“The local church pastor is key – absolutely central – to everything we are and do as a church" (Ministry Magazine, 2010). Do sentiments like this reflect the mind of Christ? Since around 250AD the visible church has focused on one leader to hold the parishioners together. The Protestant tradition carried on this practice by making the "Pastor" or "Minister" the focal point. In The Pastor Has No Clothes, Jon Zens demonstrates that putting all the ecclesiastical eggs in the pastor's basket has no precedent in the New Testament. Using 1 Corinthians 12:14 as a springboard, he shows that the usual way of doing church contradicts Paul's self-evident remark that "the body indeed is not one part," and then goes on to unfold from that Epistle how the living church functions "with many parts." Jon dismembers the traditional pastor doctrine from various angles by combining two new essays and a response to Eugene Peterson’s The Pastor: A Memoir, with three past articles and excerpts from his response to Dr. Ben Witherington’s review of Pagan Christianity. “The pulpit,” suggested Paul Watts in 2000, “stands for the authoritative Word of God, its public reading and preaching. The pew, through long usage, has become a symbol for the hearing and reception of that word.” Is this what church boils down to: pulpit and pew? You would think so by the prevalent ways church is practiced. But Jon shows that pulpit and pew are unknown in the New Testament. Instead, a vibrant organic church life enriched by the participation of everyone is portrayed. FRANK VIOLA SAYS: Jon Zens has written one of the most important books of the 21st century. If you thought Pagan Christianity was controversial, think again. Jon’s book demonstrates beyond dispute that the clergy-system (in the form of the modern pastorate) is not only unbiblical, but contrary to the headship of Jesus Christ. I hope that every Christian reads this volume with an open heart and mind, especially those who deem themselves “leaders” in the body of Christ. I applaud Jon for his courage in adding another Scripture-based book to help foment the growing revolution that God has begun today — a revolution designed to give His church back to His beloved Son. -- Frank Viola, author of Reimagining Church, Pagan Christianity, From Eternity to Here & Revise Us Again