“The Grace Effect” by Larry Alex Taunton

The story of one family’s journey through the red tape of a former Soviet Satellite in an effort to adopt an unwanted girl serves anecdotally in defending the faith. Taunton does a pretty good job of presenting an argument for Christianity based on its benefits to society and culture. This is a case, not of presenting proof to convince people of the validity of faith, but rather to combat some of the current assertions that religion is evil and does nothing but harm.

In many cases that argument can in fact be made, even strongly, but Christianity—in its most Biblical and spiritual forms is not like any other religion. Taunton goes beyond just his own story and presents arguments from history and current culture to support his claim that Biblical Christianity actually changes human culture for the better. Even more compelling is the evidence that efforts to secularize or impose atheism upon cultures have devastating effects.

This book is a pretty good read, but may be a bit too narrow to find a large audience. Despite its intentions, it likely will not serve to change the culture at large. It might be an encouragement to people of faith seeking affirmation. Two audiences that may find this read interesting are the growing portion of the population looking towards adoption and people who live cross-culturally, particularly in the former soviet states.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their Book Review Blogger program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”