Download or read book A Public and Political Christ written by Bart B. Bruehler and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2011-08-05 with total page 422 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Was Jesus a public figure? A political figure? Yes, according to Luke's gospel, Jesus was a Christ who was both public and political. Recent developments in the theory and practice of the study of space have provided tools to classify ancient social-spatial spheres with greater nuance and depth. A broad survey of literary and archaeological resources in the ancient world, as well as an in-depth look at Plutarch's Political Precepts and Philostratus's Life of Apollonius, reveals that the familiar dichotomy of public and private does not suffice to describe the Hellenistic-Roman milieu that shaped the author and audience of the third gospel. This study employs social-spatial analysis to explore how Luke uses the power of place to portray Jesus frequently engaging the unofficial public sphere and local politics, specifically in 18:35--19:43--the public healing of the blind beggar, the unexpected impact of Zacchaeus's hospitality, the political implications of the parable of the king and his subjects, and the publicity and politics of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem. The result is an illuminating look at the overall spatial character of Luke's gospel, the development of Christianity in the latter half of the first century, and the role of place in contemporary Christianity.
Download or read book A Public and Political Christ written by Bart B. Bruehler and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2011-08-05 with total page 423 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Was Jesus a public figure? A political figure? Yes, according to Luke's gospel, Jesus was a Christ who was both public and political. Recent developments in the theory and practice of the study of space have provided tools to classify ancient social-spatial spheres with greater nuance and depth. A broad survey of literary and archaeological resources in the ancient world, as well as an in-depth look at Plutarch's Political Precepts and Philostratus's Life of Apollonius, reveals that the familiar dichotomy of public and private does not suffice to describe the Hellenistic-Roman milieu that shaped the author and audience of the third gospel. This study employs social-spatial analysis to explore how Luke uses the power of place to portray Jesus frequently engaging the unofficial public sphere and local politics, specifically in 18:35--19:43--the public healing of the blind beggar, the unexpected impact of Zacchaeus's hospitality, the political implications of the parable of the king and his subjects, and the publicity and politics of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem. The result is an illuminating look at the overall spatial character of Luke's gospel, the development of Christianity in the latter half of the first century, and the role of place in contemporary Christianity.
Download or read book The Good of Politics Engaging Culture written by James W. Skillen and published by Baker Academic. This book was released on 2014-03-18 with total page 366 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this addition to the acclaimed Engaging Culture series, a highly respected author and Christian thinker offers a principled, biblical perspective on engaging political culture as part of one's calling. James Skillen believes that constructive Christian engagement depends on the belief that those made in the image of God are created not only for family life, agriculture, education, science, industry, and the arts but also for building political communities, justly ordered for the common good. He argues that God made us to be royal stewards of public governance from the outset and that the biblical story of God's creation, judgment, and redemption of all things in Jesus Christ has everything to do with politics and government. In this irenic, nonpartisan treatment of an oft-debated topic, Skillen critically assesses current political realities and helps readers view responsibility in the political arena as a crucial dimension of the Christian faith.
Download or read book Calvin s Political Theology and the Public Engagement of the Church written by Matthew J. Tuininga and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2017-04-06 with total page 401 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Calvin's Political Theology and the Public Engagement of the Church, Matthew J. Tuininga explores a little appreciated dimension of John Calvin's political thought, his two kingdoms theology, as a model for constructive Christian participation in liberal society. Widely misunderstood as a proto-political culture warrior, due in part to his often misinterpreted role in controversies over predestination and the heretic Servetus, Calvin articulated a thoughtful approach to public life rooted in his understanding of the gospel and its teaching concerning the kingdom of God. He staked his ministry in Geneva on his commitment to keeping the church distinct from the state, abandoning simplistic approaches that placed one above the other, while rejecting the temptations of sectarianism or separatism. This revealing analysis of Calvin's vision offers timely guidance for Christians seeking a mode of faithful, respectful public engagement in democratic, pluralistic communities today.
Download or read book Christian Political Theology in an Age of Discontent written by Jonathan Cole and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2019-05-16 with total page 146 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At a moment in which interest in political theology is rising, acceptance of a public role for religion is declining, and cynicism regarding both political and religious institutions is overflowing, this book investigates the possibilities and constraints of a Christian political theology that can meaningfully mediate Scripture, doctrine, and political reality. In critical dialogue with political theologians and political philosophers past and present, we explore the origins, meaning, and purpose of Christian political theology in an age of growing discontent with the once-impregnable liberal democratic order of yesteryear. Approaching politics as both art and science, this book lays a challenge at the feet of political theologians to offer a theological account of politics that is genuinely illuminating of political reality and efficacious for the faithful who seek to operate within it.
Download or read book Introduction to Political Science written by Fred Van Geest and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2017-07-04 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Christians are called to be informed about political science as they seek to be ambassadors for Christ in a diverse society. In this introductory textbook, Fred Van Geest presents a balanced Christian perspective on political science, providing a nonpartisan guide to the key concepts, institutions, and policies that shape politics today.
Download or read book Christian Political Witness written by George Kalantzis and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2014-02-28 with total page 243 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: George Kalantzis and Gregory W. Lee edit twelve essays that explore the topic of Christian political witness, originally presented at the 2013 Wheaton Theology Conference. Contributors include Stanley Hauerwas, Mark Noll, William Cavanaugh, Peter Leithart and Scot McKnight.
Download or read book Politics for Christians written by Francis J. Beckwith and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2012-05-20 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Politics is concerned with citizenship and the administration of justice--how communities are formed and governed. The role of Christians in the political process is hotly contested, but as citizens, Francis Beckwith argues, Christians have a rich heritage of sophisticated thought, as well as a genuine responsibility, to contribute to the shaping of public policy. In particular, Beckwith addresses the contention that Christians, or indeed religious citizens of any faith, should set aside their beliefs before they enter the public square. What role should religious citizens take in a liberal democracy? What is the proper separation of church and state? What place should be made for natural rights and the moral law within a secular state? This cogent introduction to political thought surveys political science, politics and government while making the case for how statecraft may genuinely contribute to soulcraft. Politics for Christians is part of The Christian Worldview Integration Series.
Download or read book Christians in the Public Square written by Ellen Ott Marshall and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2015-09-22 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book calls Christians to resist meanness, divisiveness, and dogmatism in the public square by enacting love, attending to moral ambiguity, and practicing theological humility - in other words, to transform politics by refusing to play politics.
Download or read book Left Right Christ written by Lisa Sharon Harper and published by Elevate Publishing. This book was released on 2016-08-09 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the story of a young man infected the AIDS virus by his parents.
Download or read book Political Visions Illusions written by David T. Koyzis and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2019-05-07 with total page 339 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What you believe about politics matters. The decades since the Cold War, with new alignments of post–9/11 global politics and the chaos of the late 2010s, are swirling with alternative visions of political life, ranging from ethnic nationalism to individualistic liberalism. Political ideologies are not merely a matter of governmental efficacy, but are intrinsically and inescapably religious: each carries certain assumptions about the nature of reality, individuals and society, as well as a particular vision for the common good. These fundamental beliefs transcend the political sphere, and the astute Christian observer can discern the ways—sometimes subtle, sometimes not—in which ideologies are rooted in idolatrous worldviews. In this freshly updated, comprehensive study, political scientist David Koyzis surveys the key political ideologies of our era, including liberalism, conservatism, nationalism, democracy, and socialism. Koyzis gives each philosophy careful analysis and fair critique, unpacking the worldview issues inherent to each and pointing out essential strengths and weaknesses, as well as revealing the "narrative structure" of each—the stories they tell to make sense of public life and the direction of history. Koyzis concludes by proposing alternative models that flow out of Christianity's historic engagement with the public square, retrieving approaches for both individuals and the global, institutional church that hold promise for the complex political realities of the twenty-first century. Writing with broad international perspective and keen analytical insight, Koyzis is a sane and sensible guide for Christians working in the public square, culture watchers, political pundits, and all students of modern political thought.
Download or read book A Public Faith written by Miroslav Volf and published by Brazos Press. This book was released on 2011-08-01 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Covering such timely issues as witness in a multifaith society and political engagement in a pluralistic world, this compelling book highlights things Christians can do to serve the common good. Now in paperback. Praise for the cloth edition Named one of the "Top 100 Books" and one of the "Top 10 Religion Books" of 2011 by Publishers Weekly "Accessible, wise guidance for people of all faiths."--Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Highly original. . . . The book deserves a wide audience and is one that will affect its readers well after they have turned the final page."--Christianity Today (5-star review)
Download or read book Christianity Politics and Public Life in Kenya written by Paul Gifford and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 283 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since independence in 1963, Kenya has been a classic personalised patronage state, run by a corrupt elite for its own benefit, as became tragically evident in December 2007's stolen election and its aftermath. Kenya is also said to be 80 percent Christian. Under the bland label 'Kenyan Christianity', several different overlapping realities can be distinguished, and it is these which Gifford investigates in this book, relating them to the country's politics and public life. The politically engaged form that challenged the dysfunctional one-party state in the early 1990s is given due prominence, but Gifford contends that today the mainline churches, both Catholic and Protestant, are marked less by such political engagement than by their involvement in development, in which foreign missionaries and global networks play a huge role. The theology of Kenya's mainline churches is consciously focused on African culture, as a non-negotiable foundation, and the Catholic church has an additional agenda - to Africanise its religious congregations. Kenya is also noted for its rich variety of African indigenous Churches, all originating in a defence of Kenyan cultures, while in recent decades countless Pentecostal churches have also sprung up. They range from affluent middle class churches to refuges for the poor, but nearly all are characterised by a stress on power, success, achievement and prosperity that prioritises modernity rather than traditional culture. Gifford discusses their deployment of the media, crusades, organisation, theology and use of the Bible, and above all the economics that has made this phenomenon possible. Yet another distinct form is an enchanted Christianity in which demons or spiritual forces are deemed responsible for almost everything
Download or read book God in Government written by Ray Harker and published by Dog Ear Publishing. This book was released on 2010-08 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Voting is an opportunity to promote, protect, and preserve godly government. Passing up this opportunity means allowing those who would degrade the name of Christ to have their way in our lives. The Bible is clear, "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established" (Romans 13:1). Since the Bible commands that we are to submit to government, we must ask ourselves: to what type of government do we want to submit? God in Government compellingly answers this question and covers other related subjects - often from a historical perspective. The book's emphasis is on how and why the United States has gone from being a Christian nation to a culture of secular humanism. How events like the Industrial Revolution and the Great Depression continue to impact our worldview and the way we vote. The reader will discover the true differences between the political parties, and why groups like labor unions, school teachers, and the media tend to align themselves with a particular party. Among other topics, we examine the Christian roots of capitalism and the truth behind the "separation of church and state." The book covers social issues like legalized abortion, gay rights, and welfare programs; and gives solutions and suggestions as to what Christians can do to get our nation back on track. RAY HARKER is an ideological activist and founder of God in Government, a conservative grassroots movement for which this book is the manual. Both the organization and the book are designed to educate and assist Evangelical Christians in the areas of civic responsibility and political ideology. The outreach provides lectures and seminars for churches and other interested groups. To learn more, visit www.godgov.org.
Download or read book School Board Battles written by Melissa M. Deckman and published by Georgetown University Press. This book was released on 2004-02-27 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If there is a "culture war" taking place in the United States, one of the most interesting, if under-the-radar, battlegrounds is in local school board elections. Rarely does the pitch of this battle reach national attention, as it did in Kansas when the state school board—led by several outspoken conservative Christians—voted to delete evolution from the state's science curriculum and its standardized tests in August 1999. That action rattled not only the educational and scientific communities, but concerned citizens around the nation as well. While the movement of the Christian Right into national and state politics has been well documented, this is the first book to examine their impact on local school board politics. While the Kansas decision was short-lived, during the past decade in school districts around the country, conservative Christian majorities have voted to place limits on sex education, to restrict library books, to remove references to gays and lesbians in the classroom, and to promote American culture as superior to other cultures. School Board Battles studies the motivation, strategies, and electoral success of Christian Right school board candidates. Based on interviews, and using an extensive national survey of candidates as well as case studies of two school districts in which conservative Christians ran and served on local boards, Melissa M. Deckman gives us a surprisingly complex picture of these candidates. She reveals weaker ties to national Christian Right organizations—and more similarities between these conservative candidates and their more secular counterparts than might be expected. Deckman examines important questions: Why do conservative Christians run for school boards? How much influence has the Christian Right actually had on school boards? How do conservative Christians govern? School Board Battles is an in-depth and in-the-trenches look at an important encounter in the "culture war"—one that may well determine the future of our nation's youth.
Download or read book The Church in the Public written by Ilsup Ahn and published by Augsburg Fortress Publishers. This book was released on 2022-08-09 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Church in the Public shows how church/state dualism has corrupted the church's social witness and allowed neoliberal and neocolonial ideas to assert control of public and political life. Ahn argues for a public church, one that collaborates and cooperates with other public actors and entities in the promotion of a just social order.
Download or read book Christians In The Public Square written by John Warwick Montgomery and published by New Reformation Publications. This book was released on 2018-01-27 with total page 401 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of articles examining the inter-relationship between "law" and "gospel"; what a Christian should and should not attempt to do in the public realm of politics; and bioethical issues. Included are essays by David Kilgour, one of Canada's longest serving Members of Parliament, providing the perspective of a practicing politician; and theologian C. E. B. Cranfield on the New Testament's teaching.
