Pagan Christianity?: Exploring the Roots of Our Church Practices

Frank Viola (Author), George Barna (Author), Lloyd James (Narrator)

I read the original by Viola in 2003 (pictured here on the right) but the revised version in 2008 combines Barna's comments and edits and really packs a punch. DO NOT read this book if you want to believe the same things about church practices, church programs, and church leadership. This book messed me up and now I'm reading it again with a couple interested in house church. This time through I'll attempt a book review. For now, here's the product description from Amazon and a video from YouTube (which is sort of funny):

Product Description

Have you ever wondered why we Christians do what we do for church every Sunday morning? Why do we "dress up" for church? Why does the pastor preach a sermon each week? Why do we have pews, steeples, choirs, and SEMInaries? This volume reveals the startling truth: most of what Christians do in present-day churches is not rooted in the New Testament, but in pagan culture and rituals developed long after the death of the apostles. Co-authors Frank Viola and George Barna support their thesis with compelling historical evidence in the first-ever book to document the full story of modern Christian church practices. Many Christians take for granted that their churches practices are rooted in Scripture. Yet those practices look very different from those of the first-century church. The New Testament is not silent on how the early church freely expressed the reality of Christ’s indwelling in ways that rocked the first-century world. Times have changed. Pagan Christianity leads us on a fascinating tour through church history, revealing this startling and unsettling truth: Many cherished church traditions embraced today originated not out of the New Testament, but out of pagan practices. One of the most troubling outcomes has been the effect on average believers: turning them from living expressions of Christs glory and power to passive observers. If you want to see that trend reversed, turn to Pagan Christianity...a book that examines and challenges every aspect of our contemporary church experience.