McLaren: “Christian Mission Begins With Friendship”

From Brian McLaren’s forthcoming book Why Did Jesus, Moses, the Buddha and Mohammed Cross the Road? (bowing September 11, 2012, from Jericho Books):

“‎Christian mission begins with friendship — not utilitarian friendship, the religious version of network marketing — but genuine friendship, friendship that translates love for neighbors in general into knowing, appreciating, liking and enjoying … This knowing-in-particular then motivates us to protect our neighbor when he or she is under threat, as a little Rwandan girl understood: just before she was brutally murdered during the genocide, she said to her slayer, ‘If you knew me, you would not kill me.'”

Wow, powerful.

By the way, I love Brian’s semi-humorous answer to the question in the book title: “To get to the Other.”

What do you think? Are you as excited as I am about Brian’s new book on Christian identity in a pluralistic world? (Answer: Probably not.)