Joshua Harris (author)

From The Right Wiki
Jump to navigationJump to search

Joshua Harris
File:Joshua Harris (2018).jpg
BornJoshua Eugene Harris
Dayton, Ohio, U.S.
OccupationAuthor
Children3
Website
joshharris.com

Joshua Eugene Harris is an American former Evangelical Christian pastor. Harris' 1997 book I Kissed Dating Goodbye, in which he laid out his ideas concerning a Biblically based Christian approach to dating and relationships, helped shape purity culture for many Christian millennials.[1] Harris was lead pastor of Covenant Life Church, the founding church of Sovereign Grace Ministries, in Gaithersburg, Maryland from 2004 until 2015. In 2018, Harris disavowed I Kissed Dating Goodbye and discontinued its publication. The following year, Harris announced that he was separating from his wife, had "undergone a massive shift in regard to my faith in Jesus" and had given up on his Christian faith.[2][3][4]

Biography

Harris is the first of seven children born to Gregg and Sono Harris, pioneers in the Christian homeschooling movement. He is of Japanese descent on his mother's side.[5] Harris published New Attitude, a magazine aimed at fellow homeschoolers, from 1994 to 1997.[citation needed] He received no formal seminary or theological training until 2015, when he attended Regent College, Vancouver, B.C.[6] Harris married Shannon Hendrickson in 1998. They have had three children.[7] His brothers, twins Alex and Brett, authored The Rebelution (rebelution is a neologism defined by its creators as "a teenage rebellion against low expectations").[8] Harris's first book, I Kissed Dating Goodbye, was published in 1997 and has sold 1.2 million copies worldwide.[2] Subsequent books by Harris include Boy Meets Girl (2000), in part describing his engagement to his eventual wife, Shannon; Not Even a Hint: Guarding Your Heart Against Lust, released in 2003 and renamed Sex Is Not the Problem (Lust Is) in 2005; and Stop Dating the Church!: Fall in Love with the Family of God (2004). Harris' book Dug Down Deep (2010) shared his journey towards a love for theology and highlighted his passion for what he called "humble orthodoxy".[9] In 1997, Harris moved from Oregon to Gaithersburg, Maryland to be a pastoral intern.[10][11] There, "C. J. Mahaney, a charismatic Calvinist and founding pastor of megachurch Covenant Life Church, took Harris under his wing and groomed him to take over the church."[12] Harris was lead pastor of Covenant Life Church from 2004 until 2015.[13][6] Harris assumed the role of senior pastor at Covenant Life Church at the age of 30.[10] In January 2015, he resigned from that role due to a desire to broaden his views and connect to other parts of Christianity. In an interview, Harris said the isolation of Covenant Life, and of a small cluster of churches of which it was a part, may have fed leadership mistakes, including the decision of pastors — himself among them — to handle a child sexual abuse case internally instead of going to police.[6] Harris started Sovereign Grace Ministries' New Attitude Conference for Christian singles in 1999, with inspiration and guidance from Louie Giglio, founder of Passion Conferences.[12] From 1999 until 2011 he continued frequently to organize and lead this conference, although in 2008 it was renamed "Next."[14] In July 2019, Harris announced that he and his wife were separating due to "significant changes [that] have taken place in both of us".[15][16] The couple divorced that year.[17] Subsequently, Harris revealed that he no longer considered himself a Christian. His former wife also walked away from Christianity and began pursuing a career as a singer-songwriter under the name Shannon Bonne.[18][19][20][17] In addition to his previously discontinued books, with Harris's announcement of his loss of faith, the documentary film lost its distributor due to the negative reaction from the Christian market.[21]

Books

  • I Kissed Dating Goodbye (Updated Version). Multnomah, 2003. ISBN 1-59052-135-8
  • Boy Meets Girl: Say Hello to Courtship. Multnomah, 2000. ISBN 1-57673-709-8
  • Not Even a Hint. Multnomah, 2003. ISBN 1-59052-147-1 (re-published as Sex Isn't the Problem, Lust Is in 2005. ISBN 1-59052-519-1)
  • Stop Dating the Church! Multnomah, 2004. ISBN 1-59052-365-2 (re-published as Why Church Matters: Discovering Your Place in the Family of God in 2011. ISBN 1-60142-384-5)
  • Dug Down Deep Multnomah, 2010.
  • Humble Orthodoxy: Holding the Truth High Without Putting People Down Multnomah, 2013. ISBN 1-60142-475-4)

References

  1. ↑ Parke, Caleb (July 22, 2019). "Christian author of 'I Kissed Dating Goodbye' separating from wife". Fox News.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Bote, Joshua. "He wrote the Christian case against dating. Now he's splitting from his wife and faith". USA TODAY. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  3. ↑ "Joshua Harris on Instagram: "My heart is full of gratitude. I wish you could see all the messages people sent me after the announcement of my divorce. They are…"". Instagram. Archived from the original on December 25, 2021. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  4. ↑ "Joshua Harris on Instagram: "We're writing to share the news that we are separating and will continue our life together as friends. In recent years, some significant…"". Instagram. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  5. ↑ "Trip to Japan". Archived from the original on October 7, 2009. Retrieved June 9, 2010.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Boorstein, Michelle (January 30, 2015). "Pastor Joshua Harris, an evangelical outlier, heads to mainstream seminary". Washington Post.
  7. ↑ Laviola, Erin (July 29, 2019). "Joshua Harris: Former Pastor Says He's No Longer a Christian".
  8. ↑ Eekhoff Zylstra, Sarah (November 5, 2014). "Alex and Brett Harris Are Doing Hard Things". TGC. Retrieved August 30, 2020.
  9. ↑ Sherwood, J.J. (March 31, 2010). "Dug Down Deep: Unearthing What I Believe and Why It Matters". TGC. Retrieved August 31, 2020.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Wishall, Garrett (August 17, 2009). "'It's a role of service:' Joshua Harris on being senior pastor of Covenant Life Church". Towers. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Joshua Harris Author Profile". www.newreleasetoday.com. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Hansen, Collin (September 22, 2006). "Young, Restless, Reformed Calvinism is making a comeback—and shaking up the church". Christianity Today. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  13. ↑ Lee, Morgan (February 5, 2015). "Why Joshua Harris Kissed His Megachurch Goodbye". Christianity Today. Retrieved December 5, 2015.
  14. ↑ Harris, Josh (January 2012). "New Attitude, Na, Next 1999-2012". JoshHarris.com. Josh Harris. Archived from the original on May 19, 2014. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Evangelical Writer Who Influenced Purity Culture Announces Separation From Wife". NPR.org.
  16. ↑ Harris, Joshua. "Joshua Harris Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved July 18, 2019.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Rossi |, Holly Lebowitz. "A Memoir's Sharp Look at Christian Marriage". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved June 29, 2024.
  18. ↑ Parke, Caleb (July 29, 2019). "Well-known Christian author, purity advocate, renounces his faith: 'I hope you can forgive me'". Fox News.
  19. ↑ Sherwood, Harriet (July 29, 2019). "Author of Christian relationship guide says he has lost his faith". The Guardian. Retrieved July 29, 2019.
  20. ↑ Poletti, Jonathan (August 15, 2019). "Joshua Harris's wife finds her voice". Medium. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  21. ↑ Gions-Phillips, Tré (August 29, 2019). "Film distributor drops Joshua Harris' documentary after being blindsided by author saying he's no longer Christian". Faithwire. Retrieved August 29, 2019.

External links

File:Commons-logo.svg
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Joshua Harris (author).
Retrieved from "https://rightwiki.org/index.php?title=Joshua_Harris_(author)&oldid=21274147"