The Church, the Far Right, and the Claim to Christianity, edited by Helen Paynter and Maria Power (SCM Press £25 (Church Times SPECIAL PRICE £20); 978-0-334-06549-4).
“In recent years in the UK the public resistance offered to far-right rhetoric from official church sources has been rather wan. Likewise, there is a dearth of resources offering constructive ways for the church to respond to hate crime or racial tension in their area. This book seeks to step into this gap. This volume brings together perspectives from theologians, church practitioners, and leading voices to respond to reflect on how the church has responded to the rise in far right thinking in UK society, and to ask how it could respond better.”
Ministry Matters: Pastors, their life and work today by Michael Plekon (Cascade Books, £21 (£18.90); 978-1-6667-8995-9).
“Congregations are shrinking and in decline. Fewer people are part of communities of faith. Michael Plekon's previous book, Community as Church, Church as Community, traced the factors behind this as well as the resurrection of parishes that have reimagined themselves in diverse ways. Pastors have played essential roles in such transformation. But where are the ordained today? Ministry Matters is a sustained meditation on the vocation, lives, and work of pastors today.”
God is No Thing: Coherent Christianity by Rupert Shortt (Hurst, £9.99 (£8.99); 978-1-80526-161-2). New in paperback
“Although parts of the Western world now appear almost totally secularised, Christianity remains the most potent worldview on earth alongside Islam. In this compelling book, Rupert Shortt gracefully argues that Christianity is a much more coherent, progressive body of belief — philosophically, scientifically and culturally — than often supposed by its critics. Alert to the menace posed by religious fundamentalism, as well as to secularist blind spots, he shows how a self-critical faith is of huge consequence to wider human flourishing, including through promoting peace and environmental sustainability.”
Selected by Frank Nugent, of the Church House Bookshop, which operates the Church Times Bookshop.