Download or read book Following Jesus in a Culture of Fear The Christian Practice of Everyday Life written by Scott Bader-Saye and published by Brazos Press. This book was released on 2007-06-01 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Through politics, marketing, news programming, and popular culture we are taught to fear, often in ways that profit others. But what does all this fear do to our moral lives as it forms (or deforms) our character and our judgment? Drawing on Christian scripture and tradition, Following Jesus in a Culture of Fear articulates a response to fear that resists an ethic of security in favor of fostering an ethic of risk. The Christian virtues of hospitality, peacefulness, and generosity are presented as the way to defeat the counter-virtues of suspicion, preemption, and control. Pastors, students, and lay people will find this unique book both accessible and intriguing. EXCERPT Do not be afraid. We live in a time when this biblical refrain cannot be repeated too often. Both John Paul II in 1978 and his successor, Benedict XVI, in 2005 used these words to begin their papacies. Among all the things the church has to say to the world today, this may be the most important. No one has to be convinced that we live in fearful times, though we are not always sure what we should be afraid of and why. We suspect that our fears make us vulnerable to manipulation, but we find it hard to quell the fear long enough to analyze how it is being produced and directed for the benefit of others. One reason we are a more fearful culture today, despite the fact that the dangers are not objectively greater than in the past, is because some people have incentives and means to heighten, manipulate, and exploit our fears. Fear is a strong motivator, and so those who want and need to motivate others--politicians, advertisers, media executives, advocacy groups, even the church--turn to fear to bolster their message. I call this the "fear for profit" syndrome, and it is rampant. We have become preoccupied with unlikely dangers that take on the status of imminent threats, producing a culture where fear determines a disproportionate number of our personal and communal decisions. The sense of ever-increasing threats can overwhelm our ability to evaluate and respond proportionately to each new risk, thus we allow fear to overdetermine our actions.
Download or read book Untamed Hospitality The Christian Practice of Everyday Life written by Elizabeth Newman and published by Brazos Press. This book was released on 2007-04-01 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Christian hospitality is more than a well-set table, pleasant conversation, or even inviting people into your home. Christian hospitality, according to Elizabeth Newman, is an extension of how we interact with God. It trains us to be capable of welcoming strangers who will challenge us and enhance our lives in unexpected ways, readying us to embrace the ultimate stranger: God. In Untamed Hospitality, Newman dispels the modern myths of hospitality as a superficial commodity that can be bought and sold at The Pottery Barn and restores it to its proper place within God's story, as displayed most fully in Jesus Christ. Worship, she says, is the believer's participation in divine hospitality, a hospitality that cannot be sequestered from our economic, political, or public lives. This in-depth study of true hospitality will be of interest to professors, students, and scholars looking for a fresh take on a timeless subject.
Download or read book Following Jesus in a Culture of Fear written by Scott Bader-Saye and published by Brazos Press. This book was released on 2020-11-03 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Fear has taken on an outsized role in our current cultural and political context. Manufactured threats are advanced with little to no evidence of danger, while real threats are exaggerated for self-interested gain. This steady diet of fear produces unhealthy moral lives, leading many Christians to focus more on the dangers we wish to avoid than the goods we wish to pursue. As a fearful people, we are tempted to make safety our highest good and to make virtues of suspicion, preemption, and accumulation. But this leaves the church ill-equipped to welcome the stranger, love the enemy, or give to those in need. This timely resource brings together cultural analysis and theological insight to explore a Christian response to the culture of fear. Laying out a path from fear to faithfulness, theologian Scott Bader-Saye explores practices that embody Jesus's call to place our trust in him, inviting Christian communities to take the risks of hospitality, peacemaking, and generosity. This book has been revised throughout, updated to connect with today's readers, and includes new discussion questions.
Download or read book Whom Shall I Fear written by Rosalind C. Hughes and published by Upper Room Books. This book was released on 2021-07-01 with total page 122 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Churches are not immune to violence, as we have seen from shootings at houses of worship across the nation. The challenge for faith communities is how to respond to potential violence. Whom Shall I Fear? asks congregational leaders to examine whether their operational and security policies are consistent with gospel values. It raises common themes in approaches to church security and looks at them in the light of scripture. Whom Shall I Fear? provides thought-provoking reflections on topics such as locked doors, living faithfully in an unfaithful world, the question of armed security in a church setting, and the duty of Christians to extend hospitality to their neighbor. It includes stories from survivors of gun violence and wisdom on how churches can work to transform an anxious and fear-driven world. Whom Shall I Fear? helps the church thoughtfully wrestle with what it means to be a church of grace, welcome, and love when confronted with acts of cruelty, division, and hate.
Download or read book Christianity Democracy and the Radical Ordinary written by Romand Coles and published by Lutterworth Press. This book was released on 2010-02-25 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: These essays reflect possibilities and practices of radical democracy and radical ecclesia that take form in the textures of relational care for the radical ordinary. Hauerwas and Coels point out political and theological imaginations beyond the political formations, which seems to be the declination and the production of death. The authors call us to a revolutionary politics of 'wild patience' that seeks transformation through attentive practices of listening, relationship-building, and a careful tending to places, common goods, and diverse possibilities for flourishing.
Download or read book Christian Ethics written by David S. Cunningham and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2008-03-03 with total page 414 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A biblical, historical, philosophical and theological guide to the field of Christian ethics. Written in an accessible and animated style, this is the essential text for students of Ethics.
Download or read book The Redemption of Scrooge written by Matt Rawle and published by Abingdon Press. This book was released on 2016-08-03 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Is redemption possible for Ebenezer Scrooge? Pastor and author Matt Rawle believes so as he discovers the teachings of Jesus in the words of the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol. Rawle dives deep into the dark, sad, greedy world of Scrooge and discovers a man in dire need of a second chance. Along with Scrooge, we meet the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future and in the process learn about living with and for others in a world blessed by Jesus. Rediscover and reinvigorate your Christian faith this Advent and Christmas season and look at this familiar classic through the lens of faith. Chapters include: Bah! Humbug! The Remembrance of Christmas Past The Life of Christmas Present The Hope of Christmas Future
Download or read book Mission in Solidarity Life in Abundance for All written by Riley Edwards-Raudonat and published by LIT Verlag Münster. This book was released on 2018-01-29 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In November 2014, the Evangelical Mission in Solidarity (EMS) invited its member churches worldwide to examine firsthand each other's understanding of mission. The findings would then be used as a basis for an EMS Symposium on the theme of 'Mission Moves.' This was the starting point for four international EMS Team Visits to churches in Ghana, India, Indonesia and Germany, in 2015 and 2016, followed by the Symposium itself in June 2017. This book showcases some rare insights into what happens when churches with very different missiological backgrounds engage on a common path of internationalisation and growing together. Riley Edwards-Raudonat is the Africa Liaison Secretary at EMS. Originally from the USA, he is now based in Germany and has lived and worked extensively in Ghana. Uwe GrÃ?¤be is currently the Middle East Liaison Secretary at EMS, and Executive Secretary of the Evangelical Association for the Schneller Schools. Before that, he spent many years living and working in the Middle East. Kerstin Neumann is the EMS Deputy General Secretary and Head of its Department for Mission and Partnership. Before assuming her current post at EMS, she lived and worked in India for more than twenty years. (Series: Contributions to Missiology and Intercultural Theology / Beitrage zur Missionswissenschaft und Interkulturellen Theologie, Vol. 41) [Subject: Christian Studies, Religious Studies, Evangelical Studies]
Download or read book When Women Give written by Kim King and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2017-07-07 with total page 179 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Women are entrepreneurs, highly paid professionals, and leaders in business. Many of us have skills to give. We are marrying later. Many of us have time to give. Women are also likely to manage the family money for a significant portion of their lives. Many of us have money to give. When Kim King, a former corporate lawyer, began her own giving journey she found herself short on resources that would guide her along the way. She faced many questions: How much do I give? How do I find good organizations that are efficient and effective? What are some of the common methods of giving? How do I find others to join me on this journey? Most of all, she was eager to root all of her decisions in a biblical framework. When Women Give is filled with practical advice and stories to foster growth in giving at any and every level. Kim shares openly from her own story, both from her perspective as a donor and from serving on the boards of several Christian nonprofits. If you want to be a wise steward of what you've been given, then this book is for you.
Download or read book Light to those in Darkness written by Charlie Bell and published by SCM Press. This book was released on 2023-06-28 with total page 102 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Now widely recognised within palliative care, the concept of ‘total pain’ is an intensely theological one at heart. In Light to those in Darkness clinician and theologian Dr Charlie Bell holds up the concept to theological scrutiny. Bell reflects on the ways that the doctrine of ‘the communion of saints’, might be used to help the church understand how it can address “total pain” within individuals, and collective trauma within the wider community. As such the book offers both an important theological reflection for those in pastoral care roles and a broader challenge to the church to become a place of solidarity and accompaniment.
Download or read book Scripture A Very Theological Proposal written by Angus Paddison and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2009-10-10 with total page 181 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: To identify the biblical texts as 'Scripture' is to make a series of specific claims about this text: that it is drawn into the activity of the triune God of Israel; that its ultimate destination is the worshipping church; and that it has a ministry in shaping Christian thinking and acting. Scripture: A Very Theological Proposal advances that the resources for reading Scripture, understanding its claims, and acting upon them will be found by looking to the church's life and doctrines. Reading Scripture with a host of theologians, Paddison proposes a hermeneutic appropriate to reading Scripture both as divine address and the book of the church. The book positions itself by resisting accounts in which Scripture's relationship to God and its life within the church are understood competitively, as if the more we attend to one the less we are attending to the other. Chapters further explore a doctrine of Scripture and the relationship of ethics, doctrine, and preaching to Scripture. A final chapter asks, can, or should, Scripture be read in the university?
Download or read book The Power of One written by Anette Ejsing and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2011-01-01 with total page 119 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We do not like to talk about loneliness. We like even less to talk about the fact that the experience that faith does not automatically heal it. This is a problem, but what if it does not have to be that way? What if we can tap into loneliness as a source of personal empowerment? In The Power of One, Anette Ejsing makes exactly this case. Relying on personal stories, she first shows why romantic, spiritual, and social loneliness are particularly difficult to understand in the context of Christian faith. She then reflects theologically on these three kinds of loneliness, and describes it as a mystery that faith both does and does not heal them. In response to this mystery, she suggests thinking about loneliness as a privilege. Arguing from the perspective of a theology of suffering, she encourages each of us to tell our stories of loneliness from the perspective of the end God has in mind for us. This means accepting and embracing loneliness as a means through which God raises us up and strengthens us to persevere in joy and faith. Learning to do this is a privilege that gives us the opportunity to experience loneliness as a source of personal empowerment.
Download or read book Take and Read written by Paul G. Doerksen and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2016-09-22 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Take and Read is a collection of essays first presented as oral theological reflections on books, written to stimulate conversations among diverse groups of readers, which included farmers, physicians, teachers, poets, novelists, scientists, people involved in business, finance, relief work, and many other walks of life, ranging in age from twenty-something to eighty. These reflections introduce and offer samples of theological readings of a variety of books. The result is a collection of essays addressing a wide range of topics from food security to violence, from dementia to indigenous issues. Perhaps this book is best described as an invitation to joining a conversation about books, and more importantly, about God.
Download or read book The 10 Second Rule written by Clare De Graaf and published by Monarch Books. This book was released on 2013-04-17 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The 10-Second Rule empowers readers to take simple -baby steps- of obedience, as God directs them to do the next thing they are reasonably certain Jesus wants them to do ' and to do it quickly before they change their minds. The simple rule is this: Just do the next thing you're reasonably certain Jesus wants you to do-and do it within the next 10 seconds. This is a memorable, simple way to be attentive and courageously obedient to the voice of God. The power of this concept is in its simplicity-and yet it gets straight to the heart of what it means to actually follow Jesus. The 10-Second Rule relates stories of ordinary men and women who are living by The Rule and how it has shaped and transformed their lives. It also shares practical tips for discerning God's will, recognizing his voice, and studying Scripture. Living by The Rule is a call to rediscover the revolutionary power of the simple message of Jesus.
Download or read book First Things written by and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 436 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Practicing the Way of Jesus written by Mark Scandrette and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2011-05-04 with total page 225 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Take a casual survey of how people practice their faith, and you might reasonably conclude that Jesus spent his life going door to door offering private lessons, complete with chalkboard and pop quizzes. We think about God in the comfort of our own minds, in isolation from one another; meanwhile the world waits for a people to practice the way of Jesus together. Mark Scandrette contends that Jesus has in mind something more lively for us: not a classroom so much as a kingdom, where our formation takes place not only in our heads but in our hearts and our bodies, and in the company of one another, in a way that blesses the world we've been entrusted with. In Practicing the Way of Jesus Scandrette draws from his experience as a spiritual director and leader of an intentional community, as well as the best contemporary thinking on kingdom spirituality, to paint a picture of life lived together, in the way of Jesus--which is another way of saying life lived to the full.
Download or read book American Book Publishing Record written by and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 746 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
