Part I. 'You are my friends' -- Friendship's postmodern context -- Part II. Friendship in the Classical era and beyond -- A theological understanding of friendship -- Friends -- the self and the other -- Part III. Friendship's particularity -- The Church -- a community of friends -- Conclusion
Summary
Is the Church a community of friends? Steve Summers explores the significance of friendship for our understanding of the church today. Since Jesus' statement in St John's gospel "I call you friends" the concept of friendship has had a huge influence on the Christian understanding of community. But is the historical understanding of friendship enough to serve the needs of the church in a post-modern age? Steve Summers explores the limits of the concept as well as it's possible use in contemporary ecclesiology
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 195-208) and index
