This introduction to Christian theology focuses on the central mysteries of the Gospels, the Passion and the Resurrection. The author sets out a comprehensive theology of how we can be transformed and freed from a culture of violence into a new state where we share in the imagination of Jesus.
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23 of 23 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The influence of Rene Girard looms large in this brilliant interpretation of Christian Theology for the contemporary world. Alison argues that the God revealed in Jesus is the God of life who has nothing to do with human violence and our death-oriented culture. Even for those who find it difficult to swallow the entire Girardian package, who think that sacrificial language is not always negative and that mimesis can be positive, will profit from James Allison's insights. His thought is deeply engaged with the text of the New Testament and with the realities of the contemporary world. This is a book of hope which urges us to "fix our mind on the things that are above" not so we become "so heavenly minded that we are no earthly good" but that we might be transformed by the conscious awareness that in Jesus the Kingdom of God broke into the world. Christians of many theological traditions will be challenged and stimulated by this eminently readable and important book.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By Jeremy Bevan
TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
Insightful account of how a fresh understanding of the resurrection of Jesus can radically alter the way Christians understand death, judgment, and the final `end of the world as we know it'. Drawing on the theories of René Girard, Alison challenges the assumption that a capricious God somehow requires the sacrificial death of Jesus as victim, supposedly to appease a legitimate godly wrath. This, says Alison, is not what God is 'about' at all, and throughout the book he challenges us to imagine how life shorn of this inadequate view of the almighty might look.
In his life, death and resurrection, Jesus' free self-giving of himself (particularly as seen in John's Gospel) unmasks and annuls the system of `murderous mendacity' which the world, and the world's religiosity, imagine is what God wants of us (45). In the resurrection, a God pruned of violence exposes this system for what it is, and is perceived afresh as brilliantly alive and `without reference to death' (42). But this living in full awareness of the life and love of God isn't meant to be cosy. While it means ditching apocalyptic views of judgment on the world (because God's judgment - in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus - has already come), it does mean working at the patient, long-haul construction of the coming Kingdom, already inaugurated by what Jesus did and the way he lived.
This is a well-written but theologically dense work, and I needed some persistence to get through it. But it's not all Girardian theorizing: there's some really absorbing reflection on the Gospels, and thoughtful analysis of the implications for us. Overall, well worth the effort.
In his life, death and resurrection, Jesus' free self-giving of himself (particularly as seen in John's Gospel) unmasks and annuls the system of `murderous mendacity' which the world, and the world's religiosity, imagine is what God wants of us (45). In the resurrection, a God pruned of violence exposes this system for what it is, and is perceived afresh as brilliantly alive and `without reference to death' (42). But this living in full awareness of the life and love of God isn't meant to be cosy. While it means ditching apocalyptic views of judgment on the world (because God's judgment - in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus - has already come), it does mean working at the patient, long-haul construction of the coming Kingdom, already inaugurated by what Jesus did and the way he lived.
This is a well-written but theologically dense work, and I needed some persistence to get through it. But it's not all Girardian theorizing: there's some really absorbing reflection on the Gospels, and thoughtful analysis of the implications for us. Overall, well worth the effort.
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