To Share in the Body

A Theology of Martyrdom for Today’s Church

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"A thoughtful and challenging work, and one that warrants serious consideration for its advancement of the contemporary discussion about martyrdom, suffering, and persecution in the modern world."--Jordan J. Ballor, Calvin Theological Journal

In modern-day America, it is hard for Christians to imagine ever dying for their faith. And yet in To Share in the Body, author Craig Hovey challenges Christians to view martyrdom not as relegated to the past or to remote parts of the world but rather as having profound implications for Christian witness today.

By examining the Gospel of Mark's recurring theme of martyrdom, Hovey argues that martyrdom is a critical aspect of the Gospel, and therefore crucial to how the church today remembers martyrs and understands Christian discipleship. Hovey examines questions such as: Was Jesus a martyr? What makes martyrs witnesses? And what is wrong with a "martyr complex"?

Written by an up-and-coming theologian, To Share in the Body is fresh, creative, and accessible. It will be a valuable resource for scholars, students, members of the clergy, and laypeople interested in better understanding contemporary Christian witness. All readers will emerge with a better appreciation that the witness of martyrs is not isolated to a select few but rather crucial to shaping the Christian life we all share.

Endorsements

"Craig Hovey digs deep into the heart of Mark's truth and finds a seam on which there are riches of theological, spiritual, and exegetical profundity. Only a scholar on a trajectory of radical discipleship yet at ease with the practical meaning of theological discourse could write such a book."--Samuel Wells, Vicar, St. Martin in the Fields, London

"Craig Hovey's To Share in the Body is a profound reflection on Mark's Gospel. These timely and poignant words encourage Christians to think about what it means to be a martyred church. The extraordinary and simple truth of martyrdom is actually a refusal 'to play the martyr' in order to turn the axis of history in your favor. Hovey offers a biblical vision of a non-instrumental martyrdom, which can point, witness, and testify to the truth of Jesus Christ, but can never be used as a tool for social or political change in the church or in the world. At the heart of this book is a vision of the Cross of Jesus Christ, not as a site of violence, but as a sign of its ultimate refusal. I recommend this remarkable book to any person interested in what it really means to live and to die in the body of Christ."--C. C. Pecknold, The Catholic University of America

"Theology once did its work by commentary on scripture, but in modernity we somehow lost that theological skill. Almost as if a miracle, Craig Hovey has recovered that theological skill. He has done so by providing an account of martyrdom as displayed in the Gospel of Mark. This book does nothing less than to help Christians negotiate a culture determined by the belief we can get out of life alive. Hopefully this book will be read widely."--Stanley Hauerwas, author of Resident Aliens: Life in the Christian Colony

"Costly witness to the truth, seeing things with discernment shaped by the Holy Spirit, and living as Christians alert to the radical call of Jesus Christ: these are matters at the heart of Mark's Gospel and of this gripping, perceptive book. It refreshes faith from its deepest sources."--David Ford, Regius Professor of Divinity, University of Cambridge

"This is the most elegant theological reading of Mark I have encountered in the last twenty years, and a compelling meditation on a subject most first-world Christians prefer to avoid. Hovey rightly places discipleship at the heart of Christian faith, the cross at the heart of discipleship, and nonviolence at the heart of what the cross means for the church. A model for how Christian theology (and practice!) should be grounded in the gospel story."--Ched Myers, author of Binding the Strong Man: A Political Reading of Mark's Story of Jesus

"Truly an extraordinary book. Some will not be convinced by all of Hovey's exegetical or systematic theses. But before worrying about such things, readers should simply delight in the sudden insights and revelatory turns of thought that appear on every page."--Robert Jenson, professor emeritus of religion, St. Olaf College

"Craig Hovey challenges Christians to be worth persecuting, but he does so without romanticizing suffering or the church. Every church is called to be a martyr-church, not to glorify death, but to declare that death means nothing in the light of what God has done in Christ. In taut prose, Hovey unpacks the logic of Mark's Gospel and helps the church discern what God is doing in history, both in Mark's day and in our own. This book is lean, penetrating, and wise. Every page rewards the reader with fresh insight."--William T. Cavanaugh, professor of theology, DePaul University

The Author

  1. Craig Hovey

    Craig Hovey

    Craig Hovey (PhD, University of Cambridge) is assistant professor of religion at Ashland University and the author of several books.

    Continue reading about Craig Hovey

Reviews

"A challenging and timely volume."--Don E. Peavy Sr., Religious Studies Review

"As a reminder of what truthful witness looks like, this work is an apt piece of theological reflection for contemporary Christians desiring something more from Christian witness than facile piety. To Share in the Body will stimulate, upset, and maybe even invigorate a parish or small group to explore life as the martyr-church."--Lyndon Shakespeare, Anglican Theological Review

"This little volume is a stimulating set of theological reflections on the cross and martyrdom. . . . Discourses on cross-bearing and martyrdom often become intrusive pain-mongering, but Hovey's readers will discover quickly that his incisive claims are put forward in a spirit of meditation, creating ample space for the imagination. I found this refreshing. . . . To Share in the Body is a book brimming with insight and provocation. Artfully written and carefully constructed, its sentences are trees ripe with fruit for those willing to work. . . . Readers must be prepared to take their time and brood over difficult sections. But this little book helps us to see the cross in a new light."--Craig J. Slane, Theology

"Craig Hovey's penetrating work . . . attempts to provide an understanding of martyrdom that makes it a supremely relevant concept, not just for the spiritual elite but especially for the average believer. This is a worthy undertaking, particularly in a North American context where affluence and privilege so often characterize Christian social experience. . . . Hovey is surely right that martyrdom must be a vibrant reality for today's church. This book is a thoughtful and challenging work, and one that warrants serious consideration for its advancement of the contemporary discussion about martyrdom, suffering, and persecution in the modern world."--Jordan J. Ballor, Calvin Theological Journal