This book explores how the Christian life is lived in a pluralistic situation where different contexts of belonging give rise to different moral challenges. While it is characteristic of modern life to exist in a postmodern situation where there is an erosion of comprehensive systems of meaning, we still live today in contexts of belonging. We still seek to gather out of the fragments of modern life the sustenance of a network of belonging, belief and practice which comprise a faithful life. The construction of such a life, not only for us, but for others, serves as the framework for our moral commitments. Furthermore, sustaining and transforming social frameworks which shape various aspects of human life form the life task of adult Christians.

"Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you through prophecy with the laying of hands by the council of elders" (1Tim. 4:14). Members of the church today can comprehend Paul's sentiment to Timothy. While not all ordained, all baptized Christians have experienced the laying on of hands in baptism. They have been touched by that mysterious mix of charism, initiated into the Body of Christ through the Holy Spirit, as well as launched into life with Christ through the institution of the Church with all its concreteness, ambiguity, sinfulness and goodness. Through the lens of Christian theology, along with the sociology of Max Weber in his study of charism and institution in modern society, Judith A. Merkle analyzes the interaction and tautness between the concept of powerful grace through baptism and the institution in the life of the modern church. Weber asserts that freedom and creativity in modern society only become manifest within social relations. Since these highly valued modern experiences do not exist outside the institutional framework, they exist in tension with the constrictive and creative aspects of the institution. Judith A. Merkle offers the reader perspective on this contemporary experience in the church.

Drawing on the work of Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor, this book examines how secular culture affects both the living of Christian discipleship today and impacts how religious congregations engage in their own renewal and future. It argues that religious communities can do more than improve and fix the out of date conditions they met in the renewal after Vatican II. Calling on environmental, sociological and theological insights, this book asks how the ongoing “coming of the Kingdom” in the Spirit brings new gifts for these times and how congregations might respond beyond restorative or post-Christian solutions to new challenges confronting them. This book offers a renewed meaning of religious life in secular life and the gift it offers and receives from every culture in which it is embedded.

After more than twenty years since the fall of the USSR, the evangelical movement in post-Soviet society has entered a crucial phase in its historical development. Setting out a transformative vision of mission and theological education, this book makes an important contribution towards the renewal of the church in this fascinating--but deeply troubled--part of the world. After the violent and disruptive events that followed the Ukrainian Revolution of Dignity and Freedom in 2013/14, the evangelical movement in post-Soviet society now has an unprecedented opportunity to become a shining example of a "church without walls." Searle and Cherenkov reflect on the political, social, cultural, and intellectual legacy of the Soviet Union and offer bold and innovative proposals on how the church can rediscover its prophetic voice by relinquishing its debilitating dependence on the state and, instead, expressing solidarity with the people in their legitimate aspirations for freedom and democracy. Notwithstanding the pessimism and lament expressed on many pages, the authors conclude on a positive note, predicting that the coming years will witness a flowering of evangelical ecumenism in action as Christian solidarity flourishes and overflows denominational boundaries and parochial interests.

Spirituality and Religion Within the Culture of Medicine provides a comprehensive evaluation of the relationship between spirituality, religion, and medicine evaluating current empirical research and academic scholarship. In Part 1, the book examines the relationship of religion, spirituality, and the practice of medicine by assessing the strengths and weaknesses of the most recent empirical research of religion/spirituality within twelve distinct fields of medicine including pediatrics, psychiatry, internal medicine, surgery, palliative care, and medical ethics. Written by leading clinician researchers in their fields, contributors provide case examples and highlight best practices when engaging religion/spirituality within clinical practice. This is the first collection that assesses how the medical context interacts with patient spirituality recognizing crucial differences between contexts from obstetrics and family medicine, to nursing, to gerontology and the ICU. Recognizing the interdisciplinary aspects of spirituality, religion, and health, Part 2 of the book turns to academic scholarship outside the field of medicine to consider cultural dimensions that form clinical practice. Social-scientific, practical, and humanity fields include psychology, sociology, anthropology, law, history, philosophy, and theology. This is the first time in a single volume that readers can reflect on these multi-dimensional, complex issues with contributions from leading scholars. In Part III, the book concludes with a synthesis, identifying the best studies in the field of religion and health, ongoing weaknesses in research, and highlighting what can be confidently believed based on prior studies. The synthesis also considers relations between the empirical literature on religion and health and the theological and religious traditions, discussing places of convergence and tension, as well as remainingopen questions for further reflection and research. This book will provide trainees and clinicians with an introduction to the field of spirituality, religion, and medicine, and its multi-disciplinary approach will give researchers and scholars in the field a critical and up-to-date analysis.

With an equal emphasis on every word in the title—and with a distinctly American perspective—Himes and his distinguished associate editors and contributors, have assembled the most thorough and authoritative assessment of modern Roman Catholic social teaching to date, likely to remain the touchstone volume for decades. This culmination of many years of effort by twenty stellar scholars has produced a reference work for anyone interested in understanding or studying the key documents that comprise the central corpus of Catholic social teaching. In addition to interrogations of the major documents, this volume provides an understanding of the biblical and philosophical foundations of Catholic social teaching, addresses the doctrinal issues that arise in such a context, and explores the social thought leading up to the "modern" era, generally accepted as beginning in 1891 with the publication of Pope Leo XIII's Rerum Novarum. Finally, there is a review of how Catholic social teaching has been received in the United States, and an informed look at the shortcomings and questions that future generations must address. By any standard, Modern Catholic Social Teaching is a remarkable work—intellectually rigorous and deeply faithful, it provides accessible and thought-provoking insights into the heart of a belief tradition that every Catholic will find invaluable.

What is the state of Christianity today, and what might it look like in the future? In the West, the story for a long time has revolved around decline and the loss of monopoly status, but how are these shifts changing the practice of Christianity or individual belief? Similarly, the rapid growth of Christianities in the Global South has been well reported, but the continuing complex intersections of mission Christianity with indigenous religions are less well known. Large-scale flows of people across increasingly fluid borders mean that not only does immigration sometimes significantly boost Christian numbers in a given country, but that different forms of Christianity shift traditional religious landscapes. How will emerging trends such as 'reverse mission' from the Global South affect Christianities in areas more used to sending rather than receiving missions? As the majority of believers shifts from the West to the Global South, how will issues such as homosexuality be played out theologically, politically and individually? Will new virtual churches manage to create viable long-term communities? How does new festival Christianity function in the religious life of an individual? The divergent and oftentimes contradictory state of Christianity in the modern world fuels questions about its place and future in the world: in politics, education and healthcare. This book brings together cutting edge research on the most recent changes and trends in Christianity worldwide. Contributors drawn from the USA, UK and Europe, Africa and East Asia offer an invaluable breadth of coverage, expertise and disciplinary perspective at the intersections between sociology of religion, theology, politics, education and human geography.

Neo-Calvinism critically advances Reformed orthodoxy for the sake of modern life. Birthed in the Netherlands at the turn to the twentieth century, initiated by Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920) and Herman Bavinck (1854-1921), it argued that a life before God entailed the leavening of faith over all human existence. While the movement originated in the Netherlands, the tradition now has a global reach, with practitioners and thinkers applying its insights in diverse ways and in their own contexts. This handbook is a genealogical introduction to this lively and modern branch of the Reformed tradition, with contributors that reflect its global reach. Its four sections chart the theological roots, important original figures, historical contours and the contemporary influence of neo-Calvinism across a diversity of fields.

What does faithfulness mean for modern Christians who find themselves immersed in a social and moral context two millennia removed from that of Jesus? As a notion endorsed by Christians universally, irrespective of church tradition, geographic location, economic and political milieu, or spiritual experience, faithfulness is essential to mature Christian living. Yet many in the modern church have lost—or perhaps forgotten—the true nature of faithfulness, and thus have wandered from that which God envisages for believers. Rediscovering what faithfulness entails, however, is altogether possible. Theological ethicist Kenneth W. M. Wozniak takes the reader on a journey of encounter, looking to the earliest Christians and their understanding of fidelity to the way of Jesus as a model for believers today, and as the means by which the essence of faithfulness—rooted not in adherence to a performance standard but rather in personal cultivation of the divine character—the Jesus way not only can be discovered, but also embraced and enjoyed by the one who aspires to align with the very being of God.

Part of the Destination Reality youth ministry series, "Out of This World" shakes teens from their comfort zones with a challenging and thought-provoking activity in each lesson.