All Set Free

FOR THE BACK COVER:

"All Set Free . . . is a challenging, provocative study which utilizes the mimetic theory of Rene Girard to reframe the perspective by which readers read the Bible."

--Michael Hardin, Executive Director of Preaching Peace, editor/author of eight books, including The Jesus Driven Life



"Distefano contributes an accessible yet accurate synthesis of how post-Evangelicals might integrate the discoveries of mimetic theory into an increasingly clear vision of the non-retributive God."

--Bradley Jersak, Author of A More Christlike God



"All Set Free . . . gives us a positive message of a nonviolent God whose deep attraction promises to make the rote prayer of 'your kingdom come...on earth' become thrilling human reality. A vital book for twenty-first-century Christianity."

--Anthony W. Bartlett, Author, Co-Founder and Contributing Theologian at Theology and Peace



"All Set Free is a welcome addition to the growing body of literature that challenges the inherited ideas of a violent God and a God for whom forgiveness and salvation depend on a propitiating death of Jesus."

--J. Denny Weaver, Professor Emeritus of Religion, Bluffton University



"In All Set Free, Distefano presents a way of reading the scriptures that will be new to many. And therein lies its value. We do not gain new insight by simply affirming what we already believe, we expand our thinking by exposing ourselves to ideas that might contradict our current beliefs. . . . A very timely book indeed."

--Andre Rabe, Founder of Always Loved Ministries and Author of Desire Found Me





FOR THE FRONT MATTER:

"In All Set Free, Matthew Distefano articulates what an Evangelical theology might look like when shorn of it's Janus-faced deity. This is a challenging and provocative study which utilizes the mimetic theory of Rene Girard to reframe the perspective by which readers read the Bible. This will be the book you could put into the hands of any person seeking the post-Christian Abba of Jesus."

--Michael Hardin, Executive Director of Preaching Peace, editor/author of eight books, including The Jesus Driven Life



"All Set Free is a fascinating integration of Rene Girard's mimetic theory with a biblical grounded Christian universalism. Every Sunday countless Evangelicals sing 'Come, Now is the Time to Worship.' Through a careful exposition of the relevant biblical passages, Distefano demonstrates the good news and literal truth of its chorus: 'One day every tongue will confess/One day every knee will bow. . .'"

--Ric Machuga, Professor of Philosophy, Butte College; Author of Three Theological Mistakes: How to Correct Enlightenment Assumptions about God, Miracles, and Free Will



"All Set Free is a splendid contribution to an ever-growing theological conversation springing from the work of Rene Girard, one that is liberating the Christian tradition from its deadly optics of violence in favor of something much more in character with Jesus's forgiving and loving Abba. Distefano makes the case for the reconciliation of all humanity with God, in a fluent, engaging style, rising often to eloquence, presenting multiple arguments to bring out the inconsistency in textual interpretations demanding eternal retributive punishment. Most of all, he gives us a positive message of a nonviolent God whose deep attraction promises to make the rote prayer of 'your kingdom come...on earth' become thrilling human reality. A vital book for twenty-first-century Christianity."

--Anthony W. Bartlett, Co-Founder and Contributing Theologian at Theology and Peace; Author of Virtually Christian: How Christ Changes Human Meaning and Makes Creation New



"In All Set Free, Matthew Distefano offers his readers many gifts. For those asking new and intellectually challenging questions about God, he provides a map of the terrain, including areas which other maps cordon off with 'here there be monsters.' For those whose religious communities have ostracized them for their questions, he offers vulnerability and companionship. This is not a lawyer's brief, defending a position at all costs. Neither is it an expose, claiming to unmask deficient theologies. Rather, it displays the gift of joy that comes with discovering the God of peace."

--Gregory A. Clark, Professor of Philosophy, North Park University



"All Set Free begins with the assumption that the character of God is revealed in the nonviolent story of Jesus. The result is a merciful and loving God, who would not kill many thousands of people (as is often assumed from the traditional reading of the Old Testament) and who would not condemn millions of people to fiery torture after death for unending billions of years. Instead the book argues for a 'universal reconciliation' in which punishment is not rejected but serves a purifying function so that eventually all are reconciled to God. All Set Free is thus a welcome addition to the growing body of literature that challenges the inherited ideas of a violent God and a God for whom forgiveness and salvation depend on a propitiating death of Jesus. The assumption that drives the book obviously requires rethinking a number of inherited doctrines and also developing a new understanding of biblical interpretation. This book pursues these questions through a lens focused by Rene Girard. For those who want a Girardian analysis, this is a very interesting book, which concludes with a heart-felt invitation to live peacefully by living in and imitating the peace-loving God who is revealed in Jesus."

--J. Denny Weaver, Professor Emeritus of Religion, Bluffton University



"So many of us are finding our way out of the penal atonement theory with all its prohibitions and implicit violence. In All Set Free, Matthew Distefano stands in this tradition and does it convincingly and with conviction. I hope many, sensing something wrong with Christianity, will read this book and be encouraged on their own journey toward a God who actually brings Good News."

--Tom Truby, Member of Theology & Peace; United Methodist pastor in the Oregon-Idaho Annual Conference



"In All Set Free, Matthew Distefano presents a way of reading the scriptures that will be new to many. And therein lies its value. We do not gain new insight by simply affirming what we already believe, we expand our thinking by exposing ourselves to ideas that might contradict our current believes. Using Rene Girard's anthropological insights, Distefano creates a context in which to read the scriptures that exposes the god of violence as human projection, and unveils the Father of Jesus Christ as the inversion to this human projection. A very timely book indeed."

--Andre Rabe, Founder of Always Loved Ministries and Author of Desire Found Me



"In All Set Free, Matthew Distefano contributes an accessible yet accurate synthesis of how post-Evangelicals might integrate the discoveries of mimetic theory into an increasingly clear vision of the non-retributive God. The author heeds Michael Hardin's call to hear Jesus say, 'Be not afraid,' to its conclusions in ultimate reconciliation. Distefano shows how such a move brings personal healing to those battered by the unChristlike gods. A helpful synthesis."

--Bradley Jersak, Author of A More Christlike God