Uncertain Certainty

Many people in Christian ministry are tired of simplistic certainties; what they need is permission to live with uncertainty, with mystery, ambiguity, and paradox. Because we live in a world that is far removed from the modernist version of reality, with its rational, clinical, and superficial presentation of life, we need the courage and wisdom to embrace the presence of uncertainties in the midst of certainty. In this book, the author offers snapshots of a number of central Christian topics--God, the gospel, the church, salvation, ministry--inviting us to treat them as features of a landscape to explore rather than a set of propositional statements to sign up to. Each chapter--short enough to provoke interest and curiosity--will be a catalyst for deeper reflection and enquiry, inviting us to discover a new freedom in ministry as we embrace a more generous "both-and" perspective in place of a more narrow "either-or" interpretation of the Christian faith. In the process, we may find ourselves rediscovering "the Life we have lost in living" as we imaginatively participate in the life, ministry, and mystery of the triune God of grace in our midst. "When going forward is not doubted but a limp is developing, one realizes that ministry today is not as certain as some suggest. For those times, this wide-ranging, insightful, faithful book will cast the soft light of hope on the path." --Scot McKnight, Northern Seminary, Lombard, IL "The confidence that is proper to a Christian 'is not the confidence of one who claims possession of demonstrable and indubitable knowledge. It is the confidence of one who had heard and answered the call that comes from God, through whom and for whom all things are made: "Follow me"' (Lesslie Newbigin). In An Uncertain Certainty, Graham Buxton admirably captures this conviction in a compelling and entertaining fashion that has the potential to change the way we in the church think about ministry." --John R. Franke, from the foreword "Graham Buxton is earthed in everyday ministry, life, and politics, and it is in that context that he inspires theological thinking of the highest quality. Both thoroughly biblical and thoroughly sensitive to contemporary culture, here you will find both grace and truth." --David Wilkinson, St. John's College, Durham University, Durham, UK Graham Buxton is Director of the Graeme Clark Research Institute at Tabor Adelaide. He is the author of Dancing in the Dark (2001) and Celebrating Life (2007).