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Romancing God

Evangelical Women and Inspirational Fiction

  • Paperback
  • 264 pages
  • Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press
  • 14 x 21.5 x 1.7 cm

£32.82

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In the world of the evangelical romance novel, sex and desire are mitigated by an omnipresent third party - the divine. Thus, romance is not just an encounter between lovers, but a triangle of affection: man, woman, and God. Although this literature is often disparaged by scholars and pastors alike, inspirational fiction plays a unique and important role in the religious lives of many evangelical women. In an engaging study of why women read evangelical romance novels, Lynn S. Neal interviews writers and readers of the genre and finds a complex religious piety among ordinary people. In evangelical love stories, the success of the hero and heroine's romance rests upon their religious choices. These fictional religious choices, readers report, often inspire real spiritual change in their own lives. Amidst the demands of daily life or during a challenge to one's faith, these books offer a respite from problems and a time for fun, but they also provide a means to cultivate piety and to appreciate the unconditional power of God's love.The reading of inspirational fiction emerges from and reinforces an evangelical lifestyle, Neal argues, but women's interpretations of the stories demonstrate the constant negotiations that characterize evangelical living. Neal's study of religion in practice highlights evangelicalism's aesthetic sensibility and helps to alter conventional understandings - both secular and religious - of this prominent subculture.
Romancing God and Religion in Vogue: Christianity and Fashion in America
Religion in Vogue: Christianity and Fashion in AmericaRomancing God

  • Title

    Romancing God

  • Author

    Lynn S. Neal

  • Book Format

    Paperback

  • Publisher

    The University of North Carolina Press

  • Published

    February 2006

  • Weight

    329g

  • Page Count

    264

  • Dimensions

    14 x 21.5 x 1.7 cm

  • ISBN

    9780807856703

  • ISBN-10

    0807856703

  • Eden Code

    1213322

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