Kissing Christianity goodbye?

Joshua Harris and the “good news” of hell

Christianity Today’s podcast series The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill is the story of the Seattle church that, well, quickly rose and then suddenly fell due to the temperament and ethical failures of its unconventional but charismatic pastor Mark Driscoll.

The bonus episode “I Kissed Christianity Goodbye” covers the story of Joshua Harris, a former pastor with little connection to Driscoll, but who was a fellow leader in the same movement for a strict, patriarchal form of Christianity. Harris gained notoriety while very young by authoring the best-selling I Kissed Dating Goodbye.

When his mentors faced endless scandals, and after he heard from people who were hurt by his books, Harris re-evaluated his own beliefs and resigned from the pastorate. After a few years he renounced Christianity itself, or at least the form he once believed and taught.

In the episode, host Mike Cosper, a Christian, interviews Harris. Around the 36:36 mark, Cosper suggests Harris had been teaching a lot more Law than Gospel. At 39:18 Harris says:

“I still do struggle with even the, what you describe as the Gospel over and against Law, there’s still a part of me that’s says, ‘It’s still good news that if you don’t receive you go to hell forever. If that is at the very core of the message, does that justify the kind of manipulative controlling abusive behavior?’”