This book is obviously written by a pastor for evangelical Christians (he likely could have cut the "say everything three times" strategy), but he uses the words of Christ to refute what is likely the most dangerous belief held by many within the church. ( )

Thought-provoking, well-written and with good scriptural backing. The author recounts his journey from hard-right evangelical, glorifying 'just' wars, through to becoming a believer in the Kingdom of God now, and the gospel of peace.

I've never been part of a culture that saw war as a good thing (albeit occasionally a necessary evil) but I still found quite a bit to think about in this book. The author is not a pacifist as such, and has great admiration for those in the armed forces. But he believes that his role is to promote peace, not just between individuals but between ethnic groups and countries.

Some of what he writes is controversial, some a tad hard to swallow - is Jesus really ruling the world now, considering what a mess we're making of it? - but I found it an excellent read, and will no doubt be thinking about some of what Zahnd wrote for some time.

Definitely recommended.

Full review here: https://suesbookreviews.blogspot.com/2020/01/a-farewell-to-mars-by-brian-zahnd.h... ( )

A very well written and tightly reasoned book. I have long been opposed to violence and war, and I believed that the Gospel of Jesus demanded such. This book provides some very cogent arguments for just such a stance. Christ's death pn the cross, a death by violence, represented the death of violence. Christ's kingdom, His peaceable kingdom was started when he was here on earth and now that He has risen, and is at the right hand of God, this kingdom endures, and it is a kingdom of peace, not of war.

Christians have too long allowed Christianity to act as the chaplain of our nation, and others, somehow expecting God's blessing on us as we go to war against evil in the world. The problem is, war is not how evil should be battled, but rather by peace. We are to be the peacemakers of Christ's kingdom. ( )

Modern evangelical Christians stripped Jesus Christ to only being the part of the Godhead, a personal Savior that forgives our sins and grants us a ticket to heaven. What did we make of Jesus, the Prince of Peace, as e.g. Isiah prophesied, and Jesus Christ himself spoke of in the Gospels? When and why did we accept warfare in the name of God, vengeance and us versus them thinking? Brian Zahn rediscovered the missing pieces in his understanding of the Bible, repented from the war prayers he prayed during the Gulf War and 9/11. He doesn't like to be coined as pacifist, he just wants to be a follower of Christ, a Christian. Zahnd shows that since Cain murdered his brother Able as if he was his enemy, and lied about the murder to God, the evil brought empires to raise and fall, leading to a creation that's waiting for restoration and the Kingdom of God become manifest. Instead of turning to the sword, worshiping the god of warfare (Mars) nowadays, there's a better way. Freedom, not as a patriotic value becoming an excuse for war, but freedom as equivalent for brotherly love. Brian Zahnd reintroduces his readers to the gospel of Peace and bids A Farewell to Mars. An important message for a Church for centuries intertwined with the sword-bearing empires of this world. ( )