Hemant Mehta, an atheist, sold his soul on Ebay!  Hence the title of his new book, "I Sold My Soul on eBay:  Viewing Faith Through an Atheist’s Eyes."

He is known as The Friendly Atheist and you can read and interact with him at his blog (click here).

His book is a quick and "friendly" read.  He auctioned himself on ebay to the highest bidder who would then have the option of making him go to church wherever they wanted.  Jim Henderson (www.off-the-map.com), a man with a ministry to help churches be better churches, purchased his time for $504.  He in turn asked Hemant to visit a number of churches and write about his experiences.

It really is a fun read on church-land from an outsiders perspective.  He gives his takes on churches of all sizes (including some that are rather well known) and what he thinks of the preaching, music, announcemts etc.

No, he didn’t convert, but he does offer advice on how to reach out to people without faith.  I thought the following quote was interesting given the current conversation on this blog.

Martin Luther King Jr. is said to have oberved that eleven o’clock sunday morning was the most segregated hour in America.  Based on the research I did for this book, I would say that still holds true.  With very few exceptions, the churches I visited were either black congregations or white ones…You want to reach people like me?  Then show me the churches where…I can see a rainbow of people in the crowd instead of a sea of whiteness or, in another neighborhood, a sea of blackness…I’d love to see Christian faith leading to an openness and equality, respect for people no matter their gender or skin color or language or culture.  Think about this:  atheist gateherings are often a mixture of everyone in society…Does it surprise you that secular people are leading the way in accepting others, no matter their individual differences?

Colorado Community Church…thank you for getting IT!