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jrwoodward's review against another edition
5.0
Hauerwas states his thesis well in the introduction when he says, “Though this book touches on many issues it is dominated by one concern: to reassert the social significance of the church as a distinct society with an integrity peculiar to itself. My wish is that this book might help Christians rediscover that their most important social task is nothing less than to be a community capable of hearing the story of God we find in the scripture and living in a manner that is faithful to that story.”(1)
Hauerwas develops his thesis in three interdependent parts. In the first part, he not only demonstrates the necessity of narrative in the formation of any community or polity, but also describes the kind of narrative in which Christian communities are to be shaped. He states that our narrative finds its center in the story of Jesus, not the state, and that our understanding of the authority of the canon is crucial. He says, canon “is not an accomplishment but a task… (68) and the issue is not just one of interpretation but of what kind of people can remember the past and yet know how to go on in a changed world” (67). In part two, he helps the reader understand the necessary interrelation of narrative and character and how the virtues are “finally dependent on our character for direction, not vice versa” (143). Hauerwas makes it extremely clear that if the theoretical arguments posed in the first two parts are to be taken seriously, it must be reflected in a praxis that is faithful to God, and so he makes his theology practical by applying his theory to the areas of family, sex and abortion.
While reading Hauerwas is a task - it takes an enormous amount of concentration to follow his complex arguments and there isn’t always a clear sense of direction - it is a task that I found worthy of my time and energy.
Through reading Hauerwas, I have been able to see more clearly how the presuppositions that we hold, knowingly or unknowingly, are based on the dominant narrative by which we live. I was reminded again how much I have been shaped by the American story. I was also reminded of how our understanding of character and narrative deeply influence our ability to develop the virtues necessary to live a life that is faithful to God’s story. As Hauerwas so aptly puts it, “The kind of character the Christian seeks to develop is a correlative of a narrative that trains the self to be sufficient to negotiate existence without illusion or deception” (132).
Hauerwas develops his thesis in three interdependent parts. In the first part, he not only demonstrates the necessity of narrative in the formation of any community or polity, but also describes the kind of narrative in which Christian communities are to be shaped. He states that our narrative finds its center in the story of Jesus, not the state, and that our understanding of the authority of the canon is crucial. He says, canon “is not an accomplishment but a task… (68) and the issue is not just one of interpretation but of what kind of people can remember the past and yet know how to go on in a changed world” (67). In part two, he helps the reader understand the necessary interrelation of narrative and character and how the virtues are “finally dependent on our character for direction, not vice versa” (143). Hauerwas makes it extremely clear that if the theoretical arguments posed in the first two parts are to be taken seriously, it must be reflected in a praxis that is faithful to God, and so he makes his theology practical by applying his theory to the areas of family, sex and abortion.
While reading Hauerwas is a task - it takes an enormous amount of concentration to follow his complex arguments and there isn’t always a clear sense of direction - it is a task that I found worthy of my time and energy.
Through reading Hauerwas, I have been able to see more clearly how the presuppositions that we hold, knowingly or unknowingly, are based on the dominant narrative by which we live. I was reminded again how much I have been shaped by the American story. I was also reminded of how our understanding of character and narrative deeply influence our ability to develop the virtues necessary to live a life that is faithful to God’s story. As Hauerwas so aptly puts it, “The kind of character the Christian seeks to develop is a correlative of a narrative that trains the self to be sufficient to negotiate existence without illusion or deception” (132).
ewp11577's review against another edition
4.0
A speed read for grad school. For greater insight, I will have to read it again, but Hauerwas' statement that the Church IS a social ethic and does not HAVE a social ethic is provocative. Worth reading for sure, particularly those interested in ethical behavior.
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