A Christian Theology of Place

by John Inge

The place in which we stand is often taken for granted and ignored in our increasingly mobile society. Differentiating between place and space, this book argues that place has very much more influence upon human experience than is generally recognised and that this lack of recognition, and all that results from it, are dehumanising. John Inge presents a rediscovery of the importance of place, drawing on the resources of the Bible and the Christian tradition to demonstrate how Christian theology should take place seriously. A renewed understanding of the importance of place from a theological perspective has much to offer in working against the dehumanising effects of the loss of place. Community and places each build the identity of the other; this book offers important insights in a world in which the effects of globalisation continue to erode people's rootedness and experience of place.

Genres: Theology, Christianity, Nonfiction, Religion, Grad School

231 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 2003

Reviews

[Daniel Clemence · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a brief overview of the theology of place, making the connection between place, identity and faith. Though it is only 140 pages long, the book is filled with much information around the connection of place and God.

The first chapter sets out the conceptualisation of place, that is influenced by Plato's creation of the Demiurge in Timaeus versus the Aristotelian view that confinement by atoms and void is what shapes place. The interplay between theology and philosophy is seen as a part of the theology of place. This puts into the philosophical theology sphere, rather than biblical or systematic theology. The book sets itself against the problems of globalisation, in how it alienates people. Heidegger is cited as a philosopher in how distances are destroyed by modern technology and therefore it alienates people. I have mixed views of Heidegger but it was worth looking at. Placelessness is also looked at through the lens of Buttimer. Various philosophers and academics are looked at including David Harvey and Foucault.

In Chapter Two, place is looked at through the scriptures. Liberation theology and various other aspects of Christian theology. What is looked at is how Israel developed a theology linked to place. As Brueggemann in 1977 looked at how God Yahweh was tied to the land of Israel. This was renegotiated as God becomes a God not tied to location. This later develops as Israelites went back to the promised land. The place of Israel becomes a place where the divine meets earth.

Chapter Three, the sacramental approach looks out how Sacramentalist Christianity is best of explaining how to deal with place. Anglicanism is particularly identified as a church that has focused on creation. Creation fits into how the place has come to be. Celtic Christianity with the strong sense of living on the edges of boundary places, linking it to the fringes of the world is also looked into. Location is linked to emotions and how it is part of the person; E V Walker links emotion to place. Sacramentalism is therefore connected to a location.

Chapter 4 looks at pilgrimage and holy places, with pilgrimage being identified with a journey to places where divine human encounter has taken place. Origen is looked at and analysed. Sacred geography is identified as being part of faith. There is a critique of how Protestantism and the reformation got rid of place as being important in faith.

Chapter 5 looks at Communitarianism and the importance of politics of place. Liberalism is critiqued and certain political thinkers are mentioned. I wasn't impressed with the mentioning of Charles Murray being part of the Communitarian school; I would see him as more New Right but there we are. Community is seen as loving neighbours looking out for one another. As the book states "The Christian community witnesses to the fact that roots, place and destination are all important to human existence". Christians therefore are rooted in place.

The book is certainly not evangelical but offers a strong case for Christian community and reflections on place.

[Thomas Creedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the side-books that I found fascinating during my MA, and that I’ve been reading (on and off!) over the few years since, is John Inge’s brilliant and surprisingly readable exploratory essay, A Christian Theology of Place. Published by Ashgate, this is one of the most serious and sustained engagement with the question of ‘place’ in the context of Christian theology. It’s formed a lynchpin in my preparation for one of my SVS papers, ‘Where are You Church? An Invitation to a Vineyard Theology of Place’, and I’d recommend it strongly to those thinking about location, geography, Doctrines of Incarnation and Sacrament, and related issues.

https://www.thomascreedy.co.uk/book-r...

[Harrison Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought it was great. Maybe a bit too smart for me. Prophetic for 2003.

[John Griffiths · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite defensive and conservative to protect churches using territory to project their activities.

[Zak Schmoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting book. The author argues that basically our modern culture has disregarded place, and we have been tempted to do that in our churches as well. However, Christians are also people who experience God in certain times and in certain places. To disregard place is to leave out a very important portion of reality. Also, there are very interesting comments on pilgrimages and shrines that I thought, as a Protestant, were incredibly interesting.

This is not an easy read, but I think it is reasonably approachable. As I am thinking about issues of place in connection with The Lord of the Rings specifically, I bought this book (which is quite pricey on Amazon) to hopefully guide my thinking. In many ways the Bible emphasizes the importance of place (the nation of Israel and the new Jerusalem for two obvious example), and I think this book does a good job making a case for why place is important for Christians to consider.

[Sammy Wood]

Loved this book -- especially the last 20 pages. Looking for similar titles, if anybody has suggestions.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit dry, to be sure, but Inge does a nice job here bringing place to bear on our considerations of God and people. Inge argues that this triad (God, people, place) sits at the heart of what it means to be Christian, and, indeed, human. I am most appreciative that he lands on the Christian eschatological vision as his goal or endpoint--very appropriate.

All that said, the book was written in 2002. So much has changed. I would like to see how this material interacts the current state of technology--particularly with social media, online education, and the like. In particular, how does our concern (or lack thereof) for place inform our interaction with and use of technology?