Download or read book Encountering God in Tyrannical Texts written by Frances Taylor Gench and published by Presbyterian Publishing Corp. This book was released on 2015-05-15 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Bible includes any number of “tyrannical texts†that have proved to be profoundly oppressive in the lives of many people. Among them are Pauline texts that have circumscribed the lives and ministries of women throughout Christian history. What are people who honor Scripture to do with such texts, and what does it mean to speak of biblical authority in their presence? In Encountering God in Tyrannical Texts, Frances Taylor Gench provides strategies for engaging such texts with integritythat is, without dismissing them, whitewashing them, or acquiescing to themand as potential sources of edification for the church. Gench also facilitates reflection on the nature and authority of Scripture. Encountering God in Tyrannical Texts provides access to feminist scholarship that can inform preaching and teaching of problematic Pauline texts and encourages public engagement with them.

Download or read book Encountering God in Tyrannical Texts written by Frances Taylor Gench and published by Presbyterian Publishing Corp. This book was released on 2015-05-18 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Bible includes any number of "tyrannical texts" that have proved to be profoundly oppressive in the lives of many people. Among them are Pauline texts that have circumscribed the lives and ministries of women throughout Christian history. What are people who honor Scripture to do with such texts, and what does it mean to speak of biblical authority in their presence? In Encountering God in Tyrannical Texts, Frances Taylor Gench provides strategies for engaging such texts with integrity- that is, without dismissing them, whitewashing them, or acquiescing to them-and as potential sources of edification for the church. Gench also facilitates reflection on the nature and authority of Scripture. Encountering God in Tyrannical Texts provides access to feminist scholarship that can inform preaching and teaching of problematic Pauline texts and encourages public engagement with them.

Download or read book Hebrews and James written by Frances Taylor Gench and published by Westminster John Knox Press. This book was released on 1996-01-01 with total page 146 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hebrews and James contain useful advice for Christians struggling to live a life of faith. In this book, Frances Taylor Gench guides readers through these two relevant - and inspirational - epistles. For believers who have grown weary or disillusioned with their Christian commitment, the letter to the Hebrews offers much practical assistance. In this day of dwindling church attendance and clergy burnout, a new reading of Hebrews offers an encouraging and renewed understanding of the person and work of Jesus Christ. The letter of James deals primarily with the social and practical aspects of Christianity, reminding the reader that Christian faith touches every aspect of life. One of the most useful books in the New Testament, its concerns are grounded in day-to-day questions: How do we live? How should we live? and What are the implications of Christian faith for our lives? This epistle will challenge and encourage modern readers in search of a life of integrity.

Download or read book Reading John for Dear Life written by Jaime Clark-Soles and published by Westminster John Knox Press. This book was released on 2016-10-01 with total page 187 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Jaime Clark-Soles takes readers on a dynamic journey deep into the heart of John in this lively reading of the Fourth Gospel. This book is not simply a commentary but a spiritual companion to be read alongside the Bible. Clark-Soles provides important historical and literary insights while illuminating the dramatic characters in John and emphasizing the Gospel's unique themes and symbols. Her engaging writing style will generate enthusiasm and investment in John's message. Readers will also appreciate the addition of prayers as well as questions for individual study and/or group discussion. This excellent guide will enrich our spiritual journeys while opening ourselves up to Jesus through the words, stories, questions, symbols, and characters we encounter in John's Gospel.

Download or read book Grieving Brooding and Transforming The Spirit The Bible and Gender written by and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2021-08-30 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Grieving, Brooding, and Transforming explores troubling biblical and historical texts in regards to their portrayal of women and calls for readers to identify the Spirit’s work of grieving over brokenness, brooding over chaos, and transforming the creation.

Download or read book Back to the Well written by Frances Taylor Gench and published by Westminster John Knox Press. This book was released on 2004-01-01 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Exploring six Gospel texts in which women encounter Jesus, Gench encourages readers to view these stories anew through the eyes of contemporary biblical scholarship.

Download or read book God in the New Testament written by Dr. Warren Carter and published by Abingdon Press. This book was released on 2016-11-01 with total page 185 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Author Warren Carter addresses the ways in which New Testament writings present God by asking four questions about how God relates to others: How is God presented in relation to Israel? How is God presented in relation to Jesus and the Spirit? How is God presented in relation to believers/disciples/the church? How is God presented in relation to “the world”? Carter uses these questions to help draw out the most important factors in each of the New Testament writings discussed. "Rarely does one exclaim, “This is a real page-turner!” when describing a book on the New Testament—but I must say it. With his characteristic concision and clarity, not to mention wit and conversational style, Carter leads us on a tour of “God-at-Work” in fifteen closely-read texts. What claims do the various texts make about God? What questions or “red flags” do these texts raise? What effect do or should these texts have upon us as readers today? Carter intrepidly takes up some of the more challenging and cryptic NT texts and asks aloud many of the uncomfortable questions we’ve wondered about but might not have voiced so pointedly. He does not provide tidy answers, but his approach entices us not to give up, but rather to dive even deeper into the texts, their world, and ours. In reading this book, I was variously educated, entertained, challenged, and even moved." -Jaime Clark-Soles Professor of New Testament and Altshuler Distinguished Teaching Professor, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas

Download or read book Living with the Sermon written by Robert P. Hoch-Yidokodiltona and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2024-09-05 with total page 187 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Living with the Sermon, readers will find a friendly companion to the preaching life. With humor, personal stories, theological musings, and practical "signposts" for those who live with the sermon, Robert Hoch-Yidokodiltona explores the highs and lows of the preaching life—you will learn not only techniques for preaching, but also how the life of the preacher is haunted by holy things. There is, according to Robert, a "wink and peek" to the preaching life, some playful mischief, some mystery—and yet, in a practical spirit, down-to-earth signposts to help along the way. Whether you have been in the pulpit for many years, or have just begun the journey, this work will add to your wisdom and joy in the preaching life.

Download or read book The Pentecostal Gender Paradox written by Joseph Lee Dutko and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2023-11-16 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The distinct subjects of eschatology and gender equality have seen an explosion of interest in recent decades, particularly within Pentecostal scholarship. Pentecostalism is regarded ideally as both an eschatological and egalitarian movement. However, many Pentecostals have lamented the inconsistency between the early egalitarian impulse of the movement and its current restrictive practices. This situation has been described as the so-called Pentecostal “gender paradox,” referring to the conflicting freedoms and limitations experienced by Pentecostal women. Pentecostals have also recognized the waning eschatological fervor within the movement and its shifting eschatological convictions, leading to calls to rediscover the eschatological heart of the movement. Despite the renewed interest in both eschatology and women's equality, little research has been done to put these two areas into conversation with each other: eschatological convictions are often absent in the debate on gender roles in the church. For Pentecostals, eschatology has often been about urgency in “saving souls” rather than attending to social issues, but could Pentecostal eschatology be the key to (re)discovering greater equality for women in the church? Is the waning of both eschatology and women's equality within Pentecostalism potentially interrelated? For over one hundred years the role of women in Pentecostalism has been debated without a firm consensus. By examining gender solely through an eschatological lens in history, Scripture, and praxis, this work provides a valuable and creative contribution to one of the most important theological and global issues of our time, women's (in)equality. This book is also one of the first comprehensive studies to approach a single social issue solely through an eschatological lens and to provide attention to developing a thorough and methodologically connected eschatological praxis. By uncovering the unified eschatological-egalitarian narrative thread within both the Pentecostal and biblical story, this work suggests that the present end of women's inequality begins with fidelity to the future eschaton of gender equality.

Download or read book Hating God written by Bernard Schweizer and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2010-11-04 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While atheists such as Richard Dawkins have now become public figures, there is another and perhaps darker strain of religious rebellion that has remained out of sight--people who hate God. In this revealing book, Bernard Schweizer looks at men and women who do not question God's existence, but deny that He is merciful, competent, or good. Sifting through a wide range of literary and historical works, Schweizer finds that people hate God for a variety of reasons. Some are motivated by social injustice, human suffering, or natural catastrophes that God does not prevent. Some blame God for their personal tragedies. Schweizer concludes that, despite their blasphemous thoughts, these people tend to be creative and moral individuals, and include such literary lights as Friedrich Nietzsche, Mark Twain, Zora Neale Hurston, Rebecca West, Elie Wiesel, and Philip Pullman. Schweizer shows that literature is a fertile ground for God haters. Many authors, who dare not voice their negative attitude to God openly, turn to fiction to give vent to it. Indeed, Schweizer provides many new and startling readings of literary masterpieces, highlighting the undercurrent of hatred for God. Moreover, by probing the deeper mainsprings that cause sensible, rational, and moral beings to turn against God, Schweizer offers answers to some of the most vexing questions that beset human relationships with the divine.

Download or read book Women and Ordination in the Orthodox Church written by Gabrielle Thomas and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2020-07-10 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contributing Authors: Fr. John Behr Dr Spyridoula Athanasopoulou-Kypriou Dr. Dionysios Skliris Fr. Andrew Louth Dr Mary Cunningham Met Kallistos Ware Rev Dr Sarah Hinlicky Wilson Dr Kyriaki Karidoyanes FitzGerald Dr Carrie Frederick Frost Dr Paul Ladouceur Luis Josué Salés This book—a collaborative, international initiative, involving academic theologians and practitioners—invites the reader into a conversation about the ordination of women in the Orthodox Church. It explores questions relating to the significance of being human, Eve’s curse, sexed bodies, the place of Mary, the nature of priesthood, the role of the deacon, and the task of being a priest in the twenty-first century. The reflections move across three main areas of discussion: issues of theological anthropology, particular questions pertaining to the priesthood and the diaconate, and contemporary practices. In each area the implications for ordaining women in the Orthodox Church today are explored.

Download or read book Constructing Paul written by Luke Timothy Johnson and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2020-03-05 with total page 418 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: First of a two-volume work providing a framework for understanding the life and thought of the apostle Paul In this methodological tour de force, Luke Timothy Johnson offers an articulate, clear, and thought-provoking portrait of the life and thought of the apostle Paul. Drawing upon recent developments in the study of Paul, Johnson offers readers an invitation to the Apostle Paul. Rather than focusing on a few of Paul’s letters, Johnson lays out the materials necessary to envision the apostle from the thirteen canonical letters of Paul and the Acts of the Apostles. Constructing Paul thus provides a framework within which an engagement with Paul’s letters can take place. Johnson demonstrates the possibility of doing responsible and creative work across the canonical collection without sacrificing literary or historical integrity. By bringing out the facets of the apostle from the canonical evidence, Johnson shows the possibilities for further and better inquiry into the life and thought of Paul. This first volume imagines a plausible biography for Paul and serves as an introduction to the studies in the second volume. Constructing Paul addresses all the pertinent questions related to the study of Paul. Johnson uses the canonical material as building blocks to make a case for why Paul ought to be heard today as a liberating rather than oppressing voice.

Download or read book The Gospel of Life written by Pope John Paul II and published by Random House Incorporated. This book was released on 1995 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Least of These written by Carla Swafford Works and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2020-01-16 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Jesus cared for the least, but did Paul? The apostle Paul has a reputation for being detached from the concerns of the poor and powerless. In this book, Carla Swafford Works demonstrates that Paul’s message and ministry are in harmony with the teaching of Jesus. She brings to light an apostle who preaches and models good news to the “least of these”—the poor, the marginalized, the disadvantaged, and the vulnerable. The Least of These begins by highlighting the presence of the marginalized in Paul’s ministry by looking at poverty in Paul’s churches, the involvement of slaves and freedpersons in the community, and the role of women in the Pauline mission. Works then examines the significance of the marginalized in Pauline theology by investigating how the apostle employs metaphors of the “least.” Like Jesus, Paul cared deeply for people at the margins. Paul’s ministry is consistent with that of Jesus. Both men cared for the poor. Paul served the least in his mission, modeling his apostolic ministry after the cross of Christ. Works shows that Paul, far from being an abstract thinker, was a practical theologian teaching a message and leading a life of compassion, kindness, and care.

Download or read book 1 Timothy Volume 3 written by Paul S. Jeon and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2017-12-22 with total page 291 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 1 Timothy is one of the more controversial documents in the New Testament. For years, critical scholars have rejected Pauline authorship, highlighted the apparent misogynistic quality of the text, and argued against any coherence in the letter. Jeon takes a fresh look at the letter, incorporating many recent advancements in NT scholarship. In detail he demonstrates the macro- and micro- chiastic arrangement of the entire letter and explains how the presumed first-century audience would have heard and responded to an oral performance of the letter. In doing so, Jeon offers a fresh challenge to more popular ways of (mis)understanding the letter and points a way forward for appropriating the letter both in academia and in the church.

Download or read book Captive in Iran written by Maryam Rostampour and published by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. This book was released on 2013-04-02 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Maryam Rostampour and Marziyeh Amirizadeh knew they were putting their lives on the line. Islamic laws in Iran forbade them from sharing their Christian beliefs, but in three years, they’d covertly put New Testaments into the hands of twenty thousand of their countrymen and started two secret house churches. In 2009, they were finally arrested and held in the notorious Evin Prison in Tehran, a place where inmates are routinely tortured and executions are commonplace. In the face of ruthless interrogations, persecution, and a death sentence, Maryam and Marziyeh chose to take the radical—and dangerous—step of sharing their faith inside the very walls of the government stronghold that was meant to silence them. In Captive in Iran, two courageous Iranian women recount how God used their 259 days in Evin Prison to shine His light into one of the world’s darkest places, giving hope to those who had lost everything and showing love to those in despair.

Download or read book Paul and his Rivals written by Clair Mesick and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2024-08-19 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At the heart of Paul’s Corinthian correspondence is a historical puzzle. How did the relative calm of 1 Corinthians deteriorate into the chaos of 2 Corinthians, and what role did the so-called Jewish “super-apostles” play in that conflict? This book proposes a new solution: it was Paul, not his rivals, who shot the first volley in the Corinthian conflict. Paul’s claims of unique authority—for instance, as the architect atop whose foundation all others must build (1 Cor 3:10) and the Corinthians’ father while others are mere pedagogues (4:15)—would relegate other leaders to lesser positions. His contention that accepting financial support put an obstacle before the gospel (9:12) would jeopardize the livelihood of apostles who relied on such support. Finally, Paul’s claim that he becomes “lawless to the lawless” (9:21) or that “circumcision is nothing” (7:19) could throw into question Paul’s own Jewishness (cf. 2 Cor 11:22). By reading the Corinthian correspondence against the grain—imagining how Paul’s letter might have backfired for an audience who did not yet take him as scripture—this book explores how misunderstandings and misinterpretations can fracture church communities and cause a ripple effect of conflict and accusation.