The Challenge of Diversity argues that the present diversity in the church reflects a rich variety that was integral to the early Christian movement from its very beginnings. Rhoads shows how Galatians, Mark, Matthew, Luke and John each present a fundamentally different understanding of the human condition, a different vision for life under God, and a different portrayal of our transformation.
This book is addressed primarily to Christians of various denominations in the United States-to parishes, both laity and clergy, and to students. The book is useful in teaching, preaching, spiritual formation, and mission. Its aim is simply to be a source of Christian renewal at both the personal and the parish levels as together we seek to minister to one another and to the world. It is an invitation to reach beyond our own perspective and to embrace a wider circle of diverse viewpoints as legitimate expressions of the Christian life-both in the New Testament and in the contemporary church-and to be open to learn and grow from them.