Churched: One Kid's Journey Toward God Despite a Holy Mess

“Sweet-hearted, funny, and honest, Churched had me reminiscing about the little boy searching for God that I once was…”
—Dan Merchant, writer/director of Lord, Save Us From Your Followers


Churched details an American boy’s experiences growing up in a culture where men weren’t allowed to let their hair grow to touch their ears (“an abomination!”), women wouldn’t have been caught dead in a pair of pants (unless swimming), and the pastor couldn’t preach a sermon without a healthy dose of hellfire and brimstone.

In 1978, when Matthew Paul Turner was five, his family became sold-out members of an independent Baptist church, joining without any firsthand knowledge of Christian fundamentalism, only his parents’ sincere desire to follow God. In Churched, with wit and careful observation, he reveals the tenderness and grace that managed to seep through the cracks and a young man who, amidst the chaotic mess of religion, falls in love with Jesus.

“Churched is funny, poignant, and surprisingly moving.”
—Sara Miles, author of Take This Bread

“A memoirist who doesn’t take himself or the world too seriously, but still writes profoundly and beautifully, Turner gave me a belly-laugh on almost every page.”
—Lisa Samson, award-winning author of Quaker Summer, Embrace Me and Justice in the Burbs