Human Nature, Interest, and Power: A Critique of Reinhold Niebuhr's Social Thought

by Tex Sample

Overview

This book criticizes three basic concepts in Reinhold Niebuhr's social thought: his views of human nature, interest, and power. Attention is directed especially at the way Niebuhr's concepts lack sufficient historicity, obscure social and political dynamics, and, finally, lack adequate descriptive power. An alternative to each of these concepts is offered and used as a way to open up social thought to more complex analysis, more concrete and material uses, and a discussion of implications for alternative direction and action.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781621899440
Publisher:	Wipf & Stock Publishers
Publication date:	10/17/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	186
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Tex Sample is the Robert B. and Kathleen Rogers Professor Emeritus of Church and Society at the Saint Paul School of Theology (Kansas City). Author of ten previous books, his most recent is The Future of John Wesley's Theology (Cascade, 2012). He is a freelance speaker and workshop leader in the United States and overseas and is active in broad-based organizing in Phoenix, Arizona.
Tex Sample is the Robert B. and Kathleen Rogers Professor Emeritus of Church and Society at the Saint Paul School of Theology (Kansas City). Author of ten previous books, his most recent is The Future of John Wesley's Theology (Cascade, 2012). He is a freelance speaker and workshop leader in the United States and overseas and is active in broad-based organizing in Kansas City, Missouri.

Table of Contents

Preface: For the Love of Niebuhr ix

Acknowledgments xiii

Abbreviations xv

1 Human Nature: The Transcendent and Finite Self 1

2 Niebuhr's View of Interest 34

3 Niebuhr's Concept of Power 68

4 The Balance of Power in Niebuhr's Social Thought 85

5 Internal Power: A Brief Excursus on Formation in Niebuhr 111

6 A Narrative Illustration 119

7 Political Implications 136

Bibliography 163

Index 167

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Tex Sample has written a shrewd and penetrating critique of Reinhold Niebuhr. With reference to recent critical theory, he goes beneath the generalizing abstractions to contextual work; he traces the way in which our attentiveness to contextual differences has advanced since Niebuhr. Future work on Niebuhr will want to take Sample's study into close consideration."
—Walter Brueggemann, Columbia Theological Seminary

"Sample deftly moves between theory and practice to produce a lively interpretation of Reinhold Niebuhr focused on his social thought. Using the themes of human nature, interest, and power he guides the reader into Niebuhr's world to ask how he is or is not relevant for the thorny realities of our contemporary world. Grounded by his lifelong pursuit of social justice, this is Tex Sample at his best—probing, candid, rigorous, and relevant."
—Emilie M. Townes, Yale Divinity School

"Tex Sample stands among a small number of theologians who understand theory must be informed by practice and experience. His critical challenges to Niebuhr's concepts of power and self-interest reflect both his serious engagement as a scholar of Niebuhr and his on-the-ground experience as a leader with the Industrial Areas Foundation organizations in Arizona."
—Ernesto Cortes, Southwest Industrial Areas Foundation

Editorial Reviews

"Tex Sample has written a shrewd and penetrating critique of Reinhold Niebuhr. With reference to recent critical theory, he goes beneath the generalizing abstractions to contextual work; he traces the way in which our attentiveness to contextual differences has advanced since Niebuhr. Future work on Niebuhr will want to take Sample's study into close consideration."
—Walter Brueggemann, Columbia Theological Seminary

"Sample deftly moves between theory and practice to produce a lively interpretation of Reinhold Niebuhr focused on his social thought. Using the themes of human nature, interest, and power he guides the reader into Niebuhr's world to ask how he is or is not relevant for the thorny realities of our contemporary world. Grounded by his lifelong pursuit of social justice, this is Tex Sample at his best—probing, candid, rigorous, and relevant."
—Emilie M. Townes, Yale Divinity School

"Tex Sample stands among a small number of theologians who understand theory must be informed by practice and experience. His critical challenges to Niebuhr's concepts of power and self-interest reflect both his serious engagement as a scholar of Niebuhr and his on-the-ground experience as a leader with the Industrial Areas Foundation organizations in Arizona."
—Ernesto Cortes, Southwest Industrial Areas Foundation

From the Publisher