Changing the world...

The call to make the world a better place is inherent in the Christian belief and practice. But why have efforts to change the world by Christians so often failed or gone tragically awry? And how might Christians in the 21st century live in ways that have integrity with their traditions and are more truly transformative? In To Change the World, James Davison Hunter offers persuasive -and provocative - answers to these questions.  

Tim Keller: "No writer or thinker has taught me as much as James Hunter has about this all-important and complex subject of how culture is changed."

Charles Taylor: "brimful of insightful challenges to our conventional understanding of things, and of inspiring suggestions for a new departure."

Hunter argues that we need a different paradigm of Christian engagement with the world, one he  calls "faithful presence"--an ideal of Christian practice that is not only individual but institutional; a model that plays out not only in all relationships but in our work and all spheres of social life. He offers real-life examples, large and small, of what can be accomplished through the practice of "faithful presence." Such practices will be more fruitful, Hunter argues, more exemplary, and more deeply transfiguring than any more overtly ambitious attempts can ever be. 

Along with Generous Love: the truth of the Gospel and the call to dialogue, Hunter's new work is being discussed in this term's Book Club at the Contextual Theology Centre.  As PEN is a project of the Centre,  it is no coincidence that the Book Club programme deals with subjects so close to its heart.

Meetings of the book club are at 7.30pm at the Contextual Theology Centre in Limehouse, and all are welcome.

Tuesday 8th November - Generous Love

This short booklet is available as a PDF.

Tuesday 6th December - Part 1, To Change the World

Tuesday 10th January - Part 2, To Change the World

The book is available to order from any good bookshops. It's full title is To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy and Possibility of Christianity in the Late Modern World.

The Story of REinspired

In this book REinspired tells the story of how a group of churches in Earley and East Reading developed a way of working with primary schools to support the teaching of RE. The material covers the background of how the project developed and explores the principles REinspired has worked to - including stories of how students have engaged with the materials, and how churches from a wide ecumenical base have been involved. It then provides a practical guide to enable others to use the model to develop links between their own church and local schools.

Published by the Barnabas imprint of Bible Reading Fellowship at £8.99 (also as a downloadable pdf). Visit www.barnabasinchurches.org.uk for more.

Also visit REinspired at www.re-inspired.org.uk

Jesus Through Asian Eyes

This is the title of a really useful new booklet produced by South Asian Forum of the Evangelical Alliance.
Subtitled '15 frequently asked questions' 'Jesus through Asian eyes' aims to dispel common misconceptions that Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Buddhists have about the Christian faith. The A5 booklet is intended to be informative, engaging, enlightening. It handles questions with respect for otheres beliefs.
The booklet costs just 50p per copy and is available from m.raithatha@eauk.org. It comes with guidelines on how it can be used for group discussions.