Reckless Christianity - by Holly Pivec & R Douglas Geivett

About the Book

Bethel Church in Redding, California, is one of the most popular and polarizing churches in America. Home to the award-winning Bethel Music label, its songs are among the most used in churches. Thousands of people visit the church each year, drawn by reports of miraculous healings, the manifestation of a glittering Glory Cloud, and other miracles. They're convinced that the church is at the forefront of an end-time movement that is restoring miraculous power to the church-at-large and "bringing heaven to earth." Yet others are concerned that Bethel has left the boundaries of Scripture and brought its followers into a dangerously speculative and experience-driven faith. They say that, in the name of training miracle workers, Bethel has introduced hazardous, perhaps even occultic, practices into the church. This has resulted in chaos, confusion, and damaged lives. In this book we examine the controversial teachings of the "Bethel Church Movement," as it is called, which has transformed modern Christian practice, culture, and worship. We show its place in the broader New Apostolic Reformation, a worldwide movement of "apostles" and "prophets" intent on reconstructing the mission and the message of the Christian church.

Book Synopsis

Bethel Church in Redding, California, is one of the most popular and polarizing churches in America. Home to the award-winning Bethel Music label, its songs are among the most used in churches. Thousands of people visit the church each year, drawn by reports of miraculous healings, the manifestation of a glittering Glory Cloud, and other miracles. They're convinced that the church is at the forefront of an end-time movement that is restoring miraculous power to the church-at-large and "bringing heaven to earth." Yet others are concerned that Bethel has left the boundaries of Scripture and brought its followers into a dangerously speculative and experience-driven faith. They say that, in the name of training miracle workers, Bethel has introduced hazardous, perhaps even occultic, practices into the church. This has resulted in chaos, confusion, and damaged lives. In this book we examine the controversial teachings of the "Bethel Church Movement," as it is called, which has transformed modern Christian practice, culture, and worship. We show its place in the broader New Apostolic Reformation, a worldwide movement of "apostles" and "prophets" intent on reconstructing the mission and the message of the Christian church.

Review Quotes

"Reckless Christianity exposes the dangerous and heretical teachings and practices of the Global Movement of Apostles and Prophets. I was struck by the parallels with the so-called Toronto Blessing, or 'Laughing Gospel, ' that was all the rage thirty years ago. It seems every generation has to cook up something new that allegedly takes us back to the miracles and prophecies of the first-generation church. Pivec and Geivett rightly warn their readers to steer clear of this new heresy."
--Craig A. Evans, author of From Jesus to the Church

"Pivec and Geivett have produced an impressive, even-handed, and meticulously researched and documented critique of the burgeoning Bethel movement. This book is written in an easy, readable style undergirded by scholarly rigor in support of all of its claims. Beyond its value as a clarion warning against one of the most rapidly spreading toxic movements within evangelical Christendom, I recommend this book as a model for how to exercise spiritual discernment, evaluate evidence, and sort through competing truth claims."
--Alan W. Gomes, author of Unmasking the Cults

About the Author

Holly Pivec is an independent researcher of new religious movements. She blogs at HollyPivec.com.



R. Douglas Geivett is professor of philosophy at Biola University and Talbot School of Theology in La Mirada, California.