Product Description

Suburbia: Paradise or Wasteland?Suburbia is a place of spiritual yearnings. People come to suburbia looking for a fresh start, the second chance, a new life. It embodies the hopes and longings of its residents, dreams for the future, safety and security for their children, and the search for meaningful community and relationships. Yet much in our suburban world militates against such aspirations, and people find themselves isolated and alienated, trapped by consumerism and materialism. Is there hope for a Christian vision for the suburbs?Al Hsu unpacks the spiritual significance of suburbia and explores how suburban culture shapes how we live and practice our faith. With broad historical background and sociological analysis, Hsu offers practical insights for living Christianly in a suburban context. Probing such dynamics as commuting and consuming, he offers Christian alternatives for authentic spirituality, genuine community and relevant ministry. And he challenges suburban Christians to look beyond suburbia and marshal their resources toward urban and global justice.Suburbia may be one of the most significant mission fields of the twenty-first century. Here is guidance and hope for all who would seek the welfare of the suburbs.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #42111 in Books
• Published on: 2006-06-08
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 220 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Hsu (Grieving a Suicide), an associate editor at InterVarsity Press, provides a unique book examining the social and economic forces that created the suburbs, analyzing their strengths and weaknesses and providing a thoughtful critique of what living Christianly in the suburbs should look like. Hsu is writing to a divided Christian culture: one segment would call the suburbs evil and equate them with unhealthy selfishness and excess (which he acknowledges they may promote), while another unquestioningly accepts the suburban ethos without reflecting on how faith should influence suburban life. He reminds readers that the burbs do not inherently prevent a thriving and genuine Christian faith, and stresses that since over half the population now resides there, Christians must figure out how to do suburban living well. They can integrate faith into a suburban life by, say, going out of their way to remember the needs of those around them, giving generously, doing more business in their immediate local area, questioning the urge to buy what advertisers are pitching, getting out of their cars and getting to know their neighbors. Hsu avoids heavy-handed directives, but provides a number of thoughtful alternatives for the way different Christians may work their faith out in suburbia. Every suburban pastor should read this book. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
We often hear about the American dream, but the suburban dream? Is that an oxymoron? According to Hsu, more than half the American populace now lives in suburbia. There, he maintains, it offers a contemporary version of the huddled masses in search of a better life who populated modern America. A suburbanite himself, Hsu has a love-hate relationship with the suburban lifestyle. He easily lists the many negative aspects associated with suburban living: long commutes, anonymity and isolation, the generic nature of the housing, lack of true community. Is it possible, he asks, to live authentically Christian lives as suburbanites? Yes, he replies, and here discusses how suburbia can shape Christianity and vice versa. Making a well-meaning and honest appraisal of the way that many Americans live, Hsu offers suggestions on how suburbanites can become better Christians. He is an immensely appealing writer, and what he has to say, which includes practical and incremental steps to take, will resonate with many suburbanites and nonsuburbanites alike. June Sawyers
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

—Lauren F. Winner, author of Girl Meets God and Real Sex
"Provocative, thoughtful, even prophetic, The Suburban Christian is a book the church badly needs."

Customer Reviews

Researched, challenging, and balanced
Al Hsu does an extraordinary job in the work that seeks to guide us on how to live in the suburban context. It is well researched and very balanced. There is no 'stone throwing' here to us suburbanites, but it is a thoughtful guide that challenges those who live in suburbia to do so in a redemptive fashion. In particular chapters 4 and 5 are very good and practical in terms of how to live in such a context. I would highly recommend it!

Good to get a Christian perspective on suburbia
It is good to get a Christian perspective on suburbia. Of all the books that are out now that tell you about how and why North America's suburbia came about, and what can be done to make suburbia better, this book is one of the very few that tells you about these things from a Christian perspective.

I really like books that offer solutions to problems we face, and/or better alternatives to the status quo. I also like hearing Christians telling us how we can live more simple lifestyles, and how living more simple lifestyles would make life better for everybody. A couple of years ago, I went on a tour of the Amish region in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and when I learned about how simple a lifestyle they still live, it really made me wonder why not many other Christians are living a more simple lifestyle! No, the author of this book is not suggesting that we should go so far as to live without electricity! And no, I am not suggesting that we should go that far either! But he believes that Christians should be living more simple lifestyles than most suburbanites (secular and Christian) are living these days, and I agree.

One other thing I appreciate is the fact that this book's author talks about the fact Christian suburbanites should be having much more influence on all other suburbanites, and on everybody who lives everywhere else, and tells us about the ways in which we can do that.

Thought-provoking, interesting, and a little convicting
I have met the author (last name is pronounced 'shee') and heard him speak a few times. His writing style reflects his speaking style: easy to follow, casual voice, yet punctuated with substance and information. While not preachy, Hsu encourages us that Christians are called to be Christians everywhere - including the 'burbs, but he challenges us to think about what that might look like and whether we can consider what God is calling us to do in our neighborhoods and churches. Extensive endnotes can lead to further reading on the subject.