Glossary of Theological Terms
Glossary of Theological TermsWhat follows is a brief discussion of a series of terms that the student of Christian theology is likely to encounter in the course of his/her studies. This glossary is taken from Alister McGrath's Christian Theology._____________________________________________________________________________Adiaphora-Literally, "matters of indifference." Beliefs or practices which the sixteenth-century Reformers regarded as being tolerable, in that they were neither explicitly rejected nor stipulated by Scripture. For example, what ministers wore at church services was often regarded as a "matter of indifference." The concept is of importance in that it allowed the sixteenth-century reformers to adopt a pragmatic approach to many beliefs and practices, thus avoiding unnecessary confrontation. Alexandrian-school A patristic school of thought, especially associated with the city of Alexandria in Egypt, noted for its Christology (which placed emphasis upon the divinity of Christ) and its method of biblical interpretation (which employed allegorical methods of exegesis). A rival approach in both areas was associated with Antioch. Anabaptism-A term derived from the Greek word for "re-baptizer," and used to refer to the radical wing of the sixteenth-century Reformation, based on thinkers such as Menno Simons or Balthasar Hubmaier. Analogy of being (analogia entis)-The theory, especially associated with Thomas Aquinas, that there exists a correspondence or analogy between the created order and God, as a result of the divine creatorship. The idea gives theoretical justification to the practice of drawing conclusionsconcerning God from the known objects and relationships of the natural order. Analogy of faith (analogia fidei) The theory, especially associated with Karl Barth, which holds that any correspondence between the created order and God is only established on the basis of the self-revelation of God. Anglicanism-A branch of theology especially associated with the churches historically derived from the Church of England. In the past, characteristic emphases have included the recognition of the relation between liturgy and theology, and an emphasis upon the importance of the doctrine of the incarnation. Anthropomorphism-The tendency to ascribe human features (such as hands or arms) or other human characteristics to God. Antiochene school- A patristic school of thought, especially associated with the city of Antioch in modern-day Turkey, noted for its Christology (which placed emphasis upon the humanity of Christ) and its method of biblical interpretation (which employed literal methods of exegesis). A rival approach in both areas was associated with Alexandria. Anti-Pelagian writings-The writings of Augustine relating to the Pelagian controversy, in which he defended his views on grace and justification. See"Pelagianism." Apophatic-A term used to refer to a particular style of theology, which stressed that God cannot be known in terms of human categories. Apophatic (which derives from the Greek apophasis, "negation" or "denial") approaches to theology are especially associated with the monastic tradition of the Eastern Orthodox church. Apostolic era-The period of the Christian church, regarded as definitive by many, bounded by the resurrection of Jesus Christ (c.AD 35) and the death of the last Apostle (c.AD 90?). The ideas and practices of this period were widely regarded as normative, at least in some sense or to some degree, in many church circles. Appropriation-A term relating to the doctrine of the Trinity, which affirms that while all three persons of the Trinity are active in all the outward actions of the Trinity, it is appropriate to think of each of those actions as being the particular work of one of the persons. Thus it is appropriate to think of creation as the work of the Father, or redemption as the work of the Son, despite the fact that all three persons are present and active in both these works. Arianism-A major early Christological heresy, which treated Jesus Christ as the supreme of God's creatures, and denied his divine status. The Arian controversy was of major importance in the development of Christology during the fourth century. Atonement-A term originally coined by William Tyndale to translate the Latin term reconciliatio, which has since come to have the developed meaning of "the work of Christ" or "the benefits of Christ gained for believers by his death and resurrection." Augustinianism-A term used in two major senses. First, it refers to the views of Augustine of Hippo concerning the doctrine of salvation, in which the need for divine grace is stressed. In this sense, the term is the antithesis of Pelagianism. Second, it is used to refer to the body of opinion within the Augustinian order during the Middle Ages, irrespective of whether these views derive from Augustine or not. Barthian-An adjective used to describe the theological outlook of the Swiss theologian Karl Barth (1886-1968), noted chiefly for its emphasis upon the priority of revelation and its focus upon Jesus Christ. The terms "neo-orthodoxy" and "dialectical theology" are also used in this connection. Black theology-A movement in North American theology which became especially significant in the late 1960s, which emphasized the importance and distinctiveness of the religious experience of black people. Calvinism-An ambiguous term, used with two quite distinct meanings. First, it refers to the religious ideas of religious bodies (such as the Reformed church) and individuals (such as Theodore Beza) who were profoundly influenced by John Calvin, or by documents written by him. Second, it refers to the religious ideas of John Calvin himself. Although the first sense is by far the more common, there is a growing recognition that the term is misleading. Cappadocian-fathers-A term used to refer collectively to three major Greek-speaking writers of the patristic period: Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nazianzen, and Gregory of Nyssa, all of whom date from the late fourth century. "Cappadocia" designates an area in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey), in which these writers were based. Catechism-A popular manual of Christian doctrine, usually in the form of question and answer, intended for religious instruction. Chalcedonian definition-The formal declaration at the Council of Chalcedon that Jesus Christ was to be regarded as both human and divine. Charisma, charismatic-A set of terms especially associated with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. In medieval theology, the term "charisma" is used to designate a spiritual gift, conferred upon individuals by the grace of God. Since the early twentieth century, the term "charismatic" has come to refer to styles of theology and worship which place particular emphasis upon the immediate presence and experience of the Holy Spirit. Christology-The section of Christian theology dealing with the identity of Jesus Christ, particularly the question of the relation of his human and divine natures. circumincession-See perichoresis. Confession-Although the term refers primarily to the admission of sin, it acquired a rather different technical sense in the sixteenth century-that of a document which embodies the principles of faith of a Protestant church. Thus the Augsburg Confession (1530) embodies the ideas of early Lutheranism, and the First Helvetic Confession (1536) those of the early Reformed church. The term "Confessionalism" is often used to refer to the hardening of religious attitudes in the later sixteenth century, as the Lutheran and Reformed churches became involved in a struggle for power, especially in Germany. The term "Confessional" is often used to refer to a church which defines itself with reference to such a document. Confessions (which define denominations) should be distinguished from creeds (which transcend denominational boundaries). Consubstantiation-A term used to refer to the theory of the real presence, especially associated with Martin Luther, which holds that the substance of the eucharistic bread and wine are given together with the substance of the body and blood of Christ. Creed-A formal definition or summary of the Christian faith, held in common by all Christians. The most important are those generally known as the "Apostles' creed" and the "Nicene creed." Deism-A term used to refer to the views of a group of English writers, especially during the seventeenth century, the rationalism of which anticipated many of the ideas of the Enlightenment. The term is often used to refer to a view of God which recognizes the divine creatorship, yet which rejects the notion of a continuing divine involvement with the world. Demythologization-An approach to theology especially associated with the German theologian Ruldolf Bultmann (1884-1976) and his followers, which rests upon the belief that the New Testament worldview is "mythological." In order for it to be understood within, or applied to, the modern situation, it is necessary that the mythological elements should be eliminated. Dialectical theology-A term used to refer to the early views of the Swiss theologian Karl Barth (1886-1968), which emphasized the "dialectic" between God and humanity. Dispensationalism-A Protestant movement, especially associated with North America, placing emphasis upon the various divine "dispensations" with humanity, and stressing the importance of eschatology. Docetism-An early Christological heresy, which treated Jesus Christ as a purely divine being who only had the "appearance" of being human. Donatism-A movement, centering upon Roman North Africa in the fourth century, which developed a rigorist view of the church and sacraments. Ebionitism-An early Christological heresy, which treated Jesus Christ as a purely human figure, although recognizing that he was endowed with particular charismatic gifts which distinguished him from other humans. Ecclesiology-The section of Christian theology dealing with the theory of the church. Enlightenment, The A term used since the nineteenth century to refer to the emphasis upon human reason and autonomy characteristic of much of western European and North American thought during the eighteenth century. Eschatology-The section of Christian theology dealing with the "last things," especially the ideas of resurrection, hell, and eternal life. Eucharist-The term used in the present volume to refer to the sacrament variously known as "the mass," "the Lord's supper," and "holy communion." Evangelical-A term initially used to refer to the nascent reforming movements, especially in Germany and Switzerland, in the 1510s and 1520s. The term was later replaced by "Protestant" in the aftermath of the Diet of Speyer. In modern times, the term has come to be used of a major movement, especially in English-language theology, which places especial emphasis upon the supreme authority of Scripture and the atoning death of Christ. Exegesis-The science of textual interpretation, usually referring specifically to the Bible. The term "biblical exegesis" basically means "the process of interpreting the Bible." The specific techniques employed in the exegesis of Scripture are usually referred to as "hermeneutics." Exemplarism-A particular approach to the atonement, which stresses the moral or religious example set to believers by Jesus Christ. Fathers- An alternative term for "patristic writers." Feminism-A major movement in western theology since the 1960s, which lays particular emphasis upon the importance of women's experience, and has directed criticism against the patriarchalism of Christianity. Five Ways-The A standard term for the five "arguments for the existence of God" especially associated with Thomas Aquinas.Fourth Gospel-A term used to refer to the Gospel according to John. The term highlights the distinctive literary and theological character of this gospel, which sets it apart from the common structures of the first three gospels, usually known as the synoptic gospels. Fundamentalism-A form of American Protestant Christianity which lays especial emphasis upon the authority of an inerrant Bible. Gnosticism-A movement placing especial emphasis upon a contrast between the material and spiritual realms, which became of major importance during the second century. Its most characteristic doctrines include redemption apart from the material world, a dualist worldview which held that different gods were responsible for creation and redemption, and an emphasis upon the importance of "knowledge" (gnosis) in salvation. Hermeneutics-The principles underlying the interpretation, or exegesis, of a text, particularly of Scripture. Historical Jesus-A term used, especially during the nineteenth century, to refer to the real historical person of Jesus of Nazareth, as opposed to the Christian interpretation of that person, especially as presented in the New Testament and the creeds. Homoousion-A Greek term, literally meaning "of the same substance," which came to be used extensively during the fourth century to designate the mainstream Christological belief that Jesus Christ was "of the same substance as God." The term was polemical, being directed against the Arian view that Christ was "of similar substance" (homoiousion) to God. Humanism-A complex movement, linked with the European Renaissance. At the heart of the movement lay not (as the modern sense of the word might suggest) a set of secular or secularizing ideas but a new interest in the cultural achievements of antiquity. These were seen as a major resource for the renewal of European culture and Christianity during the period of the Renaissance. Hypostatic union-The doctrine of the union of divine and human natures in Jesus Christ, without confusion of their respective substances. 287-9. incarnation A term used to refer to the assumption of human nature by God, in the person of Jesus Christ. The term "incarnationalism" is often used to refer to theological approaches (such as those of late nineteenth-century Anglicanism) which lay especial emphasis upon God's becoming human. Justification by faith-The section of Christian theology dealing with how the individual sinner is able to enter into fellowship with God. The doctrine was to prove to be of major significance at the time of the Reformation. Kenoticism-A form of Christology which lays emphasis upon Christ's "laying aside" of certain divine attributes in the incarnation, or his "emptying himself" of at least some divine attributes, especially omniscience or omnipotence. Kerygma-A term used, especially by Rudolf Bultmann (1884-1976) and his followers, to refer to the essential message or proclamation of the New Testament concerning the significance of Jesus Christ. Liberal Protestantism-A movement, especially associated with nineteenth-century Germany, which stress the continuity between religion and culture.Liberation theology-Although the term could designate any theological movement laying emphasis upon the liberating impact of the gospel, it has come to refer to a movement which developed in Latin America in the late 1960s, which stressed the role of political action andoriented itself toward the goal of political liberation from poverty and oppression. Limited atonement-An approach to the doctrine of the atonement, especially associated with Calvinist writers, which holds that Christ's death is only effective for those who have been elected to salvation. Liturgy-The written text of public services, especially of the eucharist. Lutheranism-The religious ideas associated with Martin Luther, particularly as expressed in the Lesser Catechism (1529) and the Augsburg Confession (1530). A series of internal disagreements within Lutheranism after Luther's death (1546) between hardliners (the so-called "Gnesio-Lutherans" or "Flacianists") and moderates ("Philippists"), led to their resolution by the Formula of Concord (1577), which is usually regarded as the authoritative statement of Lutheran theology. Magisterial Reformation-A term used to refer to the Lutheran and Reformed wings of the Reformation, as opposed to the radical wing (Anabaptism). Modalism-A Trinitarian heresy, which treats the three persons of the Trinity as different "modes" of the Godhead. A typical modalist approach is to regard God as active as Father in creation, as Son in redemption, and as Spirit in sanctification. Neo-orthodoxy-A term used to designate the general position of Karl Barth (1886-1968), especially the manner in which he drew upon the theological concerns of the period of Reformed orthodoxy. Nominalism-Strictly speaking, the theory of knowledge opposed to realism. The term is, however, still used occasionally to refer to the via moderna. Ontological argument-A form of argument for the existence of God especially associated with the scholastic theologian Anselm of Canterbury. Orthodoxy-A term used in a number of senses, of which the following are the most important: Orthodoxy in the sense of "right belief," as opposed to heresy; orthodoxy in the sense of a movement within Protestantism, especially in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, which laid emphasis upon need for doctrinal definition. Parousia-A Greek term, which literally means "coming" or "arrival," used to refer to the second coming of Christ. The notion of the parousia is an important aspect of Christian understandings of the "last things." Patristic- An adjective used to refer to the first centuries in the history of the church, following the writing of the New Testament (the "patristic period"), or scholars writing during this period (the "patristic writers"). For many writers, the period thus designated seems to be c.100-451 (in other words, the period between the completion of the last of the New Testament writings and the Council of Chalcedon). Pelagianism-An understanding of how humans are able to merit their salvation which is diametrically opposed to that of Augustine of Hippo, placing considerable emphasis upon the role of human works and playing down the idea of divine grace. Perichoresis-A term relating to the doctrine of the Trinity, often also referred to by the Latin term circumincession. The basic notion is that all three persons of the Trinity mutually share in the life of the others, so that none is isolated or detached from the actions of the others. Pietism-An approach to Christianity, especially associated with German writers in the seventeenth century, which places an emphasis upon the personal appropriation of faith, and the need for holiness in Christian living. The movement is perhaps best known within the English-language world in the form of Methodism. Postliberalism-A theological movement, especially associated with Duke University and Yale Divinity School in the 1980s, which criticized the liberal reliance upon human experience, and reclaimed the notion of community tradition as a controlling influence in theology.Postmodernism-A general cultural development, especially in North America, which resulted from the general collapse in confidence of the universal rational principles of the Enlightenment. Protestantism-A term used in the aftermath of the Diet of Speyer (1529) to designate those who "protested" against the practices and beliefs of the Roman Catholic church. Prior to 1529, such individuals and groups had referred to themselves as "evangelicals." Radical Reformation-A term used with increasing frequency to refer to the Anabaptist movement - in other words, the wing of the Reformation which went beyond what Luther and Zwingli envisaged. Reformed-A term used to refer to a tradition of theology which draws inspiration from the writings of John Calvin (1510-64) and his successors ( 68-72). The term is generally used in preference to "Calvinist." Sabellianism-An early trinitarian heresy, which treated the three persons of the Trinity as different historical manifestations of the one God.Sacrament-In purely historical terms, a church service or rite which was held to have been instituted by Jesus Christ himself. Although Roman Catholic theology and church practice recognize seven such sacraments (baptism, confirmation, eucharist, marriage, ordination, penance, and unction), Protestant theologians generally argue that only two (baptism and eucharist) were to be found in the New Testament itself.Schism-A deliberate break with the unity of the church, condemned vigorously by influential writers of the early church, such as Cyprian and Augustine. Scholasticism-A particular approach to Christian theology, associated especially with the Middle Ages, which lays emphasis upon the rational, justification and systematic presentation of Christian theology. Scotism-The scholastic philosophy associated with Duns Scotus. Scripture principle-The theory, especially associated with Reformed theologians, that the practices and beliefs of the church should be grounded in Scripture. Nothing that could not be demonstrated to be grounded in Scripture could be regarded as binding upon the believer. The phrase sola scriptura, "by Scripture alone," summarizes this principle. Septuagint-The Greek translation of the Old Testament, dating from the third century BC. The abbreviation LXX is generally used to refer to this text. Sermon on the Mount-The standard way of referring to Christ's moral and pastoral teaching in the specific form which it takes in chapters 5-7 of Matthew's gospel. Soteriology-The section of Christian theology dealing with the doctrine of salvation (Greek: soteria). Synoptic gospels-A term used to refer to the first three gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke). The term (derived from the Greek word synopsis, "summary") refers to the way in which the three gospels can be seen as providing similar "summaries" of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Synoptic problem-The scholarly question of how the three synoptic gospels relate to each other. Perhaps the most common approach to the issue is the "two source" theory, which claims that Matthew and Luke used Mark as a source, while also drawing upon a second source (usually known as "Q"). Other possibilities exist: For example, the Grisebach hypothesis treats Matthew as having been written first, followed by Luke and then Mark. Theodicy-A term coined by Leibnitz to refer to a theoretical justification of the goodness of God in the face of the presence of evil in the world. Thomism, via Thomae-The scholastic philosophy associated with Thomas Aquinas. Transubstantiation-The medieval doctrine according to which the bread and the wine are transformed into the body and blood of Christ in theeucharist, while retaining their outward appearance. Trinity-The distinctively Christian doctrine of God, which reflects the complexity of the Christian experience of God. The doctrine is usually summarized in maxims such as "three persons, one God." two natures, doctrine of A term generally used to refer to the doctrine of the two natures, human and divine, of Jesus Christ. Related terms include "Chalcedonian definition" and "hypostatic union." Vulgate-The Latin translation of the Bible, largely deriving from Jerome, upon which medieval theology was largely based. Strictly speaking, "Vulgate" designates Jerome's translation of the Old Testament (except the Psalms, which was taken from the Gallican Psalter); the apocryphal works (except Wisdom, Ecclesiastes, I and II Maccabees, and Baruch, which were taken from the Old Latin Version); and all the New Testament. The recognition of its many inaccuracies was of fundamental importance to the Reformation. Zwinglianism The term is used generally to refer to the thought of Huldrych Zwingli, but is often used to refer specifically to his views on the sacraments, especially on the "real presence" (which for Zwingli was more of a "real absence").
Christian Ethics In
Christian Ethics Independent Study in African American Christian Ethics January 7, 2000
Questions for investigation: The focus of this independent study is to explore the recent and current interpretetion of Christian social ethics by African American scholars.
Question #1. The meaning of ethic of power and empowerment ethics in African American Christian social ethics. The focus is on the interperation of pwer and empowerment and how they serve as anethical perspecttive on the challenges which african American ethicistis address.
Question #2The normative significance of Jesus Christ for African American pastoral Leadership. (Are their different interpretations of the ethical import of Jesus life and work? In which ways aree notions of leadership contested in the AfricanAmerican church? In which ways can the person of Jesus provide a transformation model for African American pastoral Leadership?
Biblography of African American Christian and Social Thought
PrincipleSources
Meditations of the Heart. Howard Thurman Howard Thurman& Jesus and the Disinherited. Howard Thurman, Vincent Harding. 1949
First published in 1949, "Jesus and the Disinherited" is a brilliant and compassionate look at God's work in our lives. Its powerful and influential message helped to shape the civil rights movement. As we continue to struggle today with issues of racism, poverty, and spiritual disengagement, Howard Thurman's discerning reading of the message of renewal through self-love as exemplified in the life of Jesus resonates once again. Challenging our submersion into individual and social isolation, Thurman suggests a reading of the Gospel that recovers a manual of resistance for the poor and disenfranchised. He argues that within Jesus' life of suffering, pain, and overwhelming love is the solution that will prevent our descent into moral nihilism. For although scorned and forced to live outside society, Jesus advocated a love of self and others that defeats fear and the hatred that decays our souls and the world around us. Thurman's work reaches toward a vision of unity--a welcome epistle as we approach the next century.
Disciplines of the Spirit. Howard Thurman Awake, Arise, & Act : A Womanist Call for Black Liberation. (African American Studies/Women's Studies). Marcia Y. Riggs. 1994
An important womanist voice speaks clearly to the volatile race and class dynamics that continue to shape the debate over the African-American experience. Riggs argues that social stratification has not only seriously damaged social cooperation among blacks, but has also encouraged social dysfunction by nurturing irrational class competition. In this probing analysis of the history and future of the African American experience, Marcia Y. Riggs explains how social stratification has not only damaged cooperation among Blacks, but has also nurtured a dysfunctional class competition - competition that continues to dim hopes of justice, solidarity, and liberation in the black community. Riggs proposes the nineteenth-century black women's club movement as a model for approaching the contemporary crisis in black America. These reformers, Riggs demonstrates, recognized that the ongoing problems of racism, sexism, and classism discouraged the development of intragroup responsibility. By rejecting oppressive images and roles, the club movement challenged African Americans to strive for communal liberation and social betterment. Awake, Arise, and Act skillfully weaves together sociology, theology, and history to create a brilliant tapestry of hope and promise for African Americans in the twenty-first century.
Can I Get a Witness? Prophetic Religious Voices of African American Women: An Anthology. Marcia Riggs(Editor). Barbara Holmes (Editor). 1997
This anthology gathers the religious words of Afro-American women from Sojourner Truth to Harriet Tubman and Fannie Lou Hamer, assembling a variety of witnesses to the Gospel and examining the links between faith and the struggle for civil rights and justice. This juxtaposes the reflections of both famous and lesser-known black women. Assembling a chorus of voices from history, Can I Get A Witness? chronicles African American women's lives as faithful witnesses to the prophetic dimensions of the Gospel, from slavery times to the present. Using touchstones of significant moments - slavery and emancipation, the Great Awakening and suffragism, women's clubs and missionary movements, and the great Civil Rights struggles - Can I Get A Witness? documents the crucial links between faith and the struggle for justice that forms the basis of the contemporary womanist movement. Many African American women, famous or not, are represented, including Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Mary McLeod Bethune, Fannie Lou Hamer, Shirley Chisholm, and many others. Whether confessional, homiletic, political, or poetic, their voices bear witness on the part of African American women to the God who created, redeemed, and sustained them for the work of liberation. .
Empowerment Ethics for a Liberated People: A Path to African American Social Transformation. Cheryl J. Sanders. 1995 Living the Intersection: Womanism and Afrocentrism in Theology. Cheryl J. Sanders(Editor
Womanism and Afrocentrism are the two most influential currents in contemporary African American culture. Yet are the two compatible? Social ethicist Cheryl Sanders marshals some leading womanist thinkers to take the measure of the Afrocentric idea and to explore the intricate relationship between Afrocentric and womanist perspectives.
Ministry at the Margins: The Prophetic Mission of Women, Youth & the Poor.Cheryl J. Sanders. 1997 span>
The author issues a call for the church to update the idea of ministry and mission by moving away from condescension and towards inclusion of marginalized groups seeking justice. For centuries women, youth and the poor have been seen as objects of Christian ministry, but rarely as those who do ministry themselves. This is so much the case that in some quarters today ministry and mission are bad words, reeking of older and paternalistic models of Christian "service." In this challenging book, Cheryl Sanders demonstrates how mission can be updated. Far from being regressive or irrelevant in a multicultural, nonpatriarchal world, Christian mission can come alive when it is not just ministry to but ministry by marginalized groups seeking justice. Ministry at the Margins is an important Christian ethicist's rousing call to "find grace to articulate a theology of inclusion and to establish inclusive practices and multicultural perspectives that harmonize with the gospel we preach and honor the Christ we proclaim." Essential reading for pastors, church leaders, students, urban missionaries and campus ministers.
Saints in Exile: The Holiness-Pentecostal Experience in African American Religion and Culture (Religion in America). Cheryl J. Sanders. 1999 My Sister, My Brother: Womanist and Xodus God-Talk (Bishop Henry McNeal Turner/Sojourner Truth Series in Black Religion, Vol 12). Karen Baker-Fletcher, Garth Kasimu Baker-Fletcher..Some bodyness: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Theory of Dignity. Garth Baker-Fletcher. Xodus: An African American Male Journey. Garth Kasimu Baker Fletcher, et al
Written in a bold, inventive style, Xodus aims at a new, positive "reconstruction" of African American maleness in light of the black womanist movement, the men's movement, the recent vision of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr., and the theological sensibilities of Howard Thurman.
Black Theology and Black Power. James H. Cone. 1997 A Black Theology of Liberation. James H. Cone. 1990
For My People: Black Theology and the Black Church. James H. Cone. 1984
James H. Cone. 1997 My Soul Looks Back. James H. Cone. 1986 Risks of
Faith: The Emergence of a Black Theology of Liberation, 1968-1998.
James H. Cone. 1999 Speaking the Truth: Ecumenism, Liberation, and Black Theology.
James H. Cone. 1999 Black Faith and Public Talk: Critical Essays on James H. Cone's Black Theology and Black Power. Dwight N. Hopkins(Editor)1999
James H. Cone and Black Liberation Theology. Rufus, Jr. Burrow. 1994
Breaking Bread: Insurgent Black Intellectual Life.Bell Hooks, Cornel West (Contributor). 1991
Critical Race Theory : The Key Writings That Formed the Movement. Kimberle Crenshaw(Editor), et al. 1996
The Future of the Race. Cornel West(Contributor). Henry Louis, Jr. Gates. 1997
Keeping Faith: Philosophy and Race in America. Cornel West. 1994 Prophesy Deliverance! an Afro-American Revolutionary Christianity. Cornel West
Race Matters. Cornel West. 1994
Restoring Hope: Conversations on the Future of Black America. Cornel West, et al. 1998 Beyond Eurocentrism and Multiculturalism. Cornel West.1993
Beyond Eurocentrism and Multiculturalism (vol 2): Prophetic Reflections: Notes on Race and Power in America. Cornel West. 1993
Breaking Bread: Insurgent Black Intellectual Life. Bell Hooks, Cornel West. 1991
The Courage to Hope: From African-American Experience to Human Community. Quinton Hosford Dixie (Editor). Cornel West (Editor). 1999
Post-Analytic Philosophy. John Rajchman(Editor). Cornel West (Editor). 1985
Prophetic Reflections: Notes on Race and Power in America (Beyond Eurocentrism and Multiculturalism, Vol 2) . Cornel West. 1993
Prophetic Thought in Postmodern Times (Beyond Eurocentrism and Multiculturalism, Vol 1). Cornel West. 1993 Race Matters. Cornel West. 1993 The Soul Knows No Bars : Getting Out of Prison. Drew Leder, Cornel West. 2000 Prophetic Fragments: Illuminations of the Crisis in American Religion and Culture. Cornel West Regarding Malcolm X: A Reader. Paula Giddings. Cornel West Theology in the Americas: Detroit Two Conference Papers. Cornel West(Editor)Mending Fences: Renewing Justice Between Government and Civil Society (Kuyper Lecture Series). Glenn C. Loury, et al. 1998Moral Values: The Challenge of the Twenty-First Century. W. Lawson Taitte (Editor), et al. 1997 One by One from the Inside Out: Essays and Reviews on Race and Responsibility in America. Glenn C. Loury. 1995 Transforming Welfare: The Revival of American Charity. David Beito, et al. 1997 The Spirituality of African Peoples: The Search for a Common Moral Discourse. Peter J. Paris. 1994 Black Religious Leaders: Conflict in Unity. Peter J. Paris. 1992 Secondary SourcesMaking the Gospel Plain: The Writings of Bishop Reverdy C. Ransom (African American Religious Thought and Life). Reverdy C. Ransom, Anthony B. Pinn (Editor) The book focuses on Bishop Reverdy Ransom of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, a historically significant figure whose life and work provide a much fairer view of the richness of black religious life in the second quarter of the twentieth century than has heretofore been available. Making the Gospel Plain is a unique collection of Ransom's writings that are presently out of print or little known. After outlining Ransom's life and involvements, the book moves into the actual documents: sermons and speeches, articles and editorials, and pamphlets and excerpts from his books. Explanatory notes are included where necessary. African-American Social and Political Thought 1850-1920. Howard Brotz (Editor). The previous edition of this collection of writings by Booker T. Washington, William du Bois, and Marcus Garvey, among others, was published in 1966 under the title, Negro social and political thought, 1850-1920. Black and Catholic: The Challenge and Gift of Black Folk Contributions of African American Experience and Thought to Catholic Theology Christianity on Trial: African-American Religious Thought Before and After Black Power (Bishop Henry McNeal Turner/Sojourner Truth Series in Black Religion. Mark L. Chapman, Marc Chapman Since slavery times African-American religious thinkers have struggled to answer this question: Is Christianity a source of liberation or a source of oppression? In a study that reviews representative thinkers over the last fifty years, Mark Chapman reviews the variety of ways that African-Americans have addressed this problem and how it has informed their work and lives. Beginning with Benjamin Mays, the leading "Negro" theologian of the post-World War II period, Chapman explores the critical implications of this question right up to the present day. The pivotal turning point in this period is the emergence of the Black Power movement in the 1960s. Sparked in part by the challenge of the Black Muslims, for whom Christianity was simply "the white man's religion," inherently racist and oppressive, the era of Black Power saw the rise of militant Black theologies as well. After analyzing the work of the Muslim Elijah Muhammad, Chapman turns to the pioneering work of Black theologians Albert Cleage and James H. Cone. Chapman demonstrates the differences but also uncovers surprising lines of continuity between the older "Negro theologians" and the later "Black theologians" particularly in their efforts to uncover the truly liberative potential of Christianity. Christianity on Trial concludes by exploring the recent emergence of womanist theology. As articulated by Delores S. Williams and other African-American women, "womanist theology" challenges not only the patriarchal aspects of historical Christianity, but the same limitations in previous Black theologies. Detroit, I Do Mind Dying: A Study in Urban Revolution. Dan Georgakas, et al. 1998 Since its original publication in 1975 by St. Martin's Press, Detroit: I Do Mind Dying has been widely recognized as one of the most important books on the black liberation movement and labor struggle in the United States.Detroit: I Do Mind Dying tells the remarkable story of the Dodge Revolutionary Union Movement, based in Detroit, and the League of Revolutionary Black Workers, two of the most important political organizations of the 1960s and 1970s.The new South End Press edition makes available the full text of this out-of-print classic along with a new foreword by the African-American scholar Manning Marable, interviews with participants in the League, and reflections on political developments over the past three decades by Georgakas and Surkin.The new edition includes commentary by Detroit activists Sheila Murphy Cockrel, Edna Ewell Watson, Michael Hamlin, and Herb Boyd. All of them reflect not only on the tremendous achievements of DRUM and the League, but on their political legacy for Detroit, for U.S. politics, and for them personally.Dying tells a different story; one of a core of revolutionaries in the industrial heart of America within a union with a radical past. These black revolutionaries take on the racism of the bosses, as well as the racism of the union beauracracy, in a daring and valliant attempt to bring about real social change. Some lessons for activists, trade unionists, and socialists today are included by the authors. Questions of organizing white workers; the need for a national party; wildcat strikes to take on both the company and the union beauracracy; and the need to have an international perspective. All of theses lessons are brought forth from the struggles of the League of Revolutionary Black Workers and all of the Revolutionary Union Movements in the Detroit area. A must read for activists today. This is simply the best book written on the radicalization of the Black (and white/arab/latino) industrial working class in the late 1960's and early 1970's. It is also rich in lessons for radical unionists and socialists today. With all the academic presses churning out tome after tome on "race relations" why doesn't one of them pick up this fascinating book? --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. An International History of the Black Panther Party (Studies in African American History and Culture). Jennifer B. Smith. 1999 Leadership, Conflict, and Cooperation in Afro-American Social Thought. John Brown Childs. 1993 Liberating Vision: Human Fulfillment and Social Justice in African-American Thought. Robert Michael Franklin. 1990 Stirrings in the Jug: Black Politics in the Post-Segregation Era. Reed Jr. Adolph, et al. 1999 Adolph Reed Jr. has been called the smartest person of any race, class, or gender writing on race, class, and gender (Katha Pollitt, Mother Jones) and refreshing and radical. Serious, even courageous (Adam Schatz, The Nation) well as many less polite terms for his bare-knuckled approach to political analysis. In Stirrings in the Jug, Reed offers a sweeping and incisive analysis of racial politics during the post-civil rights era. Skeptical of received wisdom, Reed casts a critical eye on political trends in the black community over the last thirty years.He examines the rise of a new black political class in the aftermath of the civil rights era, and bluntly denounces black leadership that is not accountable to a black constituency; such leadership, he says, functions as a proxy for white elites. Reed debunks as myths the endangered black male and the black underclass, and punctures what he views as the exaggeration and self-deception surrounding the black power movement and the Malcolm X revival. He chastises the Left, too, for its failure to develop an alternative politics, then lays out a practical leftist agenda and reasserts the centrality of political action.In the early 1960s, Reed writes, Ralph Ellison lamented the disposition to see segregation as an opaque steel jug with the Negroes inside waiting for some black messiah to come along and blow the cork. In Stirrings in the Jug, Reed challenges us to advance emancipatory and egalitarian interests in black political life and in society at large to look within the jug, examine its varied contents, and pour them freely into the world. Under the Kapok Tree: Identity and Difference in Beng Thought. Alma Gottlieb.1996 In this companion volume to Parallel Worlds, Alma Gottlieb explores ideology and social practices among the Beng people of Cte d'Ivoire. Employing symbolic and postmodern perspectives, she highlights the dynamically paired notions of identity and difference, symbolized by the kapok tree planted at the center of every Beng village. "This book merits a number of readings. . . . An experiment in ethnography that future projects might well emulate." --Clarke K. Speed, American Anthropologist "[An] evocative, rich ethnography. . . . Gottlieb does anthropology a real service." --Misty L. Bastian, American Ethnologist "Richly detailed. . . . This book offers a nuanced descriptive analysis which commands authority." --Elizabeth Tonkin, Man "Exemplary. . . . Gottlieb's observations on identity and difference are not confined to rituals or other special occasions; rather she shows that these principles emerge with equal force during daily social life." --Monni Adams, Journal of African Religion "[An] excellent study." --John McCall, Journal of Folklore ResearchThe Voice of Anna Julia Cooper: Including a Voice from the South and Other Important Essays, Papers, and Letters (Legacies of Social Thought). Anna J. Cooper, et al. 1998 W. E. B. Du Bois and American Political Thought: Fabianism and the Color Line. Adolph L. Reed. 1999 In his own time, W.E.B. Du Bois was a controversial figure, and now, more than 30 years after his death, he continues to be so. Born in 1868, Du Bois was a central figure in African American intellectual life during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, yet many of his positions are difficult to reconcile with current African American thought. Du Bois, for example, was an elitist who believed that black society was divided between "the talented tenth" and everybody else. Yet in his later years, he joined the communist party and moved to Africa, where he lived out the remainder of his life. Since his death in 1963, a generation of African American intellectuals have tried to interpret, explain, or revise him according to their own beliefs; now Adolph Reed Jr. weighs in with W.E.B. Du Bois and American Political Thought. Reed's approach to Du Bois is simple: he believes that what you read is what you get. When, for example, Du Bois wrote movingly in The Souls of Black Folk of a feeling of "twoness," a sense of warring natures, Reed suggests that, far from embracing a notion of double consciousness, Du Bois was actually following precepts of early 20th-century social theory which described the split between primitive and civilized societies. In addition to his discussion about Du Bois, Reed comments on many other African American critics at work today, from Houston Baker to Henry Louis Gates, making the author of W.E.B. Du Bois and American Political Thought as controversial as his subject. The New York Times Book Review, Alan Wolfe to enter the world of Adolph Reed is to return to that time when intellectuals believed that they held the keys to history.... Most intellectuals have left that world behind. In an odd way, Reed is to be admired for not having done so; the quality of our intellecutal life would be poor indeed if everyone thought the same way. Still, one has to wonder where Reed's self-confidence--his total lack of doubt about his rightness and everyone else's wrongness--comes from. In this pathbreaking book, Adolph Reed, Jr. covers for the first time the sweep and totality of W.E.B. Du Bois's political thought. Departing from existing scholarship, Reed locates the sources of Du Bois's thought in the cauldron of reform-minded intellectual life at the turn of the century, arguing that a commitment of liberal collectivism, an essentially Fabian socialism, remained pivotal in Du Bois's thought even as he embraced a range of political programs over time, including radical Marxism. Exploring the segregation-era political discourse which informed Du Bois's texts and identifying the imperatives which triggered Du Bois's strategic political thinking, Reed reveals that Du Bois's core beliefs concerning such issues as the relationship between knowledge and progress, social stratification among blacks, and proper social organization, endured with little change from their early formulation in The Philadelphia Negro (1899). While tracking Du Bois's response to shifting political and economic contexts over nearly six decades, Reed also refines our understanding of twentieth-century progressive thought, discovering fresh continuities and tensions between fin de siecle and later socialist and Marxist discourses. Words of Fire: An Anthology of African-American Feminist Thought. Beverly Guy-Sheftall(Editor), Johnnetta Cole (Contributor). 1995 This anthology of African-American feminist thinking is an outstanding collection written by a pioneer of the modern black feminist movement. This is the first collection of black women's philosophy from the 1830s to modern times, revealing an intellectual tradition which is historically significant, revealing black women's struggles in this country since their arrival. Elizabeth Spelman, Professor of Philosophy, Smith College. The indefatigable Beverly Guy-Sheftall has put together a breathtaking sweep of African American feminist thought in one indispensable volume. "In this groundbreaking collection of articles, Dr. Guy-Sheftall has taken us from the early 1830s to contemporary times. Only since the seventies have black women used the term 'feminism.' And, yet, it is that concept that she uses to bring into the same frame the ideas and analyses of Maria Stewart, Sojourner Truth, and Frances Harper of the early nineteenth century, and the work of women such as Audre Lourde, Barbara Smith, and Bell Hooks, who stand on the threshold of the twenty-first century.--from the epilogue by Johnnetta B. Cole, President, Spelman College Tracing African-American feminist thought from the early1800s to the present, an anthology combines the works of more than sixty African-American women, including Sojourner Truth, Lorraine Hansberry, and Shirley Chisholm. African American Political Thought 1890-1930: Washington, Dubois, Garvey, and Randolph. Cary D. Wintz (Editor). 1996 Selected writings from four major figures in African American history demonstrate different and often conflicting approaches to dealing with issues of race in the US in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The articles, essays, letters, and public statements also dispel any notion of simplification or stasis in African American political thought. Could be an invaluable reader for a history course at any level from high school to graduate. Midwest Book Review-Essays, letters, speeches and editorials produced by Washington, DuBois, Garvey and Randolph form the foundation of a fine examination of the ideas and evolution of African American political and social thinking from the 1890s through the 1920s. An excellent overview of black concerns and evolution is created through the juxtaposition of documents by the four prominent thinkers. African-American Thought: Social and Political Perspectives from Slavery to the Present. Manning Marable(Editor), Leith Mullings (Editor). 1999 Black American Intellectualism and Culture: A Social Study of African American Social and Political Thought. (Contemporary Studies in Sociology). James L. Conyers (Editor).1999 Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerment. Patricia Hill Collins. 1990 From 500 Great Books by Women; review by Jesse Larsen In her introduction, Patricia Hill Collins states that her work is informed by the totality of her experience as the daughter of working-class parents, her education as a sociologist and educator, and her daily "non-scholarly activities" as wife, mother, community activist, sister, and friend. Black Feminist Thought is the first history and analysis of "Black women's ideas" told in a voice that is "both individual and collective, personal and political, one reflecting the intersection of my unique biography with the larger meaning of my historical times." In it we discover new meanings for selected and neglected traditional female themes like gossip, hair, TV, movies, food, and clothing; get a fresh look at where and how knowledge is produced; learn about self-definition and about kitchens, factories, and neighborhoods as "alternative locations for intellectual work." The implications of her chapters, "The Ethic of Caring," "The Ethic of Personal Accountability," and "Reconceptualizing Race, Class, and Gender as Interlocking Systems of Oppression," are enormous and compelling. For readers interested in the sources and definitions of knowledge-especially those whose history and intellectual tradition has been lost, denied, or denigrated - Black Feminist Thought is one of the most inspiring, exciting, and valuable books you'll ever read. -- For great reviews of books for girls, check out Let's Hear It for the Girls. In Black Feminist Thought, Patricia Hill Collins explores the words and ideas of Black feminist intellectuals, as well as those of African-American women outside academe. She not only provides an interpretive framework for the work of such prominent Black feminist thinkers as Angela Davis, Alice Walker and Audre Lorde, but she shows the importance of self-defined knowledge for group empowerment. In the tenth anniversary edition of this award-winning work, Patricia Hill Collins expands the basic arguments of the first edition by adding several important new themes: a new discussion of heterosexism as a system of power, an expanded treatment of images of Black womanhood, U.S. Black feminism's connections to Black Diasporic feminisms, and more attention to the importance of social class and nationalism. In addition, the new edition includes discussion of recent developments in black cultural studies, especially black popular culture, as well as recent events and trends such as the Anita Hill hearings and the backlash against affirmative action. Black Marxism: The Making of the Black Radical Tradition. Cedric J. Robinson. 2000 Detroit: I Do Mind Dying (South End Press Classics, 2). Dan Georgakas, et a. 1998 The Fragmented World of the Social : Essays in Social and Political Philosophy (Suny Series in Social and Political Thought). Axel Honneth, Charles W. Wright (Editor). 1995 The essays in this book weave together insights and arguments from such diverse traditions as German critical theory, French philosophy and social theory, and recent Anglo-American moral and political theory, offering a unique approach to the political and theoretical consequences of the modernism /postmodernism discussion. Through an analysis of central themes in classical Marxism and early critical theory, the author shows how recent work in a variety of traditions converges on the need to question familiar distinctions between material production and culture, the public and the private, and the political and the social, and to reconsider the conceptions of agency and power that have informed them.I Answer With My Life : Life Histories of Women Teachers Working for Social Change (Critical Social Thought). Kathleen Casey. 1993 Race, Women, and Revolution: Black Female Militancy and the Praxis of Ella Baker. Joy James. 1999 Without Justice for All : The New Liberalism and Our Retreat from Racial Equality. Adolph L. Reed (Editor)Without Justice for All questions, examines, and explains the way a new orthodoxy among American leaders and opinion-makers has contributed to the social stratification and inequality that plagues America today. Contributors look at the history of our social policies since the New Deal, as well as the status of specific policy arenas and political shifts over the past fifty years. Throughout, the central thread is a critical response to a now conventional argument that liberalism must be reconfigured in ways that retreat from immediate identification with the interests of labor, minorities, and the poor. Without Justice for All, written for both students and general readers, is a timely and important contribution to the dialogue on race in modern America. Race Men (W.E.B. Du Bois Lectures). Hazel V. Carby Race men is a term of endearment used by blacks to signify those high-achieving African American men who "represent the race," disproving bigoted notions of black inferiority. In this engaging study, Yale African American Studies Professor Hazel V. Carby seeks to ask "questions about various black masculinities at different historical moments and in different media: literature, photography, film, music, and song." She doesso by discussing the lives and works of myriad types of race men. Frederick Douglass's uncompromising fight against slavery, W.E.B. Du Bois's masterful The Souls of Black Folk, Martin Luther King's nonviolent struggles, and Malcolm X's fiery rhetoric articulate the intellectual-political prisms of black activism, for example, while actor Danny Glover represents the dilemma of the black/white sidekick and the fight for a more multidimensional Afro-American image.Carby compares Toussaint L'Ouverture, the ex-slave who liberated Haiti from the French in the 19th century, to Trinidadian writer C.L.R. James, whose Marxist interpretation of the Haitian Revolution, The Black Jacobins, unveiled the complexities of colonialism, class, and the sexist aspects of radical black leadership. She discusses jazz icon Miles Davis's quest for freedom and his misogynistic persona articulated in his autobiography, then praises science fiction writer Samuel R. Delany's Motion of Light in Water as "an effective counterpoint to Miles ... a magnificent attempt to reject the socially created obstacles separating desire from its material achievement, and in the process demolishing and transcending the limitations of heterosexual norms." Indeed, for Carby the major flaw of race men is that their upholding of "the race" does not prominently address the concerns of African American women as well. --Eugene Holley Jr. From Booklist , September 15, 1998 Carby takes a decidedly feminist view as she examines the social, cultural, and political implications of how white Americans view black men, and how black men react to those visions. The images--and reactions--are linked to the troubled history of black people in the U.S. Despite their relative powerlessness, black men have managed to engender among whites a fear of their potential physical violence and a fascination with their mythic sexual potency. Carby traces reactions by black male writers: W. E. B. Dubois' emphasis on intellect and C. L. R. James' emphasis on sport (particularly cricket) as the arena to do battle with white men. She examines the career of Paul Robeson, beloved for his voice and athleticism, but reviled for his politics. She contrasts the masculinity of Miles Davis, who viewed women as emotional drains, to that of Samuel R. Delaney, whose homosexuality somehow allowed for a more encompassing view of women. Her basic conclusion is that black men are men, who think and act like men, often to the exclusion or even detriment of women's interests. Synopsis-Carby, author of "Reconstructing Womanhood: The Emergence of the Afro-American Woman", offers a searing critique of definitions of black masculinity at work in American culture. "Race Men" shows how these defining images play out socially, culturally, and politically for black and white society--and how they exclude women altogether. Who are the "race men" standing for black America? It is a question Hazel Carby rejects, along with its long-standing assumption: that a particular type of black male can represent the race. A searing critique of definitions of black masculinity at work in American culture, Race Men shows how these defining images play out socially, culturally, and politically for black and white society - and how they exclude women altogether. Carby begins by looking at images of black masculinity in the work of W. E. B. Du Bois. Her analysis of The Souls of Black Folk reveals the narrow and rigid code of masculinity that Du Bois applied to racial achievement and advancement - a code that remains implicitly but firmly in place today in the work of celebrated African American male intellectuals. The career of Paul Robeson, the music of Huddie Ledbetter, and the writings of C. L. R. James on cricket and on the Haitian revolutionary, Toussaint L'Ouverture, offer further evidence of the social and political uses of representations of black masculinity. In the music of Miles Davis and the novels of Samuel R. Delany, Carby finds two separate but related challenges to conventions of black masculinity. Examining Hollywood films, she traces through the career of Danny Glover the development of a cultural narrative that promises to resolve racial contradictions by pairing black and white men - still leaving women out of the picture. Yo' Mama's Disfunktional! : Fighting the Culture Wars in Urban American. Robin D. G. Kelley. Beacon Press. 1999 Nation of Islam.--Critic's Choice. "It is not too much or too early to call Robin D. G. Kelley a leading black historian of the age. But it may not be enough." The Souls of Black Folk. W. E. B. Dubois, et al. 1903 First published in 1903, this extraordinary work not only recorded and explained history, it helped to alter its course. A collection of 14 essays contain both the academic language of sociology and the rich lyrics of African spirituals, which Du Bois called "sorrow songs" and records the cruelties of racism, celebrates the strength and pride of Black America, and explores the paradoxical "double consciousness" of African-American life. William Edward Burghardt Du Bois (1868-1963) is the greatest of African American intellectuals--a sociologist, historian, novelist, and activist whose astounding career spanned the nation's history from Reconstruction to the civil rights movement. Born in Massachusetts and educated at Fisk, Harvard, and the University of Berlin, Du Bois penned hisepochal masterpiece, The Souls of Black Folk, in 1903. It remains his most studied and popular work; its insights into Negro life at the turn of the 20th century still ring true.With a dash of the Victorian and Enlightenment influences that peppered his impassioned yet formal prose, the book's largely autobiographical chapters take the reader through the momentous and moody maze of Afro-American life after the Emancipation Proclamation: from poverty, the neoslavery of the sharecropper, illiteracy, miseducation, and lynching, to the heights of humanity reached by the spiritual "sorrow songs" that birthed gospel and the blues. The most memorable passages are contained in "On Booker T. Washington and Others," where Du Bois criticizes his famous contemporary's rejection of higher education and accommodationist stance toward white racism: "Mr. Washington's programme practically accepts the alleged inferiority of the Negro races," he writes, further complaining that Washington's thinking "withdraws many of the high demands of Negroes as men and American citizens." The capstone of The Souls of Black Folk, though, is Du Bois' haunting, eloquent description of the concept of the black psyche's "double consciousness," which he described as "a peculiar sensation.... One ever feels this twoness--an American, a Negro; two souls, two thoughts, two unreconciled strivings; two warring ideals in one dark body, whose dogged strength alone keeps it from being torn asunder." Thanks to W.E.B. Du Bois' commitment and foresight--and the intellectual excellence expressed in this timeless literary gem--black Americans can today look in the mirror and rejoice in their beautiful black, brown, and beige reflections. The New York Times Book Review-Sentimental, poetical, picturesque, the acquired logic of the evident attempt to be critically fair-minded is strangely tangled with these racial characteristics and racial rhetoric.
Exegetical paper on joh20n 24-29
Exegetical paper on John chapter 20, verses 24 - 29
First off, this is the first time that I have ever done an exegetical paper, so I am pretty nervous about this and I hope it turns out okay. Aside from that, I decided on the passage in John where it talks about Thomas finding out that Jesus had been resurrected from the dead. This was something that I wanted to write on because it is something that interests me. I used this passage a few weeks ago in an Easter Sunday service. I talked about how hard it is for people in our society today to believe that Jesus came back to life, but Thomas one of the disciples of Jesus had to see the nail holes in order to believe. I think the passage is very important to our faith and I hope to prove it through the research gathered here.
A lot was going on during the time of Jesus’ resurrection. The man that had caused so much disturbances to the people was put to death, his body put in a tomb with a stone blocking the entranceway to keep robbers out, and now he was missing. There was a lot of confusion as to what was going on. He appeared to his disciples in verses 19 – 23. Thomas was not present then and had to rely on what the others told him. In a world where so much chaos was going on, it would seem easy to identify with Thomas.
Thomas has become famously known as “doubting Thomas” because he needed proof to believe in things. According to an article written in the journal “Worship,” Thomas was “a figure not easily persuaded,” (Worship, Brown, pg 205). The Cambridge Bible Commentary says, “In John’s Gospel, Thomas appears not so much as an out – and – out doubter as the type of those who demand tangible proof of what they are to believe as Christians. But he was literal minded and demanded certainty as a condition of his self – committal. Wanting to believe, he was held back by fear of disillusionment,” (Cambridge Bible Commentary, pg 189.)
It appears that Thomas was a person that needed physical evidence in order to believe in something. Another reason that Thomas may have struggled with believing is that the disciples who were passing on the same account that Mary Magdalene was giving passed on the news of Jesus’ resurrection to him. “The disciples’ announcement to Thomas in verse 25 is the same announcement that Mary Magdalene made to them in verse 18,” (New Interpreter’s Bible, page 849). Raymond E. Brown says in his article in “Worship,” “The disciples who saw the risen Jesus in 20:19-23 gives to Thomas exactly the same report that Mary Magdalene had given to them: We have seen the Lord.
On the basis of Magdalene’s report the disciples did not doubt when Jesus appeared to them; but Thomas is adamant in his refusal to believe on the basis of their word,” (Worship, Brown, pg 20). It is a well-known fact that women were not considered to be in high standing during those times. The fact that a woman would come saying that Jesus had risen from the dead would cause a lot of speculation and doubt during that time. In “Women in the New Testament,” Bonnie Thurston describes how Mary was ignored by the apostles when she told them Jesus had risen.
“At some risk to herself, Mary Magdalene comes to the tomb before daylight to discover the stone rolled away. She runs to tell Peter and the Beloved; they come to the tomb, assess the situation, and leave.”
“Mary who has returned with them to the tomb (and it apparently totally ignored by the men), weeps nearby,” (Women in the New Testament, pgs 89-90). This is just a small example of how Mary was treated. Maybe Thomas doubted because he would not take the story of a woman. I think it is funny how we tend to focus on the fact that Thomas had to see the wounds in order to believe, but in verse 20 it says that Jesus showed the other disciples his wounds as well, “After he said this, he showed them his hands and side.” (NIV Bible). “Other evangelists mention doubt on the part of the disciples after the resurrection; only John dramatizes that doubt so personally in an individual,”(Worship, Brown, pg 205).
After a week had passed, Thomas finally got his chance to get proof that Jesus was alive. “A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘ Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe,” (NIV Bible). I can only imagine what Thomas must have felt in that instant.
To have the living Christ in front of him telling him to feel his hands and side.
I think it is very interesting though, that Thomas chose to believe without actually touching Jesus. “Jesus invites Thomas to examine his hands and side – an invitation that turns the tables on Thomas by probing him. Scholars have debated whether in fact Thomas physically probed the risen body. Surely, on the basis of Johannine theology, however, if Thomas had examined and touched Jesus’ body, he would have persisted in a disbelief that he had already demonstrated and would have ceased to be a disciple.
The words of Jesus as he challenges Thomas should be taken literally: “Do not persist in your disbelief, but become a believer.” Thomas accepts that directive, does not touch Jesus, and so professed faith,” (Worship, Brown, pgs205-206). The Anchor Bible says, “When Jesus appears and somewhat sarcastically offers Thomas the crass demonstration of the miraculous that he demanded, Thomas comes t belief without probing Jesus’ wounds. Certainly that is the obvious implication of John’s account; for the evangelist would not have considered Thomas’ faith adequate if the disciple had taken up Jesus’ invitation and would never have put on Thomas’ lips the tremendous confession of verse 28,” (Anchor Bible). In verse 28 Thomas says, “My Lord and my God!” (NIV Bible). The New Interpreters Bible says “ Jesus’ offer of himself to Thomas evokes the most powerful and complete confession of Jesus n the Fourth Gospel: My Lord and my God!” (New Interpreters Bible, pg 850).
I believe that it was in this instant that Thomas actually did believe. What Jesus says in verse 29 is a powerful statement to the world, “Then Jesus told him, Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed,” (NIV Bible). For all of us who did not live during that time, this is a powerful verse. Jesus’ powerful words at 20:29 contain a related promise that belief will not be limited to those who see what Thomas has seen. Jesus does not disparage the faith of the first disciples, which was grounded in sight; Actually verse 29 is intended to reassure future generations of believers that having seen Jesus that is, begin first – generation witnesses is not a prerequisite of faith,” (New Interpreter’s Bible, pg 850).
Jesus was about to ascend into Heaven and would not be here in the physical anymore. It is up to us to believe in a Jesus that we cannot physically see. I think it is best summed up in the Mercer Commentary Bible, “But the doubter turned confessor was nonetheless reminded that the church that would thereafter be built upon testimony would not have the same opp0rtunity for verification. Thus a blessing was issued by the risen Lord to those who would believe “without seeing.” (Mercer Commentary on the Bible, pg 1079).
BIBLIOGRAHPY
Mercer Commentary on the Bible Mercer University Press 1995
Women in the New Testament By: Bonnie Thurston The Crossroad Publishing Company, 1998
New Interpreters BibleThe Gospel of JohnAbingdon Press, 1995
The Anchor BibleThe Gospel of JohnDoubleday & CompanyGarden City New York 1970
Worship Vol 64 Number 3“Resurrection in John 20 - A series of Diverse Reactions”Raymond E BrownMay 1990
The Cambridge Bible CommentaryThe Gospel According to John 1965, Cambridge University Press The New International Study Bible Zondervan Publishing House 1995
Book Review/Empowering Ministry
Book Review/Empowering Ministry by Donald P. Smith
Mr. Smith's book was a compilation and interpretation of surveys he created and distributed to hundreds of pastors and lay leaders throughout the country. He strove to show that empowering ministers - those who concentrate their attention on empowering others - are more effective than other pastors in almost every form of ministry. He accomplishes the goal with the book, which promotes empowering ministry in a very concrete way. Mr. Smith sets the book up as a series of anecdotes, examples and exercises. He takes the reader through the example, breaking down the points of the story to illustrate effective empowering ministry techniques. Citing the responses from his survey, his arguments are well made, and their substantiation through examples is thorough.
In an anecdotal style, Mr. Smith makes many good points. Among them are; "Who a pastor is makes a greater impact on the congregation than what a pastor does. Pastors are themselves the most important tools for ministry. Who they are makes possible what they do." Mr. Smith declares that the hallmark of a successful empowering pastor is one who delegates. It is an example of being a servant first as Jesus did, and also allows more to be done for the church. Other important traits contained in an empowering pastor's style include: leading by example, not being afraid to "lose credit" for good works. He explains that the goal of empowering should "respond(s) to the needs of the people with God's resources. Sensitivity to the needs of the congregation and training them to be participating in the success of the true mission of the church."
I agree with this statement wholeheartedly, although it is not always easy to accomplish this lofty goal, due to several reasons, not the least of which is a preacher's ego getting in the way, or the politics within the church, both at a local and conference level. I also agree with Mr. Smith when he states "True leadership enhances all relationships within the church community. It gives meaning to people's lives - their spirits are being encouraged and fed by participation." This is the kind of pastor I strive to be. I aim to be a strong leader who helps to empower the congregation, as Mr. Smith so aptly puts it in Chapter 2; when it "answers their search for meaning with a gospel that speaks clearly to issues they confront in their everyday lives."
Many people attending church today do so with the best of intentions, yet do so without maximum benefit. These are the people who attend but don't participate, who don't see how the church applies in their daily lives. They have come from many different backgrounds and life experiences where they might have been chastised for speaking up in an attempt to contribute, or, once having contributed been given message that their contribution is worthless. These are the people who need to attend a church where the atmosphere is one of encouragement in spiritual growth, a climate of loving support.
A successful empowering pastor will strive to create this atmosphere within the church community where all that attend believe that their contributions are not only encouraged, but are necessary, valuable and lovingly accepted. The author suggests that the successful empowering pastor will apply Tillich's method of correlation; "start by listening to the people because you begin with God's love for them in their concrete daily reality." Only a strong pastor can accomplish the creation of this type of environment. And he cannot do it alone. Mr. Smith suggests the pastor should put him or herself in an "integrating role" with in the church community.
Sociologist Sam Blizzard defines a minister's "integrating role" as a minister's "goal orientation or frame of reference to his work…it is the end toward which he is working in his professional relationships with parishioners, church associations, community groups and the general public. It is what he is trying to accomplish with people. " This approach ties together all the traits of an empowering ministry that Mr. Smith describes throughout the book. The pastor needs the contribution of many members of the church family.
Mr. Smith also addresses the three major sources of sustaining power in pastor's lives: an assurance of God's call, cultivation of spiritual resources and support received from others. An effective empowering pastor recognizes that to empower individuals or institutions is to ENHANCE their power, not diminish his or her own. He needs to love the people he serves, preach them the gospel and challenge them to service. The focus of a successful empowering minister's mission is always people. I thought that Mr. Smith's use of anecdotes to exemplify these themes throughout his book was quite successful
