Review: Autopsy of a Deceased Church: 12 Ways to Keep Yours Alive

Autopsy of a Deceased Church: 12 Ways to Keep Yours Alive by Thom S. Rainer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Rainer packs alot of juicy content into this really tiny book. I thoroughly enjoyed the real life scenarios he used to season the "meatier" parts of the narrative. Rainer identifies various characteristics that a dying church would exhibit - which indeed may not be obvious to the Christians or pastors who have been part of that church community for a prolonged length of time.

While the title may seem offensive to some, I caught a sense that contrary to somebody who hates the "institutionalized Christian religion" (or insert whatever negative label you think fits better here), Rainer has conveyed his heart of love for the church. This is not a book all about gloom and doom and how the church had its better days in the past. Quite the opposite in fact! Rainer doesnt just list the symptoms and observations of a dying church, in the last two chapters he has provided various responses to Christians attending very sick or dying churches.

Because the book's brevity would simply serve to alert one to a church's condition, consultation with more substantive and in depth titles on this topic would be required for one to reflect on further follow up measures. A great companion to this book would be Gary L. McIntosh's excellent Taking Your Church to the Next Level: What Got You Here Won't Get You There would be the first title that I'd heartily recommend.

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