Vocation: Discerning Our Callings in LifeThe Protestant doctrine of vocation has had a profound influence on American culture, but in recent years central tenets of this doctrine have come under assault. Vocation: Discerning Our Callings in Life explores current responses to the classic view of vocation and offers a revised statement and application of this doctrine for contemporary North American Christians. According to Douglas Schuurman, many Christians today find it both strange and difficult to interpret their social, economic, political, and cultural lives as responses to God's calling. To renew this biblical perspective, Schuurman argues, Christians must recover the language, meaning, and reality of life as vocation, and his book helps do just that. Developed in dialogue with audiences as diverse as college students, industrial workers, business leaders, church leaders, and professional theologians and ethicists, the book examines the theological and ethical dimensions of vocation as these have been understood historically and in relation to our modern social setting. |
Contents
Vocation under Assault Can It Be Salvaged? | 1 |
The Bible on Vocation | 17 |
Theology for Vocation Religious Affections and Vocation | 48 |
Abuses and Proper Uses of Vocation | 76 |
Vocation Decisions and the Moral Life I | 117 |
Common terms and phrases
abuse activities adiaphora Barth basic become Bible biblical Bonhoeffer Calvin College career Catholic Chris Christ Christian Ethics church church-related College context Cornelius Plantinga Cost of Discipleship creation culture discern divine doctrine of vocation duties economic Eerdmans Emil Brunner example faith father Feminist forms of paid Fortress Press freedom gifts God's call God's command God's providence gospel Grand Rapids gratitude Gustafson Hauerwas human injustice institutional Jesus John John Calvin John Howard Yoder justice Karl Barth lives Lord Luther and Calvin marriage marry Miroslav Volf moral needs Nicholas Wolterstorff obedience obligations Olaf College one's callings parents participation particular callings pastors Paul person political prayer Protestant vocation Reformation religious meaning roles says secular sense of calling serve the neighbor society special relations spheres spouse Stanley Hauerwas task teaching Testament theological tian tion tradition trans University Press view of vocation voca Volf women York