Why this book now?
Some people have never experienced a Christianity which helped them live their daily life instead of offering the great exclusive prize of eternal life only to those who believe exactly as told. I wrote UNAFRAID because many have forgotten what it was like to go to Church and hear the word of God preached as it was before the Church wrangled over condemning homosexuals, threatened hell and damnation, and preached a particular brand of God franchise.
Living in fear blinds us to reality and transforms us into bumbling, unhappy, self-centered cowards. Enjoyment of everyday life and consideration of the welfare of others disappears. Yes, there are dangers around us and we must act intelligently and cautiously, but living in fear makes it impossible to live life fully.
I was struck by how much in the Bible and in my father’s sermons beckons us to not be afraid. Several of the sermons were given during the ‘50s which also had their share of fear-mongers. Every age does. (Remember Joe McCarthy?) Thank goodness, the church, for the most part, did not yield to that particular fear epidemic!
UNAFRAID is about living free from fear in what today is a fear-inducing world. We are surrounded by fearfulness in television, video games, news programs, advertisements, and politics. Religion also uses fear, even though the Bible repeatedly bids us: "Fear not." To be unafraid is not a matter of being brave or courageous. It is simply living, learning, enjoying the real world free from intimidation, in communion with God and neighbor.
Fear takes away our capacity for relationships with fellow human beings, and on a political level causes misunderstandings between nations. Fear leads to flight or fight, sometimes resulting in unrelated or unnecessary actions.. The United States invaded Iraq because we were whipped up by fear of what might occur.
Unfortunately, the extreme Christian right has infiltrated our culture as a whole, spreading its message of fear, dehumanization, and hatred. We are now in the position of needing to counteract this before it gets any worse. How ironic that much of religion now thrives on fear as a way to control people. Fear of homosexuals? What real harm might homosexuals do? Fear of "liberals" destroying society? What could be more ridiculous? These issues decoy us away from hearing the gospel message straight on—to love our neighbors as ourselves—to be just and kind. The message of peace and justice, prevalent throughout the Bible, has been obfuscated by tenets which are either non-existent in the Bible or apply only to social mores of the time in which they were written.