Psychotic Entelechy: The Dangers of Spiritual Gifts Theology

by Stan A. Lindsay

Overview

What do 'sama bin Laden, Adolph Hitler, David Koresh, Jim Jones, Gene Applewhite, and the slayers of abortion doctors all have in common? All of them based their dangerous and destructive actions, to a large extent, on a message they believed they received from God. The receipt of messages from God is known by many religions as "spiritual gifts theology."

In his earlier book, Implicit Rhetoric: Kenneth Burke's Extension of Aristotle's Concept of Entelechy, author Stan Lindsay presented the concept of psychotic entelechy, which is based on Burke's writings. In this new work, Lindsay expands upon the concept of psychotic entelechy by analyzing the religious motives behind the dangerous behavior of some individuals and organizations. Psychotic Entelechy also illustrates the curative aspect of the Burkean methods and presents key indicators of psychotic entelechy. The hope, and ultimate goal, is that as readers learn to identify psychotic entelechy in their own lives and/or the lives of those whom they influence or who influence them, the dangers will be diminished.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780761834939
Publisher:	University Press of America
Publication date:	08/30/2006
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	204
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.56(h) x 0.64(d)

About the Author

Stan A. Lindsay is a member of the Department of Communication faculty at Florida State University. He received his M.A. in Near Eastern Languages and Cultures from Indiana University, and his Ph.D. in Communication from Purdue University. He is the author of seven books and dozens of scholarly articles.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Acknowledgements Chapter 2 1. Spiritual Gifts and Psychotic Entelechy Chapter 3 2. The Waco Disaster Chapter 4 3. The Rhetoric of bin Laden's Battle Chapter 5 4. The Cure for bin Laden's Rhetoric Chapter 6 5. Muslims, Christians, and Jews versus Secular Psychotic Entelechies Chapter 7 6. A Brief History of Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Spiritual Gift Theology Chapter 8 7. An Examination of New Testament Spiritual Gift Theology Chapter 9 8. Motivation: Why Gifts Theology Chapter 10 9. Perspectivism: The Eldership Approach Chapter 11 Conclusion Chapter 12 Bibliography Chapter 13 Index