The Problem and Promise of Freedom

Jesus calls us to make disciples of all the nations. Many Christians believe this means enlisting soldiers in a culture war. But putting faith in the service of politics risks remaking God in our own image. How can the church help bring God's kingdom to earth without relying on the political structures of this world?

Critiquing our idolization of the values of classical Western liberalism, Steven Félix-Jäger seeks a renewal of the church's public witness. He points out the pitfalls that stem from our obsession with individual freedom--from the prosperity gospel to Christian nationalism to conformity with secular progressivism. True freedom is not about individual liberty or free market economics but about flourishing in covenant with God. Félix-Jäger offers a public theology that challenges the church to be a holy, loving, and generous witness to a world bound by visions of self-absorbed autonomy and materialism. Inspired by Jubilee and Pentecost, he ultimately constructs an alternative model for public witness rooted in the abundance of the Spirit.

The Problem and Promise of Freedom not only serves as an indispensable resource for students of religion and society but also offers urgent and clear-sighted witness to the church today.

Prologue: A Public Theology for the Church
Introduction: The Problem of Freedom
Part 1: The Critical Arguments
1. Conflicting Concepts of Social Liberty: Freedom and Covenant
2. Moral Conflict by Consumer Choice: Freedom from the Free Market
3. Conflicting Citizenships and the Kingdom: Living in a Free Country
Part 2: The Constructive Arguments
4. The Free Person: Life in God's Covenantal Community
5. To Freely Give: Covenantal Generosity as the Economic Core of a Renewal Public Theology
6. To Freely Depend: Mutuality and Hospitality as the Social Core of a Renewal Public Theology
Conclusion: The Promise of Freedom
Index