Donald B. Karybill: Chapter Analysis

The book The Upside Down Kingdom by Donald B. Kraybill does an analysis of the bible in a different approach taken by readers. The main point of the book is to help readers understand Gods kingdom in a world that is turned upside down. Kraybill shows how upside down and radical the kingdom was in the first century Palestine and how it is the same in today’s society. In other words Kraybill illustrated the image that people who are at the top of the pyramids, the wealthy and the powerful, will be at the bottom of the pyramid in Gods kingdom if they are not humbled towards the poor and hungry. The book also clarifies the importance of practicing religious principle through the teachings of Christ in relation to the poor and suffering. In

Does J.H. Elliot’s work about the New World represent more of a Eurocentric discovery and conquest history or more of a contact and adaption history?

“A basic moral test is how our most vulnerable members are faring. In a society marred by deepening divisions between rich and poor, our tradition recalls the story of the Last Judgment (Mt 25:31-46) and instructs us to put the needs of the poor

of oppression, understanding the central core of the Gospels as Jesus' identification with the poor

Luke’s Gospel greatly emphasizes the social justice aspect of Christian living. Throughout the third book in the New Testament, the story and history of Jesus Christ is written, and Luke preserves the many sayings of Jesus warning that those with material possessions have a

Both North and South were ill prepared for war in 1861. Initially dependent on volunteers, the Confederacy established a draft in 1862, and the Union did so the following year.

The axis of inequality that will be focused throughout this paper is the social class. Social class is defined as a group of individuals who are categorized according to class (i.e. poor, middle, and upper) due to their income, wealth, power, and occupation. Social class is socially constructed by the way we view how much income and wealth a person possess (Ore, 20011a, 10). In reality it is much more than that. According to the text, poverty is not only the shortage of income, but it is the rejection of opportunities and choices that leads a person to a standard way of living (Ore, 2011a, 10). Stereotyping also contributes to it being socially constructed. These stereotypes influence us by defining who is who based on their principles in each class category. This can cause some to feel worthless.

Acclaimed author, Dale Maharidge, sets out to explore the transition of a small rural town that began as a homogenous community descended from Western European immigrants and how it transformed as immigrants from South and Central America moved in. The relationship between the growing Hispanic population and the established European citizens consisted of mixed feelings. However, through Maharidge’s work, he is advancing the suggestion that the future of this small Iowan town depends on its ability to welcome immigration. Using kairos, Mahridge seizes the historical significance of the strike at Farmland, a meatpacking plant, to show how immigration may as well be Denison’s only hope. The Latino immigrants were willing to perform grueling work

Chapter one, Down is Up, Kraybill emphasizes that the Kingdom of God, down is up. The people that think they are top of the food chain in the world like the wealthy and other powerful people are going to be in the completely opposite part of the world in God’s

In this chapter, Roach thinks of Hugh Patterson, as she also thinks about how Patterson will continue to teach even when dead. Roach supports this idea and wants to be presented for educational purposes once she passes away. She wants to become an educational skeleton and donate her body to be aesthetically pleasing. She calls the University of New Mexico Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, which is a place that accepts donated bodies for educational skeletons. She then is given a choice of watching a "cut down" or a "pour off." A cut down cuts away the flesh and a pour off dissolves flesh by boiling it. Since Roach doesn’t want to live in New Mexico the rest of her life, and because of other reasons, she declines both of these choices and the

According to the preface in Kraybills The Upside Down Kingdom the main thesis of the book was “ The Kingdom of God announced by Jesus was a new order of things that looked upside down in the midst of Palestinian culture in the first century. More over the Kingdom of God continues to have upside down features as it breaks into diverse cultures around the world today.” The core message in “The Upside Down Kingdom” was not to seek the kingdom of Heaven from above but to also help find salvation of Christ by performing activities that involve compassion/empathy for those who are less fortunate.

(27) There is a demarcation between the classes beginning with the rich elite, the upper upper class and the lower upper class. Those with inherited wealth are placed above those with self-earned wealth while those with great wealth are distinguished from those with a moderate amount of wealth. They are stable within their ranks, not dependent upon the economic climate of the country to sustain their positions. The upper middle class belongs to those people who are doing well and whose position also is not likely to change with the economic climate of the country. The middle class is comprised of people who are relatively comfortable and can afford a minimal number of luxuries. The working class can afford very few luxuries and are just getting by. Their position, like the middle class is subject to change with socio-economic changes in the country. The working poor cannot actually make ends meet and often become displaced workers with the ability to plummet down into the lowest class. They are not usually able to access the minimal comforts of the working class. The Underclass is a desperate position whose ranks lead substandard lives with no amenities and little chance for mobility.

Although Christianity was well known throughout the affluent classes, Jesus’s philosophies touched the hearts of the plebeians. The self-proclaimed Messiah often spoke of money and riches not being needed in the afterlife, and that God measures you not on how much money you have but on your values you showed throughout your life. This touched the working class’s heart as it informed them that there is hope for a better life that everyone can achieve but not a lot deserve. Therefore, this was the main reason why Christianity was spread as quickly as it could.

All throughout the beatitudes there seems to be the theme that it does not matter what is on the outside, but God sees and is only concerned with the inside of his children. Their hearts and their souls. It doesn't appear God cares much for material wealth or success in the world, but more so for what is in mans heart. Luke suggests ‘the poor' should be monetarily poor, and if they have any wealth they should give it all up to those more needy to give glory to God. Money and wealth may be seen by some as a sign of being in God's favor with darker signs and adversity a sign of some sort of punishment. Which should not be the case at all, Matthew seems to add "in spirit" more to identify wealth and social status is not the standard by which God will judge. Money and wealth do have an

Society has been divided for many years and continues to be. We are not only divided by race but also by class. Class is what determines what your future will look like regardless of how hard you work or don’t. There is a lot of inequality of opportunities, which is defined as, “Differences in people’s opportunities to acquire the rewards offered by their society” (An Introduction to the Study of Social Inequality, p.17). The reality of the truth is that the status of a person determines how fast you will get there. This quote sums up what I am trying to explain about status, “Poor kids who do everything right don’t do better than rich kids who do everything wrong” (Washington Post, 2014).