Power Politics and Moral Order
Three Generations of Christian Realism—A Reader
- Ethics, Culture & Social Issues
- Publisher: Cascade Books (Wipf and Stock)
- Published: 2022
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Publisher's Description
Christian realism is undergoing a renaissance in both American Christianity and around the world. Caught between globalist liberalism, on the one hand, and pragmatic realism on the other, Christians are in search of international ethics, a standard and tradition in foreign policy, that takes the two great books of life, the Christian Scriptures and the world we live in, seriously. This book is an extended, edited collection that mines the tradition of Christian realism in international relations and finds in it voices and mentors urgently fresh for a new age. With classic authors like Reinhold Niebuhr, Herbert Butterfield, Paul Ramsey, and Jean Bethke Elshtain, and contemporaries like Marc LiVecche, Rebecca Heinrichs, and others, this collection offers for the first time an organization, periodization, and collection of primary Christian realist sources for the initiate and the expert in foreign relations.
Endorsements (5)
“An indispensable introduction to twentieth- and twenty-first-century Christian realism in international relations. Well-selected excerpts include familiar voices and new, showing development among thinkers over time. . . . The volume implicitly argues for Christian realism as a diverse, ecumenical, international, and contextual approach to politics. Essential reading in a world facing multiple threats and disruptions on the global stage.”
“An invaluable and overdue resource, this anthology will be a vital point of reference for scholars of Christian realism. There is a deep wisdom at work in this masterfully compiled collection of essays.”
“What has the faith of forgiveness and reconciliation to do with the cold realities of power that dominate geopolitics? Joustra and Patterson’s volume traces a tradition of Christian political thought that studies the realities of power with clear eyes and a faithful commitment to order and neighborly love. What emerges is not denominational or partisan doctrine but a plurality of voices forming a compelling vision of international relations that is at once sober and hopeful.”
“Power Politics and Moral Order is the definitive reader on Christian realism. From Butterfield and Niebuhr to Elshtain and Weigle, the work includes a wide array of Christian realists addressing a host of topics. Edited by two contemporary and prominent Christian realists, Eric D. Patterson and Robert J. Joustra, the book is required reading for every student of international relations and those involved in making foreign policy.”
“For anyone interested in coming to a better understanding of Christian realism as manifested in foreign-policy circles—whether a scholar, student, policy maker, or the average reader—Patterson and Joustra’s volume is essential reading. Providing historical context and conceptual elaboration about Christian realism, the volume includes key readings from each generation, including works by greats such as Reinhold Niebuhr, Kenneth Thompson, Paul Ramsey, George Weigel, Jean Elshtain, and others.”
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