The Presence of the Kingdom by Jacques Ellul

Due to the coronavirus, we postponed this month's theology reading group. Many of us are over 60 and some have health conditions and so it is wise we do not meet in person. Nevertheless, we will try and have our first virtual meeting and discuss, The Presence of the Kingdom by Jacques Ellul.

Here I will just aim to provide a summary of what I think are some of the main ideas, largely for my own benefit. A better summary has been given by Tom Grosh.
Some excellent quotes from the book are here.

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  (Romans 12:2).

Chapter 1. The Christian in the World
Christians are called to be ``salt and light'' and influence the world in which they live. However, if they need to avoid abstractions but have a concrete engagement. But, the world has a ``will to death'' [i.e. it is intrinsically self-destructive].

Chapter 2. Revolutionary Christianity
``In order to preserve the world, it is actually necessary that a genuine revolution should take place.''
The world is hankering for revolution, whether from the political left or right. However, these proposed revolutions will be ineffective because they are largely about ``action'', contested ``facts'' [conceptions of reality?] and one group gaining power over another group which is ``evil.''
Christianity is truly revolutionary. Central to this is the ``style of life''.
Christians live in two cities [cf. Augustine], the city of man and the city of God. Everything has to viewed in light of the eschaton: the return of Jesus, the final judgment and establishment of the Kingdom of God.

Chapter 3. Ends and Means
In the world, people no longer debate whether the ends justify the means. Rather they are solely preoccupied with the means. An example is the world's obsession with `technique' (i.e. efficiency) and `progress'. For a Christian, the end is the Kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33).

Perhaps, Ellul would say that politics is not about working towards a particular vision of society, but rather solely about getting and keeping power. The modern economy is not about creating prosperity for the benefit of many, but rather just about making money (and more money) and getting possessions for the sake of it. In a communist society, it is all about the workers controlling the ``means of production'' and producing things.

Chapter 4. Problem of Communication
This concerns the role of the Christian intellectual. They need to engage with the lives of regular people in order to understand what is actually happening in the world (what is the reality?) and to communicate with them. Evaluation and understanding of the current `epoch' is central to the calling of the Christian intellectual.

Some general comments. I am really glad I read the book. However, it is at times heavy going and rambling. The first half of the book I read in the middle of the night a few times when I woke up and wanted to go back to sleep... I had to go back and reread a lot of the book. At times I felt it was rather abstract. Meanwhile, he ranted against abstractions, resisted being pinned down as to what ``action'' we should take and providing ``how to'' lists. At times, I felt he was a bit ``dogmatic'' and asserting that certain things were ``obvious''. Although, I agreed with his point of view I do not think this helps convince those who differ. In fairness, some of these concerns may be moderated by the difficulty of translation and of what was ``normal'' in French intellectual circles in the 1960s.