Of course, Welch realized from the start that to really get the "inside scoop" on Evangelicals, she would need to pretend to be one. Her account of a faked conversion and subsequent baptism adds humor to her tale, though, for me (and I'm sure for many other Christians), it came with a decidedly bitter tang.
Within 330 pages Gina Welch takes readers on a journey from her initial decision to attend Thomas Road Baptist Church (TRBC) to her emotional decision to break ties with the Christian community she became a part of. Her honest look at what I consider church "quirks" is mixed with humor and thoughtfulness; I was so glad that In the Land of Believers didn't turn out to be a judgemental, rude look at Christian culture. Welch even went so far as to join TRBC's singles group on a missions trip to Alaska to get a real look at evangelism.
Throughout the book, Welch discusses (it really does feel as though she is discussing and not telling or reporting) different Christian ideologies and practices, always including a hefty amount of personal opinion and feeling. Welch's writing is refreshing, her non-fiction account nearly reading like a beautiful volume of fiction. Her honesty about her feelings, worries, likes, and dislikes about TRBC make her story inviting and friendly. Honestly there are so many parts of the book that I could go into detail about, but that would make this post awfully long!
There are plenty of conclusions that Welch came to that I disagree with, like her opinion that Evangelicals will eventually come to terms with homosexuality and believe it to be part of the natural flow of things. Her views on Jesus' death and resurrection didn't resonate with me at all, and her belief that a person can't really choose what to believe in (they just inherently believe something, I guess), is disheartening. And the ending left me completely emotional, saddened that Welch didn't come to know Christ in the way I would have hoped. At least knowing Welch's surprise and thankfulness at the kindness and non-judgemental attitude of a good friend she made at TRBC—this was after she shared the truth about why she was there—left me somewhat comforted.
On her website, Gina Welch says that she wrote In the Land of Believers so "that people like me—people who bristle at public prayer or roll their eyes when someone asks if they’ve heard the good news—might find in my book ways of accepting and connecting to evangelicals"; likewise, to create "the possibility of common ground between the religious and the secular." As a Christian, I think In the Land of Believers can give Evangelicals a look at the church system through fresh eyes. Some of her encounters with Christians left me feeling utterly embarrassed, realizing how the church has so easily slipped into a business mindset. (I'm thinking of Welch's amusement at the enormous amounts of groups at TRBC and the trying-to-be-catchy names they possess, as well as the late Jerry Falwell's constant mentioning of things to buy in the lobby and the group leader's prayer that included the now lower price of admission to the Christmas program.)
This is a great book that I'm sure Christians and non-Christians alike could benefit from in some way. (Though it is pretty deep, so be prepared to think.) It does, unfortunately, contain a few expletives here and there and some sexual innuendo (which mainly revolved around the members in the singles group Welch was involved in and the discussions they had, as well as her discovering their reactions to secular music).
I'd like to end this review with a passage in the book (one of many) that I especially enjoyed. After listening to the leader of the singles group read Psalm 139, she says:
The beauty of this psalm unfurled in me like great spools of ribbon. God-love—I felt I finally saw it. Human love was this awkward thing, like the most delicious fish you could ever hope to eat but you had to eat it alive. Sometimes it made you feel desperate and crazed.... But God-love, the love in the psalm, the love in Jesus loves you—that was Mobius strip love, love with no beginning or end, love that was both calm and complete, unflinching in the face of anything you could reveal about yourself. (Welch, 309)
In the Land of Believers is 330 pages long and is published by Picador.
