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The Many Faces of Jesus Christ: Intercultural Theology by Volker Küster
Glenn B. Siniscalchi
Volker Küster, The Many Faces of Jesus Christ: Intercultural Theology, rev. ed. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2023. Pp. 263. $35.00, paper.
A salient theme in contemporary theology is that select doctrines of the Christian faith can be understood and expressed in different ways. Commonly recognized as the models approach, theologians who utilize this method have the unique advantage of highlighting the rich, in-depth nature of Christianity. In addition, the models approach can help inquirers to realize that the defensibility and coherence of particular doctrines cannot be reduced to a single representation of the church's teaching. While one theological understanding might be suitable in a particular context, it can easily become counterproductive to use that same model in other spiritual spaces. This book is an excellent example of the models approach to theology as it relates to understanding Jesus within the broader contexts of consumerist capitalism, the technocratization of society, religious pluralism, and the religious imperative to achieve and sustain liberation for those who live on the margins of society.
Küster exposits the ways in which believers around the world have theologized about Jesus and how they seek to overcome the oppressive structures that impede their ability to find hope. His systematic approach is mostly based on synthesizing and outlining the work of theologians who work in the contemporary era. Although there is continuity between his original contribution and this revised edition, the global context of the post-9/11 world has impelled Küster to update his detailed work on contextual Christology: "[t]he book has lost none of its theological relevance even after twenty years. Contexts have changed, but questions of social justice in its intersectionality of race, class, and gender, as well as the challenges of cultural religious pluralism, have become more acute and are now disrupting North Atlantic societies" (p. xxxv).
After discussing the historical figure of Jesus within his socioreligious context, the next several chapters concentrate on theological understandings that have been formulated within circumstances that call for renewed inter-religious and liberation outlooks on Christology. For example, he spends a considerable amount of time elaborating upon African Christologies and other understandings of Jesus that have Eastern religious perspectives in mind. The next few chapters are dedicated to updated Christologies that might resonate with the specifics of Black culture. In the same vein, he addresses classism, sexism, and discrimination against women in light of Jesus' teachings and mission. [End Page 440]
The cultural contexts of faith-based dialogues usually play a major role in determining how one theologizes in the encounter with religious others and the oppressed. This is why Küster's updated book deserves a place of prominence among the newer developments and publications in contextual theology. The range of reflection in The Many Faces of Jesus Christ will serve as an outstanding example of intercultural theology in response to many questions and concerns of the world church. I recommend the book for students and scholars to gain a greater global awareness of Christology that will go beyond the traditional formulaic understandings of Jesus.
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