Synopses & Reviews
Many Americans think that race problems are a thing of the past because we no longer live under the Jim Crow laws that once sustained overt structures of segregation. Unfortunately, says Paul Louis Metzger, today we live under an updated version of segregation, through the subtle power of unchallenged norms of consumer preference.
Consumerism affects and infects the church, reinforcing race and class divisions in society. Intentionally or unintentionally, many churches have set up structures of church growth that foster segregation, such as appealing to consumer appetites.
Metzger here argues that the evangelical Christian church needs to admit this fault and intentionally move away from race, class, and consumer segregation.
Synopsis
Foreword by Donald MillerAfterword by John M. PerkinsMany Americans think that race problems are a thing of the past because we no longer live under the Jim Crow laws that once sustained overt structures of segregation. Unfortunately, says Paul Louis Metzger, today we live under an updated version of segregation, through the subtle power of unchallenged norms of consumer preference.Consumerism affects and infects the church, reinforcing race and class divisions in society. Intentionally or unintentionally, many churches have set up structures of church growth that foster segregation, such as appealing to consumer appetites. Metzger here argues that the evangelical Christian church needs to admit this fault and intentionally move away from race, class, and consumer segregation.Challenging the consumerism that fosters ethnic and economic divisions and distorts evangelical Christianity, Consuming Jesus puts forth a theologically grounded call to restructure the church's passions and practices, transforming the evangelical imagination around a nobler, all-consuming vision of the Christian faith.Visit the Consuming Jesus blog created by the The Institute for the Theology of Culture: New Wine, New Wineskins at: http: //consumingjesus.org/
About the Author
Paul Louis Metzger is associate professor of Christian theology and theology of Culture at Multnomah Biblical Seminary. His other books include The Word of Christ and the World of Culture: Sacred and Secular Through the Theology of Karl Barth.
Table of Contents
A faulty order : Retreating battle camps and homogeneous units
Disordered vision : Battling the consumer balrog
Reordering the cosmic powers : Turning tables at the stone table
Reordering the Christian's life : The supernatural shakeup
Reordering the church : Recovering the lost ark
Reordering the church's outreach : Overcoming market forces and building beloved community