pat loughery

The Suburban Christian
by Albert Hsu
InterVarsity Press (2006)
220 pages
(Note: Grace Barnes approved this book as a substitute for the OVI reading list)

Description of the Book
American suburbia is a powerful spiritual force. To some, suburbia represents the paradise of peace and tranquility. To others, suburbia represents a wasteland culture centered on individualism and consumerism. Christianity can be practiced in the suburbs in authentic ways, if we understand the social structure of suburbia and are willing to live counter culturally.

Interpretation of the Book
Christianity in Suburbia researches the available sociology of suburban life from its inception through today. It examines suburban architecture, community planning, architectural plans, and lifestyles. With this foundational understanding of suburbia, the book then looks at the challenges of living an authentic Christian faith in suburbia. It begins with a look at the impact of the commuter culture and the spread-out nature of travel and lifestyle. It then looks at consumerism as a particularly suburban force and at branding influences consumer identities. Next, the author explores community in the suburbs, describing the neighborhood separation and insulation that occurs, and suggesting ways in which community can grow. He then discusses a variety of spiritualities and styles of churches that are effective in suburbia, and then closes with a call for suburban Christians to seek the good of the greater metropolitan are and the world beyond the suburb.

Application
I live in the suburbs, planted a church in the suburbs and feel called to remain in the suburbs. At times I am more certain of that call than at other times, but it remains. I also commute to work, and for the time being my family commutes to church in the urban core. But the challenge of how an authentic, missional, relational, incarnational faith can be lived in my neighborhood is always on my mind. I want to see more depth to faith here in the suburbs than the highly attractional churches that I see doing well, with their kids entertainment parks complete with rock climbing walls and inflatable bouncing toys. And I also sense the inauthenticity that my urban Christian friends communicate at times, when they see the culture of suburbia as less-than the culture of the city, and they denigrate the citizens of suburbia as a result – my friends. I feel torn at times, thinking that my dreams of faith community would work much better in urban areas than in my neighborhood. However, this book reminds me that the suburban community is a mission field. And if, as the author states, the population of Americans living in suburbia is greater than the population of Americans living in rural and urban areas combined, then suburbia is a mission field that needs deeply authentic, missional, relational, incarnational believers and communities, in order to save the soul of suburbia and suburbanites.