The title makes it sound like it’s for “Gay Christianity,” but it’s not. This is a great story of deliverance from homosexuality. It’s a story, not a book on homosexuality specifically. It’s also more descriptive than the standard fare popular Christian publishers are cranking out these days.
I would recommend with two cautions.
The first caution is this: Make sure you do not fall into the trap of thinking Jackie Hill Perry is a spiritual guru. She’s not. This is the story of a layperson, and it’s a good one. It glorifies God and the gospel. However, Perry is no theologian. She’s very correct about the power of the gospel, but she’s also on the social justice train when it comes to cultural Marxism. None of that comes out in this book. Her story though is what informs her. What God did in delivering her is very real. She’s not writing a theology though. Someone could easily read this and use her story to justify her theology rather than using theology to justify her story. None of this takes away from the point she makes in the book. It’s valid. But, in an age of celebrity preachers and spiritual gurus this needs to be said.
The second caution is this: Toward the end of the book Perry talks about “the gospel of heterosexuality.” Much of what she said is true. Yes, there are Christians who have assumed the gospel is meant to make gays straight, etc. The problem is that Perry reads her perception through the lens of her experience. She seems to universalize her experience toward the end by saying “the church” has this issue. Well, perhaps in some quarters, but overall it would be very difficult to find sources to back up such a claim other than personal experiences, etc. Mainstream Christian ministries have not been known to crank out anything remotely similar to what Perry calls “the gospel of heterosexuality.” The only concern I have is that people from the “let’s hate the church” crowd could easily use what she said and perhaps take it farther than she even does. The fact is, the gospel should order our desires which includes making someone with same sex desires someone who now is attracted exclusively to those of the opposite sex. That’s not a bad thing. It’s a healthy thing. Perry makes a separation where there should not be one. It’s not either/or. It’s both/and. It’s not either Jesus or straightness as a pursuit. Homosexuals who want to be Christians should pursue Jesus and in pursuing him pursue ordered desires.
This all being said, again, I recommend this. It’s a great antidote in the pop Christian world to books like “Single, Gay, Christian.” It’s a great story of redemption.