Social Theology

How is it that in America the image of Jesus Christ has been used both to justify the atrocities of white supremacy and to inspire the righteousness of civil rights crusades? In The Color of Christ, Edward J. Blum and Paul Harvey weave a tapestry of American dreams and visions - from witch hunts to web pages, Harlem to Hollywood, slave cabins to South Park, Mormon revelations to Indian reservations - to show how Americans visually remade the Son of God time and again into a sacred symbol of their greatest aspirations, deepest terrors, and mightiest strivings for racial power and justice.

The 2012 killing of Trayvon Martin, an African American teenager in Florida, and the subsequent acquittal of his killer, brought public attention to controversial "Stand Your Ground" laws. The verdict, as much as the killing, sent shock waves through the African American community, recalling a history of similar deaths, and the long struggle for justice. On the Sunday morning following the verdict, black preachers around the country addressed the question, "Where is the justice of God? What are we to hope for?"

Despite Jesus' prayer that all Christians "be one", divisions have been epidemic in the body of Christ from the beginning to the present. We cluster in theological groups, gender groups, age groups, ethnic groups, educational, and economic groups. We criticize freely those who disagree with us, don't look like us, don't act like us, and don't even like what we like. With a personal touch and the trained eye of a social psychologist, Cleveland brings to bear the latest studies and research on the unseen dynamics at work that tend to separate us from others.

We live in confusing times. Our society has shifted on its moral axis, and many are asking whether Christianity needs to be reinvented - or even reimagined - in order to save it. In Saving Christianity?, Dr. Michael Youssef explores this train of thought and its pitfalls. He describes how similar discussions in Christianity's recent past explored the very same question. Saving Christianity? will help you discern what is going on within the church while it reviews the essentials of the Christian faith as described in the Bible.

One of the ambitious dreams that Reclaiming Adoption and its authors share with the Apostle Paul is that when Christians hear the word adoption, they will think first about their adoption by God. As it now stands, Christians usually think first about the adoption of children. Reclaiming Adoption sets out to change this situation by providing breathtaking views of God's love for and delight in His children - views that will free you to live boldly in this world from God's acceptance, not in order to gain it.

Martin Luther started a reformation movement that revolutionized Europe in the 16th century. His far-reaching reforms of theological understanding and church practices radically modified both church and society in Europe and beyond. Paulson's introduction to Luther's thought, coupled with illustrations, provides an engaging introduction to Luther's multifaceted self and the ideas that catapulted him to fame.

Through a thought-provoking, journalistic voice, Billy Hallowell, faith editor for theblaze.com, provides objective one-on-one interviews with various leading voices in Christian ministry to explain what they believe the Bible teaches us about the last days. From its easy-to-understand writing style to its glossary of terms and other helpful tools, everything about this book was created to allow you to educate yourself on what the Bible says, compare what the experts believe, and draw your own conclusions about the end.

Back by popular the demand, the best-selling Politically Incorrect Guides provide an unvarnished, unapologetic overview of the topics every American needs to know. The Politically Incorrect Guide to Jihad delves into the dark world of radical Islam, exposing the most violent menace of the 21st century.

The latest and most bitterly contested battle in the culture war is the controversy over Darwin and intelligent design. But much of what you've heard about it is wrong. Jonathan Wells, a battle-hardened veteran with doctorates in biology and theology, sets the record straight.

Critical theory and its expression in fields such as critical race theory, critical pedagogy, and queer theory are having a profound impact on our culture. Contemporary critical theory's ideas about race, class, gender, identity, and justice have dramatically shaped how people think, act, and view one another—in Christian and secular spheres alike. In Critical Dilemma, authors Neil Shenvi and Pat Sawyer illuminate the origins and influences of contemporary critical theory, considering it in the light of clear reason and biblical orthodoxy.

Let’s face it. A lot of Christian resources can feel cheesy, out-of-touch, and a little boring. But when Skye Jethani started doodling and writing up some of his thoughts about God, his Twitter and email list blew up. What If Jesus Was Serious? is a compilation of all-new reflections from Skye. He takes a look at some of Jesus’ most demanding teachings in the Sermon on the Mount and pushes us to ask whether we’re really hearing what Christ is saying.

Many young African Americans are disinterested in Christianity and others are leaving the church in search of what these false religious ideas appear to offer, a spirituality more indigenous to their history and ethnicity. Edited by Dr. Eric Mason and featuring a top-notch lineup of contributors, Urban Apologetics is the first book focused entirely on cults, religious groups, and ethnocentric ideologies prevalent in the black community.

Author David Bennett came out to his parents as gay when he was 14 and entered Sydney's active gay community a few years later. In A War of Loves, he shares his growing desire as a gay rights activist to see justice for LGBTQI people, his journey through new age religions and French existentialism, and his university years as a postmodernist - before Jesus Christ showed up in his life in a highly unexpected way, leading him down a path he never would have imagined or predicted.

Secunda Secundae is the longest part in this immense undertaking by Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274). His purpose was nothing less than to survey the theological teachings of the Catholic Church, while absorbing, controversially for his time, many other strands of learning and philosophy, varying from ancient Greek (particularly Aristotle) to Muslim writers (Averroes and Avicenna) and the Sephardic Jewish philosopher Moses Maimonides.

As news reports of the horrific December 2004 tsunami in Asia reached the rest of the world, commentators were quick to seize upon the disaster as proof of either God’s power or God’s nonexistence, asking over and over, How could a good and loving God - if such exists - allow such suffering? In The Doors of the Sea, David Bentley Hart speaks at once to those skeptical of Christian faith and to those who use their Christian faith to rationalize senseless human suffering.

"In this house we believe that: Black Lives Matter, Love Is Love, Gay Rights Are Civil Rights, Women’s Rights Are Human Rights, Transgender Women Are Women". You may have seen signs with some of these messages in your neighborhood. They offer us an all-or-nothing package deal - in short, a secular creed. In this provocative audiobook, Rebecca McLaughlin helps us disentangle the beliefs Christians gladly affirm from those they cannot embrace, and invites us to talk with our neighbors about the things that matter most.

Divine Love and Wisdom has been called the most profound work of the Enlightenment scientist and seer Emanuel Swedenborg. It demonstrates how God's love, wisdom, and humanity are reflected in creation and in ourselves, and suggests that the act of creation is not a mystery of the past, but a miracle ongoing in every instant of the present. Like a blueprint of things unseen, Divine Love and Wisdom makes visible the hidden design of the universe, as well as the qualities of its architect.

Divine Providence is one of the major works of the Enlightenment scientist and religious seer Emanuel Swedenborg. It provides a coherent and satisfying solution to what has been called "the problem of evil": How are God's goodness and power reconcilable with evil's presences in the larger world and in the human mind and heart?

Whether you’re a Christian parent, youth leader, or educator who works with Generation Z, this book was written for you. As powerful ideas in our increasingly secular culture shape more of this generation, trusted leaders must share what they know about Jesus in ways that will reach them. But how? Backed by the latest research and first hand experience, this powerful book shows how to share biblical truth with a generation that desperately needs to hear it in a way that draws them in instead of pushing them away.

In Counter Culture, New York Times best-selling author David Platt shows Christians how to actively take a stand on such issues as poverty, sex trafficking, marriage, abortion, racism, and religious liberty—and challenges us to become passionate, unwavering voices for Christ. Drawing on compelling personal accounts from around the world, Platt presents an unapologetic yet winsome call for Christians to faithfully follow Christ into the cultural battlefield in ways that will prove both costly and rewarding.