In a day and age where international conflict, scandal, and public crises have become part of our standard diet, theologian Miroslav Volf consistently and brilliantly orients his work toward reconciliation, justice, and Christian responsibility. It is no surprise then that his book A Public Faith: How Followers of Christ Should Serve the Common Good has been chosen by Publishers Weekly as one of the Top 100 Books of 2011, and one of the Ten Best in the category of Religion.
Volf’s intentions in A Public Faith are summed up well in this statement from the Introduction:
“My contention in this book is that there is no single way in which Christian faith relates and ought to relate to culture as a whole. The relation between faith and culture is too complex for that. Faith stands in opposition to some elements of culture and is detached from others. In some aspects faith is identical with elements of culture, and it seeks to transform in diverse ways yet many more. Moreover, faith’s stance toward culture changes over time as culture changes. How, then, is the stance of faith toward culture defined? It is--or it ought to be--defined by the center of the faith itself, by its relation to Christ as the divine Word incarnate and the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”
Brazos Press has produced a series of videos with Volf that I think further flesh out his intentions in the book, explain why this question is important, and provide a very inviting discussion to consider Volf’s perspective.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
