More Than Things: A Personalist Ethics for a Throwaway Culture

Written by Paul Louis Metzger

Narrated by Jonathan Yen

We live in a culture of commodification. People are too often defined by what they do or own; they're treated as means to an end or cogs in a machine. What goes missing is a deep sense of personhood-the belief that all humans are unique subjects with inherent worth and the right to self-determination.

In a world dominated by things, we must work hard to account for one another's personhood. We need to cultivate relational structures that honor every human's dignity in vital interpersonal community. The theological and philosophical framework known as personalism can help guide us toward such a culture. Drawing from a wide range of thought leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr. and Pope John Paul II, Paul Louis Metzger presents a personalist moral vision founded on the Christian ideals of faith, hope, and love. He demonstrates how this moral compass can help us navigate a pluralistic world by applying it to a variety of pressing ethical issues, including abortion, genetic engineering, immigration, drone warfare, and more.

Ultimately human personhood begins with the personal, triune God, who invites us to live more fully as human beings. When we refuse to reduce our fellow humans-and ourselves-to mere abstractions or objects, we follow the example of Jesus in honoring the value of every person and of creaturely life as a whole.

• Language: English
• Publisher: ChristianAudio.com
• Release date: Sep 19, 2023
• ISBN: 9781545924402

Paul Louis Metzger

Dr. Paul Louis Metzger (Ph.D., King’s College London) is Professor of Christian Theology & Theology of Culture at Multnomah Biblical Seminary, Jessup University. He is also the Founder and Director of The Institute for Cultural Engagement: New Wine, New Wineskins and Editor of New Wine’s journal Cultural Encounters: A Journal for the Theology of Culture. Integrating theology and spirituality with cultural sensitivity stands at the center of Dr. Metzger’s ministry vision. He and his wife, Mariko, have been active in intercultural ministry in churches in the States, Japan, and England. Dr. Metzger is the author of More Than Things: A Personalist Ethics for a Throwaway Culture (IVP Academic, 2023); Setting the Spiritual Clock: Sacred Time Breaking Through the Secular Eclipse (Worship & Witness series, Cascade, 2020); Beatitudes, Not Platitudes: Jesus’ Invitation to the Good Life (Cascade, 2018); Evangelical Zen: A Christian’s Spiritual Travels With a Buddhist Friend (Patheos, 2015); Connecting Christ: How to Discuss Jesus in a World of Diverse Paths (Thomas Nelson, May 2012); New Wine Tastings: Theological Essays of Cultural Engagement (Cascade, 2011); The Gospel of John: When Love Comes to Town (InterVarsity Press, 2010); Exploring Ecclesiology: An Evangelical and Ecumenical Introduction (co-authored with Brad Harper; Brazos/Baker, 2009); Consuming Jesus: Beyond Race and Class Divisions in a Consumer Church (Eerdmans, 2007); and The Word of Christ and the World of Culture: Sacred and Secular through the Theology of Karl Barth (Eerdmans, 2003). He is co-editor of A World for All? Global Civil Society in Political Theory and Trinitarian Theology (co-edited with William F. Storrar and Peter J. Casarella; Eerdmans, 2011); and editor of Trinitarian Soundings in Systematic Theology (T&T Clark International, 2005). Dr. Metzger is a member of the Center of Theological Inquiry, Princeton, New Jersey, and served as Senior Mission Scholar in Residence, Spring 2018 at the Overseas Ministries Study Center, when it was located in New Haven, Connecticut. The Metzgers have two children and one grandchild. He has a keen interest in the art of Katsushika Hokusai and Georges Rouault, the writings of John Steinbeck, and the music of Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, The Doors, and Nirvana. Dr. Metzger blogs frequently at Uncommon God, Common Good (Patheos). His forthcoming works include the second edition of Evangelical Zen (Cascade, 2024), a volume on trauma and resilience (Worship & Witness series, Cascade, date TBD), and one on complexifying the category of “world religions” (IVP Academic, date TBD).