''The Ragamuffin Gospel'' is a book about Christianity by former

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

priest

Brennan Manning Richard Francis Xavier Manning, known as Brennan Manning (April 27, 1934 – April 12, 2013) was an American author, laicized priest, and public speaker. He is best known for his bestselling book ''The Ragamuffin Gospel''. Biography Born and r ...

. Manning argues that

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

' gospel was one of grace, and that efforts to earn

salvation Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...

are misguided, as it is impossible. He laments that the true meaning of God's grace has been lost in society amidst a constant search to please God. Manning explains that we see God "as a small-minded bookkeeper, tallying our failures and successes on a score sheet." Citing numerous

biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

references and illustrative anecdotes, Manning argues that we need only accept the freedom of

God's grace Divine grace is a theological term present in many religions. It has been defined as the divine influence which operates in humans to regenerate and sanctify, to inspire virtuous impulses, and to impart strength to endure trial and resist temptati ...

and its power to change lives. Rather than attempt to earn salvation,

evangelism In Christianity, evangelism (or witnessing) is the act of preaching the gospel with the intention of sharing the message and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians who specialize in evangelism are often known as evangelists, whether they are i ...

requires only to say to another: "you, too, are loved by God in the Lord Jesus.” The book was first published in 1990. The book title was the inspiration for Christian musical artist

Rich Mullins Richard Wayne Mullins (October 21, 1955 – September 19, 1997) was an American contemporary Christian music singer and songwriter best known for his worship songs " Awesome God" and "Sometimes by Step". Some of his albums were listed by ''CC ...

' band name

A Ragamuffin Band A Ragamuffin Band was a musical group founded by Rich Mullins in 1993, when he gathered friends from other bands to back him on his ''A Liturgy, A Legacy, & A Ragamuffin Band'' album. The band continued to record and tour with Mullins, and even c ...

. It also inspired

TobyMac Toby McKeehan (born Kevin Michael McKeehan; October 22, 1964), better known by his stage name TobyMac (styled tobyMac or TOBYMAC), is an American contemporary Christian music singer, rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He was first known f ...

to write "

Speak Life ''Speak Life'' is the debut studio album by Albany, New York-based hip hop musician Sev Statik, released on November 9, 2002, through Uprok Records. While Sev Statik, real name Joseph Evans, had released a previous studio album, '' Altered State' ...

References

External links

The 50 Best Quotes From The Ragamuffin Gospel

A small-town Georgia preacher fills pews by leaving no one out
1990 non-fiction books {{Catholic-Church-book-stub