The Emerging Church – The Best Books to Read

So, I have not read even a majority of these books, but those I have not read come highly recommended by others as voices for or against the movement. By all means, please tell me if you think something does or does not belong on the list. I’ll revise it accordingly if your argument is persuasive. Also, if you are not yet using a reader to follow blogs, I strongly encourage it. Get yours here.

If you enjoy this post, you might also enjoy this one on “Books on New Monasticism”.

To read reviews of some of these books from around the web, check here.

In Alphabetical order by the last name of the primary author:

1. Ray S. Anderson, An Emergent Theology for Emerging Churches (InterVarsity Press, 2006).
2. George Barna, Revolution (Tyndale House Publishers, 2006).
3. Rob Bell, Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith (Zondervan, 2005).
4. Rob Bell and Don Golden, Jesus Wants to Save Christians: A Manifesto for the Church in Exile (Zondervan, 2008).
5. Don Brandt and Ron Sider, Inheriting the Earth: Poor Communities and Environmental Renewal (WorldVision, 2004).
6. Kester Brewin, Signs of Emergence: A Vision for Church That Is Always Organic/Networked/Decentraliz (BAKER BOOK HOUSE, 2007).
7. Warren Brown, Nancey Murphy, and H. Newton Malony, Whatever Happened to the Soul? Scientific and Theological Portraits of Human Nature (Augsburg Fortress Publishers, 1998).
8. Spencer Burke, Making Sense of Church: Eavesdropping on Emerging Conversations About God, Community, and Culture (Zondervan/Youth Specialties, 2003).
9. Tony Campolo, Red Letter Christians: A Citizen’s Guide to Faith and Politics (Regal Books, 2008).
10. D. A. Carson, Becoming Conversant with the Emerging Church: Understanding a Movement and Its Implications (Zondervan, 2005).
11. Bruxy Cavey, The End of Religion: Encountering the Subversive Spirituality of Jesus (NavPress Publishing Group, 2007).
12. Steve Chalke and Alan Mann, The Lost Message of Jesus (Zondervan, 2004).
13. Shane Claiborne, The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical (Zondervan, 2006). (Reviews)
14. Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw, Jesus for President: Politics for Ordinary Radicals (Zondervan, 2008). (Reviews)
15. Clarke E. Cochran et al., Church, State and Public Justice: Five Views (IVP Academic, 2007).
16. Neil Cole, Organic Church: Growing Faith Where Life Happens (Jossey-Bass, 2005).
17. Tim Conder, The Church in Transition: The Journey of Existing Churches into the Emerging Culture (Zondervan/Youth Specialties, 2006).
18. Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck, Why We’re Not Emergent: By Two Guys Who Should Be (Moody Publishers, 2008).
19. William T. Ditewig, The Emerging Diaconate: Servant Leaders in a Servant Church (Paulist Press, 2007).
20. Dennis M. Doyle, The Church Emerging from Vatican II: A Popular Approach to Contemporary Catholicism (Twenty-Third Publications, 1992).
21. Mark Driscoll, Confessions of a Reformission Rev.: Hard Lessons from an Emerging Missional Church, Revised. (Zondervan, 2006).
22. Mark Driscoll et al., Listening to the Beliefs of Emerging Churches: Five Perspectives (Zondervan, 2007).
23. Nathan C. P. Frambach, Emerging Ministry: Being Church Today (Augsburg Fortress Publishers, 2007).
24. Michael Frost, Exiles: Living Missionally in a Post-Christian Culture (Hendrickson Publishers, 2006).
25. Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch, The Shaping of Things to Come: Innovation and Mission for the 21 Century Church (Hendrickson Publishers, 2003).
26. Becky Garrison, Rising from the Ashes: Rethinking Church (Seabury Books, 2007).
27. Eddie Gibbs and Ryan K. Bolger, Emerging Churches: Creating Christian Community in Postmodern Cultures (Baker Academic, 2005). (Reviews)
28. Stanley J. Grenz, A Primer on Postmodernism (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1996).
29. Stanley J. Grenz, Created for Community: Connecting Christian Belief with Christian Living, 2nd ed. (Baker Academic, 1998).
30. Stanley J. Grenz, Theology for the Community of God (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2000).
31. Stanley J. Grenz, The Moral Quest: Foundations of Christian Ethics (InterVarsity Press, 2000).
32. Stanley J. Grenz, The Social God and the Relational Self: A Trinitarian Theology of the Imago Dei (Westminster John Knox Press, 2001).
33. Stanley J. Grenz and John R. Franke, Beyond Foundationalism: Shaping Theology in a Postmodern Context (Westminster John Knox Press, 2001).
34. Hugh Halter and Matt Smay, The Tangible Kingdom: Creating Incarnational Community (Jossey-Bass, 2008).
35. Stanley Hauerwas, Unleashing the Scripture: Freeing the Bible from Captivity to America (Abingdon Press, 1993).
36. Stanley Hauerwas, The Peaceable Kingdom, 2nd ed. (SCM Press, 2003).
37. Stanley Hauerwas and Romand Coles, Christianity, Democracy, and the Radical Ordinary: Conversations Between a Radical Democrat and a Christian (Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2007).
38. Stanley Hauerwas and William H. Willimon, Resident Aliens: Life in the Christian Colony, 1st ed. (Abingdon Press, 1989).
39. Jim Henderson, Matt Casper, and George Barna, Jim and Casper Go to Church: Frank Conversation about Faith, Churches, and Well-Meaning Christians (BarnaBooks, 2007).
40. Alan Hirsch, Forgotten Ways, The: Reactivating the Missional Church (Brazos Press, 2007).
41. George R. Hunsberger and Craig Van Gelder, The Church Between Gospel and Culture: The Emerging Mission in North America (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1996).
42. Wayne Jacobsen and Dave Coleman, So You Don’t Want to Go to Church Anymore (Windblown Media, 2006).
43. Tony Jones, Postmodern Youth Ministry (Zondervan/Youth Specialties, 2001).
44. Tony Jones, The Sacred Way: Spiritual Practices for Everyday Life (Zondervan/Youth Specialties, 2005).
45. Tony Jones, Divine Intervention: Encountering God Through the Ancient Practice of Lectio Divina (Th1nk Books, 2006).
46. Tony Jones, The New Christians: Dispatches from the Emergent Frontier (Jossey-Bass, 2008).
47. Tim Keel, Intuitive Leadership: Embracing a Paradigm of Narrative, Metaphor, and Chaos (Baker Books, 2007).
48. Dan Kimball, The Emerging Church: Vintage Christianity for New Generations (Zondervan/Youth Specialties, 2003). (Reviews)
49. Dan Kimball, They Like Jesus but Not the Church: Insights from Emerging Generations (Zondervan, 2007).
50. Dan Kimball, David Crowder, and Sally Morgenthaler, Emerging Worship: Creating Worship Gatherings for New Generations (Zondervan/Youth Specialties, 2004).
51. B Larson and R Osbourne, The Emerging Church (London: Word Books, 1970).
52. Christopher Stephen Lutz, Tradition in the Ethics of Alasdair MacIntyre (Lexington Books, 2004).
53. Alasdair Macintyre, Three Rival Versions of Moral Enquiry: Encyclopaedia, Genealogy, and Tradition (University of Notre Dame Press, 1991).
54. Alasdair C. MacIntyre, Whose Justice? Which Rationality? (University of Notre Dame Press, 1989).
55. Alasdair MacIntyre, Dependent Rational Animals: Why Human Beings Need the Virtues (Open Court, 2001).
56. Alasdair MacIntyre, After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory, Third Edition, 3rd ed. (University of Notre Dame Press, 2007).
57. Brian D. McLaren, A New Kind of Christian: A Tale of Two Friends on a Spiritual Journey, 1st ed. (Jossey-Bass, 2001).
58. Brian D. McLaren, Church on the Other Side, The, Exp&ed. (Zondervan, 2003). (Reviews)
59. Brian D. McLaren, A Generous Orthodoxy: Why I Am a Missional, Evangelical, Post/Protestant, Liberal/Conservative, Mystical/Poetic, Biblical, Charismatic/Contemplative, Fundamentalist/Calvinist, Anabaptist/Anglican, Methodist, Catholic, Green, Incarnational, Depressed-yet-Hopeful, Emergent, Unfinished CHRISTIAN (Zondervan/Youth Specialties, 2004).
60. Brian McLaren, Everything Must Change: Jesus, Global Crises, and a Revolution of Hope (Thomas Nelson, 2007). (Reviews)
61. Brian McLaren, Finding Our Way Again: The Return of the Ancient Practices (Thomas Nelson, 2008). (Reviews)
62. Carol Howard Merritt, Tribal Church: Ministering to the Missing Generation (The Alban Institute, 2007).
63. Donald Miller, Prayer and the Art of Volkswagen Maintenance (Harvest House Pub, 2000).
64. Donald Miller, Blue Like Jazz: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality (Thomas Nelson, 2003).
65. Donald Miller, Searching for God Knows What (Thomas Nelson, 2004).
66. Donald Miller, Through Painted Deserts: Light, God, and Beauty on the Open Road (Thomas Nelson, 2005).
67. Nancey Murphy, Beyond Liberalism and Fundamentalism: How Modern and Postmodern Philosophy Set the Theological Agenda (Trinity Press International, 1996).
68. Nancey Murphy, Anglo-American Postmodernity: Philosophical Perspectives on Science, Religion, and Ethics (Westview Press, 1997).
69. Nancey C. Murphy, Reasoning and Rhetoric in Religion (Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2001).
70. Nancey C. Murphy and George Francis Rayner Ellis, On the Moral Nature of the Universe: Theology, Cosmology & Ethics (Augsburg Fortress Publishers, 1996).
71. Nancey C. Murphy, Stanley Hauerwas, and Mark Nation, Theology Without Foundations: Religious Practice and the Future of Theological Truth (Abingdon Pr, 1994).
72. Nancey Murphy, Brad J. Kallenberg, and Mark Thiessen Nation, Virtues & Practices in the Christian Tradition: Christian Ethics After Macintyre (University of Notre Dame Press, 2003).
73. Joseph R. Myers, Organic Community: Creating a Place Where People Naturally Connect (Baker Books, 2007).
74. Roger Oakland, The Emerging Church, DVD (Understand the Times, 2005).
75. Roger Oakland, Faith Undone: The Emerging Church a New Reformation or an Endtime Deception (Lighthouse Trails Publishing, 2007).
76. Doug Pagitt, Reimagining Spiritual Formation: A Week in the Life of an Experimental Church (Zondervan, 2004).
77. Doug Pagitt, Preaching Re-Imagined: The Role of the Sermon in Communities of Faith (Zondervan/Youth Specialties, 2005).
78. Doug Pagitt, Church Re-Imagined: The Spiritual Formation of People in Communities of Faith (Zondervan, 2005).
79. Doug Pagitt, A Christianity Worth Believing: Hope-filled, Open-armed, Alive-and-well Faith for the Left Out, Left Behind, and Let Down in us All (Jossey-Bass, 2008).
80. Doug Pagitt and Tony Jones, Emergent Manifesto of Hope, An (Baker Books, 2007).
81. Doug Pagitt and Kathryn Prill, BodyPrayer: The Posture of Intimacy with God (WaterBrook Press, 2005).
82. Fred Peatross, Tradition, Opinion, and Truth: The Emerging Church of Christ (Writers Club Press, 2000).
83. Steve Rabey, In Search of Authentic Faith: How Emerging Generations Are Transforming the Church, 1st ed. (WaterBrook Press, 2001).
84. Thom S. Rainer and Eric Geiger, Simple Church: Returning to God’s Process for Making Disciples (B&H Publishing Group, 2006).
85. Arne Rasmusson, The Church As Polis: From Political Theology to Theological Politics As Exemplified by Jurgen Moltmann and Stanley Hauerwas (University of Notre Dame Press, 1996).
86. Peter Rollins, How (Not) to Speak of God (Paraclete Press (MA), 2006).
87. Peter Rollins, The Fidelity of Betrayal: Towards a Church Beyond Belief (Paraclete Press (MA), 2008).
88. Bruce Sanguin, The Emerging Church: A Model for Change & a Map of Renewal (Copperhouse, 2008). (Reviews)
89. Mark Scandrette, Soul Graffiti: Making a Life in the Way of Jesus (Jossey-Bass, 2008).
90. Donald Schmidt, Emerging Word: A Creation Spirituality Lectionary: Scripture Readings and Commentary for the Church Year (iUniverse, Inc., 2006).
91. F. LeRon Shults, The Postfoundationalist Task of Theology (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1999).
92. Ronald J. Sider, Good News and Good Works: A Theology for the Whole Gospel (Baker Books, 1999).
93. Ronald J. Sider, Doing Evangelism Jesus’ Way: How Christians Demonstrate the Good News (Evangel Publishing House, 2003).
94. Ronald J. Sider, Scandal of the Evangelical Conscience, The: Why Are Christians Living Just Like the Rest of the World? (Baker Books, 2005).
95. Ronald J. Sider, Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger: Moving from Affluence to Generosity (Thomas Nelson, 2005).
96. Ronald J. Sider, Just Generosity: A New Vision for Overcoming Poverty in America, 2nd ed. (Baker Books, 2007).
97. Ronald J. Sider, Scandal of Evangelical Politics, The: Why Are Christians Missing the Chance to Really Change the World? (Baker Books, 2008).
98. Ronald J. Sider, I Am Not a Social Activist: Making Jesus the Agenda (Herald Pr, 2008).
99. Ronald J. Sider, Philip N. Olson, and Heidi Rolland Unruh, Churches That Make a Difference: Reaching Your Community with Good News and Good Works (Baker Books, 2002).
100. Tom Sine, The Mustard Seed Conspiracy: You Can Make A Difference In Tomorrow’s Troubled World (Marc, 1972).
101. Tom Sine, Mustard Seed Conspiracy (W Pub Group, 1981).
102. Tom Sine, Taking Discipleship Seriously: A Radical Biblical Approach (Judson Press, 1985).
103. Tom Sine, Cease Fire: Searching for Sanity in America’s Culture Wars (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1996).
104. Tom Sine, Mustard Seed vs. McWorld: Reinventing Life and Faith for the Future (Baker Books, 1999).
105. Tom Sine, The New Conspirators: Creating the Future One Mustard Seed at a Time (IVP Books, 2008). (Reviews) (Another Review)
106. Leonard Sweet et al., Church in Emerging Culture: Five Perspectives (Zondervan/Youth Specialties, 2003).
107. Steve Taylor, The Out of Bounds Church?: Learning to Create a Community of Faith in a Culture of Change (Zondervan/Youth Specialties, 2005).
108. Phyllis Tickle, The Great Emergence: How Christianity Is Changing and Why (Baker Books, 2008).
109. Heidi Rolland Unruh and Ronald J. Sider, Saving Souls, Serving Society: Understanding the Faith Factor in Church-Based Social Ministry (Oxford University Press, USA, 2005).
110. Jim Wallis, Faith Works: How to Live Your Beliefs and Ignite Positive Social Change (Random House, 2005).
111. Jim Wallis, God’s Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn’t Get It (HarperOne, 2006).
112. Jim Wallis, The Great Awakening: Reviving Faith and Politics in a Post-Religious Right America, 1st ed. (HarperOne, 2008).
113. Jim Wallis et al., The Revolution: A Field Manual for Changing Your World (Relevant Books, 2006).
114. Pete Ward, Liquid Church (Hendrickson Publishers, 2002).
115. Jim L. Wilson, Future Church: Ministry In A Post-seeker Age (B&H Publishing Group, 2004).
116. Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, Free To Be Bound: Church Beyond the Color Line (NavPress Publishing Group, 2008).
117. Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, New Monasticism: What It Has to Say to Today’s Church (Brazos Press, 2008).
118. N. T. Wright, Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church (HarperOne, 2008).

Ok folks, thanks for your on and off list suggestions. I have revised the list. It is now a bit longer. Perhaps we should think about which books can be culled from the list. Which ones don’t actually make that strong of a contribution? I’ll start to add some commentary on the books through links on the titles. Thanks again.

Tags: emergning church, ecclesioloy, Jim Wallis, Doug Pagitt, Tony Jones, Brian Mclaren, Nancey Murphy, Stanley Grenz, Ray Anderson, D.A. Carson, Tom Sine, Tony Campolo, Bruxey Cavey, Shane Claiborne, Chris Haw, Mark Driscoll, Michael Frost, Alan Hirsch, Eddie Gibbs, Ryan Bolger, Stanley Hauerwas, Dan Kimball, Donald Miller, Peter Rollins, Ron Sider, Jonathan Wilson Hartgrove, An Emergent Theology for Emerging Churches, Revolution, Velvet Elvis, Jesus Wants to Save Christians, Making Sense of Church, Red Letter Christians, Becoming Conversant with the Emerging Church, The End of Religion, The Lost Message of Jesus, The Irresistible Revolution, Jesus for President, The Emerging Diaconate, Confessions of a Reformission Rev, Listening to the Beliefs of Emerging Churches, Exiles: Living Missionally in a Post-Christian Culture, The Shaping of Things to Come, Rising from the Ashes, The Peaceable Kingdom, The Sacred Way, Divine Intervention, The New Christians, The Emerging Church, They Like Jesus but Not the Church, Emerging Worship, Everything Must Change, Finding Our Way Again, Tribal Church, Blue Like Jazz, Becky Garrison, ddie Gibbs and Ryan K. Bolger, Emerging Churches, Stanley J. Grenz, A Primer on Postmodernism, Created for Community, Beyond Foundationalism, Unleashing the Scripture, Jim and Casper Go to Church