For the Nations: Essays Evangelical and Public

by John Howard Yoder

This collection of essays by John Howard Yoder written over the course of his career reflect his consistent conviction that the Christian believer is the bearer of good news for the culture at large and that he must engage that culture intentionally.

Genres: Theology

257 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1997

About the author

Yoder was a Christian theologian, ethicist, and Biblical scholar best known for his radical Christian pacifism, his mentoring of future theologians such as Stanley Hauerwas, his loyalty to his Mennonite faith, and his 1972 magnum opus, "The Politics of Jesus".

Reviews

[M Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd actually like to give this book 3 1/2 stars -- some of the essays were powerful, some were hopelessly tangled in professional jargon. That would seem to be a result of the book's origin as a collection of occasional essays by John Howard Yoder. Those essays which were originally delivered to more general audiences are accessible and exciting. Those which were written for more specialized groups likely had those attributes for those audiences but, removed from their contexts, they seem needlessly obscure.

On the whole, however, this is a fine review of the thought of one of America's most important theologians of the free church / radical reformation tradition. Yoder's Mennonite background shines through as he offers powerfully constructive ideas about being the contra-culture church in the second half of the 20th century. His ideas are inspiring, despite the tinge of sadness that accompanied my reading as I reflected on how this champion of Kingdom ethics had fallen so far from his own standards in his relationships with women. But even with Yoder's "feet of clay" accounted for, there is much to be gained by a thoughtful encounter with his vision of the Church in relationship to the Kosmos.

Recommended.