Reviews
The Presence of the Kingdom, by Daniel B. Clendenin, William Stringfellow, Olive Wyon, Jacques Ellul
piccoline's review against another edition
4.0
Ellul's very perceptive. That he could so effectively diagnose so many conditions that still hold, all the way back here in 1948, is impressive. This book is apparently a good overarching view of his approach to a lot of his thinking, and it's pretty thrillingly bold and sweeping. If you're a Christian still wrestling with what that might mean for how you should interact with the world (or "The World") there's plenty to chew on here.
The introduction is well worth a read, too. I found it very helpful to situate Ellul and his thought. The Afterword by Ellul himself, written in 1989, is much more a mixed bag. It seems Ellul's clear-eyed vision dimmed a bit later on in life, to the point where he had to cast stones in the direction of church's who were condemning "European involvement" in South Africa. (Again, keep in mind, this was 1989.) One hopes he lived long enough to recant that particular stance. (To be fair, much of his work in this book is arguing that Christians should never comfortably slot themselves into existing non-Christian movements because by doing so they will inevitably cease to be salt/light/leaven for the world. Still.)
There are plenty of worthy thinkers who stub their toes along the way. (Indeed, are there any who never did?) Don't let the shabby afterword deter you from reading this provocative work.
The introduction is well worth a read, too. I found it very helpful to situate Ellul and his thought. The Afterword by Ellul himself, written in 1989, is much more a mixed bag. It seems Ellul's clear-eyed vision dimmed a bit later on in life, to the point where he had to cast stones in the direction of church's who were condemning "European involvement" in South Africa. (Again, keep in mind, this was 1989.) One hopes he lived long enough to recant that particular stance. (To be fair, much of his work in this book is arguing that Christians should never comfortably slot themselves into existing non-Christian movements because by doing so they will inevitably cease to be salt/light/leaven for the world. Still.)
There are plenty of worthy thinkers who stub their toes along the way. (Indeed, are there any who never did?) Don't let the shabby afterword deter you from reading this provocative work.
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