Militant Grace: The Apocalyptic Turn and the Future of Christian Theology

This collection of essays has its origin in two sessions at the 2005 Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting. Each of the essays has been revised for publication in light of the discussion that followed the presentation in these sessions. Reading James with New Eyes consists of eight essays: John S. Kloppenborg and Robert L. Webb, “Reading James with New Eyes: An Introduction” (1–5); Alicia Batten, “Ideological Strategies in the Letter of James” (6–26); K. Jason Coker, “Nativism in James 2.14–26: A Post-colonial Reading” (27–48); Darian Lockett, “ ‘Unstained by the World’: Purity and Pollution as an Indicator of Cultural Interaction in the Letter of James” (49–74); Margaret M. Mitchell, “The Letter of James as a Document of Paulinism?” (75–98); Duane F. Watson, “An Assessment of the Rhetoric and Rhetorical Analysis of the Letter of James” (99–120); John S. Kloppenborg, “The Emulation of the Jesus Tradition in the Letter of James” (121–50); and Wesley H. Wachob, “The Language of ‘Household’ and ‘Kingdom’ in the Letter of James: A Socio-rhetorical Study” (151–68). Batten looks at James from the perspective of “ideological criticism,” understood as a “heuristic tool” (9) as it pertains to the issue of rich and poor (Jas 1:9–11; 2:1–13: 5:1–6). [Full Review]