We're a little over two weeks away from the release of my first book.
I've got all the nervousness of a first-time author. When I think what is about to be loosed upon the earth, I wonder what I have wrought--and wait for the critics, which I suspect I'll have a few of, to tell me.
But the fact that a few kind folks have gamely decided to put their name next to mine is some consolation for my anxieties. Many of these people are friends or acquaintances, but all of them are people whose opinions and judgments I weigh with the highest regard. With that in mind, here we go.
Nearly every strand of theology from postmodern to feminist to Catholic has a robust theology of the body – all except evangelicalism.
Matt’s new book works toward remedying this problem by restarting the conversation about how Christians talk about this fleshly creation into which Jesus himself was incarnated.
John Dyer, Director of Web Development at Dallas Theological Seminary and author of From the Garden to the City.
“As one of evangelicalism’s most insightful young intellectuals, Matthew Anderson is the ideal thinker for inspiring and developing a “theology of the body.” Earthen Vessels is a splendid theological analysis of the issues that we face in attempting to live as incarnational beings in a technocratic culture. It should be required reading for anyone who wants to think more clearly about the importance of embodiment and the Christian faith.”
Joe Carter, Web Editor, First Things
Tattoos, cremation, abortion, gay sex, yoga, online church: No subject is off limits in Matthew Anderson’s provocative book on the body. Anderson challenges us to deepen our understanding of what it means to be embodied. When it comes to body matters, the body matters. Though few will agree with all of Anderson’s diagnosis and prescription, all who read this book will be challenged to consider how our views of the body line up with (or depart from) Scripture and Christian theology. This is a highly ambitious project that deserves careful consideration.
Trevin Wax, author of Counterfeit Gospels and Holy Subversion
Matthew Lee Anderson
Matthew Lee Anderson is an Associate Professor of Ethics and Theology in Baylor University's Honors College. He has a D.Phil. in Christian Ethics from Oxford University, and is a Perpetual Member of Biola University's Torrey Honors College. In 2005, he founded Mere Orthodoxy.
