In this volume of essays John Howard Yoder projects a vision of Christian social ethics rooted in historical community and illuminated by scripture. Drawing upon scriptural accounts of the early church, he demonstrates the Christian community's constant need for reform and change. Yoder first examines the scriptural and theoretical foundations of Christian social ethics. While personally committed to the "radical reformation" tradition, he eschews "denominational" categorization and addresses Christians in general. The status of Christian community, he argues, cannot be separated from the doctrinal content of beliefs and the moral understanding of discipleship. As a result, the Christian's voluntary commitment to a particular community, as distinct from secular society, offers him valuable resources for practical moral reasoning. From a historical perspective, Yoder reviews the efforts of sixteenth-century radical (or Anabaptist) reformers to return to the fundamental ethical standards of the New Testament, and to disengage the community, as a biblically rooted call to faith that does not imply withdrawal from the pluralistic world. Rather, radical commitment to Christianity strengthens and renews the authentic human interests and values of the whole society. His analyses of democracy and of civil religion illustrate how Christianity must challenge and embrace the wider world.

Writings by and about an early leader in Anabaptism show how the movement coalesced around questions of community, nonviolence, and religious liberty. Both admirers and critics have called Michael Sattler the most significant of the first-generation leaders of Anabaptism. This collection of documents by and about Sattler, with introductions and extensive notes, makes selected primary source material available in English for the use of students, pastors, teachers, and interested readers. It is the first volume in the Classics of the Radical Reformation, a series of Anabaptist and Free Church documents translated and annotated under the direction of the Institute of Mennonite Studies.

The complete works of one of the most significant theologians of the Reformation. This book contains the complete writings of Balthasar Hubmaier, including his discussion of three marks of a true church: water baptism of adults, the Lord's Supper, and fraternal admonition. This is the fifth volume in the Classics of the Radical Reformation, a series of Anabaptist and Free Church documents translated and annotated under the direction of the Institute of Mennonite Studies.

Synopsis: The ambitious and accessible essays collected in this volume were presented by John Howard Yoder during an extensive visit to South America in 1966. Reflecting and also subverting the acknowledged "faddish" attempt to address the revolutionary nature of Christianity, these lectures provide an illuminating snapshot of Yoder's vibrant initial encounter with Latin American Christianity. In these lectures, he thematically addresses the shape of the free church, the Christian practice of peace, and the place of the church in the midst of revolution. In a manner that betrays his confidence in the eventual triumph of faithfulness, Yoder concludes that the peace-witnessing free church is, by definition, always the community that is the soul and conscience of our revolutionary age. Endorsements: "Revolutionary Christianity will be a welcome addition to the Yoder corpus for those familiar with his work as well as those who will read him for the first time. For the latter, Revolutionary Christianity is a wonderful introduction to the major themes in his work. For the former, this book is a very helpful reminder of the interconnectedness of Yoder's thought. We are fortunate, therefore, to have yet another book by Yoder." -Stanley Hauerwas, Gilbert T. Rowe Professor of Theological Ethics at Duke Divinity School "Revolutionary Christianity is vintage Yoder These lectures from 1966 have aged well. New readers will discover accessible wisdom from the same vineyard that produced The Politics of Jesus. Those who have enjoyed later harvests of the fruit of this vine known for its robust character will enjoy the subtle differences of this particular vintage. All readers should marvel at John Howard Yoder's capacity to speak a fresh word then and now" -Michael G. Cartwright Dean of Ecumenical and Interfaith Programs at the University of Indianapolis "This volume makes a significant contribution to the important task of bringing into print all the treasures in Yoder's unpublished materials. John Howard Yoder is the greatest Mennonite theologian/ethicist in our history. Revolutionary Christianity provides further insight into his fertile, creative mind." -Ronald J. Sider Professor of Theology, Holistic Ministry & Public Policy Palmer Seminary at Eastern University "For those of us that heard some of these lectures in the atmosphere of social turmoil of Latin America in the 1960s and 1970's, it is a joy to see them gathered and published in book form. Yoder's fresh and creative way of reading both Scripture and the Anabaptist tradition is still surprising and challenging. I am amazed by the continued relevance of his theological reflection and thankful for it." -Samuel Escobar Professor Emeritus Palmer Theological Seminary and Theological Seminary of the Spanish Baptist Union, Madrid Author Biography: John Howard Yoder taught at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary and later became a professor of theology and ethics at the University of Notre Dame and a fellow of the Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies. He is the author of The Politics of Jesus (1972), The Priestly Kingdom (1984), For the Nations (1997), and several other books.

Description: ""Of very few people can it be legitimately said that their work fundamentally reconfigured the landscape of two theological disciplines. But if there is anyone in recent memory who would be worthy of such an accolade, it is John Howard Yoder. The two disciplines are, of course, theological ethics and biblical studies--though Yoder would cringe at their separation, and his work was both explicitly and implicitly a prolonged exercise in maintaining their indissoluble union. For him, to hear the word rightly was to do the word publicly. . . . Yoder] guides us toward a truly ecclesial yet missional reading of Scripture, with a profoundly Anabaptist yet ecumenical and catholic spirit, in historically astute and literarily sensitive ways that are nonetheless ""straightforward"" and pastoral. Or, as he would himself say, he guides us toward a reading of Scripture that proceeds from and focuses on Jesus: Vicit Agnus Noster, Eum Sequamur; 'Our Lamb has conquered; let us follow him.'"" --from the foreword by Michael J. Gorman Endorsements: ""Yoder's biblical exposition, perhaps more than his work in either ethics or history, inspired a whole generation to re-engage 'Word and World.' I, like so many others, am grateful and indebted. This volume gives us unique insights into Yoder's integral approach to reading scripture, which remains instructive, compelling and fruitful."" --Ched Myers, Bartimaeus Cooperative Ministries and author of Binding the Strong Man: A Political Reading of Mark's Story of Jesus ""For anyone interested in theological interpretation of Scripture, this book is a welcome event. This updated version of To Hear the Word brings together a compelling collection of John Howard Yoder's many writings on biblical interpretation and theology. Those engaged in current discussions about how to interpret and embody Scripture in the church will find that on many of the most pressing issues in the current debates, Yoder has already engaged the issues in provocative and challenging ways. It only sharpens our sorrow that his voice has been lost."" --Stephen E. Fowl author of Theological Interpretation of Scripture (Cascade 2009) About the Contributor(s): John Howard Yoder (1927-1997) earned his PhD from the University of Basel and taught theology at the Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminaries and the University of Notre Dame. For nineteen years he served the Mennonite Fellowship in church relations and education. His published books include The Politics of Jesus, The Priestly Kingdom, To Hear the Word, When War Is Unjust, What Would You Do?, and He Came Preaching Peace.

At a time when the Evangelical wing of the church is beginning to show some signs of soul searching over the issues of war and peace, the Pentecostals would do well to study their own heritage.Whether they accept or reject their earlier world view, they need to interpret the motivation for their original beliefs and those which they now hold.As people of the word of God, have Pentecostals altered their pacifistic views as a result of new biblical insights or cultural accommodation?-- From the Introduction

These essays in Christian social ethics, some previously published but most appearing in print here for the first time, are all about the way in which the church, in the midst of the world, is called to think and act on behalf of the world. As the title indicates, this affirmative stance is the opposite of the way John Howard Yoder has often been interpreted under the label of "sectarian." The church is called to serve as a prophetic model and discerning pioneer, addressing the surrounding society's concerns about power and righteousness. The examples chosen for interpretation range from the ancient Jewish experience of dispersion as mission to modern examples like Martin Luther King, Jr.

The study of Christian ethics in North America has been profoundly influenced during this century by the work of H. Richard Niebuhr. That influence is felt nowhere as keenly as in the widespread use of his classic text, Christ and Culture. Yet certain central flaws exist in Niebuhr's work on Christ and culture, particularly in its lack of concrete norms for the church's transformative engagement with the world. Scholars have long realized that further work must be done in this area if the church is to speak the word of the gospel adequately in the midst of a pluralistic and changing culture. In this book, Glen H. Stassen, D. M. Yeager, and John Howard Yoder push Christian ethical reflection beyond Niebuhr by offering an analysis and critique of Niebuhr's well-known fivefold typology of the relation of Christ to culture. They wrestle with the issue of how the actual, working church goes about being an agent of the transformation of culture. Unlike Niebuhr, whose description of the transformationist ideal had little grounding in the concrete existence of the church, the authors reflect on those practices through which congregations seek both to embody faithfulness to Jesus Christ and to be the church in their culture. As a prologue to this analytical and constructive task, the volume contains a previously unpublished essay by H. Richard Niebuhr, "Types of Christian Ethics", in which he laid out the framework of the typology he would later expand in Christ and Culture.

Schleitheim functioned for many early Mennonites as a confession of faith, both as a statement of the Christian way of life within brotherhood, as well as a witness and mission to all people. The document was sent out far and wide, inviting its readers to identify with this manifestation of God at work among His people. The Schleitheim Confession gave substance to a movement which until then had largely been without form, a movement seemingly as varied as the individuals espousing the cause. Schleitheim brought structure and focus.

In this volume of essays John Howard Yoder projects a vision of Christian social ethics rooted in historical community and illuminated by scripture. Drawing upon scriptural accounts of the early church, he demonstrates the Christian community's constant need for reform and change. Yoder first examines the scriptural and theoretical foundations of Christian social ethics. While personally committed to the "radical reformation" tradition, he eschews "denominational" categorization and addresses Christians in general. The status of Christian community, he argues, cannot be separated from the doctrinal content of beliefs and the moral understanding of discipleship. As a result, the Christian's voluntary commitment to a particular community, as distinct from secular society, offers him valuable resources for practical moral reasoning. From a historical perspective, Yoder reviews the efforts of sixteenth-century radical (or Anabaptist) reformers to return to the fundamental ethical standards of the New Testament, and to disengage the community, as a biblically rooted call to faith that does not imply withdrawal from the pluralistic world. Rather, radical commitment to Christianity strengthens and renews the authentic human interests and values of the whole society. His analyses of democracy and of civil religion illustrate how Christianity must challenge and embrace the wider world.