God, Creation, and All That Jazz: A Process of Composition and Improvisation

by Pederson, Ann

• ISBN13: 9780827212466
• ISBN10: 0827212461
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-12-01
• Publisher: Chalice Pr

Summary

Using elements of American jazz as her metaphor and process theology as her focus, Pederson orchestrates a unique understanding of God's role in creation. The creative order, she says, is not a fixed and immutable event from the past, but a series of divine improvisations that compose the cosmic composition even as it is played out. "Ann Pederson helps us understand that our calling in life, like the calling of a jazz musician or a blues guitarist, is to create beauty out of joy and suffering. For Pederson, this calling is not fulfilled alone, but is instead collaborative. We compose our lives in collaboration with others and with the whole of creation. How alive Christianity could become if we took her insights seriously." - Jay McDaniel, Hendrix College

Author Biography

Ann Pederson is associate professor of religion at Augustana College, Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Table of Contents

Preface	vii
The Composition of Creation	1	(28)
Creativity as Creaturely Vocation	29	(30)
Perfecting the Art of ``Hanging Out''	59	(26)
The Blues: An Affirmation that Life Still Swings	85	(22)
The Life of the Church	107	(32)
Notes	139