Introducing Christian Ethics

Samuel Wells is Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields, and a widely-known theologian, preacher, pastor, writer, and broadcaster. He is also Visiting Professor of Christian Ethics at King's College, London. He has published 25 books, including Improvisation, God's Companions, and A Nazareth Manifesto. He edited the partner book to this volume, Christian Ethics: An Introductory Reader (Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2010). Ben Quash is Professor of Christianity and the Arts at King’s College London. He is the author of Theology and the Drama of History (2005), and is former Reviews Editor of Studies in Christian Ethics. Rebekah Eklund is Assistant Professor of Theology at Loyola University Maryland in Baltimore, where she teaches theology, ethics, and Christian Scripture. She is the author of Jesus Wept: The Significance of Jesus' Laments in the New Testament (2015).

Preface viii

Introduction 1

Part One The Story of Christian Ethics 3

1 The Story of God 5

2 The Story of the Church 34

3 The Story of Ethics 64

4 The Story of Christian Ethics 90

Part Two The Questions Christian Ethics Asks 123

5 Universal Ethics 127

6 Subversive Ethics 159

7 Ecclesial Ethics 200

Part Three The Questions Asked of Christian Ethics 233

8 Good Order 235

9 Good Life 270

10 Good Relationships 303

11 Good Beginnings and Endings 343

12 Good Earth 369

Timeline 396

Glossary of Names 398

Glossary of Terms 409

Name Index 417

Subject Index 422