Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 8440 Plough Quarterly • Spring 2016 Jesus proclaims the kingdom of God and announces its coming. Even more, he initiates, right in the midst of Israel, the practical transformation of the world that God’s reign signifies. His announcement of God’s kingdom is connected to the gathering of Israel. 4 Since the church is nothing other than the Israel that listens to, follows after, and is made holy by Jesus, the kingdom and the church are very closely connected. The fact that Jesus proclaimed the kingdom, and what came after Easter was the church is no tragic fall, no bitter irony of history, no perversion of Jesus’ will; rather, it follows directly from the social dimension of Jesus’ kingdom proclamation. Against this background I would like to explore whether the early church under- stood what Jesus wanted and whether it lived it out. I realize, of course, that such a broad subject actually demands far more space. From among the many possible approaches, I will examine three sample topics: (1) nonviolence, (2) love of neighbor, and (3) the imminent expectation of the end of the age. In each case, I will give my reasons for selecting that particular topic. Nonviolence In recent decades, Islam has been gaining strength all over the world, showing a new self-confidence. No objections there. Unfortunately, however, within the broad terrain of Islam we see terrorist Islamist movements emerging ever more power- fully – groups that view murder as a service to God. 5 For people shaped by Enlightenment values, such inhuman violence only rein- forces a preexisting antipathy to religion. This antipathy encompasses Christianity (and Israel) as well. More and more often, one hears the claim that all monotheistic religions, by their very nature, harbor a deeply rooted urge toward violence. Israel, the church, and Islam are then all mentioned in the same breath. Can we live out the Sermon on the Mount? To seek an answer to this question, in November 2015 over a hundred people from Europe, Africa, and North America – students, farmers, peace activists, members of Catholic, Protestant, and Anabaptist communities – gathered in Fulda, Germany. Titled Bergpredigt leben (“Living the Sermon on the Mount”), the event was organized by Plough and the Fellowship of Reconciliation in Germany to mark the ­ eightieth anniversary of the death of Eberhard Arnold (1883–1935), founder of the Bruderhof and founding editor of Plough. Professor Gerhard Lohfink gave the keynote address, which appears here in an abridged English translation. Watch his talk and other presentations at plough.com/fuldaevent.  Participants gather in Fulda’s Michaelskirche, a ninth-century church where Eberhard Arnold went to pray for guidance in facing Nazi persecution. Photograph by Wolfgang Krauss