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How should Catholics understand and respond to the political culture?
These books offer an antidote to ideological thinking...
Evangelization and Ideology: How to Understand and Respond to the Political Culture
By Matthew R. Petrusek
Word on Fire | July 17, 2023
Hardcover | 480 Pages | 6” x 9” | Retail Price: $34.95
Secular political ideologies attempt to provide a total view of reality without reference to the transcendent. Yet all of them are, at heart, forms of idolatry, commanding their adherents to structure their lives around temporary and finite goods, which leads them to worship the false gods of pleasure, self, tribe, or fortune. In time, these diverse idols produce the same outcome: individual and social turmoil.
In Evangelization and Ideology: How to Understand and Respond to the Political Culture, Matthew R. Petrusek offers an antidote to ideological thinking: the principles of Catholic social thought. Analyzing the philosophical foundations of the four reigning secular ideologies of our day—utilitarianism, classical liberalism/ libertarianism, progressivism/wokeism, and non-theistic conservatism—Petrusek shows how Catholic teaching, while respecting the genuine concerns of these worldviews, responds to their errors and deficiencies by providing a more rational and moral alternative.
For many, the best way forward for the Church is steering clear of the sociopolitical arena altogether. But there is hope: our hyper-politicized society is an opportunity for evangelization rather than an obstacle. Evangelization and Ideology offers readers an understanding of the roots of our broken political culture and a map for redirecting it back to the transcendent God and the authentic human good.
Arguing Religion: A Bishop Speaks at Facebook and Google
By Bishop Robert Barron
Word on Fire | January 1, 2019
Hardcover | 159 Pages | 5” x 7” | Retail Price: $19.95 FREE
Whether with friends, family, or on social media, we expend lots of energy, lots of sharp words, and lots of strong feelings. But very few know how to have a good religious argument—a rational, respectful, and productive exchange of differing views.
Bishop Robert Barron, one of the leading Catholic figures in the world and among the most active on social media, has enjoyed thousands of fruitful religious arguments.
In this book based on talks delivered at Facebook and Google, he explains why religion at its best opens up the searching mind, and how we all—believer and unbeliever alike—can share better discussions about God.
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“In the end, evangelizing always requires going to where the people are, and where many people are today is stuck in a morass of increasingly aggressive political ideologies, each one seducing its adherents down varied paths to the same dead end: moral, spiritual, and yes, political futility. There is a better option.”
—MATTHEW R. PETRUSEK, from the introduction
“In the end, evangelizing always requires going to where the people are, and where many people are today is stuck in a morass of increasingly aggressive political ideologies, each one seducing its adherents down varied paths to the same dead end: moral, spiritual, and yes, political futility. There is a better option.”
—MATTHEW R. PETRUSEK, from the introduction
Here’s What People Are Saying...
Here’s What People Are Saying...
“Evangelization and Ideology offers us invaluable assistance as we seek to fulfill the mandate entrusted to each of us in Baptism and Confirmation: to witness to the reality of the Gospel in our sadly deluded world, which too often is like a house of mirrors in which illusion seems to have triumphed over reality. The spiritually and intellectually fruitful insights of this book allow us to understand the society in which, by the providence of God, we are called and sent to witness to Christ, and they help us to communicate effectively the reality of the Good News in an environment distorted by deadly illusion.”
—Cardinal Thomas Collins, Archbishop Emeritus of Toronto, from the foreword
“Where the confused and fainthearted see danger, Matthew Petrusek sees opportunity. Many modern Christians have sought to stay above the increasingly tempestuous political fray, but Petrusek dives deep into our most contentious public battles to expose the ultimate incoherence that unites so many of the belligerents. In so doing, he offers an alternative that is not only edifying but sanctifying. Evangelization and Ideology is an urgent antidote to political chaos.”
—Michael J. Knowles, author and host of The Michael Knowles Show at The Daily Wire and The Book Club at PragerU
The Idolatry of Identity
A Lecture Series from the Author
In this lecture series, Dr. Matthew R. Petrusek discusses contemporary progressive ideology, also frequently referred to as “wokeism,” and the response of the Catholic social thought tradition. In Lecture 1, Dr. Petrusek identifies the ideological components that constitute progressivism and examines what makes contemporary progressive ideology attractive. He also demonstrates how progressivism both appropriates and distorts competing political theories—and yokes those distortions into the service of a particular group’s self-interest. “Wokeism” is one of the four reigning secular ideologies of our day that Dr. Petrusek covers in Evangelization and Ideology, in which he shows how Catholic teaching, while respecting the genuine concerns of these worldviews, responds to their errors and deficiencies by providing a more rational and moral alternative.
About the Author
About the Author
Evangelization and Ideology
Evangelization and Ideology
Matthew R. Petrusek, PhD is the Professor of Catholic Ethics and Director at the Word on Fire Institute. He has authored/edited several books, including Evangelization and Ideology: How to Understand and Respond to the Political Culture; Jordan Peterson, God, and Christianity, The Search for a Meaningful Life; Ethics and Advocacy: Bridges and Boundaries; and Value and Vulnerability: An Interfaith Dialogue on Human Dignity. Petrusek writes and lectures broadly in both English and Spanish on moral philosophy/theology, politics, ethics, social issues, and the Catholic intellectual tradition.
Matthew R. Petrusek, PhD is the Professor of Catholic Ethics and Director at the Word on Fire Institute. He has authored/edited several books, including Evangelization and Ideology: How to Understand and Respond to the Political Culture; Jordan Peterson, God, and Christianity, The Search for a Meaningful Life; Ethics and Advocacy: Bridges and Boundaries; and Value and Vulnerability: An Interfaith Dialogue on Human Dignity. Petrusek writes and lectures broadly in both English and Spanish on moral philosophy/theology, politics, ethics, social issues, and the Catholic intellectual tradition.
Contents
Evangelization and Ideology
FOREWORD by Cardinal Thomas Collins
CHAPTER 1
Introduction: The Politicization of the Culture: A Challenge and an Opportunity
Part I: Foundations
CHAPTER 2
Stop Fighting—and Start Arguing
CHAPTER 3
Getting Your Bearings: Locating the Sources of Political Disagreement
CHAPTER 4
From How to Debate to What to Say:
The Comprehensive Toolbox of Catholic Social Thought
Part II: Catholic Social Thought and Contemporary Secular Ideologies
CHAPTER 5
Totality without Transcendence: The Anatomy of an Ideology
CHAPTER 6
The God of Pleasure: Utilitarianism
CHAPTER 7
The God of My Self: Classical Liberalism and Libertarianism
CHAPTER 8
The God of My Tribe: Progressivism (a.k.a. “Wokeism”)
CHAPTER 9
The God of Fortune: Non-Theistic Conservatism
CHAPTER 10
Conclusion: Practical Advice for Evangelists in the Political Sphere
Indexes
Contents
Evangelization and Ideology
FOREWORD by Cardinal Thomas Collins
CHAPTER 1
Introduction: The Politicization of the Culture: A Challenge and an Opportunity
Part I: Foundations
CHAPTER 2
Stop Fighting—and Start Arguing
CHAPTER 3
Getting Your Bearings: Locating the Sources of Political Disagreement
CHAPTER 4
From How to Debate to What to Say: The Comprehensive Toolbox of Catholic Social Thought
Part II: Catholic Social Thought and Contemporary Secular Ideologies
CHAPTER 5
Totality without Transcendence:
The Anatomy of an Ideology
CHAPTER 6
The God of Pleasure: Utilitarianism
CHAPTER 7
The God of My Self: Classical Liberalism and Libertarianism
CHAPTER 8
The God of My Tribe: Progressivism (a.k.a. “Wokeism”)
CHAPTER 9
The God of Fortune: Non-Theistic Conservatism
CHAPTER 10
Conclusion: Practical Advice for Evangelists in the Political Sphere
Indexes
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WordOnFire.org | Privacy | Contact
1-866-928-1237 | support@wordonfire.org
Word on Fire Catholic Ministries is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit ministry.