Promise and Poison: The Story of Emerging Christianity - Hardcover

Hagen, John Van

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1666775673 ISBN 13: 9781666775679

Verlag: Wipf and Stock, 2023

Inhaltsangabe

In Promise and Poison, psychologist and former Catholic priest John Van Hagen argues that the long-standing Jewish hope for the history-changing intervention of YHWH and the cursed, shameful crucifixion of Jesus were two elements from which emerged new moral communities whose members were soon called Christians. While the history of Emerging Christianity appears fraught with battles about what to believe (orthodoxy), what often goes unnoticed is the intense struggle to live a virtuous life (orthopraxis). In their desperate efforts at self-definition, communities demonized outsiders and held insiders to unrealistic standards of conduct. That insistence on living a highly moral life was also fueled by the promise of a new afterlife on a transformed earth. The presence of retaliatory rage lay close to the surface. While the verbal violence toward those others only became actuated when Christians gained political power, the pressure for remaining a highly moral community spawned hypocrisy and harsh competition among insiders. This religion's moral struggle in ancient times is also a challenge for us today. Can we establish boundaries which are so necessary for an identity as a moral community without demonizing those outside or ostracizing those inside who are perceived to be different? The United States still struggles with this question.

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

John Van Hagen is a psychologist and former Catholic priest who has written extensively about practicing Christian faith in a time when science and theology argue for different views of religious origins. His previous books include Rescuing Religion and Agnostic at the Altar.

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Wipf and Stock
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2023
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1666775673
• ISBN 13: 9781666775679
• Einband: Gebundene Ausgabe
• Anzahl der Seiten: 196
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: gpsr@libri.de; gpsr@libri.de; ; Europaallee 1; Bad Hersfeld; 36244; Deutschland