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James Davison Hunter

James Davison Hunter Books

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“In the seeker-church movement the emphasis away from the use and explication of creedal confession is obvious, since the whole point is to focus on the 'felt-needs' of the person in the pew - especially the felt-needs of nonbelievers. The rationale is that the church and its main service are evangelistic in nature. Because nonbelievers simply cannot penetrate the arcana of historic Christianity, the felt-needs of people become the point of entry into conversation with them.”

ChristianityEvangelismSeeker SensitiveSeeker Church
Book:To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy, and Possibility of Christianity in the Late Modern World
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“The contemporary quarrel over church and state is not really about whether a wall of separation of church and state should exist or not... The real question is what does 'separation' mean?”

ShouldMeanDoeRealStatesChristianChurchReligiousWallSeparationContemporaryQuarrelsChurch And StateSeparation Of Church And StateReal Questions
Book:Culture Wars: The Struggle To Control The Family, Art, Education, Law, And Politics In America
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“To enact a vision of human flourishing based on the qualities of life that Jesus modeled will invariably challenge the given structures of the social order. In this light, there is no true leadership without putting at risk one's time, wealth, reputation, and position.”

HumansLightOrderJesusGivenSocialChallengesWealthQualityVisionRiskPositionStructureReputationQuality Of LifeFlourishingSocial OrderTrue LeaderTrue Leadership
Book:To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy, and Possibility of Christianity in the Late Modern World
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“As with military campaigns, cultural warfare is always decided over the pragmatic problems of strategy, organization and resources. . . . The factions with the best strategies, most efficient organization, and access to resources will plainly have the advantage and very possibly, the ultimate victory.”

ProblemMilitaryVictoryResourcesAdvantageDecidedUltimateOrganizationStrategyAccessCampaignsHumanistEfficientWarfarePragmaticFactions
Book:Culture Wars: The Struggle To Control The Family, Art, Education, Law, And Politics In America
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“The tragedy is that in the name of resisting the internal deterioration of faith and the corruption of the world around them, many Christians - and Christian conservatives most significantly -unwittingly embrace some of the most corrosive aspects of the cultural disintegration they decry. By nurturing its resentments, sustaining them through a discourse of negation toward outsiders, and in cases, pursuing their will to power, they become functional Nietzscheans, participating in the very cultural breakdown they so ardently strive resist.”

WorldChristianNamesCasesAspectTragedyEmbraceStriveCorruptionInternalsResentmentOutsidersDiscourseNurturingBreakdownWill PowerResistingParticipatingSustainingNegationDeteriorationDisintegration
Author:James Davison Hunter
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“We want character but without unyielding conviction; we want strong morality but without the emotional burden of guilt or shame; we want virtue but without particular moral justifications that invariably offend; we want good without having to name evil; we want decency without the authority to insist upon it; we want more community without any limitations to personal freedom. In short, we want what we cannot possibly have on the terms that we want it.”

WantCharacterEvilNamesStrongTermCommunityMoralVirtueEmotionalParticularMoralityAuthorityShameGuiltConvictionBurdenLimitationJustificationDecencyPersonal FreedomUnyielding
Author:James Davison Hunter
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“But the consequences of the whole-hearted and uncritical embrace of politics by Christians has been, IN EFFECT, to reduce Christian faith to a political ideology and various Christian denominations and para-church organizations as special interest groups. The political engagement of the various Christian groups is certainly legal, but in ways that are undoubtedly unintended, it has also been counterproductive of the ends to which they aspire.”

WayHas BeensEndsWholeChristianPoliticalInterestChurchGroupsSpecialEffectsConsequenceOrganizationEmbraceVariousIdeologyEngagementAspireHeartedChristian FaithSpecial InterestsDenominationsInterest GroupsCounterproductivePolitical IdeologySpecial Interest GroupsChristian DenominationsPolitical Engagement
Author:James Davison Hunter
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“Ideas do have consequences in history, yet not because those ideas are inherently truthful or obviously correct but rather because of the way they are embedded in very powerful institutions, networks, interests, and symbols.”

WayIdeasInterestPowerfulConsequenceInstitutionsSymbolsTruthfulVery PowerfulEmbedded
Book:To Change the World: The Irony, Tragedy, and Possibility of Christianity in the Late Modern World
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