Christianity and Social Systems Historical Constructions and Ethical Challenges

by Ruether, Rosemary Radford

• ISBN13: 9780742546431
• ISBN10: 0742546438
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-09-26
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Summary

From the earliest interactions of Christians with the Roman Empire to today's debates about the separation of church and state, the Christian churches have been in complex relationships with various economic and political systems for centuries. Renowned theologian Rosemary Radford Ruether analyzes the ways Christian churches historically interacted with powerful systems such as patriarchy, racism, slavery, and environmentalism, while looking critically at how the church shapes these systems today. This book is neither an attack on the relationship between Christianity and these systems nor an apology but rather a nuanced examination of the interactions between them. By understanding how these interactions have shaped history, we can more fully understand how to make ethical decisions about the role of Christianity in some of today's most pressing social issues. Book jacket.

Author Biography

Rosemary Radford Ruether is Carpenter Professor of Feminist Theology Emerita, Graduate Theological Union, and visiting scholar, Claremont Graduate University and Claremont School of Theology. She is the author of numerous books, including Integrating Ecofeminism, Globalization, and World Religion

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. vii
Introduction	p. ix
Social Systems: Orders of Creation or Demonic Powers?	p. 1
Models of Church and State: Historical and Theological	p. 11
Patriarchy as a Social System	p. 25
Modernizing Patriarchy: Women, Children, and Slaves	p. 41
Anti-Semitism, European Nationalism, and Zionism	p. 59
Racism in the United States: White, Black, Red, Brown, and Yellow	p. 75
Social Ideologies: Sexism, Slavery, and Racism	p. 91
Political-Economic Ideologies: Liberalism, Socialism, and Fascism	p. 105
Economic Class in the United States	p. 121
European Colonialism, 1492-1965	p. 135
The Global Economy: Neocolonialism and Neoliberalism	p. 155
U.S. and Global Militarism	p. 167
Nicaragua in the Caribbean and Central American Context	p. 183
The Two Koreas: Divergent Systems, Hope for Reunification?	p. 199
South Africa: Constructing and Deconstructing Apartheid	p. 213
Ecology: The Context for All Social Systems	p. 227
Social Systems and the Church's Mission	p. 243
The Earth Charter	p. 257
Bibliography	p. 267
Index	p. 281
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