Christianity and the Making of the Modern Family

How did a religion whose founding proponents advocated a shocking disregard of earthly ties come to extol the virtues of the "traditional" family? In this richly textured history of the relationship between Christianity and the family, Rosemary Radford Ruether traces the development of these centerpieces of modern life to reveal the misconceptions at the heart of the "family values" debate.Provocative. . . . [Ruether's] impressive scholarship, interweaving social history with religious history, puts the family in a fascinating historical context. —Marilyn Gardner, The Christian Science Monitor

"Though a new reading of history, [Ruether] leads us to the question, Is there a new way of reading family, sex, and procreation theologically that can support a more just and sustainable vision of family, home, and work?" —Rosemary Keller, editor of In Our Own Voices: Four Centuries of American Women's Religious Writing

"Well-researched, insightfully honest and engaging. . . . The appeal of Ruether's book is wide. [Christianity and the Making of the Modern Family] forces the reader to assess his or her own understanding of family and family systems. Ruether's book is long overdue." —Nancy Hawkins, America

"A highly readable and important political stab at timely theological and cultural questions." —Sandra Collins, Library Journal