The Nonviolent God

The Nonviolent God

This bold new statement on the nonviolence of God challenges long-standing assumptions of divine violence in theology, the violent God pictured in the Old Testament, and the supposed violence of God in Revelation. In The Nonviolent God J. Denny Weaver argues that since God is revealed in Jesus, the nonviolence of Jesus most truly reflects the character of God. According to Weaver, the way Christians live -- Christian ethics -- is an ongoing expression of theology. Consequently, he suggests positive images of the reign of God made visible in the narrative of Jesus -- nonviolent practice, forgiveness and restorative justice, issues of racism and sexism, and more -- in order that Christians might live more peacefully. Susan Brooks Thistlethwaite author of #Occupy the Bible: What Jesus Really Said (and Did) about Money and Power “Those who would claim that the God worshiped by Christians justifies violence -- either the violence of war or that of racism, sexism, or economic exploitation -- will now have to contend with this richly textured book by Denny Weaver. . . . Makes the compelling claim that the God of Jesus does not deal with the world by violence and thus neither should humanity.” Rita Nakashima Brock coauthor of Soul Repair: Recovering from Moral Injury after War “All those who seek biblical and theological grounding for a God who resists cultures of guns, violence, and war will be profoundly nourished by this careful, revelatory study of the nonviolent God revealed in Jesus Christ and his story.” Gregory A. Boyd author of The Myth of a Christian Nation “Powerful, insightful, and practical. . . . Denny Weaver doesn’t downplay the violent strand that runs throughout Scripture, but he compellingly argues that nonviolence lies at the heart of Jesus’ revelation of God and that this understanding of God is far more prevalent in Scripture than most Western Bible readers realize. Not all will agree with Weaver, but the profound challenge he presents in this book is one that every follower of Jesus needs to wrestle with.” The Mennonite Quarterly Review “Weaver is to be commended for the volume of material that he covers and for his contribution to discussions about the centrality of pacifism for Christian identity.” J. Denny Weaver is professor emeritus of religion at Bluffton University, Bluffton, Ohio. His other books include The Nonviolent Atonement and Defenseless Christianity: Anabaptism for a Nonviolent Church.