Put Away Your Sword

What does it mean to follow the Prince of Peace in a world plagued by war, violence, and killing? Can the foundational convictions of Christianity, and the experiences of Christians around the world, contribute to a more adequate practice of the faith in contemporary times on matters of war, violence, and peacemaking? This volume addresses these important questions with contributions from Christian scholars and practitioners from across the Majority World (including El Salvador, Brazil, Kenya, and the Philippines) and from the United States and Europe. They include proponents of Christian pacifism and just war theory, advocates for varieties of "just peacemaking" frameworks, and people pursuing slow, modest steps toward reconciling enemies without the use of overarching theoretical frameworks. What holds them together is a sense that the world and the church would benefit from a robust and gospel-based commitment to nonviolence as an alternative to lethal business as usual in addressing conflicts great and small. The topics they consider include constructive aspects of a Christian theology of nonviolence; case studies of gospel nonviolence and pastoral work from violent conflicts around the world; women as victims of violence and makers of peace; and theopolitical questions of just war, armed intervention, and Christian nonviolence.