Biblical and Theological Visions of Resilience: Pastoral and Clinical Insights (Routledge New Critical Thinking in Religion, Theology and Biblical Studies)

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.--Page iii Cover Half Title Series Title Copyright Dedication Contents Foreword Acknowledgements List of Contributors 1 Introduction: biblical and theological visions of resilience Section 1 Biblical visions of resilience 2 ‘To do you good in the end’: the wilderness experience in Israel’s communal memory (Deuteronomy 8) 3 Singing stories together: relationship and storytelling as resources for resilience in the book of Psalms 4 Struck down but not destroyed: images of resilience from the book of Jeremiah 5 Traumatic speech and the rejection of narrative in Lamentations 6 Abide in me: a Johannine theology of resilience 7 Complements to the notion of human resilience: Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians as a test case 8 Resilience in 1 Peter: faithfulness and hope in the face of adversity Section 2 Theological visions of resilience 9 Resilience and music in the early Church 10 Virtue and resilience: Aquinas’ Christian approach to virtue applied to resilience 11 The certainty of God’s promises: Martin Luther’s pastoral use of the Gospel 12 ‘The science of the Cross’: Edith Stein and resilience 13 Resilient unto death: resilience through the lens of Dietrich Bonhoeffer 14 ‘A simple and warm common humanity’: Self-transcendence and restless resilience in Jürgen Moltmann’s theology Section 3 Practical visions of resilience 15 Clinical applications of resilience 16 Pastoral reflections on resilience 17 Concluding reflections: transforming resilience Index