Radical Christian Voices and Practice
Title | Radical Christian Voices and Practice PDF eBook |
Author | Zoë Bennett |
Publisher | Oxford University Press |
Pages | 318 |
Release | 2012-01-26 |
Genre | Philosophy |
ISBN | 0199599777 |
Sixteen new essays by a team of leading international scholars on the theme of the Bible and its reception and appropriation in the context of radical practices, and an exposition of the imaginative possibilities of radical engagement with the Bible in inclusive social contexts.
The Dangers of Christian Practice
Title | The Dangers of Christian Practice PDF eBook |
Author | Lauren F. Winner |
Publisher | Yale University Press |
Pages | 241 |
Release | 2018-01-01 |
Genre | Religion |
ISBN | 0300215827 |
Challenging the central place that "practices" have recently held in Christian theology, Lauren Winner explores the damages these practices have inflicted over the centuries Sometimes, beloved and treasured Christian practices go horrifyingly wrong, extending violence rather than promoting its healing. In this bracing book, Lauren Winner provocatively challenges the assumption that the church possesses a set of immaculate practices that will definitionally train Christians in virtue and that can't be answerable to their histories. Is there, for instance, an account of prayer that has anything useful to say about a slave-owning woman's praying for her slaves' obedience? Is there a robustly theological account of the Eucharist that connects the Eucharist's goods to the sacrament's central role in medieval Christian murder of Jews? Arguing that practices are deformed in ways that are characteristic of and intrinsic to the practices themselves, Winner proposes that the register in which Christians might best think about the Eucharist, prayer, and baptism is that of "damaged gift." Christians go on with these practices because, though blighted by sin, they remain gifts from God.
The Rise of the Early Christian Intellectual
Title | The Rise of the Early Christian Intellectual PDF eBook |
Author | Lewis Ayres |
Publisher | Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |
Pages | 342 |
Release | 2020-05-05 |
Genre | Religion |
ISBN | 3110608006 |
The study of the growth of early Christian intellectual life is of perennial interest to scholars. This volume advances discussion by exploring ways in which Christian writers in the second century did not so much draw on Hellenistic intellectual traditions and models, as they were inevitably embedded in those traditions. The volume contains papers from a seminar in Rome in 2016 that explored the nature and activity of the emergent Christian intellectual between the late first century and the early third century. The papers show that Hellenistic scholarly cultures were the milieu within which Christian modes of thinking developed. At the same time the essays show how Christian thinkers made use of the cultures of which they were part in distinctive ways, adapting existing traditions because of Christian beliefs and needs. The figures studied include Papias from the early part of the second-century, Tatian, Irenaeus, and Clement of Alexandria from the later second century. One paper on Eusebius of Caesarea explores the Christian adaptation of Hellenistic scholarly methods of commentary. Christian figures are studied in the light of debates within Classics and Jewish studies.
Apologetics without Apology
Title | Apologetics without Apology PDF eBook |
Author | Elaine Graham |
Publisher | Wipf and Stock Publishers |
Pages | 187 |
Release | 2017-07-19 |
Genre | Religion |
ISBN | 1498284132 |
Against many expectations, religion has not vanished from Western culture. People are troubled and fascinated in equal measure by this new visibility and are unsure whether it is right to (re)incorporate the vocabulary of faith into our common life. This unprecedented co-existence of religion and secularism is sometimes termed the “postsecular,” and in this book Elaine Graham considers some of its implications for the public witness of Christianity. She argues that everyone, from church leaders, theologians, local activists, and campaigners, needs to learn again how to “speak Christian” in these contexts. They need to articulate credible theological justifications for their involvement in public life and to justify the very relevance of their faith to a culture that no longer grants automatic privilege or credence. This entails a retrieval of the ancient practice of apologetics, in order to encourage and equip Christians to defend and commend their core principles and convictions in public. This “new apologetics” involves discerning the actions of God in the world, participating in the praxis of God’s mission and bearing witness in word and deed. Rather than being an adversarial or argumentative process, this is an invitation to dialogue and to the rejuvenation of our public life.
Open
Title | Open PDF eBook |
Author | Brad R. Braxton |
Publisher | Fortress Press |
Pages | 262 |
Release | 2023-04-04 |
Genre | Religion |
ISBN | 150648882X |
In Open, Brad Braxton boldly articulates an open theology--progressive approaches that promote unorthodox theological reflection and the creation of inclusive communities. Despite attempts by many right-wing politicians and conservative Christians to curtail diverse religious and cultural expressions, an open embrace of pluralism enhances Christianity's capacity to foster healing, hope, and restorative justice. Thus, Christian communities should be audaciously open about being open. Attempts to box in God diminish us spiritually and render us prone to small-mindedness and mean-spiritedness. Certain Christians function as if God cannot withstand robust engagement with the complexities of a diverse world. God does not need to be protected by religious fence-building and cultural gatekeeping. To honor an open God who delights in diversity, we should create open communities committed to radically inclusive love. This book engages serious, even controversial, topics including Jesus's identity, reparations for slavery, LGBTQ equality, the Black Lives Matter movement, warfare and non-violence, environmental justice, and interreligious collaboration. Insisting that there is room for all, an open theology empowers us to create broad spaces where people from diverse backgrounds with divergent beliefs can peacefully probe their differences and celebrate their similarities for the sake of a better world. If you are tired of closed-minded religion that sows division and hatred, open this book! If you are searching for compassionate spirituality that promotes inclusion and justice, open this book! Here you will find an open theology--creative thinking about God and courageous practices for building diverse communities through radically inclusive love.
Title | PDF eBook |
Author | |
Publisher | Augsburg Fortress Publishers |
Pages | 3265 |
Release | |
Genre | |
ISBN |
Spirit(s) in Black Religion
Title | Spirit(s) in Black Religion PDF eBook |
Author | Kurt Buhring |
Publisher | Springer Nature |
Pages | 321 |
Release | 2022-09-10 |
Genre | Religion |
ISBN | 3031098870 |
In this book Kurt Buhring explores concepts of spirit(s) within various Black religions as a means to make a constructive theological contribution to contemporary Black theology in regard to ideas of the Holy Spirit, or pneumatology. He argues that there are rich resources within African and African-based religions to develop a more robust notion of the Holy Spirit for contemporary Black liberation theology. In so doing, Buhring offers a pneumatology that understands divine power and presence within humanity and through human action. The theology offered maintains the fundamental claim that God acts as liberator of the oppressed, while also calling for greater human responsibility and capability for bringing about liberation.