Books published by Augsburg Fortress Publishers

In the last several years, Walter Brueggemann's writingshave directly addressed the situation of Christiancommunities in today's globalized context, with itsconsumerist lifestyles, vast inequalities, and near-imperialexercises of power. His insights, forged in rugged encounterswith the texts of the Old Testament, are sharp, painful, andindispensable. In the People of Israel Brueggemann finds amodel of an alternative community - anchored in YHWH, ever exploring new possibilities, and prophetically bentagainst empire.Part I: The Word Redescribing the WorldPart II: The Word Redefining the PossiblePart III: The Word Shaping a Community of Discipleship

The most concerted account yet of how the churches' practice might organize theological inquiry as a whole. Browning has opened up important lines of inquiry that merit further investigation." --Craig L. Nessan Southeast Missouri State University "Don Browning manifests a masterful interaction with the current literature on the burgeoning field of practical theology. This book is indispensable reading for anyone engaged in the question of theology's relationship to thought and action today." --Mary Ellen Sheehan Toronto Journal of Theology

In this third edition of Mark as Story, Rhoads, Dewey, and Michie take their treatment of the Gospel of Mark to new levels. While retaining their clear and thorough analysis of Mark as a narrative, they now place their study of Mark in the context of orality. The new preface explains the role of Mark in a predominantly oral culture. Throughout the study, they refer to the author as composer, the narrator as performer, the Gospel as oral composition, and the audience as gathered communities. The conclusion hypothesizes a performance scenario of Mark in Palestine shortly after the Roman-Judean War of 66 to 70 CE.The new edition also highlights the dimensions of Mark that stand in contrast to imperial worldviews and values. The authors argue that the performance of Mark itself was a means to draw audiences into a non-imperial world based on mutual service rather than hierarchical domination. In so doing, they shift the Gospels center of gravity from the end of the story to the beginning, configuring it not as "a passion narrative with an extended introduction" but as "the arrival of the rule of God with an extended denouement."Performing Mark: The appendices for students at the end of the book that offer exercises to interpret the narrative of Mark now also include "Exercises for Learning and Telling Episodes" from the Gospel of Mark by heart as part of the learning process.

Mary Ann Tolbert, George H. Atkinson Professor of Biblical Studies at Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California, offers "one of the freshest interpretations of Mark's Gospel I have ever had the privilege to read. . . . It marks a milestone in the recent history of Markan research" (Jack Dean Kingsbury).

Jesus and the Powers rediscovers Jesus response to the imperial power of his day. Richard A. Horsley describes the relevance of political realities under great empires for understanding the rise of covenantal theology and apocalyptic vision in Israels history; then he explores aspects of Jesus activity in the context of the Roman Empire. Horsley examines Jesus as an exorcist and prophetic figure and the character of his death by crucifixion; then turns to discuss how the community life in the early Pauline assemblies gave form to a new response to imperial powers.

The Old Testament is a collection of writings which came into being over a period of more than a thousand years in the history of the people of Israel and which reflect the life of the people in this period. Therefore, there is a reciprocal relationship between the writings or "books" of the Old Testament and the life of Israel in its history. The understanding of the texts presupposes insights into the historical context and the development of the life of Israelite society, while at the same time the texts themselves are the most important, indeed for the most part the only, source for it.This "Introduction" attempts to take account of this reciprocal relationship. The first part deals with the history of Israel. However, its approach differs from most accounts of this history. It takes the Old Testament texts themselves as a starting point and first of all outlines the picture of historical developments and associations which the texts present. An attempt is then made, on this basis, to reconstruct historical developments by introducing material from outside the Bible. This method of working leads to close connections between the second and third parts, because it has to take account of the nature and original purpose of the texts and their function within the biblical books as they are now. The second part attempts to present the texts collected in the Old Testament as expressions of the life of Israel. The third part discusses the books of the Old Testament in their present form.

This systematic theology begins from the treatise De Deo Uno and develops the dogma of the Trinity as an expression of divine unicity, on which will depend creation, Christology, and ecclesiology. The Invisible God must be seen and known in the visible. In this way, God and Gods relation to creation are distinguishedbut not separatedfrom Christology, the doctrine of perfections from redemption. In the end, the transcendent beauty who is God can be known only in worship and praise.

Revision of the author's thesis (doctoral)--Southern Methodist University, 2010 under title: Perichoretic eternality: God's relationship to time in Karl Barth's Church dogmatics.

Decades after the Holocaust, many assume that the churches in Germany resisted the Nazi regime. In fact, resistance was exceptional. The Deutsche Christen, or German Christians, a movement within German Protestantism, integrated Nazi ideology, nationalism, and Christian faith. Marrying religious anti-Judaism to the Nazis racial antisemitism, they aimed to remove everything Jewish from Christianity. For the first time in English, Mary M. Solberg presents a selection of German Christian documents. Her introduction sets the historical context. Includes responses critical of the German Christians by Karl Barth and Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Why does God permit evil and suffering? This question, known as the problem of evil in theological and philosophical circles, has perennially vexed Christian theology. Academic studies on the problem of evil, however, have failed to move the conversation forward in recent years. In this volume, designed for students and scholars alike, Mark S. M. Scott traces the major models and motifs in Christian explanations for evil (called theodicies) and argues for a thorough rethinking of the problem of evil and theodicy based on distinctly Christian theological criteria and resources.

Against the easy assurance of a too-enculturated religion, Walter Brueggemann refocuses the preaching task around the decentering, destabilizing, always risky Word that confronts us in Scripture if we have the courage to hear.

The land was one of the most vibrant symbols for the people of ancient Israel. In the land-gift, promise, and challenge-was found the physical source of Israel''s fertility and life, and a place for the gathering of the hopes of the covenant people. In this careful treatment, Walter Brueggemann follows the development of his theme through the major blocks of Israel''s traditions. The book provides a point of entrance both to the theology of the Old Testament and to aspects of the New Testament-even as it illuminates crucial issues of the contemporary scene. In this fully revised version, Brueggemann provides new insights, as well as updating the discussion, notes, and bibliography.