In today's highly charged social and political environment, we often don't know how to talk well with others--especially with people whose backgrounds differ from our own. C. Christopher Smith, coauthor of the critically acclaimed and influential Slow Church, addresses why conversation has become such a challenge in the 21st century and argues that it is perhaps the most-needed spiritual practice of our individualistic age. Smith likens practicing conversation to the working of the human body. Bodies are wondrous symphonies of diverse, intricate parts striving for our health, and our health suffers when these parts fail to converse effectively. Likewise, we must learn to converse effectively with those who differ from us in the body of Christ so we can embody Christ together in the world. In community, we learn what it means to belong to others and to a story that is bigger than ourselves. Smith shows how church communities can be training hubs where we learn to talk with and listen to one another with kindness and compassion. The book explores how churches can initiate and sustain conversation, offers advice for working through seasons of conflict, suggests spiritual practices and dispositions that can foster conversation, and features stories from several congregations that are learning to practice conversation.

A doctor and a theologian explore the relationship between Christian faith and medicine, encouraging a more biblical view of health and health care by individuals and churches

Thomas offers practical, biblical instruction on a wide range of issues involving individual and corporate participation and responsibility in the life of a local church. (Christian)

The Practice of the Body of Christ begins a conversation between "apocalyptic" interpretations of the Apostle Paul and the contemporary revival in "virtue ethics." It argues that the human actor's place in Pauline theology has long been captive to theological concerns foreign to Paul and that we can discern in Paul a classical account of human action that Alasdair MacIntyre's work helps to recover. Such an account of agency helps ground an apocalyptic reading of Paul by recovering the centrality of the church and its day-to-day Christic practices, specifically, but not exclusively, the Eucharist. To demonstrate this Miller first offers a critique of some contemporary accounts of agency in Paul in light of MacIntyre's work. Three exegetical chapters then establish a "MacIntyrian" rereading of central parts of the letter to the Romans. A concluding chapter offers theological syntheses and prospects for future research.

Take spirituality into the real world. Jesus didn't "become flesh" so we could feel different. He came to this world so we will be different. Often our spirituality seems invisible and mute to a hurting world. Many of us simply internalize faith out of fear, feelings of inadequacy, or choice. A faithful response to discipleship's call, however, is both inward and outward. Through Howell's study, you'll find ways to apply faith to your daily life and make evident your commitment to Christ. By considering all that Jesus did with his hands as a teacher, a healer, and a compassionate servant, Howell challenges readers to be the hands and feet and love of Christ in the world. "Christianity must become something real, tangible, something that pervades all that we are," writes Howell. "It must become something we do. In our culture, for Christianity to have any meaningful future, we must get serious about a genuine lifestyle that is holy without being elitist, engaged with the world without being jaded or self-righteous, active and busy yet prepared to cope with failure." Howell's inspiration for this work comes from a poetic meditation written by Teresa of Avila, a Spanish nun who lived in the 16th century. The poem begins: "Christ has no body now on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours." Howell connects these words with the apostle Paul, who wrote in 1 Corinthians 12: "Now you are the body of Christ." Express your faith through action. Be the hands of Christ today to a hurting world.

An in-depth look at what it means to be created in the image of God and how our bodies serve as icons that illuminate God's purposes instead of ours. The human body is an amazing gift, yet today, many people downplay its importance and fail to understand what Christianity teaches about our bodies and their God-given purposes. Many people misunderstand how the body was designed, its role in relating to others; and we lack awareness of the dangers of objectifying the body, divorcing it from its intended purpose. Timothy Tennent covers topics like marriage, family, singleness, and friendship, and he looks at how the human body has been objectified in art and media today. For the Body offers a biblical framework for discipling people today in a Christian theology of the body. Tennent—theologian and president of Asbury Theological Seminary—explores the contours of a robust Christian vision of the body, human sexuality, and the variety of different ways we are called into relationships with others. This book will reveal a theological vision that: Informs our self-understanding of our own bodies. Examines how we treat others. Reevaluates how we engage today's controversial and difficult discussions on human sexuality with grace, wisdom, and confidence. For the Body is a call to a deeper understanding of our bodies and an invitation to recapture the wonder of this amazing gift.