Be Transformed

A Biblical Journey toward a More Just World

Micah D. Kiel

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ISBN: 9798400800207, 00207

Details: 156 pgs, 6 x 9 x 3/8
Publication Date: 10/15/2024

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Discover the ways Catholic social teaching and its biblical roots can guide us toward authentic Christian living in a world in need of profound change.

The goal of every Christian life is to be shaped and transformed by God. In Scripture we are reminded that transformation requires sacrifice and that if we care about the poor, the environment, and those in prison, we need to be transformed into agents of justice. But how are we to take up that responsibility in a world dominated by greed, division, environmental destruction, and violence?

In Be Transformed, Micah Kiel brings together Catholic social teaching and its biblical roots and applies them to instances of injustice in our world today. When understood together, Catholic social teaching and Scripture create authentically Christian ways to live in a world in need of profound change. Be Transformed is an accessible guide that encourages readers to break open their hearts and minds to the possibility of life-giving transformation. By applying art, history, tradition, and Scripture to modern issues, readers will be challenged and empowered to consult these traditions in a meaningful way, every day.

Micah D. Kiel, PhD, is associate professor of theology at Saint John's University and School of Theology and the College of Saint Benedict. He has a BA in music performance from Saint John's University, Collegeville, Minnesota, and an MDiv and PhD from Princeton Theological Seminary. He is the author of Reading the Bible in the Age of Francis (Wipf & Stock, 2019) and Apocalyptic Ecology: The Book of Revelation, the Earth, and the Future (Liturgical Press, 2017). Micah has also published many articles and essays and is a frequent speaker in churches. He is a contributor to Give Us This Day, published by Liturgical Press.

ISBN: 9798400800207, 00207

Details: 156 pgs, 6 x 9 x 3/8
Publication Date: 10/15/2024

Reviews

"A hallmark of the much-needed renewal of Roman Catholic moral theology has been the restoration of the word of God to a central place in its reflection. In this highly readable work, Micah Kiel illuminates the beauty and challenge of Catholic social teaching, helping the reader understand that if one’s life of discipleship is simply a sort of spiritual selfie of 'me and Jesus,' the image principally will feature 'me.' Instead, the author invites us to a lifelong adventure that is provoked by the person of Christ and the message of the Gospels. Though such a journey is demanding and usually rejected by worldly hearts, the humble and persevering pilgrim will know the joyful experience of following the Teacher home."

Cardinal Joseph Tobin, CSsR

"If you were to ask a scripture scholar, a story teller, a teacher, and a faithful Catholic how we are called to live as disciples of Christ, this book is the energetic and hopeful response. Kiel's profoundly pragmatic chapters fluidly connect resources and ruminations from Scripture and Catholic social thought to lead us to consider how to respond with generosity to everyday dilemmas. I found myself drawn in and humbled by his vulnerable personal revelations about his failings, which we all share because (as he emphasizes) we are people bound together on life's journey seeking to live more justly. His deep and intuitive grasp of both Hebrew and Christian texts roots more current expressions of community, such as common good and social sin, making clear that God's revelation has always called us to live for and with others as a Eucharistic people."

Alison M. Benders, Emerita, Jesuit School of Theology, Santa Clara University, and author of Just Prayer

"Be Transformed is the prophetic voice of one crying out in the wilderness that the American Catholic Church would do well to heed: the call of 'the preferential option for the poor' that even today is often looked at with a sad indifference. Dr. Kiel has given a great and prophetic gift to the whole church, a calling to be more audacious in our personal and social commitments to peace and justice, to be less comfortable in our certainty and material wealth, and to be compassionate especially to those deemed untouchable or marginal by society. He weaves incredible theological insights, razor sharp scriptural acuity, a hearty groundedness in Catholic tradition, and personal insights deftly, and with great humor, all while issuing a great challenge: the challenge of the Gospel, the challenge to be transformed by our conversion to the poor, who scripture and tradition tell us are Christ, present in our midst."

Michael J. Sanem is the author of Becoming the Good News: A New Approach to Parish Evangelization, and the executive director of the Ignatian Spirituality Center of Kansas City

"Kiel has produced a tremendous text for inviting people to dive deep into sources, both ancient and modern, of the Catholic church’s teachings on justice. With unexpected but pointed cases illustrating the relevance of Catholic social teaching for people today, he challenges readers to consider how this teaching might transform their lives, and the world."

Julia H. Brumbaugh, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, Regis University (Colorado)