The Gospel In A Pluralist Society

INSPIRATIONAL

How does the gospel relate to a pluralist society? What is the Christian message in a society marked by religious pluralism, ethnic diversity, and cultural relativism? Should Christians encountering today's pluralist society concentrate on evangelism or on dialogue? How does the prevailing climate of opinion affect, perhaps infect, Christians' faith? These kinds of questions are addressed in this noteworthy book by Lesslie Newbigin. A highly respected Christian leader and ecumenical figure, Newbigin provides a brilliant analysis of contemporary (secular, humanist, pluralist) culture and suggests how Christians can more confidently affirm their faith in such a context. While drawing from scholars such as Michael Polanyi, Alasdair MacIntyre, Hendrikus Berkhof, Walter Wink, and Robert Wuthnow, The Gospel in a Pluralist Society is suited not only to an academic readership. This heartfelt work by a missionary pastor and preacher also offers to Christian leaders and laypeople some thoughtful, helpful, and provocative reflections.

How does the gospel relate to a pluralist society? What is the Christian message in a society marked by religious pluralism, ethnic diversity and cultural relativism? Should Christians concentrate on evangelism or dialogue? The Gospel in a Pluralist Society addresses these kinds of questions - providing an excellent analysis of contemporary culture and suggests how Christians can more confidently affirm their faith in such a context. While drawing on scholars such as Michael Polanyi, Alasdair MacIntyre, Hendrikus Berkof, Walter Wink and Robert Wuthnow, this heartfelt work by a missionary pastor and preacher is not only suited to an academic readership; it also offers to Christian leaders and lay people many thoughtful, helpful and provocative reflections. When Lesslie Newbigin died in 1998, The Times' obituary writer described him as 'one of the foremost missionary statesmen of his generation', and amongst 'the outstanding figures on the world Christian stage of the second half of the century'. The Gospel in a Pluralist Society has been widely influential and deserves to be reissued as an SPCK Classic.

Religious pluralism is the greatest challenge facing Christianity in today's Western culture. The belief that Christ is the only way to God is being challenged, and increasingly Christianity is seen as just one among many valid paths to God. In Four Views on Salvation in a Pluralistic World, four perspectives are presented by their major proponents: Normative Pluralism: All ethical religions lead to God (John Hick) Inclusivism: Salvation is universally available, but is established by and leads to Christ (Clark Pinnock) Salvation in Christ: Agnosticism regarding those who haven't heard the gospel (Alister McGrath) Salvation in Christ Alone: Salvation depends on explicit personal faith in Jesus Christ alone (R. Douglas Geivett and W. Gary Phillips) This book allows each contributor to not only present the case for his view, but also to critique and respond to the critiques of the other contributors. The Counterpoints series presents a comparison and critique of scholarly views on topics important to Christians that are both fair-minded and respectful of the biblical text. Each volume is a one-stop reference that allows readers to evaluate the different positions on a specific issue and form their own, educated opinion.

This collection of essays explores the legacy of Lesslie Newbigin's classic work, The Gospel in a Pluralist Society, critically analyzing the nature of Western pluralism and discussing the influence of Newbigin's work on the field of missiology. By looking backward, this volume advances a vision for Christian witness in the pluralistic world of the twenty-first century.

How can biblical authority be a reality for those shaped by the modern world? This book treats the First World as a mission field, offering a unique perspective on the relationship between the gospel and current society by presenting an outsider's view of contemporary Western culture.

Monumental figure in the twentieth-century worldwide church. Internationally esteemed British pastor and missionary theologian. Ecumenical statesman and prolific writer. Lesslie Newbigin (1909-1998) was all of these and more. This reader fills a long-standing need for a comprehensive introduction to Newbigin and his legacy. Opening with a short biography of Newbigin and a discussion of his major theological and missiological themes, the volume sets selected readings in context with brief introductions and offers suggestions for further reading from Newbigin's corpus. Praise for Lesslie Newbigin and his writings: "Newbigin has made a bold and major step forward in the debate on Christianity, pluralism, and Western self-understanding." -- Lamin Sanneh in "The Christian Century""When my students finally realize what Newbigin is saying, they panic. When they realize that even the most faithful circles they know have been seduced by sectarianism, solipsism, Gnosticism, and nihilism, they worry that apostasy is unavoidable. . . . Yet, despite the surrounding darkness, Newbigin never loses hope, because he stays focused on the light that has come." -- Telford Work in "Pro Ecclesia""Newbigin is most impressive, indeed awesome, when defending the universality of the Christian gospel and exposing the muddleheadedness and loss of nerve that have turned many Western churches into domestic chaplaincies rather than launching pads for cross-cultural mission at home and abroad." -- Vinoth Ramachandra in "Themelios""Seeing both liberal and fundamentalist Christians imprisoned in the epistemological presuppositions of the Enlightenment, Lesslie Newbigin offers them liberation bypointing to the fiduciary character of all human knowledge. The best form of apologetics, he contends, is the preaching of the particular yet universal gospel." -- Geoffrey Wainwright on Newbigin's "Proper Confidence"