Piety & Politics Reviews
Publishers Weekly
“… Lynn has a significant stake in the battle for religious freedom, arguing that church-state separation has fostered ‘religious diversity and vitality’ — fundamentalism included.… Religious freedom, Lynn asserts, means the ‘right to worship or not worship as you see fit,’ not a government obligation to boost religion.… In this political season, Lynn offers a sound alternative for Democratic leaders, who have sought to bridge perceived “values deficits” with religion instead of what the party ostensibly stands for: ‘a commitment to civil rights, civil liberties and economic justice.’”
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Booklist Review
Vanessa Bush
“An ordained minister now heading an organization aimed at protecting the separation between church and state, Lynn brings passion and a broad perspective to the national debate swirling around this issue.… Lynn examines school prayer, gay rights, the teaching of intelligent design, and faith-based initiatives as leading issues in the current turmoil between concerns about American morality and secular government.… Whatever readers’ religious or political beliefs, they will appreciate Lynn’s well-considered examination of this contentious issue.”
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Kirkus Reviews
Starred Review
“The author calmly demonstrates the twisted logic and outright hypocrisy of the right…. While his opponents in the ‘culture war’ relentlessly fan the passions of their followers, offering the faithful a self-image of persecution and martyrdom, Lynn maintains a reasonable demeanor, largely foregoing cheap shots and one-liners.… Essential reading.”
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Kate Michelman
Former president, NARAL Pro-Choice America
“The rise of the Religious Right as a political force has placed the separation of church and state at grave risk. Perhaps never before in American history has a liberty so important been so imperiled. Piety & Politics offers a compelling analysis of both the gravity of the danger and the hypocrisy behind it – that fanaticism is being practiced by the very people whose faith counsels tolerance. The Reverend Barry Lynn is a shining example of what it truly means to be an American of faith.”
Nadine Strossen
President, American Civil Liberties Union
“Piety & Politics is written by a member of the clergy who is also a prominent civil libertarian. Relying on common sense, as well as his expertise, Barry Lynn convincingly makes the essential point that mixing religion and government does not benefit religion. His sense of humor in detailing his decades-long engagement in the ‘culture wars’ makes for a terrifically engaging book.”
Phil Donahue
Longtime talk-show host
“This book is for the millions of proud Americans who are believers in a personal faith, freely chosen, and who wish to be left alone by the pretentious patriots who talk to God every day (and God talks back). God bless Barry Lynn, a man of certified religious belief, who wishes nothing more than allegiance to the one-of-a-kind First Amendment, which, far from discouraging believers, has promoted the many state-free faiths that have made the United States the most religious nation on earth. The First Amendment is pro faith while protecting atheists, agnostics, free thinkers, Teletubbies, and all the worthy ‘oddballs’ who have contributed so much to our nation’s multicultural bounty and who rely on the Bill of Rights to keep at bay the tyranny of the righteous, including the opportunists who pray every day for an America of one faith, theirs.”
Ron Reagan
MSNBC cohost and commentator
“For too long, quasi-Christian forces on the far right of the political spectrum have been bullying courts, legislators, and ordinary Americans under the guise of defending American values and religious freedom. It’s high time that someone from the real religious community stood up to them. Hats off to the Reverend Barry Lynn for pushing back with this cogent and timely antidote to intolerance.”