How can we develop and embody an ecclesiology, in contexts of urban marginality, that is radically receptive to the gifts and challenges of the agency of our non-Christian neighbours? Drawing on resources from political theologies, and in particular conversation with Graham Ward and Romand Coles, this book challenges our lazy understanding of receptivity, digging deep to uncover a rich theological seam which has the potential to radically alter how theologians think about what we draw from urban places. It offers a game changing liberative theology rooted not in the global south but from a position of self-critical privilege. Full Text – Description for sales people (Text)
How can we develop and embody an ecclesiology, in contexts of urban marginality, that is radically receptive to the gifts and challenges of the agency of our non-Christian neighbours? Drawing on resources from political theologies, and in particular conversation with Graham Ward and Romand Coles, this book challenges our lazy understanding of receptivity, digging deep to uncover a rich theological seam which has the potential to radically alter how theologians think about what we draw from urban places. It offers a game changing liberative theology rooted not in the global south but from a position of self-critical privilege.
Beginning with a ‘Street Nativity Play’ that didn’t end as planned, and finishing with an open-ended conversation in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, "Being Interrupted" locates an institutionally-anxious Church of England within the wider contexts of divisions of race and class in ‘the ruins of empire’, alongside ongoing gender inequalities, the marginalization of children, and catastrophic ecological breakdown. In the midst of this bleak picture, Al Barrett and Ruth Harley open a door to a creative disruption of the status quo, ‘from the outside, in’: the in-breaking of the wild reality of the ‘Kin-dom’ of God. Through careful and unsettling readings in Mark’s gospel, alongside stories from a multicultural outer estate in east Birmingham, they paint a vivid picture of an 'alternative economy' for the Church's life and mission, which begins with transformative encounters with neighbours and strangers at the edges of our churches, our neighbourhoods and our imaginations, and offers new possibilities for repentance and resurrection.
Receptive Ecumenism asks not what other churches can learn from us, but 'what can we learn and receive with integrity from our ecclesial others?' Since the publication of Receptive Ecumenism and the Call to Catholic Learning: Exploring a Way for Contemporary Ecumenism (OUP, 2008), this fresh ecumenical strategy has been adopted, critiqued, and developed in different Christian traditions, and in local, national, and international settings, including the most recent bilateral dialogue of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC III). The thirty-eight chapters in this new volume, by academics, church leaders, and ecumenical practitioners who have adopted and adapted Receptive Ecumenism in various ecclesial and cultural contexts, show how Receptive Ecumenism has grown and matured. Part One demonstrates how Receptive Ecumenism itself is capable of being received with integrity into very different ecclesiologies and ecclesial traditions. In Part Two, this approach to transformative ecumenical learning is applied to some recurrent ecclesial problems, such as the understanding and practice of ministry, revealing new insights and practical opportunities. Part Three examines the potential and challenges for Receptive Ecumenism in different international settings. Part Four draws on scripture, hermeneutics, and pneumatology to offer critical reflection on how Receptive Ecumenism itself implements transformative ecclesial learning. Addressing the 70th Anniversary of the World Council of Churches, Archbishop Justin Welby, said that 'One of the most important of recent ecumenical developments has been the concept of "Receptive Ecumenism"'. This volume provides an indispensable point of reference for understanding and applying that concept in the life of the Christian churches today.
What might it mean us to be formed as disciples not only by the church but also by the world? In Political Formation: Being Formed by the Spirit in Church and World, Jenny Leith argues that ethical and political formation of Christians takes place through the work of the Spirit both in the church and in civic life, and the church, too, has something to learn from wider political practices and movements. This account of formation places centre stage a reckoning with the forms of exclusion and marginalisation that mar the church, and yields an understanding of the church as not only ethically formative but also in constant need of being formed itself. Offering a fresh vision for ecclesiology, which grapples with the ethical failings of the church and takes seriously the need for the church to keep on recognising and repenting of its sins, the book offers a major new contribution to discussions around Christian formation and the relationship between discipleship and ethics.
Ecclesial Futures publishes original research and theological reflection on the development and transformation of local Christian communities and the systems that support them as they join in the mission of God in the world. We understand local Christian communities broadly to include traditional "parish" churches and independent local churches, religious communities and congregations, new church plants, so-called "fresh expressions" of church, "emergent" churches, and "new monastic" communities. We are an international and ecumenical journal with an interdisciplinary understanding of our approach to theological research and reflection; the core disciplines being theology, missiology, and ecclesiology. Other social science and theological disciplines may be helpful in supporting the holistic nature of any research, e.g., anthropology and ethnography, sociology, statistical research, biblical studies, leadership studies, and adult learning. The journal fills an important reflective space between the academy and on-the-ground practice within the field of mission studies, ecclesiology, and the so-called "missional church." This opportunity for engagement has emerged in the last twenty or so years from a turn to the local (and the local church) and, in the western world at least, from the demise of Christendom and a rapidly changing world--which also affects the church globally. The audience for the journal is truly global wherever the local church and the systems that support them exists. We expect to generate interest from readers in church judicatory bodies, theological seminaries, university theology departments, and in local churches from all God's people and the leaders amongst them.
What does the good news of Jesus look like in the North of England? Rooms and Wort analyse what the North actually is, and why we need to study our context if we want to understand more about God and God’s ways.
One of the Church of England’s central aims is that it should become more diverse. This book is a contribution to the debate on how the church nationally and locally might better represent the cultural diversity of the communities which it is called to serve. Originating from the experiences of one of the most multicultural dioceses in the country, it offers a series of reflections that will enable readers to consider how they might think and act with greater cultural sensitivity in their contexts. Central to the book is the theme of gift exchange. All of life is celebrated as gift where we experience diversity, the other, hospitality and God as gifts. It explores the possibilities of intercultural gift exchange in the practices of generous giving, radical receptivity and transformative thanksgiving.
What happens when ‘go, make disciples’ meets ‘Black Lives Matter’? Arising from the Council for World Mission’s “Legacies of Slavery” project, this book offers an unapologetic exploration of Christian Mission and its history, and the ways in which this legacy has unleashed notions of White supremacy, systemic racism and global capitalism on the world. Contributors reflect on the past and consider the future of world mission in an age of renewed understandings of empire and its impact. Contributors include Mike Higton, David Clough, Eve Parker, James Butler, Cathy Ross, Jione Havea, Peniel Rajkumar, Victoria Turner, Carol Troupe, Michael Jagessar, Paul Weller, Jill Marsh, Kevin Ellis, Rachel Starr, Kevin Snyman, Al Barrett and Ruth Harley.
T&T Clark Handbook of Public Theology introduces the various philosophical and theological positions and approaches in the emerging discourse of public theology. Distinguishing public theology from political theology, as well as from liberation theology, this book clarifies central terms like 'public sphere', 'the secular', and 'post-secularity' in order to highlight the specific characteristics of public theology. Its particular focus lies on the ways in which much of public theology has established itself as a contextual theology in politically secular societies, aiming to continue the apologetical tradition in this specific context. Depending on what is regarded as the most pressing challenge for the reasonable defence of the Christian hope in liberal democracies, public theologians have focused on (social) ethics, ecclesiology, or Soteriology, with the aim to strengthen the virtues needed for democratic citizenship. Here, attention is being paid to Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox perspectives. The volume further illustrates the characteristics of the discourse by introducing the ways in which public theologians have responded to concrete challenges arising in the spheres of politics, economics, ecology, sports, culture, and religion. To highlight the international scope of the public theological discourse, the volume concludes with a summarizing overview of public theological debates in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and Latin America.
