people who find themselves outside the walls of organized Christian systems.
This book might not be for everyone. If you are using a traditional Christian approach and finding it effective in your life, then why would you want something new? No one who is drinking old wine wants new wine because he says, "The old is good." If, however, you have tried what Christianity has to offer and have struggled to keep on the path, or if there is a person in your life who will probably never fit the framework of Christian faith, then you might be interested in what this little book has to offer: grace outside the fences of traditional Christian faith.
