Discipleship As Political Responsibility (John Howard Yoder)

Rating:
Summary: An Insightful Call to Faithful Politics
Review: These incisive essays provide a much-needed antidote to the dominant reformed view of the state which has blinded the church to much of the evil done in the name of states. If one begins with the notion that the state is inherently good, much of their evil is justified in the eyes of the citizenry, and Jesus teaching on enemies, violence and the cross must be deemed irrelevant. Such a view, compared with the more biblical interpretation offered by Yoder, falls miserably short of what Christ calls us to do and be. Christians indeed must be political, but in a way which is faithful to Christ. John Howard Yoder shows us such a way.

For those familiar with Yoder's other works, this book might be described as "The Christian Witness to the State - Lite", though that should not be taken to mean that these essays are in any way "lite" in substance. Highly recommended.