The Authentic Witness

The Authentic Witness

Author: C. Norman Kraus

Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers

Published: 2010-03-01

Total Pages: 200

ISBN-13: 1725227339

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Traditional Protestant theology has long answered the question, "What is the true church?" by pointing to the visible church--its location, nature, and structure. The recent increase of interest in missions, however, has raised the issues of the church's role and identity--its mission in the world. It is no longer enough to use orthodoxy as the criterion for the genuineness of the church, identifying the body of Christ by organization or clerical structure, perfection in lifestyle, or ecstatic experience of the Holy Spirit. Rather, says Norman Kraus, the mark of the true church is its authenticity--its ability to remain true to its original prototype in character and purpose. Thus, the church's mission is to be the authentic community of witness to the world. The Christian community affirms each individual as a person in Christ, and its objective for the world is the same as for itself: it calls the world to peace in Christ. The church in mission, then, must be a sign to the world of the kingdom of God. As an authentic community, it is a healing community, characterized and organized around its mission of reconciling witness rather than creeds, various practices, or preaching. Following Christ as its model, its message is salvation and reconciliation.


Book Synopsis The Authentic Witness by : C. Norman Kraus

Download or read book The Authentic Witness written by C. Norman Kraus and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2010-03-01 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Traditional Protestant theology has long answered the question, "What is the true church?" by pointing to the visible church--its location, nature, and structure. The recent increase of interest in missions, however, has raised the issues of the church's role and identity--its mission in the world. It is no longer enough to use orthodoxy as the criterion for the genuineness of the church, identifying the body of Christ by organization or clerical structure, perfection in lifestyle, or ecstatic experience of the Holy Spirit. Rather, says Norman Kraus, the mark of the true church is its authenticity--its ability to remain true to its original prototype in character and purpose. Thus, the church's mission is to be the authentic community of witness to the world. The Christian community affirms each individual as a person in Christ, and its objective for the world is the same as for itself: it calls the world to peace in Christ. The church in mission, then, must be a sign to the world of the kingdom of God. As an authentic community, it is a healing community, characterized and organized around its mission of reconciling witness rather than creeds, various practices, or preaching. Following Christ as its model, its message is salvation and reconciliation.

Faithful Witness in a Fractured World

Faithful Witness in a Fractured World

Author: Dr. Nicole L. Johnson

Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers

Published: 2019-09-11

Total Pages: 112

ISBN-13: 1532653166

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Christians have always looked to models within the Christian faith to guide their lives. At a time when the church is more identifiable by ugly partisan politics--what we call "crappy Christianity"--than by compassionate neighbor love, this book highlights the lives and work of seven individuals who are pursuing their Christian calling in humility and profound love for and service to others, this book highlights the lives and work of seven individuals who are pursuing their Christian calling in humility and profound love for and service to others. Their commitments have led to vocations in working with homeless women, employing refugees, lobbying on Capitol Hill for environmental protection, healing trauma in urban communities, peacemaking in Israel-Palestine, advocating for immigrants, and walking alongside people in addiction recovery. Their individual and collective witness offer compelling examples of authentic Christian life, which is marked in part by active, embodied faith in pursuit of the common good; a broad and inclusive love for all people; rightly ordered political identities and loyalties; and a commitment to work toward holistic redemption of both people and the systems that constitute our life together. In contrast to much of contemporary American Christianity, these models of faith demonstrate that Christians should focus much more on what we are for rather than what we are against.


Book Synopsis Faithful Witness in a Fractured World by : Dr. Nicole L. Johnson

Download or read book Faithful Witness in a Fractured World written by Dr. Nicole L. Johnson and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2019-09-11 with total page 112 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Christians have always looked to models within the Christian faith to guide their lives. At a time when the church is more identifiable by ugly partisan politics--what we call "crappy Christianity"--than by compassionate neighbor love, this book highlights the lives and work of seven individuals who are pursuing their Christian calling in humility and profound love for and service to others, this book highlights the lives and work of seven individuals who are pursuing their Christian calling in humility and profound love for and service to others. Their commitments have led to vocations in working with homeless women, employing refugees, lobbying on Capitol Hill for environmental protection, healing trauma in urban communities, peacemaking in Israel-Palestine, advocating for immigrants, and walking alongside people in addiction recovery. Their individual and collective witness offer compelling examples of authentic Christian life, which is marked in part by active, embodied faith in pursuit of the common good; a broad and inclusive love for all people; rightly ordered political identities and loyalties; and a commitment to work toward holistic redemption of both people and the systems that constitute our life together. In contrast to much of contemporary American Christianity, these models of faith demonstrate that Christians should focus much more on what we are for rather than what we are against.

A Credible Witness

A Credible Witness

Author: Brenda Salter McNeil

Publisher: InterVarsity Press

Published: 2009-08-20

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 0830874224

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Meet Jesus and Sam. Evangelist and teacher Brenda Salter McNeil thinks evangelism that only introduces people to Jesus is incomplete. The picture is much larger than that, she claims: Christ's death and resurrection reconcile us to God and to each other across gender, race and social lines. Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman, introduced here as Brenda's friend Sam, gives you the full picture of gospel reconciliation--reconciliation to God and to each other. In her powerful, prophetic way, Brenda expounds their interaction recorded in John 4 and shares her own story of coming to Christ and learning to relate to other Christians. A Credible Witness tells you why both types of reconciliation are necessary, and moves you to be a person whose evangelism happens through a right relationship with God and others. "In today's world," Brenda writes, "we too are called to embody more than one type of reconciliation. The good news brings us to God, and it also brings life and healing to a broken, dying and divided world. Anything less is not the gospel."


Book Synopsis A Credible Witness by : Brenda Salter McNeil

Download or read book A Credible Witness written by Brenda Salter McNeil and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2009-08-20 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Meet Jesus and Sam. Evangelist and teacher Brenda Salter McNeil thinks evangelism that only introduces people to Jesus is incomplete. The picture is much larger than that, she claims: Christ's death and resurrection reconcile us to God and to each other across gender, race and social lines. Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman, introduced here as Brenda's friend Sam, gives you the full picture of gospel reconciliation--reconciliation to God and to each other. In her powerful, prophetic way, Brenda expounds their interaction recorded in John 4 and shares her own story of coming to Christ and learning to relate to other Christians. A Credible Witness tells you why both types of reconciliation are necessary, and moves you to be a person whose evangelism happens through a right relationship with God and others. "In today's world," Brenda writes, "we too are called to embody more than one type of reconciliation. The good news brings us to God, and it also brings life and healing to a broken, dying and divided world. Anything less is not the gospel."

The Authentic Witness

The Authentic Witness

Author: C. Norman Kraus

Publisher:

Published: 1981

Total Pages: 200

ISBN-13: 9780836119596

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Book Synopsis The Authentic Witness by : C. Norman Kraus

Download or read book The Authentic Witness written by C. Norman Kraus and published by . This book was released on 1981 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

The Moment of Christian Witness

The Moment of Christian Witness

Author: Hans Urs Von Balthasar

Publisher: Ignatius Press

Published: 2012-09-11

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 1681495236

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Balthasar puts his finger on the precise origin of all those elements in modern Christianity which see the real Jesus Christ as unknowable, the Gospels as merely the confused reflections of later Christians, and Christian tradition as a perpetuation of the mythology.


Book Synopsis The Moment of Christian Witness by : Hans Urs Von Balthasar

Download or read book The Moment of Christian Witness written by Hans Urs Von Balthasar and published by Ignatius Press. This book was released on 2012-09-11 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Balthasar puts his finger on the precise origin of all those elements in modern Christianity which see the real Jesus Christ as unknowable, the Gospels as merely the confused reflections of later Christians, and Christian tradition as a perpetuation of the mythology.

Four Witnesses

Four Witnesses

Author: Rod Bennett

Publisher: Ignatius Press

Published: 2009-09-03

Total Pages: 356

ISBN-13: 1681491915

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What was the early Church like? Contrary to popular belief, Rod Bennett shows there is a reliable way to know. Four ancient Christian writers - four witnesses to early Christianity - left us an extensive body of documentation on this vital subject, and this book brings their fascinating testimony to life for modern believers. With all the power and drama of a gripping novel, this book is a journey of discovery of ancient and beautiful truths through the lives of four great saints of the early ChurchClement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr, and Irenaeus of Lyons. "A treasure! The early Church and its teachings come to life in this story. Did the first Christians believe what you believe? Buy this book, read the words of the early Church Herself, and fall in love with the historic Church that Christ Himself founded." - David Currie, Author, Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic "Rod Bennett has immersed himself in the fascinating writings of four early Fathers of the Church and has made the discovery from reading them that sincere and attentive readers of them ought to make. The author's imaginative account of these four great Church Fathers is not only an excellent introduction to their work; it is a convincing rendering of what the early Church must really have been like. This is an important new contribution to Christian apologetics." - Kenneth Whitehead, Author, One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic


Book Synopsis Four Witnesses by : Rod Bennett

Download or read book Four Witnesses written by Rod Bennett and published by Ignatius Press. This book was released on 2009-09-03 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What was the early Church like? Contrary to popular belief, Rod Bennett shows there is a reliable way to know. Four ancient Christian writers - four witnesses to early Christianity - left us an extensive body of documentation on this vital subject, and this book brings their fascinating testimony to life for modern believers. With all the power and drama of a gripping novel, this book is a journey of discovery of ancient and beautiful truths through the lives of four great saints of the early ChurchClement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr, and Irenaeus of Lyons. "A treasure! The early Church and its teachings come to life in this story. Did the first Christians believe what you believe? Buy this book, read the words of the early Church Herself, and fall in love with the historic Church that Christ Himself founded." - David Currie, Author, Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic "Rod Bennett has immersed himself in the fascinating writings of four early Fathers of the Church and has made the discovery from reading them that sincere and attentive readers of them ought to make. The author's imaginative account of these four great Church Fathers is not only an excellent introduction to their work; it is a convincing rendering of what the early Church must really have been like. This is an important new contribution to Christian apologetics." - Kenneth Whitehead, Author, One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic

Scandalous Witness

Scandalous Witness

Author: Lee C. Camp

Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing

Published: 2020-03-10

Total Pages: 210

ISBN-13: 1467458198

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Christian identity is in moral and political crisis, scandalized by the many ways in which it has been coopted and misrepresented. Addressing this painful reality, Lee Camp writes that Christianity in America has been made into a bad public joke because of “our failure to rightly understand what Christianity is.” From this provocative claim, Camp’s manifesto makes the convincing case that a renewed Christian politic is more essential than ever, one that is “neither left nor right nor religious,” but a prophetic way of life modeled after Jesus of Nazareth. Camp’s robust vision exposes modern parodies of faith—the American concept of “Christian values,” for one—and challenges Christians to rethink who they are and how they participate in the modern world. Authentic gospel truth is a scandal to the American myth, he argues, and we are called to be scandalous witnesses.


Book Synopsis Scandalous Witness by : Lee C. Camp

Download or read book Scandalous Witness written by Lee C. Camp and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2020-03-10 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Christian identity is in moral and political crisis, scandalized by the many ways in which it has been coopted and misrepresented. Addressing this painful reality, Lee Camp writes that Christianity in America has been made into a bad public joke because of “our failure to rightly understand what Christianity is.” From this provocative claim, Camp’s manifesto makes the convincing case that a renewed Christian politic is more essential than ever, one that is “neither left nor right nor religious,” but a prophetic way of life modeled after Jesus of Nazareth. Camp’s robust vision exposes modern parodies of faith—the American concept of “Christian values,” for one—and challenges Christians to rethink who they are and how they participate in the modern world. Authentic gospel truth is a scandal to the American myth, he argues, and we are called to be scandalous witnesses.

The End of Apologetics

The End of Apologetics

Author: Myron Bradley Penner

Publisher: Baker Books

Published: 2013-07-01

Total Pages: 232

ISBN-13: 144125109X

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The modern apologetic enterprise, according to Myron Penner, is no longer valid. It tends toward an unbiblical and unchristian form of Christian witness and does not have the ability to attest truthfully to Christ in our postmodern context. In fact, Christians need an entirely new way of conceiving the apologetic task. This provocative text critiques modern apologetic efforts and offers a concept of faithful Christian witness that is characterized by love and grounded in God's revelation. Penner seeks to reorient the discussion of Christian belief, change a well-entrenched vocabulary that no longer works, and contextualize the enterprise of apologetics for a postmodern generation.


Book Synopsis The End of Apologetics by : Myron Bradley Penner

Download or read book The End of Apologetics written by Myron Bradley Penner and published by Baker Books. This book was released on 2013-07-01 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The modern apologetic enterprise, according to Myron Penner, is no longer valid. It tends toward an unbiblical and unchristian form of Christian witness and does not have the ability to attest truthfully to Christ in our postmodern context. In fact, Christians need an entirely new way of conceiving the apologetic task. This provocative text critiques modern apologetic efforts and offers a concept of faithful Christian witness that is characterized by love and grounded in God's revelation. Penner seeks to reorient the discussion of Christian belief, change a well-entrenched vocabulary that no longer works, and contextualize the enterprise of apologetics for a postmodern generation.

The Reluctant Witness

The Reluctant Witness

Author: Don Everts

Publisher: InterVarsity Press

Published: 2019-07-30

Total Pages: 183

ISBN-13: 083086556X

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Don Everts grew up assuming that spiritual conversations are always painful and awkward. But his surprising—and sometimes embarrassing—stories affirm what Scripture and the latest research reveal: spiritual conversations can actually be a delight. With original research from the Barna Group on spiritual conversations in the digital age, this book offers fresh insights and best practices for how to become eager conversationalists.


Book Synopsis The Reluctant Witness by : Don Everts

Download or read book The Reluctant Witness written by Don Everts and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2019-07-30 with total page 183 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Don Everts grew up assuming that spiritual conversations are always painful and awkward. But his surprising—and sometimes embarrassing—stories affirm what Scripture and the latest research reveal: spiritual conversations can actually be a delight. With original research from the Barna Group on spiritual conversations in the digital age, this book offers fresh insights and best practices for how to become eager conversationalists.

Witnesses to Mystery

Witnesses to Mystery

Author: Grzegorz Górny

Publisher: Ignatius Press

Published: 2013-11-25

Total Pages: 337

ISBN-13: 158617844X

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In this lavishly illustrated large coffee-table volume, writer Gorny and photographer Rosikon embarked on a two year investigative journey to seek the truth behind all the relics associated with the passion of Christ. The authors investigated a rich body of documentary evidence found in various museums, archives and churches surrounding sacred objects believed to have been preserved since Jesus' lifetime, exploring and collaborating with historians and scientists in their attempt to verify the relics' authenticity. They reach their conclusions not so much on the basis of faith as on the evidence supplied by historical sources and expert scientific opinion. The relics associated with the Passion - the suffering, death and burial of Christ - have long proved something of an enigma for the scientific community. Relics investigated, and photographed, for this glorious volume include: the Cross, nails, crown of thorns, pillar of scourging, Christ's tunic, the Veil of Manoppello, the Sudarium of Oviedo, the famous Shroud of Turin burial cloth and more.


Book Synopsis Witnesses to Mystery by : Grzegorz Górny

Download or read book Witnesses to Mystery written by Grzegorz Górny and published by Ignatius Press. This book was released on 2013-11-25 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this lavishly illustrated large coffee-table volume, writer Gorny and photographer Rosikon embarked on a two year investigative journey to seek the truth behind all the relics associated with the passion of Christ. The authors investigated a rich body of documentary evidence found in various museums, archives and churches surrounding sacred objects believed to have been preserved since Jesus' lifetime, exploring and collaborating with historians and scientists in their attempt to verify the relics' authenticity. They reach their conclusions not so much on the basis of faith as on the evidence supplied by historical sources and expert scientific opinion. The relics associated with the Passion - the suffering, death and burial of Christ - have long proved something of an enigma for the scientific community. Relics investigated, and photographed, for this glorious volume include: the Cross, nails, crown of thorns, pillar of scourging, Christ's tunic, the Veil of Manoppello, the Sudarium of Oviedo, the famous Shroud of Turin burial cloth and more.