EDH Book

"Conflict & Peace" is now live on Reedsy Discovery - together with full text of the 1st chapter of the book.

Conflict and Peace: At Home with Jesus by Eric Hovee Synopsis: In this book, author Eric Hovee traces a never-ending Christian dialogue and practice that may espouse peace but often engages in conflict. The author explores this interplay through 12 pioneers who shape Christianity as it has been handed down to us today. We begin ...

With Chapter 12, I conclude the contents of my book "Conflict & Peace: At Home with Jesus" by addressing the Savior's role in bringing peace out of conflict.

Conflict & peace go hand-in-hand with Jesus of Nazareth. No meek and mild do-gooder would rhetorically ask: “Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth?” Conflict may be embraced as when Jesus cleanses the Temple for worship rather than as a livestock marketplace.

Luke’s gospel quotes Jesus as saying he came not to bring peace but division to the earth. Mathew’s gospel ups the ante with Jesus quoted as saying he did “not come to bring peace but a sword” ... even stipulating that “one’s foes will be members of one’s own household.”

Jesus can step over potential conflict with a short but pointed remark. When disciples attempt to shunt children aside, we hear the shepherd call out: “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.”

The continued vitality of Christianity depends on encouragement of diverse viewpoints and experiences. Starting with Paul and extending through Constantine and Luther, Christianity too often has been driven by the imperative that the “winner takes all.”

Jesus claims to be “the way, the truth and the life,” sent as God’s son not to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. In practice, there are diverse ways to get there—all somehow mediated through Jesus via this Savior on behalf of God the Father.

To a non-Jewish Canaanite woman (pictured), pivotal to meaningful interaction is dogged persistence despite being dismissed by disciples and rebuked with seemingly bigoted remarks from a Savior. Fully engaged until the master relents, saying: “Let it be done for you as you wish.”

I have previously posted a review of my book, available at:
https://wp.me/p3cyvH-Dgm

Now also available is a brief interview as to how I came about writing this book -- and challenges along the way, at:
https://wp.me/p3cyvH-EtG

Christianity and Global Civilization Eric D. Hovee Author Interview Conflict & Peace explores the struggles of twelve Biblical figures and their contributions to Christianity as it is known today. Why was this an important book fo…