Healing Wounded History: Reconciling Peoples and Healing Places

Backing up his thesis with Scripture, Russ Parker presents a strong case for the need for healing, not simply of individuals but of land and whole groups of people that have been wounded.He systematically goes through the Scriptures showing the Biblical worldview of land and of peoples; he then presents the various powers that shape group stories - natural and spiritual powers.Parker shows how the Christian believer has the right to pray what he terms "representational confession" on behalf of the group that he/she belongs to and how Jesus is the "true Representational Confessor" through His suffering on the cross.The four groups that the author looks into are the family, the church, the community, and the tribal (or nation). He contends throughout the book that when careful research is done related to the history of particular groups that have been wounded and not healed, it will be seen that history keeps being repeated in that group and place. In one of the chapters Parker speaks of the "power of holy places and the pain of hurting places." The strength of the book is not only that the author draws from Scripture but he gives many examples from real experiences. It is a very helpful and practical resource for my ministry now.