CULTURAL ENGAGEMENT is Now Available for Purchase
As many of you know, I’ve had the privilege of working with Drs. Joshua Chatraw and Karen Swallow Prior on an anthology about Christian engagement with cultural beliefs. Dr. Prior asked me to contribute an essay a year and a half ago, and it has been a tremendous pleasure and privilege to be involved in this project.
The book, Cultural Engagement: A Crash Course in
Contemporary Issues, releases today. It explores nine controversial topics—sexuality,
gender roles, human life & reproductive technology, immigration & race,
creation & creature care, politics, work, the arts, and warfare & capital
punishment—from a variety of angles. Contributors to the book include Makoto
Fujimura, Rod Dreher, Rosaria Butterfield, Andy Crouch, Joe Carter, and Katelyn
Beaty.
There is a
wide range of beliefs represented in this book, not because all positions are
equally valid, but because there needs to be a gracious and loving context in
which to engage many of the positions currently being debated in the public
square. As Drs. Chatraw and Prior explain:
Through
the years, we have both slowly grown in wisdom and understanding through our
engagement with a variety of people who have different perspectives. Through interactions
with students on our campus, both in and out of the classroom, we realized how
valuable a book like this one could be, introducing a variety of subjects from
people representing different backgrounds and vocations. The question that
spurred on the project was: could we encourage the maturation process for
others by bringing together various voices of professing Christians addressing
a range of cultural issues in a single book in a way that would allow readers
to engage critically and biblically with different perspectives? With almost
fifty different essays this has turned out to be a unique guide to
understanding and engaging some of the most pressing cultural issues of our
day.
It is
likely no surprise that I was asked to contribute to the section on the arts.
They had compiled a handful of folks to talk about the positive side of the
arts—an emphasis much needed in the Christian community. However, to provide a
bit of balance, I was brought on to write something more…cautionary. The title
of my essay is “When Art Becomes Sinful,” and I hope it challenges and convicts
many who choose to read it.
The essays
in Cultural Engagement are far from
esoteric; they are not designed merely for academics (although many smart
people contributed to this book), but also for laypeople without a lot of
letters next to their names (like myself). This collection of essays is an
excellent reference tool—one which I have enjoyed working and wrestling through
myself.
Here are a
few endorsements of the book:
“Christians
talk a lot about cultural engagement, but our dismal record in recent decades
suggests that our engagement strategies need a lot of work. In this provocative
and timely book, Joshua Chatraw and Karen Swallow Prior have convened a
wide-ranging cast of authors to debate the most pressing issues facing the
church today.”
-
Thomas S. Kidd, James Vardaman Distinguished
Professor of History, Baylor University
“In this
day and age, when rhetoric and worldviews are so divisive, and intelligence
with grace and integrity is in short supply, Prior and Chatraw manage to bring
together authors who nuance ancient biblical ideas with a wisdom that speaks to
the ethical issues of our modern age.”
-
Allen Yeh, associate professor of
intercultural studies and missiology, Biola University
“Josh
Chatraw and Karen Swallow Prior, along with a host of friends, model for all of
us what it means to think Christianly about the intersection of the gospel and
culture, doing so with courage and conviction while encouraging careful
listening, Christlike kindness, and civility.”
-
David S. Dockery, president, Trinity International
University and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School
“This book
reminds us that even within the subset known as the American church there are
various competing and impactful perspectives that call for deep understanding
and not simple caricatures.”
-
Christina H. Edmondson, dean for intercultural student
development, Calvin College
You can
preview and purchase a copy of Cultural
Engagement by clicking here.