The Hole in Our Gospel is both the faith journey of Richard Stearns and his admonition for the church to play a greater role fighting the injustice present in our world. Richard Stearns is the president for World Vision in the United States. This book will not only open your eyes, but also bring tears to them when reading of the plight of the poverty-stricken around the globe.
Richard Stearns weaves his personal journey from a faithful church member and supporter to an immersed follower of Jesus Christ engaged in the work of justice and hope in the world. The book focuses on the injustice, poverty, and disease-infested conditions in the developing world and the task of the church to address these concerns. He defines the hole in the Gospel to be the disconnect within the church of the Gospel content from its activity of love for others, the pursuit of justice, and compassion for the poor and suffering. As president of World Vision, Stearns has a unique and informed perspective. He clearly admonishes the failures of the modern church in the United States especially to seek solutions to these global ills. Stearns’ testimony adds a personal note that makes his critiques much more palatable to read, but no less convicting.
My only criticism is that the title may induce the perception that there exists a hole, or problem with the Gospel. The problem that Stearns goes on to define is not at all with the Gospel and not mainly with our interpretation of it, but with the manner in which we love, care for, and show compassion to our fellow humans. The reality pointed out is that many of us are content in our safe, well-to-do lives, when countless souls are suffering from evils about which we can actually bring a solution. The Hole in Our Gospel relates a message that all believers should heed. Nevertheless, the hints of social gospel in this book are troubling. The gospel is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.
I believe Stearns gets the gospel wrong (p.22), but this book is an important read as it does reveal much about the challenges and injustices among the poor in our world today. I warn you, you will be convicted.
