The Prophetic Imagination Analysis

Walter Brueggemann's “The Prophetic Imagination” is a rediscovery of modern Christian’s religious heritage that has been lost in today socially divisive culture. The heritage Bruggermann argues for is fixed in both liberal “social action” and conservative “future telling.” Both liberal and conservative groups embody one certain aspect of what it means to be prophetic, disregarding the balance of what it truly means to be a prophetic community in society. In opposition to the choices churches offer people today, Bruggermann suggests that churches look back to Moses and see how God used him to deconstruct Egypt’s theocracy and subjugation of the Israelites through the manifestation of the two aspects of prophetic tradition. God’s work in Egypt …show more content…
In times past when I’ve prepared for my sermons or lessons I rarely if ever questioned what is the dominant culture persuading my audience or as Bruggemann would say how is royal consciousness affected the state of the nation. In my previous attempts to bring the word of God to others, it wasn’t driven by prophetic ministry neither criticism or energizing central to my message because of this sometimes some of my messages focused on maintaining instead of moving past into challenging and encouraging. As I look to the future for crafting sermons I’ll try to develop content that disputes the royal consciousness in today’s society. In particular, today’s society the royal consciousness diminishes people’s ability to acknowledge their own mortality, alternatively, the prominent culture sells products and the mindset of looking and feeling younger. Society pushes that when you buy a certain product or live a certain lifestyle you can be forever young. As a part of a prophetic ministry the criticism to the mindset and culture I’d challenge the notion of living young and denying mortality using Paul’s message to the Philippines in chapter one verses twelve through thirty. The sermon would center around how through pain and suffer the message of God is spread not in the comfort and ease of one’s life in an attempt to live longer or look and feel younger. Yet I cannot leave the …show more content…
My interactions with people who’ve been struggling in their life has been an issue in the past as the initial reaction I have is to throw out a typical comforting phrase without any concern about dissecting any underlying problems; in doing so I’m compliant to the royal consciousness which feeds off of static religion and an oppressive society. By reading “The Prophetic Imagination” I hope that I’d be able to exemplify the prophetic ministry by continually challenging myself to locate the underlying issue and speak prophetic energy into the situation instead of an uninspired consolation. One question the book leaves me is, how does a prophetic ministry approach death and severe tragedy while remaining sympathetic and also consoling the