I am a spiritual but nonreligious person. I'd be one of those "non-christians" that the book refers to. I believe in greater things than myself, but I'm not so sure that those greater things necessarily care if we believe in them, but more that they would want us to live good lives.

I think that the point of this book is something similar, at least the last part of that sentence. The basis of the book is that Jim (christian) pays Casper (atheist) to attend churches with him in order to get an outsider's perspective.

To a certain extent, the book is limited in it's ability to portray churches, since they are mostly in the Western part of the country and attending a certain type of church.

However, I think many of the points that Casper makes is what Jim is trying to show to fellow Christians: churches as a community need to be more open minded about the way things are done and the way people live their lives.

I think I enjoyed the book so much because Jim isn't trying to convert the atheists or the reader (though most readers would be Christian, or is assumed to be by the author). Jim is saying "yeah, it'd be great if they joined the flock, but isn't it better to listen to what they have to say and see if you can improve their lives? And maybe that way they will find God and Jesus, but that shouldn't be the reason you're listening. You should listen because it's the best thing to do."

The writing was mediocre and had a nasty habit of them referring to each other by name, even when it was obvious who was talking, but otherwise an easy read (I read it in 2 days). I may even attend a church group's book discussion on it. That would be interesting!

Hilarious! I loved this book and thought it was a good jumping off point for a bigger discussion. Definitely recommend.

That said, I don't think the churches that Jim and Caspar attended are representative of the entirety of American Protestant/Evangelical Church tradition. They went to mostly big, well known, non-denom churches. Sure, this is a trend in American church attendance, and a good way to introduce someone (especially a "serious" Atheist of a person under the age of 40 to church.)

But it's kind of like saying to someone "I'm going to introduce you to good American cooking" and proceed to invite them to the most famous American chain stores like McDonalds, Wendys, Panera, ... sure there's variety among those and lots of Americans eat at chains like that, but it doesn't reflect idiosyncrasies, or mom-and-pop chains.

Jim touches on why they chose the churches they did at the beginning, but I just wanted to reiterate what I think is really the only issue I had with the book.

Readers can figure out pretty quickly what they are getting with this book (the shtick stays the shtick throughout the book), and while it is now a bit dated I found some parts of it helpful. I came away with two ideas to ponder raised in the course of the book. First, when it comes to schools and other learning communities, it is often taken to be a good thing that people have a *low* teacher to student ratio whereas in churches, success is often measured by having much high ratios. Perhaps many churches should re-think their stance on this. Of course, the Church should grow in numbers but that doesn't entail that your church should grow in numbers. Dorothy Day emphasizes it regularly in her writings on what Christians should be up to, and I think it is for good reason. Second, the book suggests that churches regularly invite insiders and atheists or skeptics to visit (even if it means paying them to do so) and write some substantive remarks about what they observe and how they are treated, possibly posting these remarks online for the congregation and the community to consider. Taking up that role themselves, the book's authors demonstrate just how bizarre some church's practices can seem to Christian visitors and non-believers.

As other reviewers have rightly noted, several of the conversations between people are pretty wooden, and the reviews of the churches they provide are more sketchy and impressionistic than I was hoping for (so choose your professional Christian and atheist visitors carefully!). I also can't say that I enjoyed the company of both of the authors, though if one did then the book would be more enjoyable. That said, it was a fairly gentle and well-meaning tract that prompted some reflection, and I think that many pastors and other church leaders could benefit from breezing through this, taking note of some family resemblances they might find to their own communities.

There aren't many books that I consider a "must read" but for anyone who is in any kind of leadership role within a church this IS a must read! Jim and Caper cut through the religious speak and unintentional sub-culture we've created in our churches to remind us of what we're doing and how it is perceived by those we are trying to reach. With humor and biting commentary, Jim and Casper Go to Church is a quick read that will have long term influences on the way we see and do what we call "church".

This book makes Christians and non-Christians alike feel OK for disagreeing with the directive of today's churches.

I suppose it shouldn't have surprised me, but it still did: in a book advertised as a balanced, open discussion about church between a pastor and an atheist, the pastor did most of the talking.

He certainly was more respectful to the atheist viewpoint than most Christians, and for that, I'm thankful. But I think he told a pretty big fib near the beginning of the book. Before they embarked on their Churchapalooza tour, Casper the Friendly Atheist said that he would be open minded about what he experienced, and leave the possibility open that he might change his views. He asked Jim-the-Preacher if he could approach the project with an equally open mind. Jim asserted that he could, and would-- and I didn't believe that for a nanosecond.

Jim, a former pastor, and Matt Casper, an atheist, travel around the country to several famous and not-so-famous churches to determine how the church environment and service feels/looks to an atheist.

A fast, easy read. I would hesitate to say that this is a look on how churches treat new comers. Mostly because once you tell people that you are writing a book( which they do a few times) then the way you are treated will change. I would at, though, that this book is an interesting look at how churches do their thing in different parts of the country.

I would recommend it.

This is a very interesting little book. Jim, a former pastor, and Casper, an atheist, travel around the country and visit quite a few churches, rating them along the way. I learned a lot about some of our major "megachurches," as well as even more about how "church" should be and should not be done. Don't read this book if you are locked into traditional church. You won't like it one bit.