Christianity and Violence

Christianity and Violence PDF Author: Lloyd Steffen
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108848826
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 147

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Book Description
How Christian people have framed the meaning of violence within their faith tradition has been a complex process subject to all manner of historical, cultural, political, ethnic and theological contingencies. As a tradition encompassing widely divergent beliefs and perspectives, Christianity has, over two millennia, adapted to changing cultural and historical circumstances. To grasp the complexity of this tradition and its involvement with violence requires attention to specific elements explored in this Element: the scriptural and institutional sources for violence; the faith commitments and practices that join communities and sanction both resistance to and authorization for violence; and select historical developments that altered the power wielded by Christianity in society, culture and politics. Relevant issues in social psychology and the moral action guides addressing violence affirmed in Christian communities provide a deeper explanation for the motivations that have led to the diverse interpretations of violence avowed in the Christian tradition.

Christianity and Violence

Christianity and Violence PDF Author: Lloyd Steffen
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108848826
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 147

Get Book Here

Book Description
How Christian people have framed the meaning of violence within their faith tradition has been a complex process subject to all manner of historical, cultural, political, ethnic and theological contingencies. As a tradition encompassing widely divergent beliefs and perspectives, Christianity has, over two millennia, adapted to changing cultural and historical circumstances. To grasp the complexity of this tradition and its involvement with violence requires attention to specific elements explored in this Element: the scriptural and institutional sources for violence; the faith commitments and practices that join communities and sanction both resistance to and authorization for violence; and select historical developments that altered the power wielded by Christianity in society, culture and politics. Relevant issues in social psychology and the moral action guides addressing violence affirmed in Christian communities provide a deeper explanation for the motivations that have led to the diverse interpretations of violence avowed in the Christian tradition.

Sacred Violence

Sacred Violence PDF Author: Brent D. Shaw
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 0521196051
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 931

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Book Description
Employs the sectarian battles which divided African Christians in late antiquity to explore the nature of violence in religious conflicts.

Warlike Christians in an Age of Violence

Warlike Christians in an Age of Violence PDF Author: Nick Megoran
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 1498219608
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 370

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Book Description
How should Christians respond to war? This age-old question has become more pressing given Western governments' recent overseas military interventions and the rise of extremist Islamist jihadism. Grounded in conservative evangelical theology, this book argues the historic church position that it is inadmissible for Christians to use violence or take part in war. It shows how the church's propensity to support the "just wars," crusades, rebellions, or "humanitarian interventions" of its host nations over time has been disastrous for the reputation of the gospel. Instead, the church's response to war is simply to be the church, by preaching the gospel and making peace in the love and power of God. The book considers challenges to this argument for "gospel peace." What about warfare in the Old Testament and military metaphors in the New? What of church history? And how do we deal with tyrants like Hitler and terrorists like Islamic State? Charting a path between just war theory and liberal pacifism, numerous inspiring examples from the worldwide church are used to demonstrate effective and authentically Christian responses to violence. The author argues that as Christians increasingly drop their unbiblical addiction to war, we may be entering one of the most exciting periods of church history.

Violence in Ancient Christianity

Violence in Ancient Christianity PDF Author: Albert Geljon
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004274901
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 260

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Book Description
Ancient Christianity had an ambivalent stance toward violence. Jesus had instructed his disciples to love their enemies, and in the first centuries Christians were proud of this lofty teaching and tried to apply it to their persecutors and to competing religious groups. Yet at the same time they testify to their virulent verbal criticism of Jews, heretics and pagans, who could not accept the Christian exclusiveness. After emperor Constantine had turned to Christianity, Christians acquired the opportunity to use violence toward competing groups and pagans, even though they were instructed to love them personally and Jewish-Christian relationships flourished at grass root level. General analyses and case studies demonstrate that the fashionable distinction between intolerant monotheism and tolerant polytheism must be qualified.

There Is No Crime for Those Who Have Christ

There Is No Crime for Those Who Have Christ PDF Author: Michael Gaddis
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520241045
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 415

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Book Description
Focusing on the 4th and 5th centuries, Michael Gaddis explores how various groups employed the language of religious violence to construct their own identities, to undermine the legitimacy of their rivals, & to advance themselves in the competitive & high stakes process of Christianizing the Roman Empire.

Must Christianity Be Violent?

Must Christianity Be Violent? PDF Author: Kenneth R. Chase
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 1725219794
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description
The Crusades. The Conquest of the Americas. U.S. Slavery. The Jewish Holocaust. Mention of these events evokes a variety of responses from Christians, including guilt, defensiveness, and bewilderment. Given such a tangled historical relationship to aggression and injustice, how can Christians answer those who argue that our faith is inherently violent, or that Christian doctrines inevitably lead to sacrifice, conquest, and war? In Must Christianity Be Violent? editors Kenneth R. Chase and Alan Jacobs have gathered pointed essays that provide specific responses to these arguments. Divided into "histories," "practices," and "theologies," the essays explore the historical causation of Christian violence and discuss practices that promote what one contributor calls "just peacemaking." The contributors explore the history of Christian violence and advocate the need for an uncompromised biblical theology in our search for peace. This timely collection will appeal to readers of Christian history, ethics, and theology, and those who want to better understand the specifically Christian response to violence and cultivation of peace.

The Violence of the Biblical God

The Violence of the Biblical God PDF Author: L. Daniel Hawk
Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing
ISBN: 1467452602
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 351

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Book Description
How can we make sense of violence in the Bible? Joshua commands the people of Israel to wipe out everyone in the promised land of Canaan, while Jesus commands God’s people to love their enemies. How are we to interpret biblical passages on violence when it is sanctioned at one point and condemned at another? The Violence of the Biblical God by L. Daniel Hawk presents a new framework, solidly rooted in the authority of Scripture, for understanding the paradox of God’s participation in violence. Hawk shows how the historical narrative of the Bible offers multiple canonical pictures for faithful Christian engagement with the violent systems of the world.

War, Peace, and Violence: Four Christian Views

War, Peace, and Violence: Four Christian Views PDF Author: Paul Copan
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 1514002353
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 188

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Book Description
In a world of war, terrorism, and constant threats to global stability, how should Christians honor Jesus Christ? Four experts in Christian ethics, political philosophy, and international affairs present four different views of just war, nonviolence, Christian realism, and church history, orienting readers to today's key positions.

The Crusades

The Crusades PDF Author: Jonathan Simon Christopher Riley-Smith
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300101287
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 387

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Book Description
"Pulls off the enviable feat of summing up seven centuries of religious warfare in a crisp 309 pages of text."--Dennis Drabelle, Washington Post Book World In this authoritative work, Jonathan Riley-Smith provides the definitive account of the Crusades: an account of the theology of violence behind the Crusades, the major Crusades, the experience of crusading, and the crusaders themselves. With a wealth of fascinating detail, Riley-Smith brings to life these stirring expeditions to the Holy Land and the politics and personalities behind them. This new edition includes revisions throughout as well as a new Preface and Afterword in which Jonathan Riley-Smith surveys recent developments in the field and examines responses to the Crusades in different periods, from the Romantics to the Islamic world today. From reviews of the first edition: "Everything is here: the crusades to the Holy Land, and against the Albigensians, the Moors, the pagans in Eastern Europe, the Turks, and the enemies of the popes. Riley-Smith writes a beautiful, lucid prose, . . . [and his book] is packed with facts and action."--Choice "A concise, clearly written synthesis . . . by one of the leading historians of the crusading movement. "--Robert S. Gottfried, Historian "A lively and flowing narrative [with] an enormous cast of characters that is not a mere catalog but a history. . . . A remarkable achievement."--Thomas E. Morrissey, Church History "Superb."--Reuven S. Avi-Yonah, Speculum "A first-rate one-volume survey of the Crusading movement from 1074 . . . to 1798."--Southwest Catholic

Wrestling with the Violence of God

Wrestling with the Violence of God PDF Author: M. Daniel Carroll R.
Publisher: Penn State Press
ISBN: 1575068311
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 193

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Book Description
The prevalence of evil and violence in the world is a growing focus of scholarly attention, especially violence done in the name of religion and violence found within the pages of the Old Testament. Many atheists consider this reason enough to reject the notion of a supreme deity. Some Christians attempt to exonerate God by reinterpreting problematic passages or by prioritizing portrayals of God’s nonviolence. Other Christians have begun to respond to violence in the Old Testament by questioning the nature of the text itself, though not rejecting belief in a good God. Wrestling with the Violence of God: Soundings in the Old Testament is a response to these challenging issues. The chapters in this volume present empathetic, holistic, and methodologically responsible readings of the Old Testament as Christian Scripture. Contributors from different nationalities, religious traditions, and educational institutions come together to address representative biblical material that depicts violence. Chapters address explicit portrayals of divine violence, human responses to violence of God and violence in the world, alternative understandings of supposedly violent texts, and a hopeful future in which violence is no more. Rather than attempt to offer a conclusive answer to the issue, this volume constructively contributes to the ongoing discussion.