Bullies and saints : an honest look at the good and evil of Christian history / John Dickson.

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

Better off without religion, a prelude -- The day I lost faith in the Church -- The crusades in a nutshell -- The beautiful tune -- Log in the eye of the Church -- Good losers -- Constantine and religious liberty -- Constantine and the birth of charity -- Julian the apostate -- Muscular Christianity -- Cappadocian Christianity -- Iconoclastic Christianity -- "Just war" -- The death of Rome and growth of the Church -- Christian "Jihad" -- The greatest European you've never heard of -- Knights of Christ -- Prophets and hypocrites -- The eternal empire of the East -- Inventing the "Dark Ages" -- The Inquisition -- The Reformation "Wars of religion" -- The "troubles" -- Moral reckoning -- Social capital -- The "log in the eye" of us all -- The beautiful tune - a coda.

Is religion a pernicious force in the world? Does it poison everything? Would we be better off without religion in general and Christianity in particular? Many skeptics certainly think so. John Dickson has spent much of the last ten years reflecting on these difficult questions and on why so many doubters see Christianity as a major cause of harm not blessing. The skeptics, he concludes, are right: even a cursory look at the history of Christians reveals dark things therein--violence, bigotry, genocide, war, inquisition, oppression, imperialism, racism, corruption, greed, power, abuse. For centuries and even today, Christians have been among the worst bullies you could ever imagine. But these skeptics are only partly right: this is not what Christianity was meant to be. When Christians do evil they are out of tune with the teachings of their Lord. Jesus gave the world a beautiful melody--of love, grace, charity, humility, non-violence, equality, human dignity--to which, tragically, his followers have more often than not been tone-deaf. Denying the evils of church history does not do. John Dickson gives an honest account of the mixed history of Christianity, the evil and the good. He concedes the Christians' complicity for centuries of bullying but also shows the myriad ways the beautiful melody of Christ has enriched our world and the lives of countless individuals. This book asks contemporary skeptics of religion to listen again to the melody of Jesus, despite the discord produced by too many Christians through history and today. It also leads contemporary believers into sober reflection on and repentance for their own participation in the tragic inconsistencies of Christendom and seeks to inspire them to live in tune with Christ.