Since the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980, conservatives have sought to impose an ideology upon the American people that has not intentionally, but inherently oppressed the middle class. As Newton proposed For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, while conservative political initiatives have uplifted the so called job creators, they have naturally stepped on the middle class in order to do so. Jesus Was a Democrat illustrates how American businesses have outsourced manufacturing jobs to third-world countries, and how the destruction of privatesector collective bargaining has forced middle-class workers to accept lower wages and loss of benefi ts, creating a buyers market for todays employers. Jesus Was a Democrat shows how Republicans ignorance of the past has led to economic, military and political failure today. Dan DeFreest has crafted a book that examines how Republicans have failed to understand their own moral dichotomies and connects the dots between their oppressive ideology and todays income and wealth disparity. Using a historical perspective, he shows how conservatives have stolen the future from our middle class and brought this country to the brink of political revolution.

The complete guide to debunking right-wing misinterpretations of the Bible—from economics and immigration to gender and sexuality. Jesus loves borders, guns, unborn babies, and economic prosperity and hates homosexuality, taxes, welfare, and universal healthcare—or so say many Republican politicians, pundits, and preachers. Through outrageous misreadings of the New Testament gospels that started almost a century ago, conservative influencers have conjured a version of Jesus that speaks to their fears, desires, and resentments. In Republican Jesus, Tony Keddie explains not only where this right-wing Christ came from and what he stands for but also why this version of Jesus is a fraud. By restoring Republicans’ cherry-picked gospel texts to their original literary and historical contexts, Keddie dismantles the biblical basis for Republican positions on hot-button issues like Big Government, taxation, abortion, immigration, and climate change. At the same time, he introduces readers to an ancient Jesus whose life experiences and ethics were totally unlike those of modern Americans, conservatives and liberals alike.

If Jesus were alive today, would he: feed the poor - or give tax breaks to the super rich? Comfort the old and infirm - or cut Social Security? Build bridges that unite - or build walls that divide? Make peace - or make war? In the revised edition of this groundbreaking book, noted author and theologian Linda Seger, Th.D., explores what it means to be a Christian and a Democrat - and shows how the two are not mutually exclusive but rather inclusive. She reveals the close relationship between Democratic policy and Jesus' teachings and the many ways in which the values Jesus espouses in the Bible correspond to the values Democrats call their own. The idea that America's real Christians vote strictly Republican crumbles when one studies the platforms of both parties. Jesus Rode a Donkey reminds the reader that Jesus and the prophets had a radical, progressive message that calls individuals and nations to feed the hungry, help the poor, heal the sick, care for the earth, free the oppressed, and love our enemies. The book won the Silver Medal Christian Living Illumination Book Award given for exemplary Christian writing.

Economist and historian Lawrence W. Reed has been hearing people say “Jesus was a socialist” for fifty years. And it has always bothered him. Now he is doing something about it. Reed demolishes the claim that Jesus was a socialist. Jesus called on earthly governments to redistribute wealth? Or centrally plan the economy? Or even impose a welfare state? Hardly. Point by point, Reed answers the claims of socialists and progressives who try to enlist Jesus in their causes. As he reveals, nothing in the New Testament supports their contentions. Was Jesus a Socialist? could not be more timely. Socialism has made a shocking comeback in America. Poll after poll shows that young Americans have a positive image of socialism. In fact, more than half say they would rather live in a socialist country than in a capitalist one. And as socialism has come back into vogue, more and more of its advocates have tried to convince us that Jesus was a socialist. This rhetoric has had an impact. According to a 2016 poll by the Barna Group, Americans think socialism aligns better with Jesus’s teachings than capitalism does. When respondents were asked which of that year’s presidential candidates aligned closest to Jesus’s teachings, a self-proclaimed “democratic socialist” came out on top. Sure enough, the same candidate earned more primary votes from under-thirty voters than did the eventual Democratic and Republican nominees combined. And in a 2019 survey, more than seventy percent of millennials said they were likely to vote for a socialist. Was Jesus a Socialist? expands on the immensely popular video of the same name that Reed recorded for Prager University in July 2019. That video has attracted more than four million views online. Ultimately, Reed shows the foolishness of trying to enlist Jesus in any political cause today. He writes: “While I don’t believe it is valid to claim that Jesus was a socialist, I also don’t think it is valid to argue that he was a capitalist. Neither was he a Republican or a Democrat. These are modern-day terms, and to apply any of them to Jesus is to limit him to but a fraction of who he was and what he taught.”

New York Times bestseller God's Politics struck a chord with Americans disenchanted with how the Right had co-opted all talk about integrating religious values into our politics, and with the Left, who were mute on the subject. Jim Wallis argues that America's separation of church and state does not require banishing moral and religious values from the public square. God's Politics offers a vision for how to convert spiritual values into real social change and has started a grassroots movement to hold our political leaders accountable by incorporating our deepest convictions about war, poverty, racism, abortion, capital punishment, and other moral issues into our nation's public life. Who can change the political wind? Only we can.

Jesus for President is a radical manifesto to awaken the Christian political imagination, reminding us that our ultimate hope lies not in partisan political options but in Jesus and the incarnation of the peculiar politic of the church as a people 'set apart' from this world. In what can be termed lyrical theology, Jesus for President poetically weaves together words and images to sing (rather than dictate) its message. It is a collaboration of Shane Claiborne's writing and stories, Chris Haw's reflections and research, and Chico Fajardo-Heflin's art and design. Drawing upon the work of biblical theologians, the lessons of church history, and the examples of modern-day saints and ordinary radicals, Jesus for President stirs the imagination of what the Church could look like if it placed its faith in Jesus instead of Caesar. A fresh look at Christianity and empire, Jesus for President transcends questions of 'Should I vote or not?' and 'Which candidate?' by thinking creatively about the fundamental issues of faith and allegiance. It's written for those who seek to follow Jesus, rediscover the spirit of the early church, and incarnate the kingdom of God.