Cultural Christians and the Work of Remembering

Let me begin where I’ll also end: Nadya Williams’ latest book, Cultural Christians in the Early Church (Zondervan), is a masterful exercise in historical research, a compelling portrait of early Christians who professed Jesus with their words but not with their actions. It’s also thoroughly enjoyable to read. Engaging in style and rich in human detail, it’s designed for a general audience, not just professional academics. As a record of past events, Cultural Christians matters because history matters. And history matters because memory matters. A man with amnesia is a man without identity, doomed to repeat his mistakes. The same applies to communities of faith. History is a repository of lessons learned from experience. When accurately retold, it can teach religious believers two things: humility and hope. Humility, because humans have a bottomless capacity for sleepwalking into disasters; and hope, because we’re also graced with intellect, conscience, and free will, and God never abandons us. Thus, the great value of the Williams text lies in what we can learn from the past and its relevance for American Christians today.