Bøker av Keith Clements

Keith Clements sets out how and why Dietrich Bonhoeffer, more than seventy-five years after his execution by the Nazis, still speaks cogently both to the churches and society. Beginning with the earlier reception of him as a martyr-figure and then as a provocatively original theologian, this book argues his relevance to contemporary engagement with public ethics, ecumenism, truth-telling and reconciliation, the relation between faith and democracy in a time of political extremisms, the issues of national identity signalled by Brexit, and the challenge of finding an ethical response to such challenges as the global pandemic. Bonhoeffer's perception that living representatively on behalf of others is both the key to who God is as known in Jesus Christ, and the basis of all truly human community, provides the connecting thread running through these chapters on what it means to believe and be responsible in a fragmenting world. Clements also links this thread to the seventeenth-century spiritual writer Thomas Traherne and the Catholic Modernist Friedrich von Hügel.

Churches and ecumenical bodies are often criticized for saying too much, or too little, on social and political affairs. But how can churches speak out on such affairs? How can churches participate effectively?Keith Clements questions the present preoccupation with making 'statements', which not only presupposes that a church has ready-made 'answers', but is also symptomatic of modern Western society's obsession with publicity and instant 'solutions' to what are often complex problems.Clements examines such historically famous statements as the German Barmen Declaration of 1934 and the South African Kairos Document of 1985, before exploring the biblical and theological roots of the key motifs of prophesy and discipleship. He suggests that Western churches must continue to listen and learn, not least from the way churches in regions such as South Africa, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe are relearning their roles.Clements concludes that Western churches must be prepared to talk modestly. They must be prepared to be both more disciplined and more imaginative. They must also be prepared to be more theological.Drawing on a wide range of sources, Catholic and Protestant, contemporary and historical, Clements points the way forward for a Christian community learning to speak in the world and to the world.

Keith Clements offers a brief introduction to Bonhoeffer's life and setting in the context of twentieth century theology; highlights the main themes of his theological development; examines what his writings can offer to a post-Holocaust world; and considers why he continues to provoke so much interest and discussion.