THE GOD-EVADERS - Original Serial Identifier - Deep concern for the church’s trappings of religion over genuine religious experience

Oct 13, 2026

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THE GOD-EVADERS by Clyde H. Reid examines how churches and their members can become preoccupied with the trappings of religion rather than its basic purpose. The book criticizes spiritual poverty, self-centeredness, and the gap between words and deeds in “successful” religious institutions. It highlights institutional practices that prioritize numbers over persons, worship-based evasion, and a wider silence on religious matters. Through examples, the work calls for honesty, repentance, and action grounded in genuine experience.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryReligion & Spirituality

FormatPDF

Pages136

Reading Time5 h 43 min

AccessFree to download

PREFACE

Words and Deeds

Aimlessness, Complacency, and Pajamas

Race and Disgrace

The Law of Religious Evasion

Evasion through Worship

Let the Minister Do It

The Scholarly Sidestep

The Edifice Complex

Honesty, Repentance, Action

SUGGESTED READING LIST

NOTES

Clyde Reid How Churches and Their MembersFrustrate Genuine Religiens Ekperience # THE GOD-EVADERS by Clyde H.Reid "We structure our churches and maintainthem so as to shield us from God and toprotect us from genuine religious ex-perience." “For institutions which are constantly ex-horting others to be mature,the churchesreveal an enormous immaturity.” In THE GOD-EVADERS the author expresseshis deep concern for the church’s pre-occupation with the trappings of religionrather than with its basic purpose.Webuild beautiful cathedrals,for instance,that proclaim in giant letters the irrele-vancc of the church in a world that ishungering for peace,for justice,for breadto eat.He points to the spiritual povertyand self-centeredness of“successful”re-ligious nstitutions,and to the appallinggap between the words and the deeds ofchurches. "The churches in our day have becomemore concerned with numbers than withpersons.” "Thcre is an implicit conspiracy of silenceon religious matters in the churches." Many concrete examples from churchesthroughout the country are cited.And 270 R272g Reid,Clyde H The God-evaders by₁Clyde Reid.1st ed.1 New York,Harper&Row 19661x,118 p.22 cm.Bibliography:p.111-112. 1:Christianity—20th cent.—Addresses,essays,lectures. I.Title. 350 270 BR123.R43 66-15044 5: Library of Congress # THE GOD.EVADERS # THE GOD-EVADERS Clyde Reid HARPER &ROW,PUBLISHERSNEW YORK San Francisco Public Library 员2 2g THE GOD-EVADERS.Copyright ⑥1966 by Clyde H.Reid.Printed in theUnited States of America.All rights reserved.No part of this book may beused or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permissionexcept in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.For information address Harper &Row,Publishers,Incorporated,49 East33rd Street,New York,N.Y.10016. To BoNNIE,without whose support and encour-agement this book would not have been possible,and to Laurie,Eric,and Robin,from whom Ihave learned much and who are a constant sourceof inspiration. CONTENTS PREFACE Vii[1]Words and Deeds 1 [2]Aimlessness,Complacency,and Pajamas 9 [3]Race and Disgrace 27[4]The Law of Religious Evasion 40Evasion through Worship 53Let the Minister Do It 64The Scholarly Sidestep 74[8]The Edifice Complex84[9]Honesty,Repentance,Action 96SUGGESTED READING LIST 1llNOTES 113 [5] [6][7]

FAQs

What central concern does Clyde H. Reid raise in THE GOD-EVADERS?

Reid expresses deep concern that the church is occupied with the trappings of religion rather than its basic purpose, creating spiritual poverty and a mismatch between words and deeds.

How does the book characterize churches in terms of priorities?

It criticizes churches for becoming more concerned with numbers than with persons, and it points to an implicit conspiracy of silence on religious matters.

What does the book suggest as an appropriate response?

The contents emphasize honesty, repentance, and action, moving beyond evasion to genuine religious experience.

Oct 13, 2026

Upload by Miles