Description: Bringing together the latest insights from constructive theology, contemporary continental theory, and trauma studies, Michele Saracino argues that, in the post 9/11 era, Christians are obligated now more than ever to be vigilant about difference, to be attentive to the emotional dissonance that encountering others incites, and to acknowledge it before border disputes escalate into violence. For Saracino, we are caught in the middle at porous borders, at in-between spaces, which cause consternation, fear, anger, and even rage. By embracing these conflicting emotions, she claims that Christians can honor the person and work of Jesus Christ and the mystery of the Incarnation, and perhaps become living memorials to those who have suffered trauma all in the name of their being different.
Brief description: Michele Saracino is an associate professor of religious studies at Manhattan College in Riverdale, New York. She is the author of On Being Human: A Conversation with Lonergan and Levinas and researches and teaches on the intersections between theology and culture.
Review Quotes: This brave book offers a psychologically-attentive and practical theological anthropology that can serve as a guide for navigating the challenging, traumatic, and rewarding dimensions of border existence among family and friends, in ethnic, racial, and interfaith communities, and in global relations. Bradford Hinze
Fordham University