Grand Theft Jesus

"We're mad as Heaven, and we're not going to take it anymore!" declares historian Robert McElvaine in this passionate and often hilarious rallying cry for sincere Jesus followers. He lets us know that the extreme right wing won't be allowed to speak for all Christians any longer. This polemic blends outrage and humor to expose the televangelists and the leaders of megachurches as the people Jesus warned us about. The religion McElvaine calls ChristianityLite promises, "Be saved without sacrifice or good works!" Run by a crew of politicians, megachurch preachers, televangelists, hypocrites, and snake-oil salesmen, it has hijacked true Christianity and distorted it into something Jesus wouldn't recognize, a religion that advocates war and intolerance, values money above charity, preaches hatred instead of brotherhood, and promises "true" believers the keys to the gates of the kingdom of God--and to the bank.--From publisher description.

This is a comprehensive, introductory criminal law textbook that expands upon traditional concepts and cases by coverage of the most contemporary topics and issues. Contemporary material, including terrorism, computer crimes, and hate crimes, serves to illuminate the ever-evolving relationship between criminal law, society and the criminal justice system's role in balancing competing interests. The case method is used throughout the book as an effective and creative learning tool.Features include:" vignettes, core concepts, 'Cases and Concepts', 'You Decides, excerpts from state statutes, 'legal equations' and Crime in the News boxes" fully developed end-of-chapter pedagogy includes review questions, legal terminology and 'Criminal Law on the Web' resources" instructor resources (including PowerPoint slides, a computerized testbank and classroom activities) and a Student Study Site accompany this text

This book explores the religious concerns of Enlightenment thinkers from Thomas Hobbes to Thomas Jefferson. Using an innovative method, the study illuminates the intellectual history of the age through interpretations of Jesus between c.1650 and c.1826. The book demonstrates the persistence of theology in modern philosophy and the projects of social reform and amelioration associated with the Enlightenment. At the core of many of these projects was a robust moral-theological realism, sometimes manifest in a natural law ethic, but always associated with Jesus and a commitment to the sovereign goodness of God. This ethical orientation in Enlightenment discourse is found in a range of different metaphysical and political identities (dualist and monist; progressive and radical) which intersect with earlier ‘heretical’ tendencies in Christian thought (Arianism, Pelagianism, and Marcionism). This intellectual matrix helped to produce the discourses of irenic toleration which are a legacy of the Enlightenment at its best.

"One who is strengthened by God professes himself to be an utter fool by human standards, because he despises the wisdom men strive for."--Thomas Aquinas "Go and do likewise. . . ."--Luke 10:37 Missiologist Michael Frost is looking for the real Jesus--the man who didn't care what people thought, worked on the Sabbath, touched the unclean, ate with sinners, and generally contradicted what was acceptable to the leadership of his day. He's searching for the Jesus who embodies all the characteristics of the ancient tradition of the holy foolish paradigm as described and commended by Paul, the church fathers, and the medieval saints. And he finds him. . . . Saintly fools prefer life out in the open in the secular world, intentionally make themselves conspicuous, and consistently defy rules set by society. Frost directs our minds and hearts to the greater story of Jesus. He reminds us that following the Savior is rarely safe--and that Christ will continue to redraw our blueprint of what's right and what's righteous; and will persist in calling us to take the alternative, dangerous, ridiculous road walked by wise fools down through the centuries of the church. A much-needed and longed-for challenge to emergent, contemporary, and traditional gatherings and churches alike.

This unconventional cultural history explores the lifecycle of the radical historical Jesus, a construct created by the freethinkers, feminists, socialists and anarchists who used the findings of biblical criticism to mount a serious challenge to the authority of elite liberal divines during the Gilded Age and Progressive Era.

With immediate impact and deep creativity, Catherine Kelleroffers this brief and unconventional introduction to theologicalthinking, especially as recast by process thought. Keller takes uptheology itself as a quest for religious authenticity. Through a marvelous combination of brilliant writing, story,reflection, and unabashed questioning of old shibboleths, Kellerredeems theology from its dry and predictable categories to revealwhat has always been at the heart of the theological enterprise:a personal search for intellectually honest and credible ways ofmaking sense of the loving mystery that encompasses even ourconfounding times.

The role of Evangelical Christianity in American public life is controversial. The mythology of America as a "Christian nation" and the promissory note of secularism have proved inadequate to cope with the increasing pluralism, the resilience of spirituality, and the wariness toward formal religion that mark our post-secular age. Christianity and democracy have a complex history together, but is there a future where these two great traditions draw the best out of one another? What does that future look like in a heterogeneous society? Sanders argues that democracy is stronger when it allows all of its religious citizens to participate fully in the public sphere, and Christianity is richer when it demonstrates the wisdom of God from the ground up, rather than legislating it from the top down. In this reality, the Evangelical church must return to Christianity's prophetic roots and see itself as a "community in exile," where participation in the political is important, but not ultimate--where the substantive work of the church happens "after the election."

Rich in familiarity with Jesus Jewish world, Gerard Sloyan helps us discover a Jesus thoroughly situated in his own time and place. This impressive, clearly written work challenges readers to see both the historical Jesus who preached the in-breaking of Gods reign and the post-resurrection Jesus whom Christians named Lord and Savior.