Review: Shepherds for Sale: How Evangelical Leaders Traded the Truth for a Leftist Agenda By Megan Basham (Part 1)

The controversy surrounding Megan Basham’s Shepherds for Sale has somewhat died down by now, but the fault lines it has clarified in the Christian media world are still clear. There are those whose suspicions about progressive influences in Christian institutions have been confirmed, and those who have written Basham off as a conspiracy theorist. This book is a solid rebuttal to those who are in denial about progressive influences on the church. The Southern Baptist Convention is largely at the forefront, and it is easy to see why—it is the largest and most influential Protestant denomination, accounting for a good chunk of the highly coveted evangelical vote. Lest we become haughty, though, there are several mentions of the PCA in this book as well, highlighting the reality that the denomination, while self-consciously Presbyterian, is still subject to the same impulses, issues, and controversies plaguing evangelicals at large. Shepherds for Sale highlights many problems in the evangelical world, not least of which is a class of elite leaders who think of themselves as being above ordinary criticism, and who are immune to recognizing their own biases. This review will take two parts: In the first half, I will discuss some of the persuasive and powerful elements in Basham’s book. In the second half, I will cover some of the areas I thought could have been more precise, as well as share some final takeaways and reflections.

Shepherds for Sale excellently shows that evangelicals comprise a highly desirable voting bloc, and that many secular billionaires have researched how to take it for themselves and use evangelical Christians to impact policy (72). Basham does realize there are multiple reasons why Christians have chosen to support various issues, and that there is room to disagree on policy (xvii). But what she hammers is the deep dishonesty and hypocrisy among evangelical leaders who clothe specific Democratic policies in biblical language and say that those who see things differently are the political ones. The policies in question are wide ranging, covering climate change activism, immigration law, coronavirus policy, support for same-sex marriage in the church, abuse activism, systemic racism, and more.

These are complex topics. It is not wrong for pastors and Christian leaders to weigh them and debate them. But it is wrong for them to make agreement on environmental policies a test of biblical faithfulness. It is wrong to make climate change activism a measure of one’s commitment to the Gospel. And it is wrong to bind consciences with a blithe and unthinking “Love your neighbor.” (30)

The chapter on pro-life issues, for example, demonstrates the selective attention given by leading evangelicals to the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the Supreme Court in 2022. Some, like Karen Swallow Prior and Beth Moore, had vaguely positive things to say about the ruling (53–4), while others had nothing to say at all. Notable among those silent was Russell Moore, despite his role as Christianity Today’s public theologian and his quickness to comment on any news that painted Trump and Republicans in a bad light (56). Basham points out that Moore and many other prominent figures, including Prior, David French, and even the late Tim Keller, somewhat regularly appear in print in the most prestigious newspapers in America to denigrate conservatives and their political opinions. Apparently they have justified this behavior by saying they are “merely calling their fellow Christians to repentance” (88). Basham swiftly rebuts this by pointing out,

The prophets did not go to the pagans to rebuke the Israelites. They did not go to Nebuchadnezzar’s court and assure him he was well justified in attacking the Jews. They did not receive the wealth and honor of the pagan world for doing so. Inasmuch as they were aware of Him at all, the Roman powers reviled Jesus just as much as the Pharisees. They didn’t offer Him a privileged place in their social and professional circles to heap scorn on His people. (88)

In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with criticizing genuine ungodliness in fellow believers. It is not right, however, to routinely belittle Christians for the honor of a secular audience. Ironically, it is usually those who bemoan the fact that Christians are not respected in public life today who think an evangelical presence at the table with those who hate Christianity is something to be desired. One of the book’s important takeaways is the fact that the government is intentionally seeking to manipulate you, the Christian, and has sought to do this by clothing its policies in biblical language. Despite what this book’s vehement haters suggest, the evidence cannot be equivocated with some kooky anon account tweeting about chemtrails—even Time magazine reports that Francis Collins, head of the NIH and a self-identified Christian, “had been specifically dispatched to leverage his relationships with evangelical leaders to get Christians to fall in line” regarding Covid-19 policy, specifically using his position as a Christian to leverage others into taking the Covid-19 vaccine (92).

Shepherds for Sale repeatedly demonstrates the pitfalls present in the concept of the “faithful presence” argument espoused by many. Basham’s indictment of Collins should serve as a cautionary tale for Christians who desire “a seat at the table.” Not only did Collins specifically use his position as a Christian to lie and manipulate other Christians into following questionable Covid restrictions, but he was endorsed by others as a paragon of Christian witness in the halls of government (109). As an aside, I remember well the pressure from supposedly trustworthy evangelical leaders and institutions for me to get the Covid vaccine in 2020. As a young college student, it was amazing to see so many Christians using this as a litmus test for love of neighbor without a whit of curiosity as to why they were being asked to cheapen their own theology for something highly experimental and untrustworthy.

The chapter on race expertly shows how trendy ideologies impact regular church members. Julie Bell and her husband David, featured in the beginning of chapter six, were longtime members of a PCA church in Charlotte, NC. In 2020 the Bells received an email from the church leadership apologizing for the “non-black leaders” who were confessing their “complicit(y) in perpetuating systemic racism” (121). The leadership went on to exhort all the non-white members of the church to repent alongside them, and explained that every month there would be grief groups for non-white members. From then on, the Bells experienced many “struggle sessions” about race in their church, including a women’s conference focused on “the white colonization of American Christianity” (122), monthly luncheons dedicated to racism discussions, where Robin DiAngelo’s book White Fragility was studied (123), and eventually the hiring of a new youth pastor whose stated goals with the youth were to see “the racism discipled out of them” (124), not to mention countless sermons, book studies, and Wednesday night Bible studies, all about race. This type of situation is not unique in the modern church (or even the PCA), but in my view it is incredibly damaging to its peace, purity, and unity.

To the church’s credit, it has been extremely popular to think about race this way, and there are understandable reasons why someone might want to pursue racial reconciliation on the basis of American history. It is disheartening, however, to see the divisive ideology of power dynamics be applied in my own denomination. A recent article about one of Covenant Seminary’s (CTS) former professors, Dr. Vince Bantu, sparked a conversation online about the content he had been teaching in his classes.1 According to a Covenant graduate, these things included: exhortations to “lament the Western, white cultural captivity of the Church and to place ministerial priority on the socially and culturally marginalized,” claims that “indigenous leaders should disciple and sanctify their own ethnic groups,” and even the inviting of a guest lecturer who told CTS students that “Israel’s God was developed in Ur, Haran, and Egypt” and “Native American gods are no more pagan than our God.”2 Importantly, Dr. Bantu is no longer an employee of CTS, and many former students have said they do not believe the seminary would endorse these ideas. But it is clear from this exchange that our seminaries are not immune to deeply unbiblical teachings entering in under the guise of a fresh, relevant ideology.

I am not the first reviewer of this book to point out the especially awful example of J.D. Greear’s witch hunt for racists at First Baptist Church in Naples, all because they had chosen not to vote for a black pastoral candidate (143).3 Despite no evidence of racism, church members were targeted by multiple high profile Southern Baptists and ejected from their church (145). This story illustrates how callous it is for prominent evangelicals to shame ordinary church members—their sheep—in favor of a purported anti-racist self-image, making themselves honorable in the eyes of the world. As Basham puts it, “Why would the Church ever want to synthesize such ungodly lessons with the Gospel that reconciles each other by reconciling them first to Christ?” (150). If you see somewhat differently on this issue, please consider why some of us find it unconscionable to be teaching this in our churches (I recommend Neil Shenvi’s articles on this).4 I would challenge any progenitor of modern racial justice in the church to tell me whether people who are having this race essentialism taught to them are any happier, godlier, or more unified in Christ.

The title itself has led to no small controversy online, with some of the pastors mentioned therein making jokes about being included in the number.5 “Shepherds for Sale” is a catchy, almost irresistible riff on the contemptuous ways that secular NGOs talk about roping evangelical pastors into advancing their ideas. (The Soros-funded organization New America refers to the strategy of using institutions to push evangelicals leftward as the “rent-a-pastor” model.) While it is irrefutable that leftist billionaires have invested huge amounts of time and money into making Christians mobilize for Democratic policies, the real tragedy Basham’s book reveals is that many evangelical pastors were easily duped and manipulated into promoting bad agendas that have had catastrophic effects on the church—which is in some cases even worse than being bought and paid for to lie about what they believe. “Shepherds Blinded By Status Consciousness” would have been a more accurate, albeit less catchy, title. Of course, some of the high-profile evangelicals mentioned do truly fit the moniker of being “for sale,” not least among them Francis Collins, who was not only paid by the government to manipulate Christians into taking the vaccine for “neighbor love,” but who also was paid to lie outright about its safety and efficacy.

Despite my scruple with the title, Basham’s broader point is very salient—parties like high-profile leftist billionaires and government entities are highly interested in manipulating Christians into supporting their preferred policies, and they have been successful in getting influential Christians to shill for them on the national stage. Most of the pastors involved have been duped by this messaging and foist the narratives on their sheep, and so I would not describe them as being “for sale” per se. In this book are several examples of Christians who are not pastors, however, but rather high profile, public individuals in places of influence or denominational executives receiving direct funding to use their status as an evangelical Christian to push left-leaning policies on their constituents, and those are the kinds of men to whom I would genuinely ascribe the moniker of being “for sale.” (It is interesting that the worst actors here are not pastors, but denominational executives with lots of power and little loyalty to their church’s values.)

I will not make you wait for the second installment of my review to give you my two cents: I like the book, and I think it is important to remember that money, power, and influence usually come with strings attached, and, more importantly, they come with consequences for Christ’s church. The “money men” Basham mentions and rightly exposes are infuriating, but ultimately, not surprising to read about. At risk of beating a dead horse on the PCA’s involvement in Revoice and Side B, I have not wanted to give it a lot of attention in my review, but I would commend this portion (223-6) as something for PCA ministers to carefully think about. As I have mentioned (and will go into more detail about in part two), the saddest element is the pastors who have not been discerning of their own biases, and who have slipped into the comfortable position of lambasting the people in their pews for any number of culturally offensive “sins,” all while not realizing they are simply making themselves look righteous by worldly standards (and not actually helping anyone turn from any real sins). I will encourage pastors to be wary of the juicy but vain political side quests that will try to distract you from the actual, real ministry of the Gospel. Shepherds for Sale demonstrates that when this happens, your sheep experience the consequences.

Notes

  1. Daniel Silliman, “Seminary Professor Accused of Secret Second Marriage,” Christianity Today, September 19, 2024.
  2. Charles Stover (@cstover89), “Here is what I learned at seminary from Dr. Vince Bantu. . .” X,  September 19, 2024.
  3. Bethel McGrew, “How the Evangelical Elite Failed Their Flock,” First Things, 23 August 2024.
  4. Neil Shenvi, “Christianity and Critical Theory – Part 2,” Shenvi Apologetics, May 23, 2019.
  5. Gavin Ortlund (@gavinortlund), “Grateful to meet and get lunch today with @jdgreear — two shepherds for sale united at last!” X, October 3, 2024.

©Zoe Miller. All Rights Reserved.

Megan Basham, Shepherds for Sale: How Evangelical Leaders Traded the Truth for a Leftist Agenda (Northampton, MA: Broadside Books, 2024).


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  • Zoe Miller
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    Zoe is a missionary kid, pastor’s wife, and enthusiastically Presbyterian lady. Zoe and her husband Seth live in Couer d’Alene, ID, where he is the planting pastor at Immanuel Presbyterian Church (PCA). A freelance journalist and writer, Zoe occasionally appears in World Magazine, Presbyterian Polity, and other publications. In her spare time, she enjoys cohosting the Presbygirls podcast with her friend Sarah Morris, enjoying beautiful Northern Idaho outdoors, and haranguing her friends on the website formerly known as Twitter.

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7 comments

  1. “the real tragedy Basham’s book reveals is that many evangelical pastors were easily duped and manipulated into promoting bad agendas that have had catastrophic effects on the church—which is in some cases even worse than being bought and paid for to lie about what they believe”

    I think this is where the fundamental problem lies with Megan’s book. Her premise that pastors and leaders are overtaken by politics is certainly true on both sides of the american political aisle. Yet her litmus test for being sold out, or “duped,” is simply disagreeing on something Christians can disagree on with good conscience. For instance, even if you didn’t get the vaccine, we should not be calling pastors heretics who in good conscience did, encouraging others to do so without forcing. They were following Christian liberty. And other pastors like Ortlund mentioned, who simply believe “climate change” is a thing. Because he disagrees with Megan, he is labelled a shepherd for sale. The list can on. You mention of course Russel Moore and abortion. He is somehow labelled as pro-choice in this book, yet he has consistently written pro-life articles, books, and preached pro-life sermons. A google search will show articles by him about Roe v Wade as well.

    All this to say, we should condemn pastors/leaders who place politics above the faith. Yet we should not condemn leaders who simply disagree with us in good faith about certain political issues. That is what Megan does in her diatribe.

  2. Surprised and disappointed to find this sunny review of a deeply flawed book by a woman clearly trying her best to prove her a priori assumptions by any means necessary. I certainly hope Part 2 discusses all the debunked statements and statistics in the book as well as the libel against people like Marvin Olasky, who she did not even contact before writing the book. Then there are the inaccuracies. This is not a matter of being more precise. There are major problems with the book, and it is ironic that someone who is so bent on calling out others for their supposed sin is unwilling to even halfway admit any mistakes or sins herself. She is also a Trump and Wilson apologist and she is seeing seeds of discord in the church, encouraging church members to use the same hermeneutic of suspicion about their pastors and fellow church members that she decries.

    • At the conclusion of his lengthy defense to how JD Greear was treated in this book he says:

      “In his critique of the American left, Shelby Steele laments a concept he calls “poetic truth,” by which he means the propensity of the left to misconstrue facts or selectively report evidence in order to affirm a truth they believe is more true than even the facts themselves. Strangely, he says, dispensers of poetic truth feel justified in their distortions because they know the bigger narrative is true even if not all the facts support this particular case. For many left-leaning reporters, facts only exist to support a poetic, presupposed narrative.

      Unfortunately, Basham’s book demonstrates that this impulse is just as seductive to those of us on the right, too.”

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