In separately written chapters, these contemporary authors criticize the evangelical community for missing the point on everything from evangelism to social action to women in ministry to homosexuality to truth to salvation to the Bible and virtually every thing in between. If you are a regular reader of McLaren you will discover that he is saying nothing he has not said before ad nauseum. His exaggerations, straw men and distortions are growing old and, hopefully, losing their punch with many—apparently even with his co-author, who consistently takes McLaren to task.
Each chapter is followed by a response from the other author and this is when the book gets interesting. While McLaren basically “amens” Campolo’s chapters, Tony does not always return the favor. Campolo comes out with guns blazing on McLaren’s view of the Bible, truth, entertainment, postmodernism and leadership. Campolo offers stern, often biblical, corrections which is astounding given his own theology. He demonstrates that you don’t have to be a “fighting fundy” to see just how absurd McLaren’s views are.
I would recommend this book only to those who, for whatever reason, want to see how a theologically questionable evangelical (Campolo) responds to a thoroughly postmodern, Emergent church leader (McLaren).