A new type of Christian pervades America today- the kind who sings “God Bless America”, “Battle Hymn of the Republic”, and “Onward Christian Soldiers” with the unending patriotic zeal formally reserved for religious zealots. They wear flag pins on their lapels, bald eagles festoon their ties, and Old Glory makes a surprise appearance as a scarf about their necks. Standing to attention before the flag, they proudly proclaim America to be “one nation under God… with liberty and justice for all”. In his book Wayward Christian Soldiers, Charles Marsh takes a step back from the politics in Christianity and challenges his readers to think about what values, truths, and standards Christians may be giving up in their ardor towards supporting the American way.

Marsh bases his book on the assumption that American Christianity has so inundated itself in the political realm that it no longer has a proper place for true spirituality. With that viewpoint firmly implanted in his mind, Marsh asks a valid question of his readers: “how can Christians begin to rebuild the church’s shattered witness after a time of compromise and accommodation?” Marsh is purporting a cry for silence, citing Bonheoffer’s writings as an example of the kind of silent faith Christians should embody- a faith, though silent, that can still speak volumes through lifestyle and actions. More to the point, he criticizes Americans in particular with destroying the tenuous credibility of Christianity. Americans have so meshed their spirituality with their patriotism that they “have turned God into an appendage of the American way of life”. Marsh reminds his readers that to be a Christian is to lose all sense of citizenship, to the point where Americanism must find itself buried within a strong sense of citizenship in Christ’s kingdom.

Marsh is an excellent writer and rhetorician. So precisely chosen are his words that he leaves the reader in no doubt as to his opinions on not only his own thoughts, but also the thoughts of others. The benefit of such prose is a book that is highly readable and engaging, with radical ideas couched in emotional terms which the reader should have little trouble embracing. However, there is a negative aspect to his impassioned appeals. By using language that so clearly articulates Marsh’s own feelings, the reader may find it difficult to cut through the rhetoric in order to decide for himself whether the claims that the book makes are valid.

In conclusion, Wayward Christian Soldiers is worth reading for the reason that Marsh is unafraid to state his thoughts about Christians and politics, even when those thoughts do not match up with what the Christian Right and mainstream media purport them to be. The discerning reader should easily be able to carve away Marsh’s opinions in order to weigh fully facts against facts without bias. Ultimately, this book puts forth a much-needed call to Christians for righteousness, truth, holiness, and silence in a noisy, Godless world. ( )