Where Faith Meets Culture

Where Faith Meets Culture is a Radix magazine anthology. What does Radix usually contain? Interviews and features. Reviews of significant books, films, and CDs. Informed opinions in "The Last Word." Eye-catching graphics. Mind-stretching prose. Image-rich poetry. Radix assumes that Christians live in the real world and takes lay Christians seriously. As one subscriber wrote: "Radix is a more worldly magazine than one would expect from its deep commitment to Christ." Radix monitors the cultural landscape, questions assumptions, and introduces new voices, remaining deeply rooted in Christ. Sociologist Robert Bellah wrote in a Radix article: "Though social scientists say a lot about the self, they have nothing to say about the soul and as a result the modern view finds the world intrinsically meaningless." Radix continues to talk about meaning and hope in a culture that has lost its way. The articles in this volume reflect the magazine's wide-ranging interests: literature, art, music, theology, psychology, technology, discipleship, and spiritual formation. They're written by some of the outstanding authors whose work has graced our pages over the years: Peggy Alter, Kurt Armstrong, Robert Bellah, Bob Buford, Krista Faries, David Fetcho, Susan Fetcho, Sharon Gallagher, David W. Gill, Joel B. Green, Os Guinness, Virginia Hearn, Walter Hearn, Donald Heinz, Margaret Horwitz, Mark Labberton, Henri Nouwen, Earl Palmer, Susan Phillips, Dan Ouellette, Steve Scott, and Luci Shaw.

Take Your Group to a Place ...Where they can see people’s needs in a new wayWhere they can understand their callingWhere they will learn how their faith can shape cultureThis six-session DVD and corresponding curriculum helps your group experience and envision how followers of Christ can be a counterculture for the common good. Together you’ll experience stories of other believers who changed the culture around them, including Andy Crouch, Mako Fujimara, Rudy Carrasco, Mark Buchanan, Tal James, Frederica Mathewes-Green, and others. You’ll watch how their journeys unfolded, their challenges, and their breakthroughs. Also included on the DVD are insights from trusted pastors and Christian leaders such as Tim Keller, Lauren Winner, James Meeks, Brenda Salter McNeil, and Ken Fong.

Gerhard Forde examines the nature of the "theology of the cross, noting what makes it different from other kinds of theology. His starting point is a thorough analysis of Luther's Heidelberg Disputation of 1518, the classic text of the theology of the cross.

Where Faith Meets Culture is a Radix magazine anthology. What does Radix usually contain? Interviews and features. Reviews of significant books, films, and CDs. Informed opinions in ""The Last Word."" Eye-catching graphics. Mind-stretching prose. Image-rich poetry. Radix assumes that Christians live in the real world and takes lay Christians seriously. As one subscriber wrote: ""Radix is a more worldly magazine than one would expect from its deep commitment to Christ."" Radix monitors the cultural landscape, questions assumptions, and introduces new voices, remaining deeply rooted in Christ. Sociologist Robert Bellah wrote in a Radix article: ""Though social scientists say a lot about the self, they have nothing to say about the soul and as a result the modern view finds the world intrinsically meaningless."" Radix continues to talk about meaning and hope in a culture that has lost its way. The articles in this volume reflect the magazine's wide-ranging interests: literature, art, music, theology, psychology, technology, discipleship, and spiritual formation. They're written by some of the outstanding authors whose work has graced our pages over the years: Peggy Alter, Kurt Armstrong, Robert Bellah, Bob Buford, Krista Faries, David Fetcho, Susan Fetcho, Sharon Gallagher, David W. Gill, Joel B. Green, Os Guinness, Virginia Hearn, Walter Hearn, Donald Heinz, Margaret Horwitz, Mark Labberton, Henri Nouwen, Earl Palmer, Susan Phillips, Dan Ouellette, Steve Scott, and Luci Shaw. Sharon Gallagher is editor of Radix magazine and Associate Director of New College Berkeley. She is the author of Finding Faith: Life-changing Encounters with Christ.

How does faith impact culture? What influence does culture have on faith? These questions might seem academic, limited to university religion or philosophy classes, until we look at the morning headlines or listen to the evening newscasts. Our lives are invaded daily by stories of extremists with yet another suicide bombing, or protests for of against reproductive rights, or scientific discoveries raising questions about the creation of the universe all based on conflicting faith commitments. Like it or not, these faith/culture questions are part of all of our lives. In this book, six writers explore the juncture of faith and different dimensions of 21st century cultures. The words faith and culture are dynamic, not static. Over time they take on new meanings. In the Christian tradition, for centuries faith meant the total life of a follower of Jesus. But in the last three centuries of the Enlightenment, many have come to see faith as a rational set of beliefs that are often separated from the way a person lives. In the chapters of this book there is an effort to describe faith as a way of life that sometimes supports current dimensions of culture, and sometimes opposes them. Since faith is a personal response to God, there are as many different expressions of faith as there are people. Instead of seeing this as a problem, each of our writers presents the juncture of faith and culture from their own personal experience and we are all enriched by the differences. In this book we see the process of current cultures changing, being shaped in new ways at least in part by faith communities. Being aware of these changes makes it possible for each of us to join our writers to be a part of the change we seek in our world instead of being victims of forces beyond our control.

For more information including sample entries, full contents listing, and more, visit the Encyclopedia of Protestantism web site. Routledge is proud to announce the publication of a new major reference work from world-renowned scholar Hans J. Hillerbrand. The Encyclopedia of Protestantism is the definitive reference to the history and beliefs that continue to exert a profound influence on Western thought. Featuring entries written by an international team of specialists and scholars, the encyclopedia traces the course of Protestantism from its beginnings prior to 1517, when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of Wittenberg Cathedral, to the vital and diverse international scene of the present day.

How does Christ meet, engage, change, challenge, dialogue, interact with, and bridge cultures? What is the role of the gospel in transforming ethics and culture? These daunting questions guide the present investigation about Evangelical Christianity in Brazil, the largest Catholic country in the world. This book critiques the quantitative and qualitative growth of Evangelical Christianity in Brazil and presents tools for studying the global south and other cultures. Indeed, sociocultural factors play a significant role in the translation of the gospel and may work as bridges and/or barriers within the cultural and religious milieu of the largest country in Latin American. Particularly, four traits impacts the preaching of the Christian message in Brazil, namely: cordiality, religiosity, the Brazilian way of coping, and collectivism. Through oral history methodology, and literature review, this book evaluates how biblically sound translation happens through the Brazilian Baptist Convention as suggested by key leadership writings, practices, and memoirs. This work features an overview of the history of Brazilian Christianity, including its Animistic background, African-Brazilian religious influences, the present Pentecostal majority, and the challenge of Neopentecostalism, in an era of music, TV, and social media.

Film plays a vital role in the celebration of Christmas. For decades, it has taught audiences about what the celebration of the season looks like – from the decorations to the costumes and to the expected snowy weather – as well as mirrors our own festivities back to us. Films like It’s a Wonderful Life and Home Alone have come to play key roles in real-life domestic celebrations: watching such titles has become, for many families, every bit as important as tree-trimming and leaving cookies out for Santa. These films have exported the American take on the holiday far and wide and helped us conjure an image of the perfect holiday. Rather than settling the ‘what is a Christmas film?’ debate – indeed, Die Hard and Lethal Weapon are discussed within – Analyzing Christmas in Film: Santa to the Supernatural focuses on the how Christmas is presented on the deluge of occasions when it appears. While most Christmas films are secular, religion makes many cameos, appearing through Nativity references, storylines involving spiritual rebirth, the framing of Santa as a Christ-like figure and the all-importance of family, be it the Holy family or just those gathered around the dining table. Also explored are popular narratives involving battles with stress and melancholy, single parents and Christmas martyrs, visits from ghosts and angels, big cities and small towns, break-ups and make-ups and the ticking clock of mortality. Nearly 1000 films are analyzed in this volume to determine what the portrayal of Christmas reveals about culture, society and faith as well as sex roles, consumerism, aesthetics and aspiration.