I have to admit something up front. I don’t trust statistics. This isn’t a very popular opinion among pastors, but I think statistics are overrated. They can be too easily manipulated – both in collection and in interpretation.

So when I started reading Bradley R.E. Wright’s book, Christians Are Hate-Filled Hypocrites…and Other Lies You’ve Been Told, I was not too sure what to think. After all, Wright makes it very plain that this was a book about statistics – and he was very upfront about his attachment to said statistics.

It put me on guard and got me ready to stifle some yawns, which it turns out I did have to do. By definition, statistics do not make for interesting reading. They’re just numbers and then the interpretation of the numbers. Wright inserted a lot of humor to help ease the passage of what he knew to be a lot of numbers and graphs, and I give him credit for that.

Overall, the book is not what I would call catalytic. Wright does indeed dispel a lot of false statements Christians make based on statistics. In that aspect, it was great. But these were statistics I already knew were skewed, so it probably did not open my eyes as much as it might someone who relies on the statistics.

If you’re a numbers person, you will love this book. If you’re a typical statistic-spouting Christian leader, you might not enjoy it too much. For me, it was alright. It will go on my resource shelf; but it won’t be a re-read anytime soon.