Christianity and Contemporary Politics: The Conditions and Possibilities of Faithful Witness

by Luke Bretherton

Congratulations to Luke Bretherton on winning the 2013 Michael Ramsey Prize for Theological Writing for "Christianity and Contemporary Politics"!

Relations between religious and political spheres continue to stir passionate debates on both sides of the Atlantic. Through a combination of theological reflection and empirical case studies, Bretherton succeeds in offering timely and invaluable insights into these crucial issues facing 21st century societies. Explores the relationship between Christianity and contemporary politics through case studies of faith-based organizations, Christian political activism and welfare provision in the West; these case studies assess initiatives including community organizing, fair trade, and the sanctuary movementOffers an insightful, informative account of how Christians can engage politically in a multi-faith, liberal democracyIntegrates debates in political theology with inter-disciplinary analysis of policy and practice regarding religious social, political and economic engagement in the USA, UK, and continental EuropeReveals how Christians can help prevent the subversion of the church - and even of politics itself - by legal, bureaucratic, and market mechanisms, rather than advocating withdrawal or assimilationEngages with the intricacies of contemporary politics whilst integrating systematic and historical theological reflection on political and economic life

Genres: Theology, Politics

272 pages, Paperback

First published December 21, 2009

About the author

Luke Bretherton is professor of theological ethics and senior fellow of the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University. Before joining the Duke faculty, he was reader in Theology & Politics and convener of the Faith & Public Policy Forum at King's College London. He has worked with a variety of faith-based NGOs, mission agencies, and churches around the world, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe.

Reviews

[Samuel Bokenblom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really thorough and Bretherton is clear in his approach: He is building a political theology on the insights of theologians and philosophers of years past, not by prooftexting scripture. In true Brethertonian fashion "listening" is central in his own credo. I don't think the book provides a clear singular political theology and it would have focused more on the individual christians interactions vis-a-vis the state (more specifically with the case of voting) but his three case studies are interesting nonetheless.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book with some very useful ideas, which could have been better expressed slightly more simply and with greater clarity.

[Lyndon · Rating 4 out of 5]

". . . churches - in their local, denominational, and catholic form - are public bodies a dimension of whose witness involved enabling just judgement in relation to political problems that confront a particular polity, extending the bonds of neighbor love, and forging an institutional plurality as a defense against the totalizing thrust of modern state and economic power and thereby upholding places for human flourishing" (p. 210). What all of this 'judgement', 'love' and 'human flourishing' looks and feels like is the challenging task of this work. Hauerwas in the blurb says Bretherton may have pulled it off. I wonder if Bretherton's vision is sustainable as the ethos for Christian life and action, or whether even the ordinary church folk who live in the polities that he speaks, have the courage and strength to forsake long-adapted forms of depoliticized life in order to embrace such a bold vision of political existence.

[Rob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good book, but a challenging read.