Reviews

 "Some of this year’s most popular Lent sacrifices are booze, social media, and–believe it or not–Donald Trump. But I’ve decided to go a different direction and give up saying I’m sorry for all the Christian crap out there. I was inspired in this decision by Lillian Daniel’s book, ​Tired of Apologizing for a Church I Don’t Belong To. It’s a surprising read because Daniel is a progressive female pastor, so she’s exactly the type of person you would expect to go around making amends for the church’s many sins." Read more....
Jonathan Merritt, Religion News Service

"Lillian Daniel's Tired of Apologizing... is at once what we might think of as liberal and yet calling us to solid, lasting things. It is witty, acerbic, tender, sharp, kind, funny and, at more than once, made me scratch my head. What a book!" Read more... 
Hearts & Minds Books

“Sometimes, liberal Christians feel they need to apologize for the behavior of other Christians or churches. In Tired of Apologizing...  writer and pastor Lillian Daniel encourages you instead to boldly tell your own story of faith and sacred relationship.”
- Sojourners Magazine   


"Sometimes she is biting. Sometimes she is tender and often what she says is stunningly beautiful.”
 
​                  Bob Abernethy, Executive Editor, Religion & Ethics Newsweekly

 
“Marvelously gritty wit...an impassioned and winning case for why church, community, and formal religious traditions are so integral to creating a fulfilling life. Her ideas are thought provoking and infectious.”

Booklist, Starred Review
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“Intelligent, inviting and nurturing, these essays...offer a rich banquet for pastors, lifelong congregants, disaffected Christians, and confused seekers alike.”
​Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
 
 
 
“Lillian Daniel has written a book that makes you wish she were your preacher—and that you could be seated next to her at a long, multicourse dinner party.” 
                  James C. Howell, Christian Century Magazine
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“When “Spiritual But Not Religious” Is Not Enough is a feast of words—funny, ribald, tiptoeing to the edge of sarcasm, yet full of love and unflinching hope. This isn’t a book so much as a smorgasbord of delicacies, complete with an essay, a brief piece that feels like a blog post gone viral, a lecture, and the sort of op-ed you print and hand to a friend. Daniel’s book might strike a chord with young Christian adults in need of a guide or role model who’s not stuffy, not holier-than-thou and speaks their language...it marks a creative step to bridge cultural divides and share the riches of Christianity with a rising, spiritually curious generation.”
 
G. Jeffrey MacDonald, Christian Science Monitor
 

"Ms. Daniel argues that spirituality fits too snugly with complacency, even hedonism — after all, who doesn’t like walks in nature? — whereas religion is better at challenging people to face death, fight poverty and oppose injustice. Religion, by bringing people together, in community, at regular intervals, facilitates an ongoing conversation about matters outside the self."
                  Mark Oppenheimer, New York Times

“Here is why I love Lillian Daniel’s writing: it is honest; it is funny; and it teaches me about Mary and Martha via a yoga class.”
 
Lauren F. Winner, author of “Girl Meets God” 
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“You read some things because you have to or need to or ought to. You’ll read Lillian Daniel for the pure pleasure of pitch-perfect writing.”
 
Brian McLaren, author of "The Great Spiritual Migration"
 
 
“There are plenty of books that critique religion. But here’s a good critique of the critics. Lillian is as fed up with bad religion as anyone else, but she’s also careful to celebrate good religion and good spirituality that bring people to life and make the world a better place.”
 
Shane Claiborne, author and activist
 
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“These days, when a good word for ‘religion’ is seldom heard, Lillian sings a joyful song to faith embodied in the gritty, funny, weird, everydayness of the church. Somehow she manages to be both realistic and encouraging about that which the world facilely dismisses as ‘institutional religion’. Lillian has given us one of the great books on life together in the congregation.”
 
​         Will Willimon, United Methodist Bishop, Duke Divinity School
 
 
“This is the wonderful, essential Lillian Daniel at her best—earthy, perceptive, devout, tough-minded, angry and laugh-out-loud funny, all in one.”
Bob Abernethy, Executive Editor, Religion & Ethics Newsweekly
 
 
 
 
"In short, this book is a very honest confession of how much Lillian Daniel needs church, as well as how tired she is of having to defend her religiosity to liberals who don’t feel the same need, and who are narcissistic enough to think all religion is therefore for suckers."  
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Kate Blanchard, Religion Dispatches

RECENT REVIEWS of TIRED OF APOLOGIZING FOR A CHURCH I DON'T BELONG TO  
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This is why I was excited when I received Tired of Apologizing for a Church I Don't Belong To by Lillian Daniel to read for review. This is a follow up of sorts to her previous book, but focusing on the rising group of the "nones." 
- Coffee & Books

"Those within the more conservative Christian community might want to read this book to understand how the liberal Christian community thinks, worships, and ministers."
​-Joan Neinhuis 

“I have heard stories of long ago when our state was home to over 70 A.M.E. Zion churches and now, we have less than 15.  Something must change.  In her book, Tired of Apologizing... author Lillian Daniel tackles the challenge of sharing the gospel without being preachy, without being judgmental, just being human.”
-Three Boys & An Old Lady​

“I get Lillian’s frustration with “spiritual but not religious” (SBNR) and being tired of apologizing!”
-Devotional Diva
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