The Political Samaritan: How Power Hijacked a Parable

The Political Samaritan: How Power Hijacked a Parable

by NickSpencer (Author)

Synopsis

Nick Spencer sets out to rescue an innocent parable, mugged for political ends, ignored by passers-by, and then left for half-dead at the edge of the English language. The parable of the Good Samaritan has been used by almost every major British politician over recent years - from Theresa May and Tony Blair to Margaret Thatcher and Jeremy Corbyn. But they don't all use it to say the same thing. Discussing the various figures who've politicised the Samaritan, Spencer - described by the Economist as `like a prophet crying in the post-modern wilderness' - explains why and how Jesus' famous parable got mixed up in politics. From abolitionists to warmongers, prime ministers to activists such as Dr Martin Luther King, he uncovers the reasons for the parable's popularity - and then asks the killer question: who gets it right? If the Good Samaritan has been dragged on to the political stage, whose side is he on?

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More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 208
Publisher: Bloomsbury Continuum
Published: 16 Nov 2017

ISBN 10: 1472942213
ISBN 13: 9781472942210
Book Overview: The evolution of the Good Samaritan parable in modern-day politics, rhetoric and society

Media Reviews
Engagingly written, wide-ranging, and important ... this journey through the political Samaritan's uses/misuses, meanings, and citations leaves us with whole new sets of questions about the politics of our society and the place of religion within it. * Church Times *
Brilliant ... a political archeology of Jesus's famous parable, a kind of exegetical investigation into the parable's politics, and how - startlingly - the good Samaritan somehow sits on both sides of the political aisle ... Here is a chance to dig deep into some thoughtful, original public theology that will not offer you partisan triggers ... Spencer's little book is so creative, so fascinating, that I wish there were more political archaeologies of the prodigal son, the unforgiving servant, the two debtors, wise and foolish builders, and so on. Alas, this tiny book is only one for now, so I commend it to you. * Comment (Cardus, Canada) *
Author Bio
Nick Spencer is Director of Theos, a Christian think tank. He is the author of Atheists: The Origin of the Species (Bloomsbury) and Freedom and Order: History Politics and the English Bible (Hodder and Stoughton).