EVOLVING — In her book, Rachel Held Evans calls herself an “evolutionist,” as she recounts her experiences growing up in Dayton and regaining her faith through doubt.
In “Evolving in Monkey Town,” Rachel Held Evans recounts her experiences growing up in Dayton — a town that epitomized Christian fundamentalism during the scopes Monkey Trial of 1925.
Eighty-five years after the Scopes trial was said to have made a spectacle of Christian fundamentalism and bought national attention to her hometown, Evans discovers how young evangelical views have shifted frantically on evolution and Christianity. She faced a trial of her own when she began to have doubts about her faith.
Evolving in Monkey Town” is the story of how Evans’ faith survived her doubts — when knowing all the answers isn’t nearly as important as asking the questions ... “that following Jesus Christ is a lot less about being right and lot more about, well, surviving,” she confided.
Using as an illustration, her own spiritual journey from certainty, through doubt, to faith, Evans adds a unique perspective to the ongoing dialogue about postmodernism and the church that has so captivated the Christian community in recent years.
In a changing cultural environment where new ideas threaten the safety and security of the faith, “Evolving in Monkey Town” is a fearlessly told history of survival.
Evans is an award-winning writer whose articles have appeared in local and national publications. She lives in Dayton with her husband, Dan. Find out more at rachelheldevans.com.
The 227-page “Evolving in Monkey Town” is published by Zondervan.
It is also available as a Zondervan ebook at www.zondervan.com/ebooks; and in a Zondervan audio edition at www.zondervan.fm. For more information, write Zondervan, 5300 Patterson Ave. S.E., Grand Rapids, Mich. 49530.
