Captain America And The Crusade Against Evil
$36.99
As immediate and relevant as today’s headlines, this book sets forth a bold argument with direct implications for political life in America and around the world. Combining incisive cultural analysis and keen religious insight, Robert Jewett and John Shelton Lawrence maintain that American crusading – so powerfully embodied in popular entertainments – has striking parallels with Islamic jihad and Israeli militancy.
According to Jewett and Lawrence, American civil religion has both a humane, constitutional tradition and a violent strand that is now coming to the fore. The crusade to rid the world of evil and “evildoers” derives from the same biblical tradition of zealous warfare and nationalism that spawns Islamic and Israeli radicalism. In America, where this tradition has been popularized by superheroic entertainments, the idea of zealous war is infused with a distinctive sense of mission that draws on secular and religious images. These crusading ideals are visible in such events as the settling of the western frontier, the World Wars, the Cold War, the Gulf War, and America’s present war on terrorism.
In exploring the tradition of zealous nationalism, which seeks to redeem the world by destroying enemies, the authors provide a fascinating access to the inner workings of the American psyche. They analyze the phenomenon of zeal – the term itself is the biblical and cultural counterpart of the Islamic concept of jihad – and address such consequential topics as the conspiracy theory of evil, the problem of stereotyping enemies, the mystique of violence, the obsession with victory, and the worship of national symbols such as flags.
This critical book, however, is also immensely constructive. As Jewett and Lawrence point out, the same biblical tradition that allows for crusading mentalities also contains a critique of zealous warfare and a profound vision of impartial justice. This tradition of prophetic realism derives from the humane side of the biblical heritage, and the authors trace its manifestations within the American experience, including its supreme embodiment in Abraham Lincoln. Isaiah’s “swords into plowshares” image is carved on the walls of the United Nations building, thus standing at the center of a globally focused civil religion. Grasping this vision honored by Judaism, Christianity, and Islam alike includes recognizing the dangers of zealous violence, the illusions of current crusading, and the promise of peaceful coexistence under
in stock within 3-5 days of online purchase
SKU (ISBN): 9780802828590
ISBN10: 0802828590
Robert Jewett | John Lawrence
Binding: Trade Paper
Published: June 2004
Publisher: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.
Print On Demand Product
Related products
-
Person Of Interest
$24.99Add to cartDateline featured cold-case detective and best-selling author J. Warner Wallace investigates Jesus, the most significant person in history, like one of his “missing body, cold-cases,” demonstrating why Jesus still matters today, even in a world that is skeptical of the Bible.
Detective J. Warner Wallace listened to a pastor talk about Jesus and wondered why anyone would think Jesus was a person of interest.
Wallace was skeptical of the Bible, but he’d investigated several “no-body, missing person” cases in which there was no crime scene, no physical evidence, and no victim’s body. He successfully identified and convicted the killers in these cases, even without evidence from the scene.
Could the historical life and actions of Jesus be investigated in the same way? Could the truth about Jesus be uncovered even without a body or a crime scene? In Person of Interest, Wallace describes his own personal investigative journey from atheism to Christianity, as he employs a unique investigative strategy to confirm the historicity and deity of Jesus–without relying on the New Testament manuscripts.
Imagining a scenario in which every New Testament document has been destroyed, Wallace carefully sifts through the evidence from history alone to reconstruct the identity of Jesus as the world’s most important person of interest.
Person of Interest will:
*Invite readers into the life of a cold-case detective as he uncovers the truth about Jesus, using the same approach he also employs to solve a real murder case*Teach readers how to become good detectives, using an innovative and unique “‘fuse’ and ‘fallout'” investigative strategy they can also use to examine other claims of history
*Show how Jesus changed the world and why He still matters today
*Help readers to explore common objections to Christianity
Creative, compelling, and unique in its approach, Person of Interest will strengthen the faith of believers, while engaging those who are skeptical and distrusting of the New Testament.
-
Experiencing God Together
$15.99Add to cartLearn to Love Well When You Give Love Away
Jesus has empowered you to be His hands and feet to others. And you don’t have to go far to be Jesus to others. You can share His life and love with the people you meet every day.
In Experiencing God Together, Dr. Tony Evans demonstrates how you can be a channel of God’s blessings to others. Whether you are learning to love those around you, providing hospitality for strangers, or offering forgiveness to those who harm you, Scripture offers instruction for how you can show God’s love for others as you live in community.
When you give God’s love away to others through tangible acts, you will experience His presence in new and meaningful ways.
-
Draw The Circle
$18.99Add to cartDo you pray as often and as boldly as you want to? There is a way to experience a deeper, more passionate, persistent, and intimate prayer life. Drawing from forty days of true stories, Mark Batterson applies the principles of his New York Times bestselling book The Circle Maker to teach us a new way to pray. As thousands of readers quickly became many tens of thousands, true stories of miraculous and inspiring answers to prayer began to pour in, and as those stories were shared, others were bolstered in their faith to pray with even more boldness. In Draw the Circle, through forty true, faith-building stories of God’s answers to prayer, daily scriptures and prayer prompts, Batterson inspires you to pray and keep praying like never before. Begin a lifetime of watching God work. Believe in the God who can do all things. Experience the power of bold prayer and even bolder faith in Draw the Circle.
-
Your Comeback : Your Past Doesnt Have To Determine Your Future
$16.99Add to cartMoses Was a Murderer…
Rabab was a harlot….
Jacob lied…
Jonah rebelled…
Esther was a diva.These and other Bible heroes were far from perfect. They failed, they sinned, they deceived…and yet each of them had a dramatic comeback and were used of God beyond their richest imagination. The Bible isn’t the only source of “comeback” stories. Life is full of such dramatic turnarounds. Whether it’s a sports team coming from behind to win an upset or a late blooming student who wins the scholarship, or….your life story, God delights in arranging for comebacks.
Like the Biblical and contemporary examples told in The Comeback, your future can include an amazing comeback story. Popular pastor and Bible teacher, Dr. Tony Evans offers hope by pointing you to the good news that God loves to use less than perfect people. If you’re less than perfect, you qualify!
“It is definitely not too late for you. God has a purpose, a destiny, and a goal for your life. Don’t go backward on Him now. You’ve come too far. You can’t change your past regardless of how much you may want to. But your past does not have to determine your future.” Dr. Tony Evans
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.