Is the Kingdom already realized when people live in the Christian ethic, or does it await fulfillment in the Second Coming? In this penetrating analysis, Dr. Mark Saucy shows that how we answer such questions is far from being merely an academic issue. He holds that emphasizing the “already” or social aspect of the Kingdom over the “not yet” or apocalyptic aspect results in failed utopianism and devaluation of the Church as the contemporary expression of the Kingdom.
An Introduction to the Catholic Epistles
This book introduces the Epistles and discusses the different interpretive approaches which have been used to gain a clearer understanding of them. An introductory chapter defines the Epistles and describes the history of their canonization, following chapters are devoted to each of the texts with each chapter including: 1) historical-cultural background; 2) the social-scientific context; 3) social-rhetorical purposes; 4) narrative discourse; 5) postcolonial and 6) feminist insights; and finally 7) theological perspectives. At the end of each chapter there are suggestions for further reading and a list of reflection questions. A final chapter takes up the relationship between the Pauline Epistles and the Catholic Epistles within the New Testament.