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For the faithful, fighting back isn't an option
...Miller, 33, lives in Laurelhurst, worships at Imago Dei, and writes on faith with candor and passion reminiscent of Frederick Buechner and Anne Lamott. His latest book, "Searching for God Knows What," is fresh out. "Blue Like Jazz," Miller's previous effort, has sold 120,000 copies and kept him hopping on the college lecture circuit for most of the last four months, despite limited reviews.

Miller understands the critics' reticence: "I've yet to have anyone tell me what the book is about," he says. "It's essentially about me finding faith in Christ outside the church."

Why outside?

"Because the church has been hijacked by the issues of gay marriage and abortion, two ideas Christ never speaks of," Miller says. "This is what people embedded in the church don't understand. When you go out and ask someone what Christianity is about, they'll say it's about gay marriage and abortion. They don't know anything else.

And small wonder, Miller says: "No Christian organization is chaining itself to the church doors over the issue of divorce. No Christian group is lobbying President Bush to do something about the Sudan.

"The other myth the church buys into? The church believes Pharisees no longer exist. Jerry Falwell is a great example of that. He'll go on CNN and talk about morality, but he'll never share the Gospel. Why? Because Falwell thinks, 'Morality redeems me.' "

In "a huge slice" of the evangelical church, Miller says, Jesus "is a technicality. He's a poster boy for our Western political agenda; he's not the son of God." In Christ's absence, "squeaky wheels" like Falwell, Bob Jones III and James Dobson dispense with the fruits of the spirit to preach moral superiority and propagate the culture war.

"There's increasingly this feeling that if we are right spiritually and right morally, we can be mean people," Miller says. "Whatever happened to turn the other cheek? Love your enemies? Season your speech with grace? There's only war rhetoric. It's Gettysburg. 'Your children are going to turn gay unless you get your fists up.' I don't understand how Falwell can say God was judging America by bringing down the twin towers and survive in the evangelical community." ...