In many ways, Heit often leaves his readers hanging. By that I mean that he makes bold assertions and claims about aspects of contemporary American Christianity without really backing them up with statistics or examples. Nevertheless, Heit's book is still an entertaining read and a reminder of why The Simpsons will remain relevant for quite some time to come.
J. Ryan Parker is the creator, editor of, and main contributor to Pop Theology. A fourth-year Ph.D. student in Religion and the Arts (with a focus on film) at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, California, his research interests include contemporary religious cinema after The Passion of the Christ, the history of religious cinema, and the ways in which films affect, and are affected by, religious consciousness. He has also served as a media consultant on documentary film projects. He holds a B.A. in English from Mississippi College and an M.Div. from Wake Forest University Divinity School.