Recent Praise For My Book: James M. Dunn & Soul Freedom

September 28, 2011

My book – James M. Dunn and Soul Freedom – has been reviewed a few times in the last couple of months. Check out a few snippets below.

Review by Dr. Russell Moore, Dean of the School of Theology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary:

Love him or hate him, Dunn was a powerful force in Baptist life in the twentieth-century, and a new book seeks to set him in historical and theological context. Aaron Douglas Weaver’s James M. Dunn and Soul Freedom, just published by Smyth and Helwys, is that book, and it’s well worth reading.

Weaver, easily the most gifted young historian of the moderate Baptist movement, crafts a winsome and engaging narrative and, unlike many historians, refuses to ignore theological analysis of his subject. I think Weaver will be a major force in Baptist historical scholarship in the next generation, precisely because of his analytical ability and his gift for prose.

Review by Marv Knox, editor of the Baptist Standard and publisher of FaithVillage:

The little word “and” in the title of this new book is just as important as the others. Aaron Weaver presents both a lively biography of Texas treasure James Dunn and a comprehensive survey of the landscape of American religious liberty across the past six decades.

James M. Dunn and Soul Freedom chronicles the life of Dunn, a self-described “Texas-bred, Spirit-led, Bible-believing, revival-preaching recovering Southern Baptist.” Weaver reveals a pitch-perfect ear for Dunn’s creative, craggy and cantankerous voice—his way with words that helped him win many a theological and political fight and go down memorably even in the battles he lost. Friends and foes alike will recognize all the passion, intelligence, faith and vigor that have made Dunn maybe the most colorful and influential Baptist to come out of Texas since George W. Truett and W.A. Criswell.

Review by Peter Lumpkins, pastor, popular blogger & author of Alcohol Today: Abstinence in an Age of Indulgence:

Aaron Weaver has given Baptists a fair look into the mind and ministry of James M. Dunn. Though a sparkplug during his years as spokesman for Southern Baptists, Dunn deserves credit for his honorable contributions to religious liberty.

…While most Conservative Resurgence advocates will quibble over some of the interpretations made in this volume, Aaron Weaver’s Soul Freedom is a responsible look into the life and ministry of James M. Dunn from a convictional Moderate Baptist perspective. I highly recommend it.

Other recent mentions of James M. Dunn and Soul Freedom: