Secret Faith in the Public Square
Author : Jonathan Malesic
Publisher : Baker Books
Release Date : 2009-09-01
ISBN 10 : 9781441204844
Pages : 256 pages
Rating : 4.0/5 (484 downloads)
Download Secret Faith in the Public Square in PDF Full Online Free by Jonathan Malesic and published by Baker Books. This book was released on 2009-09-01 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this groundbreaking and provocative book, Jonathan Malesic argues that the best way for Christians to be caretakers of their tradition and to love their neighbors selflessly is to conceal their religious identity in American public life. The alternative--insisting on Christianity's public visibility in politics, the marketplace, and the workplace--risks severely compromising the distinctiveness of Christian identity. Delving deep into the Christian tradition, Malesic explains that keeping Christian identity secret means living fully in the world while maintaining Christian language, prayer, and liturgy in reserve. He shows how major thinkers--Cyril of Jerusalem, Søren Kierkegaard, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer--sought to protect Christian identity from being compromised by the public sphere. He then shows that Christians' dual responsibilities for the tradition and for the neighbor must be kept secret.