Title: Taboo Tabernacle: God’s Design & The Cultures Demise, One Man’s Journey from The Secular to The Sacred
Author: A.W. Archer
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN: 9781532008993
Pages: 620
Genre: Religion
Reviewed by: Dan Macintosh
Pacific Book Review
A.W. Archer’s epic work, Taboo Tabernacle, could have been at least three different books. It could have, for starters, been a work about Archer’s spiritual testimony; he goes into great detail describing his scattered religious upbringing, which eventually led him to Christianity. Archer could have also written an apologetics tome; he spends a good deal of editorial time providing the detailed scientific evidence that moved him to faith in Christ. Lastly, one of his books- within-a-book includes his persuasive argument for the legal use of cannabis.
Although Archer’s writing style is informative and entertaining throughout, the reader gets a little confused about the author’s ultimate intention. It’s difficult, at times, for us to decide what’s most important to know about the author’s story. It’s likely that most evangelicals will be right with him while he’s telling his life story, which takes him from a New Age practitioner to a fundamentalist Christian. However, it’s unlikely these same evangelicals will be cheering on his pot smoking advocacy. There just aren’t too many Christians that subscribe to both Christianity Today and High Times.
The reader might also be left wishing Archer had limited his editorial scope so he could concentrate more on attention to detail. Although there are some spelling mistakes within the book, as it stands, it’s as though he’s written one good book, whereas – with more time and editorial discretion – he could have penned three great ones. Nevertheless, there’s no disputing Archer has lived a colorful life. Growing up in Southern California, Archer struggled in elementary special education classes early on. Because he has such a good handle on deep intellectual topics now, one must wonder if he may have been misplaced during these formative years. Although he doesn’t really address it, perhaps he simply overcame these handicaps as he grew up.
One area especially instrumental in building Archer’s confidence was his discovery of seemingly innate musical talent. Archer quickly gravitated toward forming rock & roll bands and teaching others how to play music. He even landed a gig on a music reality show. However, this show – where he rubbed shoulders with some of his musical heroes – also revealed the emptiness of the Hollywood lifestyle. Here were many of the stars he looked up to behaving poorly and living unhappy lives. Where he once thought these folks lived the life he ultimately wanted to live, he soon realized he needed something deeper and far more satisfying.
The event which helped escalate his spiritual quest was the impending birth of his son. Throughout his story, one particular woman consistently weaves in and out of Archer’s life. When Lyanna tells Archer she’s about to be the mother of his child, he realizes he and she need to think seriously about stabilizing their relationship in order to provide their child with a good home. They both decide to try church, even though they each have church experiences (of mostly the bad kind) in their background. Eventually, Archer visits a church which changes his opinion of religion forever. He describes a Southern California church where the pastor explains Biblical principles in ways Archer can finally understand them. Suddenly, Biblical Christianity begins to make more sense when lined up side-by- side with other religions and spiritual practices.
Now, if all this material isn’t varied enough, the book’s last chapter includes group discussion questions, presumably aimed at small church groups. However, at over 600 pages in length, it’s tough to imagine many church life groups navigating all the way to the end of it. Granted, A.W. Archer bites off a little more than he can chew with Taboo Tabernacle. However, if the reader breaks it down into smaller, bite size meals, it’s quite a fulfilling work.
