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Redeeming Law: Christian Calling and the Legal Profession

Redeeming Law: Christian Calling and the Legal ProfessionAuthor: Michael P. Schutt
Publisher: IVP Academic
Category: Book

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Seller: JaciCorp
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars 3 reviews
Sales Rank: 281928

Media: Paperback
Pages: 290
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 6 x 1

ISBN: 0830825991
Dewey Decimal Number: 340.02373
EAN: 9780830825998
ASIN: 0830825991

Publication Date: July 14, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

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  • Kindle Edition - Redeeming Law: Christian Calling and the Legal Profession
  • Paperback - Redeeming Law (EasyRead Large Edition): Christian Calling and the Legal Profession

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Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
Being a Christian lawyer is possible, but not easy.

Law professor Michael Schutt believes that although there are significant obstacles, Christians belong in the legal profession and should regard it as a sacred calling. The Christian God is, after all, a God concerned with justice, both divine and human. However, the pathway beginning with law school and leading to the daily demands of practice doesn't provide much guidance for pursuing law as a Christian calling. Schutt offers this book as a vital resource for reconceiving the theoretical foundations of law and gives practical guidance for maintaining integrity within a challenging profession. A hopeful and practical book for law students and those serving in the legal profession.



Customer Reviews:
5 out of 5 stars A Wake-up Call for Christian Lawyers   February 10, 2008
Stephen Bloom (Pennsylvania)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

Mike Schutt pulls no punches in this provocative and inspiring challenge to those of us lawyers who claim to be followers of Christ. While undergirded by faithful optimism, this isn't some shallow feel-good book offering easy answers. To the contrary, Schutt calls Christian attorneys to a comprehensive and thoroughly transformative model of redemptive legal thinking.

To get a sense of how Mike cuts straight to the hearts of those who practice the profession of law, consider just one of the many blunt questions he asks: "How do we know that the lawyer's calling is - or can be - legitimate love of and service to neighbor rather than simply respectable prostitution?" Ouch.

If you, like me, are a lawyer honestly seeking to serve and honor Jesus in and through your legal vocation, then you need to open this book, the sooner the better. You will be blessed in your ongoing struggle to genuinely integrate your faith and your career.

While I might consider my own book, The Believer's Guide to Legal Issues, to be a "must read" for Christian laypersons facing common legal issues, "Redeeming Law" is absolutely a "must read" for Christian lawyers!



5 out of 5 stars Necessary for both Law Students and Lawyers   February 8, 2010
Jose A. (Cambridge, MA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

Are you a Christian Lawyer or a lawyer who just happens to be Christian? That's the central question behind 'Redeeming Law', and the answer is that the latter option is a non-starter. No serious lawyer, or any professional for that matter, can legitimately isolate his professional life from his faith without bordering on hypocrisy.

As a law student, I found this book incredibly insightful and thought-provoking, because it sets both an intellectual and a pragmatic framework for slowly beginning to view every aspect of my life, particularly my future profession, through the lens of my faith. You might think that the basic message of this book is that we should all leave our law firms and become champions of "Christian causes" in the law, but this couldn't be further from the truth. Probably my favorite part is Schutt's discussion of how we've lost a biblical understanding of vocation, and how even the most mundane activities in our lives can be used for glorifying God and helping realize His kingdom. The tendency to separate life into "secular" and "religious" activities is a symptom of our culture's problems, not a solution.

If I must offer a constructive criticism of the book, I'd say that it could've been a bit quicker to get to the lawyer-specific advice. The first half or so was more of a broad cultural critique of common attitudes toward work; a discussion which could really be addressed to anyone. That weakness, however, may end up a strength, because the broad treatment makes 'Redeeming Law' an excellent "first step" towards a lengthier life-long project of integrating faith and work. I'm grateful to Mr. Schutt for his writing and hope that he will bless us with future works on this subject.



3 out of 5 stars Integrating our practice with our walk with God is essential   November 2, 2009
J. Steffens (Iowa, USA)
1 out of 3 found this review helpful

Redeeming Law aids the Christian lawyer in transforming his view of his practice. Its best quality is emphasizing that work (vocation) is serving Christ and our neighbors; it is not distinct from "Christian ministry" within the local church. Our calling as lawyers must be integrated with the other aspects of our lives -- our callings as husbands, fathers, and church members. We serve and love God and our neighbors by doing our work in a biblical way and with a biblical mindset. The book is more theory than practice. Significant (though surface-level) practical applications don't come until the final 18 pages. It contains too many sentences like this: "We work out norms (through general and special revelation) in light of community (historical and present) existentially (in the context of our dignity as a human and in the context of calling, role, or office). It is uniformly humorless." But it has helped me recognize the significance (and the benefit if done right) of what I do as a lawyer, not on a global level, but on a personal and spiritual level.


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