ABSTRACT
In recent years, resilience has become a near ubiquitous cultural phenomenon whose influence extends into many fields of academic enquiry. Though research suggests that religion and spirituality are significant factors in engendering resilient adaptation, comparatively little biblical and theological reflection has gone into understanding this construct. This book seeks to remedy this deficiency through a breadth of reflection upon human resilience from canonical biblical and Christian theological sources.
Divided into three parts, biblical scholars and theologians provide critical accounts of these perspectives, integrating biblical and theological insight with current social scientific understandings of resilience. Part 1 presents a range of biblical visions of resilience. Part 2 considers a variety of theological perspectives on resilience, drawing from figures including Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Part 3 explores the clinical and pastoral applications of such expressions of resilience.
This diverse yet cohesive book sets out a new and challenging perspective of how human resilience might be re-envisioned from a Christian perspective. As a result, it will be of interest to scholars of practical and pastoral theology, biblical studies, and religion, spirituality and health. It will also be a valuable resource for chaplains, pastors, and clinicians with an interest in religion and spirituality.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
section Section 1|94 pages
Biblical visions of resilience
chapter 2|13 pages
‘To do you good in the end’
chapter 3|13 pages
Singing stories together
chapter 7|14 pages
Complements to the notion of human resilience
section Section 2|86 pages
Theological visions of resilience
chapter 10|15 pages
Virtue and resilience
chapter 14|16 pages
‘A simple and warm common humanity’
section Section 3|40 pages
Practical visions of resilience