Political Theologies In The Holy Land

This book examines the role of messianism in Zionist ideology, from the birth of the Zionist movement through to the present. Is shows how messianism is not just a religious or philosophical term but a very tangible political practice and theology which has shaped Israeli identity. The author explores key issues such as: the current presence of messianism in the Israeli public sphere and the debates with jewish settlers in the occupied territories after the 1967 war the difference between transcendental messianism and promethean messianism the disparity between the political ideology and political practice in the history of Israel the evolution of the messianic idea in the actions of David Ben-Gurion the debate between Martin Buber, Gershom Scholem, Isaiah Leibowitz, J. L. Talmon and other intellectual figures with Ben-Gurion the implications of political theology and the presence of messianic ideas in Israeli politics As the first book to examine the messianism in Israeli debate since the creation of the Israeli state, it will be particularly relevant for students and scholars of Political Science, modern intellectual history, Israel studies, Judaism and messianism.

This book examines the role of messianism in Zionist ideology, from the birth of the Zionist movement through to the present. Is shows how messianism is not just a religious or philosophical term but a very tangible political practice and theology which has shaped Israeli identity. The author explores key issues such as: the current presence of messianism in the Israeli public sphere and the debates with jewish settlers in the occupied territories after the 1967 war the difference between transcendental messianism and promethean messianism the disparity between the political ideology and political practice in the history of Israel the evolution of the messianic idea in the actions of David Ben-Gurion the debate between Martin Buber, Gershom Scholem, Isaiah Leibowitz, J. L. Talmon and other intellectual figures with Ben-Gurion the implications of political theology and the presence of messianic ideas in Israeli politics As the first book to examine the messianism in Israeli debate since the creation of the Israeli state, it will be particularly relevant for students and scholars of Political Science, modern intellectual history, Israel studies, Judaism and messianism.

March gives special attention to the current reality of the state of Israel, the history and biblical data regarding the significance of land, and a theological understanding of the relationship of biblical Israel to contemporary Israel.

Describes first-century Jewish and Christian beliefs about the land of Israel and examines present-day tensions, helping readers develop a Christian theology of the land.

This book argues that problems with recognizing the State of Israel lie at the heart of approaches to nationhood and unease over nationalism in modern Protestant theology, as well as modern social theory. Three interrelated themes are explored. The first is the connection between a theologian's attitude to recognizing Israel and their approach to the providential place of nations in the divine economy. Following from this, the argument is made that theologians' handling of both modern and ancient Israel is mirrored profoundly in the question of recognition and ethical treatment of the nations to which they belong, along with neighboring nations. The third theme is how social theory, represented by certain key figures, has handled the same issues. Four major theologians are discussed: Reinhold Niebuhr, Rowan Williams, John Milbank, and Karl Barth. Alongside them are placed social theorists and scholars of religion and nationalism, including Mark Juergensmeyer, Philip Jenkins, Anthony Smith, and Adrian Hastings. In the process, debates over the relationship between theology and social theory are reconfigured in concrete terms around the challenge of recognition of the State of Israel as well as stateless nations.

CHRISTIANITY IN THE HOLY LAND has found its presence significantly challenged for much of the twentieth century and the whole of the first decade of the twenty-first, from war, interreligious and ethnic conflict, emigration, and a fragmented ecclesiology. As a sacred city Jerusalem has a global significance: for Muslims the Haram-al-Sharif is a symbol of victory; for Jews the Wailing Wall a symbol of loss; and for Christians the Holy Sepulchre a symbol of victory through loss. Theology and politics have interacted in this sacred story. Political theologies remain at least implicit in the histories of all major faith communities: Jewish, Christian and Muslim. For Christianity the Holy Land is not only of local significance, but is of importance to the identity of the two-and-a-half-billion-strong world community of churches which make up Christendom. The contributors to this volume have undertaken a wide-ranging historical, political and theological enquiry into the Christian presence in modern Jerusalem and the Holy Land. The chapters have an ecumenical, even interreligious, instinct and focus. The political landscape is ever changing and, while severely threatening the Christian presence in the Holy Land, continuously challenges and demands a Christian response. The primary responsibility for articulating this Christian response to the political and religious questions has in practice lain with the Christians of the Holy Land, however it cannot be solely their burden. This book bears witness to an ongoing theological reflection whilst its immediate concern in the contemporary significance of Jerusalem has a much wider significance. While bearing witness to an ongoing theological reflection, this book's immediate concern with the contemporary significance of Jerusalem has a much wider resonance. It covers a host of themes - Christianity in modern Jerusalem; contemporary Jewish-Israeli views on Christianity and Christians; Hebrew Catholicism in modern Israel; the Vatican, Israel, Palestinian Christians and Jerusalem; the Intifada and Palestinian Christian identity; Palestinian Christians and liberation theology; the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem - Church-State politics in the Holy Land; indigenisation and contextualisation - the example of the Anglican and Presbyterian Churches in the Holy Land; Jewish fundamentalism; Jewish-Muslim encounter; Jerusalem, the Holy City; a possible way to share Jerusalem in peace; and reflections on the future of Christianity in the Holy Land itself, from a Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem. Contributors include: Anthony O'Mahony, David Mark Neuhaus SJ, Leon Menzies Racionzer, Drew Christiansen SJ, Leonard Marsh, Sotiris Roussos, Michael Marten, Nur Masalha, Rob Johnson, Charles H Miller, Bard Maeland, David Kitching, Archbishop Michel Sabbah

In this culmination of his widely read and highly acclaimed Cultural Liturgies project, James K. A. Smith examines politics through the lens of liturgy. What if, he asks, citizens are not only thinkers or believers but also lovers? Smith explores how our analysis of political institutions would look different if we viewed them as incubators of love-shaping practices--not merely governing us but forming what we love. How would our political engagement change if we weren't simply looking for permission to express our "views" in the political sphere but actually hoped to shape the ethos of a nation, a state, or a municipality to foster a way of life that bends toward shalom? This book offers a well-rounded public theology as an alternative to contemporary debates about politics. Smith explores the religious nature of politics and the political nature of Christian worship, sketching how the worship of the church propels us to be invested in forging the common good. This book creatively merges theological and philosophical reflection with illustrations from film, novels, and music and includes helpful exposition and contemporary commentary on key figures in political theology.

A new treatment of political theology - politically constructive and receptive to Christian tradition.