Category: John Howard Yoder

Stanley Hauerwas on “The Church as Mission”

Stanley Hauerwas has recently published his most sophisticated treatment of mission and evangelism.

Stanley Hauerwas, "Beyond the Boundaries: The Church as Mission" in Walk Humbly with the Lord: Church and Mission Engaging Plurality (ed. Viggo Mortensen and Andreas Østerlund Nielsen; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2010), 53-69.

Read it at Google Books.

Hauerwas is one of my main advisors in my doctoral work here at Duke and I approach the topic similar to the way he does here. He draws heavily on John Howard Yoder, responds to Nathan Kerr, and cites Karl Barth, Lesslie Newbigin, and Bryan Stone approvingly.

(Note also the reference to former Duke students Derek Woodard-Lehmann (now at Princeton) and Dan Barber).

This is not easy reading. It is part of a broader conversation in theology, political theology, and ethics.

January 24, 2011
7 Reasons to Read John Howard Yoder and 8 New John Howard Yoder Books
Here are seven reasons why I like reading John Howard Yoder (1927-1997).

1. He effectively argues for the importance of vibrant local churches.

2. His explains the importance of the church orienting itself by Scripture.

3. He interacts with a broad range of Christian perspectives.

4. He is a very good writer.

5. He is very interested in the practical.

6. His work is respected by philosophers, theologians and New Testament scholars.

7. His work is extremely valuable for articulating the free church, baptist, nondenominational, or Mennonite perspective on issues.

The Politics of Jesus is Yoder's best known work but I would recommend people start with the quick 80 page Body Politics which I reviewed at Best book on ecclesiology I read this year: Body Politics by John Howard Yoder. Then I would recommend reading The Politics of Jesus, Priestly Kingdom, Royal Priesthood, and For the Nations. The last three books are compilations of essays by Yoder.

I have also written a long academic paper on Yoder at: The Ecclesiology of John Howard Yoder paper

Here are eight recent books that have come out or are coming out that
deal with his work. Below that I have listed a partial bibliography of older books
as well.

New John Howard Yoder Books (2008-2010)
- Edited by Jeremy M. Bergen and Anthony G. Siegrist: Power and Practices: Engaging the Work of John Howard Yoder
  Herald Press (August 20, 2009) Description excerpt: In this collection of essays, a new generation engages the theology of John Howard Yoder.
- Edited by John C. Nugent: Radical Ecumenicity: Pursuing Unity and Continuity after John Howard Yoder Abilene Christian University Press (March 2010) Description excerpt: A collection of essays that explores the ecumenical work of celebrated Mennonite theologian John Howard Yoder, including two rare but important works by Yoder himself. "John Howard Yoder would have liked this book. He would have liked it because of the conversations made possible by the critical yet constructive essays engaging his work. We are extremely fortunate to have this book, which exemplifies not only Yoder's thought but also his life." –Stanley Hauerwas, Duke University
- Edited by Peter Dula and Chris K. Huebner: The New Yoder
  Cascade Books (January 1, 2010) Description excerpt: A new generation of scholars has begun reading Yoder alongside figures
  most often associated with post-structuralism, neo-Nietzscheanism, and
  post-colonialism, resulting in original and productive new readings of
  his work. At the same time, scholars from outside of theology and
  ethics departments, indeed outside of Christianity itself, like Romand
  Coles and Daniel Boyarin, have discovered in Yoder a significant
  conversation partner for their own work. This volume collects some of
  the best of those essays in hope of encouraging more such work from
  readers of Yoder and in hopes of attracting others to his important
  work.
- John Howard Yoder: Christian Attitudes to War, Peace, and Revolution
  Brazos Press (April 1, 2009) Description excerpt: John Howard Yoder was one of the most important thinkers on just war
  and pacifism in the late twentieth century. This newly compiled
  collection of Yoder's lectures and writings on these issues describes,
  analyzes, and evaluates various patterns of thought and practice in
  Western Christian history.
- John Howard Yoder: The War of the Lamb: The Ethics of Nonviolence and Peacemaking
  Brazos Press; 1 edition (December 1, 2009) Description excerpt: John Howard Yoder was one of the major theologians of the late
  twentieth century. Before his death, he planned the essays and
  structure of this book, which he intended to be his last work. Now two
  leading interpreters of Yoder bring that work to fruition. The book is
  divided into three sections: pacifism, just war theory, and just
  peacemaking theory. The volume crystallizes Yoder's argument that his
  proposed ethics is not sectarian and a matter of withdrawal. He also
  clearly argues that Christian just war and Christian pacifist
  traditions are basically compatible–and more specifically, that the
  Christian just war tradition itself presumes against all violence.
- John Howard Yoder: To Hear the Word
  Cascade Books; 2nd Ed (January 1, 2010) "Of very few people can it be legitimately said that their work
  fundamentally reconfigured the landscape of two theological
  disciplines. But if there is anyone in recent memory who would be
  worthy of such an accolade, it is John Howard Yoder. The two
  disciplines are, of course, theological ethics and biblical
  studies—though Yoder would cringe at their separation, and his work was
  both explicitly and implicitly a prolonged exercise in maintaining
  their indissoluble union. For him, to hear the word rightly was to do
  the word publicly. . . . [Yoder] guides us toward a truly ecclesial yet
  missional reading of Scripture, with a profoundly Anabaptist yet
  ecumenical and catholic spirit, in historically astute and literarily
  sensitive ways that are nonetheless "straightforward" and pastoral. Or,
  as he would himself say, he guides us toward a reading of Scripture
  that proceeds from and focuses on Jesus: Vicit Agnus Noster, Eum
  Sequamur; 'Our Lamb has conquered; let us follow him.'"—from the foreword by Michael J. Gorman
- John Howard Yoder: Nonviolence – a Brief History: The Warsaw Lectures
  Baylor University Press (March 15, 2010) Description excerpt: The eleven lectures collected in Nonviolence A Brief History
  were presented in 1983 in Warsaw, Poland, and this is their first
  publication together. Despite their apparent diversity, the lectures
  trace a single trajectory: the increasing relevance of nonviolent
  thought and action. They argue that nonviolence aligns with the inner
  logic of the world and, therefore, with human social existence.
- Nathan R. Kerr: Christ History And Apocalyptic: The Politics of Christian Mission
  Cascade Books (October 13, 2008) Description excerpt: On the basis of a rereading of John Howard Yoder's place within this
  genealogy, the author outlines an alternative "apocalyptic
  historicism," which conceives the work of Christian politics as a mode
  of subversive, missionary encounter between church and world. See also Analysis of Nathan Kerr's Christ, History and Apocalyptic at The Church and Postmodern Culture blog
Older John Howard Yoder Books (2007 and earlier)
- Chris
  K. Huebner: A Precarious Peace: Yoderian Explorations on Theology,
  Knowledge, And Identity (Polyglossia: Radical Reformation Theologies)
  Herald Press (November 17, 2006)
- Craig Carter: The Politics of the Cross: The Theology and Social Ethics of John Howard Yoder
  Brazos Press (May 1, 2001)
- Earl
  Zimmerman: Practicing the Politics of Jesus: The Origin and
  Significance of John Howard Yoder's Social Ethics (The C. Henry Smith
  Series)
  Cascadia Publishing House; 1 edition (May 31, 2007)
- Edited
  by Ben C. Ollenburger and Gayle G. Koontz: A Mind Patient and Untamed:
  Assessing John Howard Yoder's Contributions to Theology, Ethics, and
  Peacemaking
  Cascadia Publishing House (April 2004)
- Edited
  by Stanley M. Hauerwas, Harry J. Huebner, Chris K. Huebner, and Mark
  Thiessen Nation: The Wisdom of the Cross: Essays in Honor of John
  Howard Yoder
  Wipf & Stock Publishers (May 2005)
- John Howard Yoder: The Royal Priesthood: The Royal Priesthood: Essays Ecclesiastical and Ecumenical
  Herald Press (1994)
- John Howard Yoder: The Priestly Kingdom: Social Ethics As Gospel
  University of Notre Dame Press (January 1985)
- John Howard Yoder: The Politics of Jesus
  Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; 2 Sub edition (May 1994)
- John Howard Yoder: Karl Barth and the Problem of War and Other Essays on Barth
  Cascade Books (September 2003)
- John Howard Yoder: The Schleitheim Confession
  Herald Press (June 10, 1977)
- John Howard Yoder: What Would You Do?
  Herald Press; Revised edition (August 10, 1992)
- John Howard Yoder: Discipleship As Political Responsibility
  Herald Press (June 1, 2003)
- John Howard Yoder: He Came Preaching Peace
  Herald Press (January 6, 1985)
- John Howard Yoder: The Fullness of Christ: Paul's Revolutionary Vision of Universal Ministry
  Brethren Press (September 1987)
- John Howard Yoder: Body Politics: Five Practices of the Christian Community Before the Watching World
  Herald Press (June 1, 2001)
- John Howard Yoder: For the Nations: Essays Evangelical and Public
  Wipf & Stock Publishers (October 2002)
- John Howard Yoder: The Christian Witness to the State
  Herald Press; 2 edition (June 2, 2002)
- John Howard Yoder: The Original Revolution: Essays on Christian Pacifism
  Mennonite Publishing Network (June 1, 1971)
- John Howard Yoder: Preface to Theology: Christology and Theological Method
  Brazos Press (January 1, 2002)
- John Howard Yoder: Nevertheless: The Varieties and Shortcomings of Religious Pacifism
  Herald Press; Rev Sub edition (April 9, 1992)
- John Howard Yoder: When War Is Unjust: Being Honest in Just-War Thinking
  Wipf & Stock Publishers; 2 edition (October 2001)
- John Howard Yoder: Jewish-Christian Schism Revisited
  Herald Press (November 15, 2008)
- Joon-sik Park: Missional Ecclesiologies in Creative Tension: H. Richard Niebuhr and John Howard Yoder
  Peter Lang Publishing (June 2007)
- Mark Nation: John Howard Yoder: Mennonite Patience, Evangelical Witness, Catholic Convictions
  Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (December 31, 2005)
- Nigel
  Goring Wright: Disavowing Constantine: Mission, Church and the Social
  Order in the Theologies of John Howard Yoder and Jurgen Moltmann
  (Paternoster Theological Monographs)
  Wipf & Stock Publishers (January 2007)
- Thomas
  L. Shaffer: Moral Memoranda from John Howard Yoder: Conversations on
  Law, Ethics and the Church Between a Mennonite Theologian and a Hoosier
  Lawyer
  Wipf & Stock Publishers (September 2002)
I would also love someday to watch

John Howard Yoder's course New Testament Social Ethics at Regent College which is available on DVD at the Regent College Bookstore.
December 12, 2009
Analysis of Nathan Kerr’s Christ, History and Apocalyptic at The Church and Postmodern Culture blog

I appreciated the analysis and conversation regarding Nathan Kerr's book Christ, History and Apocalyptic during January through March of 2009 at "The Church and Postmodern Culture" blog. But it is a bit tricky to find all of the posts so I list them below. Kerr (B.A., M.A.—Olivet Nazarene University; Ph.D. Vanderbilt University) is assistant professor of theology and philosophy at Trevecca Nazarene University. His next book is entitled Exodus, Exile, and Ecclesia: In Search of the Church of the Poor.

January 12, 2009 Christ, History and Apocalyptic: A Symposium, part 1 Chapter 1: "Introduction," response by Joshua Davis, Ph.D. Candidate, Theological Studies, Vanderbilt University.

January 19, 2009 Christ, History and Apocalyptic: A Symposium, part 2 Chapter 2: "Ernst Troeltsch: The Triumph of Ideology and the Eclipse of Apocalyptic," response by David Congdon, a PhD Student in Systematic Theology at Princeton Theological Seminary.

February 02, 2009 Christ, History and Apocalyptic: A Symposium, part 3 Chapter 3: "Karl Barth: Foundations for an Apocalyptic Christology," response by John McDowell, a professor and chair of theology in a new post at the University of Newcastle.

February 11, 2009 Christ, History and Apocalyptic: A Symposium, part 4 Chapter 4: "Stanley Hauerwas: Apocalyptic, Narrative Ecclesiology, and 'the Limits of Anti-Constantinianism,'" response by John W. Wright, Professor of Theology and Christian Scriptures at Point Loma Nazarene University.

February 16, 2009 Christ, History and Apocalyptic: A Symposium, part 5 Chapter 5: "John Howard Yoder: The Singularity of Jesus and the Apocalypticization of History," response by Douglas Harink, Professor of Theology at the Kings University College in Edmonton, Alberta.

February 23, 2009 Christ, History and Apocalyptic: A Symposium, part 6 Chapter 6: "Towards an Apocalyptic Politics of Mission," response by James K. A. Smith, Associate Professor of Philosophy at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, MI.

March 02, 2009 Christ, History and Apocalyptic: a week off for further thought

March 11, 2009 Christ, History and Apocalyptic: Nate Kerr's Response

November 26, 2009