Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church »

N. T. Wright is Bishop of Durham in the Church of England and one of the world's leading Bible scholars. He has been featured on ABC News, Dateline NBC, The Colbert Report, and Fresh Air, and he has taught New Testament studies at Cambridge, McGill, and Oxford universities. Wright is the award-winning author of Surprised by Hope, Simply Christian, The Last Word, The Challenge of Jesus, The Meaning of Jesus (coauthored with Marcus Borg), as well as the much heralded series Christian Origins and the Question of God.

The award-winning author and premier New Testament scholar tackles the idea of what happens after we die and shows how most Christians get it wrong and the difference it makes.

The Dallas Morning News

This book will be widely read because it stirs together Scripture, tradition, art and world affairs with pleasing metaphors and public courage.

Preface

Part I Setting the Scene

1 All Dressed Up and No Place to Go?

Introduction 3

Confusion about Hope: The Wider World 7

Varieties of Belief 9

2 Puzzled About Paradise?

Christian Confusion About Hope 13

Exploring the Options 16

The Effects of Confusion 20

Wider Implications of Confusion 25

The Key Questions 27

3 Early Christian Hope in Its Historical Setting

Introduction 31

Resurrection and Life after Death in Ancient Paganism and Judaism 35

The Surprising Character of Early Christian Hope 40

4 The Strange Story of Easter

Stories Without Precedent 53

Easter and History 58

Conclusion 74

Part II God's Future Plan

5 Cosmic Future: Progress or Despair?

Introduction 79

Option 1 Evolutionary Optimism 81

Option 2 Souls in Transit 88

6 What the Whole World's Waiting For

Introduction 93

Fundamental Structures of Hope 93

Seedtime and Harvest 98

The Victorious Battle 99

Citizens of Heaven, Colonizing the Earth 100

God Will Be All in All 101

New Birth 103

The Marriage of Heaven and Earth 104

Conclusion 106

7 Jesus, Heaven, and New Creation

The Ascension 109

What About the Second Coming? 117

8 When He Appears

Introduction 123

Coming, Appearing, Revealing, Royal Presence 124

9 Jesus, the Coming Judge

Introduction 137

Second Coming and Judgment 142

10 The Redemption of Our Bodies

Introduction 147

Resurrection: Life After Life After Death 148

Resurrection in Corinth 152

Resurrection: Later Debates 156

Rethinking Resurrection Today: Who, Where, What Why, When, and How 159

11 Purgatory, Paradise, Hell

Introduction 165

Purgatory 166

Paradise 171

Beyond Hope, Beyond Pity175

Conclusion: Human Goals and New Creation 183

Part III Hope in Practice: Resurrection and the Mission of the Church

12 Rethinking Salvation: Heaven, Earth, and the Kingdom of God

Introduction 189

The Meaning of Salvation 194

The Kingdom of God 201

13 Building for the Kingdom

Introduction 207

Justice 213

Beauty 222

Evangelism 225

Conclusion 230

14 Reshaping the Church for Mission (1): Biblical Roots

Introduction 233

The Gospels and Acts 234

Paul 246

15 Reshaping the Church for Mission (2): Living the Future

Introduction: Celebrating Easter 255

Space, Time, and Matter: Creation Redeemed 257

Resurrection and Mission 264

Resurrection and Spirituality 271

Appendix Two Easter Sermons 291

Notes 297

Index 315

Biblical Passages 331