Reconciling All Things: A Christian Vision for Justice, Peace and Healing (Resources for Reconciliation) Paperback – October 10, 2008
by Emmanuel Katongole (Author), Chris Rice (Author)
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- 2009 Christianity Today Book Award winner
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
This book inaugurates the Resources for Reconciliation series, a joint venture of the publisher and Duke Divinity School's Center for Reconciliation. The two authors, codirectors of the center, bring perspectives that pair perfectly: Catholic and evangelical Protestant, African and American, academic and practitioner, ordained and lay. Each also brings powerful life experience in confronting oppression and injustice: Katongole grew up under Ugandan dictator Idi Amin and lived near the Rwandan genocide. After growing up a missionary kid in South Korea, Rice worked for 17 years in an urban ministry in Jackson, Miss. Against a background of difference, the two argue for a vision of reconciliation that is neither trendy nor pragmatically diplomatic, neither cheaply inclusive nor heedless of the past. The reconciliation they explain and hold out hope for is distinctively Christian: a God-ordained transformation of the consequences of the fall into the new creation spoken about by the apostle Paul. Deeply theological, this short book needs slow reading by anyone interested in harnessing the power of the spirit for social change. (Nov.)
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Review
There is much to commend this slim volume. Catholic and Protestant lay persons and seminary students alike will benefit from the authors' expansive theological vision of reconciliation. (Philip D. Kenneson, Reviews in Religion Pyschology, Vol 17, Issue 2)
Center for Reconciliation founders Emmanuel Katongole and Chris Rice use personal experiences and historic examples to illustrate their roadmap for reconciliation work. Reconciliation is not a theory or an achievement, they teach, but a gift of God, an invitation to a story, a journey with God's new creation as the goal. (KB, Mennonite Brethren Herald, October 2009)
"Reconciling All Things is an excellent book that provides a solid framework for the books that will follow in IVP's Resources for Reconciliation series. It also would serve well as a conversation starter in our church communities, particularly as we seek to discern what the Mission of God looks like in our particular location." (Chris Smith, The Englewood Review of Books (erb.kingdomnow.org) 2, no. 13)
"Reconciling All Things is the best book I have read during the preceding course of twelve months. I call this book 'true theology in practice.' What makes this book an invaluable resource is its message of reconciliation, the wisdom it embodies, and the fact that both Rice and Katongole have been actively involved in this journey!" (Celucien L. Joseph, Christ, My Righteousness (christmyrighteousness9587.wordpress.com), February 21, 2009)
"Deeply theological, this short book needs slow reading by anyone interested in harnessing the power of the spirit for social change." (Publishers Weekly, September 1, 2008)
"Reconciliation has become a popular buzz word. But I've learned there are no quick and easy fixes for a broken world. This book takes us deeper. It is fresh, biblical, practical, inspiring and full of hope. The authors themselves embody the vision our world needs--African and American, black and white, Uganda and Mississippi, Protestant and Catholic, joined in common ministry across divides. This book is for all those restless Christians I meet who long for an alternative." (John Perkins, founder, Christian Community Development Association, author, Let Justice Roll Down)
"Rather than suggesting formulaic or easy steps, Father Emmanuel Katongole and Chris Rice challenge their readers to embody a spirituality that reconciles. With the compelling texture of real-life stories, the credibility of their own journeys in reconciliation, and humble yet profound theological reflections, Emmanuel and Chris offer an accessible and fresh entry point for the crucial conversations on reconciliation." (Christopher L. Heuertz, International Executive Director, Word Made Flesh, and author of Simple Spirituality)
"This is a tough and a hopeful book. Tough, not because it is hard to read, but because it calls us to what the authors portray as the imperative but long, painful and not always rewarding journey of reconciliation. But hopeful because it is full of keen insights, fascinating stories and wise counsel. If we truly believe God is in Christ reconciling the world to himself, then this book is important reading. Read it and heed the call to join in God's great story of reconciliation. You will find yourself challenged beyond comfort, yet moved with great expectations." (Leighton Ford, president, Leighton Ford Ministries, author, Transforming Leadership and The Attentive Life)
"Reconciling All Things is a faithful book, glowing with the joy and hope that come from walking with God and God's people in the world. Inviting all to join in God's reconciling work across the myriads of ways we live in brokenness, Katongole and Rice do a new thing--they retrieve a deeply theological vision of God's gift of reconciliation and show what the inbreaking of this gift looks like in the real stories of people who have embarked on this journey. These stories of pain and hope make clear that the real work of reconciliation is not as much about programs, strategies or fixing all things as it is about the ordinary, mundane, daily work of living faithfully and patiently in our local, particular, face-to-face contexts. And if we do, if we enter humbly into God's work in the world, what can happen? New creation!" (M. Therese Lysaught, associate professor and assistant chair, Department of Theology, Marquette University)
"Chris Rice and Emmanuel Katongole know how much genuine reconciliation costs; therefore, they are perfect leaders to teach us not to take the task too lightly or to try to bring it about too superficially. This is a critically important book and an incisive beginning to what promises to be a world-changing series. Christians have a unique vision to live--the new creation of wholehearted community!" (Marva J. Dawn, teaching fellow in spiritual theology, Regent College, and author of Truly the Community, Unfettered Hope and My Soul Waits)
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Product details
Series: Resources for Reconciliation
Paperback: 167 pages
Publisher: IVP Books (October 10, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0830834516
ISBN-13: 978-0830834518
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.4 x 8.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Customer Reviews: 4.7 out of 5 stars22 customer ratings
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #32,450 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
#41 in Ethics in Christian Theology
#26 in Christian Salvation Theory (Books)
#9 in War & Peace (Books)
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TCCAmadala
5.0 out of 5 stars A great textbook for reconciliation courses
Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2014
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The authors, one a Roman Catholic priest from Rwanda and the other a white American Protestant, are the founding co-directors of the Center for Reconciliation at Duke Divinity School in the USA. This book is part of the Duke-based series on reconciliation (cf. §26.23 Forgiving as We’ve Been Forgiven), and Katongole also wrote the excellent spiritual analysis of the Rwanda genocide (cf. §25.19 Mirror to the Church). What makes this book stand apart is the clear emphasis on God’s redemptive story that must not be ignored when trying to reconcile seemingly hopeless situations and relationships (“we are too broken to fix it ourselves”). A Biblical emphasis on time is also essential, in that we must not forget history (and its pain), nor must we lose hope of a future community that is reconciled. The authors’ conviction is, “while never neglecting works of mercy and justice in a broken world, theology matters.” Reconciliation is first of all God’s idea, and that is the reason that the church is not just another social agency; it provides accountability when organizations do not. So true reconciliation is not a human achievement, strategy or programme, but a journey with God, and the outcome is unknown because faith is involved. Here the authors use Heb. 11 to assert that reconciliation needs to reshape the present based on the future, not predict the future based on the present. Reconciliation must begin with lament, so we may have to “unlearn” our attempts to have speedy solutions, to distance ourselves from pain and to deny our own guilt—so that we may learn the opposites, which are pilgrimage, relocation and confession. The use of African illustrations are regularly employed, especially Nelson Mandela (“leaders are ones who learn to absorb pain without passing it on to others or to themselves”) and the Rwanda genocide, and many such examples stress having hope for reconciliation even when it seems humanly impossible because God reconciled us when we were still hopeless. The final chapter on heart, spirit and life goes deeper into the reasons that the church is essential to lasting reconciliation because otherwise pragmatism may take over (merely asking, “what works?”). The summary at the end of the book lists ten theses for recovering reconciliation as the mission of God and is a very useful outline of why the church is so important to reconciliation both within and outside the church. Theological institutions would certainly profit by using this small book as a text for courses and discussions on reconciliation and related issues.
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BB
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent,
Reviewed in the United States on April 24, 2019
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A book that should be read by everyone who wants to live at peace in these times of deep division.
This book shows us it is not enough to peacefully coexist, we must have a true sense of community.
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studentmess
5.0 out of 5 stars Reading it as an assignment, now I want to share it with several friends!
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2012
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This book is one of the books assigned for a course I am taking. Sometimes there is a disconnect between the knowledge that we as believers are supposed to be ministering to those who are hurt, and being able to meet people where they are without being condescending. It seems like God has put me through a lot of pain, so I am familiar with the frustration of having people try to love me and being so aware that they have no idea of what I am going through. This book introduces a process by which we can go (yes physically go there) spend time with people, grieve over the hurt and injustice, and then....I don't know, I'm only half-way through!
It's beautiful!
Already I have in mind a few friends that are serious about ministering to people in various kinds of hurt and pain that I want to share this book with when I am done.
6 people found this helpful
