Everybody knows that mainline Christianity in the West is on the skids. This book explains why. Using the Methodist church as a case study, Abraham shows the fatal policy decisions in play over the last two centuries. By means of a lively overview of the lives of Albert Outler, John Sung, and William Arthur, he shows what choices were made and why. He also shows how the church in the West can recover its nerve and get back on track. Everyone interested in the recovery of Christianity in the West should read this book. William J. Abraham is Albert Cook Outler Professor of Wesley Studies and Altshuler Distinguished Teaching Professor at Perkins School of Theology, located at Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas, United States.