Download or read book Rescuing the Church from Consumerism written by Mark Clavier and published by SPCK. This book was released on 2013-08-01 with total page 187 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rescuing the Church . . . examines how people are initiated into a consumer culture during childhood and thus drawn into pursuing a vocation as consumers by means of various quasi-sacramental rites and practices. The upshot of this is that the church today is composed primarily of men and women whose lives are situated more within a consumer culture than within a distinctively Christian one. In order for the church to free itself, the author believes it must reclaim a sacramental identity that is grounded in a narrative tradition and realized in real, local worshipping communities.
Download or read book On Consumer Culture Identity the Church and the Rhetorics of Delight written by Mark Clavier and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2018-11-29 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Reading Augustine series presents short, engaging books offering personal readings of St. Augustine of Hippo's contributions to western philosophical, literary, and religious life. Mark Clavier's On Consumer Culture, Identity, The Church and the Rhetorics of Delight draws on Augustine of Hippo to provide a theological explanation for the success of marketing and consumer culture. Augustine's thought, rooted in rhetorical theory, presents a brilliant understanding of the experiences of damnation and salvation that takes seriously the often hidden psychology of human motivation. Clavier examines how Augustine's keen insight into the power of delight over personal notions of freedom and self-identity can be used to shed light on how the constant lure of promised happiness shapes our identities as consumers. From Augustine's perspective, it is only by addressing the sources of delight within consumerism and by rediscovering the wellsprings of God's delight that we can effectively challenge consumer culture. To an age awash with commercial rhetoric, the fifth-century Bishop of Hippo offers a theological rhetoric that is surprisingly contemporary and insightful.
Download or read book On Consumer Culture Identity The Church and the Rhetorics of Delight written by Mark Clavier and published by Bloomsbury Academic. This book was released on 2018-11-29 with total page 169 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Reading Augustine series presents short, engaging books offering personal readings of St. Augustine of Hippo's contributions to western philosophical, literary, and religious life. Mark Clavier's On Consumer Culture, Identity, The Church and the Rhetorics of Delight draws on Augustine of Hippo to provide a theological explanation for the success of marketing and consumer culture. Augustine's thought, rooted in rhetorical theory, presents a brilliant understanding of the experiences of damnation and salvation that takes seriously the often hidden psychology of human motivation. Clavier examines how Augustine's keen insight into the power of delight over personal notions of freedom and self-identity can be used to shed light on how the constant lure of promised happiness shapes our identities as consumers. From Augustine's perspective, it is only by addressing the sources of delight within consumerism and by rediscovering the wellsprings of God's delight that we can effectively challenge consumer culture. To an age awash with commercial rhetoric, the fifth-century Bishop of Hippo offers a theological rhetoric that is surprisingly contemporary and insightful.
Download or read book Buying God written by Eve Poole and published by Church Publishing. This book was released on 2019-10-17 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Deeply theological review of our habits of relationship with money Eve Poole offers us a book at once deeply theological and imminently practical. She invites us into a conversation about theology—the ways in which we attempt to understand God—and their various implications. She then shifts the conversation to consumerism, raising questions along the way as to how God might view the practice—and how we might better understand our place as Christians within that system. Drawing on the Church’s rich traditions of Social Liturgy, Buying God calls on the Christian community to renew its confidence and strength in proclaiming this good news. Uniting theoretical work on theology, capitalism, and consumerism with a scheme of detailed practical action, the book explores how we can wean ourselves off the material and on to the eternal, through prayer, example, and vibrant social action. “Knowledgeable and accessible, as adept at exploring economics as at delineating theological method, Buying God offers a steady hand through the demands of global capitalism and the seductions of human desire. Eve Poole offers an example of how theology is always politics, and always devotional–and, at its best, both at the same time.” Samuel Wells, Vicar of St Martin-i n- the-Fields.
Download or read book Sacred Consumption written by Peter Mundey and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2023 with total page 163 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores the quasi-religious nature of consumerism and how American Christianity interacts with consumerism. The author uses mixed methods to unpack the nexus between the Christian faith and consumption and how habitual discretionary consumption functions as a pseudo-faith in America.
Download or read book Shopping for Meaningful Lives written by Bruce P. Rittenhouse and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2013-03-27 with total page 225 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Consumerism is a problem. It deforms individual character, our sense of obligation to one another, and our concern for future generations and the environment. Even in the aftermath of the worst economic downturn in seventy years, it remains a defining feature of Western cultures. But, beyond this assessment, neither Christian theologians and ethicists nor secular economists and sociologists have understood what drives consumerism or what can be done to counteract it. This is the problem that Bruce P. Rittenhouse solves in Shopping for Meaningful Lives. Dr. Rittenhouse analyzes economic, sociological, and psychological evidence to prove that consumers behave differently than the current theories predict.Dr. Rittenhouse shows that consumerism functions as a religion. It provides a means of assurance that an individual life is meaningful. Because we need this assurance to live out our everyday lives, consumerism takes precedence over whatever other values a person professes--unless a person can adopt a different way to secure the meaning of his or her life. This interpretation explains how consumers actually behave. From the perspective of Christian theology, consumerism is a wrong answer to a problem of human existence that should be answered by faith in Christ.
Download or read book The Worldview of the Word of Faith Movement Eden Redeemed written by Mikael Stenhammar and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2021-12-16 with total page 361 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume approaches the Word of Faith as a worldview, and analyses the movement through N. T. Wright's model for worldview-analysis in order to provide necessary nuance and complexity to scholarly interpretations of the Word of Faith. The reader receives insights into the movement's narrative, semiotic, practical and propositional dimensions, which cumulatively offer a multifaceted understanding of how the Word of Faith interprets reality and engages with the world. The analysis shows that there is a narrative core to Word of Faith beliefs in the form of a unique theological story with focus set on the present restoration of Eden's authority and blessings. This study demonstrates how the Word of Faith operates as a distinct worldview that parses the world through the lens of faith's causative power to affect a direct correspondence between present reality and Eden's perfection. The findings advance a critical and therapeutic approach that acknowledges how the worldview both strengthens and subverts Pentecostalism.
Download or read book Consuming Religion written by Vincent J. Miller and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2005-08-18 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contemporary theology, argues Miller, is silent on what is unquestionably one of the most important cultural issues it faces: consumerism or "consumer culture." While there is no shortage of expressions of concern about the corrosive effects of consumerism from the standpoint of economic justice or environmental ethics, there is a surprising paucity of theoretically sophisticated works on the topic, for consumerism, argues Miller, is not just about behavioral "excesses"; rather, it is a pervasive worldview that affects our construction as persons-what motivates us, how we relate to others, to culture, and to religion. Consuming Religion surveys almost a century of scholarly literature on consumerism and the commodification of culture and charts the ways in which religious belief and practice have been transformed by the dominant consumer culture of the West. It demonstrates the significance of this seismic cultural shift for theological method, doctrine, belief, community, and theological anthropology. Like more popular texts, the book takes a critical stand against the deleterious effects of consumerism. However, its analytical complexity provides the basis for developing more sophisticated tactics for addressing these problems.
Download or read book Feasting in a Famine of the Word written by Mark W. Birkholz and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2016-02-16 with total page 339 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Lord warns of a "famine . . . of hearing the word of the Lord" (Amos 8:11). Has this warning come to pass in our day? There is no shortage of preachers, but how often do they miss the mark in actually delivering the word of God to their hearers, leaving them hungry? The authors of these essays seek to equip preachers with resources to offer their hearers a rich feast from the word of the Lord. Writing from a Lutheran perspective, contributors from across the globe provide a fresh approach to preaching. These authors represent seasoned pastors and professors as well as young scholars. All are actively preaching and teaching God's word on a regular basis. This book covers a wide range of topics relating to preaching--from the scriptural background and hermeneutical issues to historical examples of notable preachers, and also practical guides to crafting and delivering a sermon. These essays will assist preachers in proclaiming God's word in a manner that provides a feast for those living in a famine-stricken world.
Download or read book Christ and Consumerism written by Thorsten Moritz and published by Paternoster Publishing. This book was released on 2000 with total page 202 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Consumerism is not merely a way of life -- it is increasingly recognized as a framework through which people find their identity and sense of belonging in society. Christians are called to be "salt and light" in society. If we are to take this command seriously and be zealous for the reputation of God's character in our day, we must test the "spirit of the age" and analyze the forces and ideologies that shape our culture. If we don't, there is a danger that we will become so accustomed to our consumerist culture that it, rather than the convictions at the heart of what God has called us to be, will shape our lives. Issues regarding consumerism are considered from biblical, ethical, sociological and economic viewpoints and suggestions offered about how Christians can positively respond to the prevailing ethic today.
Download or read book Following Christ in a Consumer Society written by Kavanaugh, John F. and published by Orbis Books. This book was released on 2014-04-10 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In an era of fraud, corruption, and the relentless celebration of image over substance, the message of this perennial best-seller is more timely than ever. Following Christ in a Consumer Society offers a penetrating critique of the culture of consumerism, contrasted with the personalism of the Gospel. Addressing a soul-destroying culture in which ""having more"" has become the only measure of value, Kavanaugh reminds us of the values that truly make us human. Through the counter-cultural message of the Gospel, his book presents a diagnosis of our social ills while at the same time providing a guide back to wholeness, sanity, and spiritual health.
Download or read book A Pilgrimage of Paradoxes written by Mark Clavier and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2021-12-30 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mark Clavier examines a series of paradoxes that lie at the heart of Christian faith: eternity and time, silence and words, and wonder and the commonplace. In an intellectual reflection on an overnight trek on Cadair Idris in Wales and other wilderness walks, he explores the oft-hidden connections between faith, society, and nature. Each reflection ranges widely through history, folklore, poetry, philosophy, and theology to consider what these paradoxes can teach us about God, ourselves, and our world. Drawing on the recent upsurge in interest in the personal experience of landscapes and memory, this book invites readers to walk with Clavier in the Appalachians, Norway, Iceland, the Alps, and around Britain as he discovers the ways in which Christianity is profoundly earthed. By weaving together nature-writing, memoir, social commentary, and theological reflection A Pilgrimage of Paradoxes uses a memorable mountain journey in the ancient landscape of Wales to draw readers into reflecting about what it means to belong. Please find the study guide for this book here: https://convivium-brecon.com/a-pilgrimage-of-paradoxes/
Download or read book Stewards of God s Delight written by Mark Clavier and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2015-12-17 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The world is our parish and all her creatures our congregation." Based on talks given to ordinands in Wales, this book presents the ministry as responding to God's call to be priestly stewards of creation and to participate in the blossoming of the new creation. Clavier engages with Scripture and people such as Augustine, Anselm, Bernard of Clairvaux, Bonaventure, Julian of Norwich, Lancelot Andrewes, George Herbert, C. S. Lewis, N. T. Wright, and Rowan Williams to portray the whole ministry of God's people as being animated by the generosity, freedom, delight, and love of God. Our understanding of the ministry must break free from managerial philosophy and business know-how to recapture an approach to ministry that seeks to delight in God, neighbors, and all of creation in order to reveal the depth of God's love to a world increasingly immersed in mass consumption.
Download or read book The Cure for Consumerism written by Dylan Pahman and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 149 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Meanings of Discipleship written by Andrew Hayes and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2022-07-22 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Discipleship is a foundational concept of Christian life which has become a popular and ubiquitous description of belonging and growth in early 21st century ecclesiastical language. Discipleship courses and popular writings abound, and the term is used liberally in official church documents and strategies for growth and development, particular in a western context. But does recent use of the word risk reducing the wide range of meanings of discipleship to something less rich and inclusive than is warranted? With contributions from an array of leading thinkers, scholars and theologians, including Rachel Mann, Kirsteen Kim and Anthony Reddie, this book argues that there is need for more clarity, precision and depth in defining what meaningfully and constructively is construed as discipleship. Beginning with an overview of how the concept of discipleship has been understood in history, the volume goes on to consider some of the key figures who have shaped our understanding of the concept, and finally to reflect on what discipleship might look like in contemporary society.
Download or read book At A Cross Road written by Venerable, Dr. Felix Udo Anyasor and published by Dorrance Publishing. This book was released on 2022-09-20 with total page 230 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At A Cross Road: Church Troubled: Consumerism & Simplicity By: Venerable, Dr. Felix Udo Anyasor There are some Ideological and structural vices of life, and when not given attention, may spread like cancer. Consumerism was known to be a societal and secular vice, in a sense, and also one of the engendering factors to corruption in the governmental and some business areas. But when consumerism finds its way into the church, where worshippers are supposedly spiritually edified, then the world itself is in trouble. "When the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?"(Psalm 11:3). Venerable, Dr. Felix Udo Anyasor provides an in-depth look into the church today, and the many terrible effects consumerism has on the individual members and church community as a whole. He provides guidance on how to overcome this proverbial tumor, to walk in love as Jesus; making sacrifices on the mortal plane to save souls now, and the afterlife.
Download or read book The McDonaldization of the Church written by John William Drane and published by Smyth & Helwys Publishing, Inc.. This book was released on 2002-02 with total page 230 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A theology which comes pre-packaged, and in which there are no loose ends, is not true to life nor can it adequately reflect the richness of the Gospel." Why are churches struggling to maintain credibility in a culture in which there are more spiritual seekers than at any time in living memory? John Drane believes that churches have become stereotyped structures, offering uninventive formulaic worship to a dwindling minority. But there are exciting opportunities for growth, he argues, if only churches will rediscover their own creativity and flexibility. If only they will offer something more nourishing for post-modern spiritual appetites than the equivalent of fast food.
