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A Brutal Unity: The Spiritual Politics of the Christian Church
To describe the Church as "united" is a factual misnomer--even at its conception centuries ago. Ephraim Radner provides a robust rethinking of the doctrine of the church in light of Christianity's often violent and at times morally suspect history. He holds in tension the strange and transcendent oneness of God with the necessarily temporal and political function of the Church, and, in so doing, shows how the goals and failures of the liberal democratic state provide revelatory experiences that greatly enhance one's understanding of the nature of Christian unity.
488 pages, Hardcover
First published October 15, 2012
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November 10, 2020
Radner, in his own unique way, does not shy away from difficulty, tragedy and tension. And this book is no exception. Walking through such complex topics as conciliarism and conscience, he argues that unity does not come easily but is cruciform and so those seeking unity must be ready and willing to sacrifice oneself for the sake of the others. This is a must read for anyone interested in ecclesiology that has the patience to chew on the meat of Radner's musings.
October 18, 2020
There is a lot of material (possibly too much) in this book. I often found myself lost in trying to follow his argument due to the volume of material he was covering. But, in the end Radner really brings it all together well.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews