I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Party Crasher by Joshua Ryan Butler
Published by Crown Publishing Group on March 5, 2024
Genres: Religion / Christian Living / Social Issues
Pages: 224
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley

In this insightful, nonpartisan roadmap toward faithful political engagement and ultimate allegiance to Jesus, pastor Joshua Ryan Butler diagnoses the roots of political conflict tearing apart the church and prescribes a practical and prophetic way forward.

“A must-read for any and all who seek the way of Jesus.”—Jay Kim, pastor and author of Analog Christian

Have you noticed a deeper level of political division in your community or church? If so, you’re not alone. This powerful, accessible book exposes the religious nature of modern political movements and how they compete with faithfulness to Christ.

Rather than retreat from the political realm, The Party Crasher will help you understand the politics of our age and equip you with the wisdom to faithfully navigate them. Key takeaways include:

• How to develop a Christian posture for political life and promote unity in the church.
• When to be bold.
• How to identify and repent from our political idols.
• How the way we worship can help us avoid division.

This is not a book about putting politics aside, it’s a book about putting politics in their place so that we might be better disciples of Jesus in whichever party or place we find ourselves.

If there’s one thing I don’t generally talk about, it is politics. I have very strong opinions on certain candidates and I’m not overly fond of our two-party political system. In The Party Crasher, Joshua Ryan Butler shows he has a different take on our political system. He admits to its corruption and issues. He also admits to the fact that even in Christian circles, we belong to different political “religions”.

He defines four political religions into which people fall. He shows how these political religions shape us and how we react and respond when it comes to church, secular politics, and more. He reminds us that we shouldn’t be making our political leanings our idols. Because unfortunately, that’s something we do, even if we don’t realize it.

But he doesn’t just tell us what is wrong and what we may be doing wrong. No, he gives us solutions. He gives us ideas. He even states that we don’t have to follow these ideas to the letter – they’re there for us to take inspiration from and get creative with.

I sincerely thought that I would end up intensely disliking The Party Crasher because of the political content. I thought it would “step on my toes” and convict me. But I found this book to be very informative and interesting, not at all convicting, because he admits that most people do these things without actually realizing they’re doing it. It gives solid options for how to stop ourselves from compromising our Christianity or even forgoing it in favor of our political religions and idols.

I gave this book 4.5 stars because it was an excellent book for those who are Christians trying to navigate a political world.