The argument/thesis/main idea of the book William Willimon’s primary argument is biblical case against the fear of the other. Willimon, in response to the fear mongering prevalent in American culture and politics, seeks to make the case that the Gospel is the drawing close to the other as means of drawing close to God. This short book address the themes of being saved by the other, when the other is an enemy, what Christian fear should look like, loving the other in Church and understanding Jesus as the other. Throughout, Willimon attests that love for the other is the heart of God’s love for us.
An evaluation of the sources used for the study Willimon primary source for his argument against the fear of the other is the Bible. Appealing to the authority of the Bible, and in particular the life of Jesus, is at the heart of Willimon’s argument. Considering, that Fear of the Other is first and foremost a biblical case for the end of fearing the other this is a fitting primary source for Willimon’s argument. However, the Bible is not the only source that Willimon engages. There is a small list of secondary sources most important of which are Scott Bader-Saye, David Rock and Miroslav Volf. Both Scott …show more content…
Christ demands something greater from the church than to retreat into fear, creating barriers between ourselves and those different from us, and waiting to be saved. As Willimon aptly points out Christ came to save people expressly for the purpose to reach out to the other in the same way that God had reached out to us in Christ. Fear of the Other is an important text for the contemporary American church that seems to be shaped more by a narrative of fear than the narrative of the Gospel. May God help us repent from our fear and trust in the Spirit of fearlessness that God has given us to embrace the other in