Redeeming the Broken Body: Church and State after Disaster

by Gabriel A. Santos

Overview

This book examines how repertoires of speech and action that are often considered to be mutually exclusive--those of church and state--clash or unite during the postdisaster period as local communities and cities struggle to establish a stable collective identity. Based on an analysis of forty in-depth interviews with disaster-response participants and over 325 print-media sources, this study explores, first, the extent to which ministers and citizens challenge statist narratives in order to publicly relay theological views; second, the cultural processes by which local places are nationalized and theologized; and third, the ecclesiological convictions necessary to peaceably advance the work of Christ's body after disasters.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781621890447
Publisher:	Wipf & Stock Publishers
Publication date:	01/01/2009
Series:	Theopolitical Visions , #2
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	372,446
File size:	699 KB

About the Author

Gabriel A. Santos is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Lynchburg College.

Table of Contents

List of Figures viii

Acknowledgments ix

Abbreviations xii

Introduction xiii

Chapter 1 The Modern State, Theology, and Disaster Response 1

Chapter 2 The Oklahoma City Bombing: "This Sin against Humanity Will Not Go Unpunished" 23

Chapter 3 The World Trade Center Attack: "The Spirit of America Will Prevail" 101

Chapter 4 Hurricane Katrina: "I Am Not a Refugee... I Am a Survivor" 185

Chapter 5 Postdisaster-Culture Industry and the Minister as Cultural Exegete 249

Chapter 6 Conclusion 263

Bibliography 285