From the Blood of Abel: Humanity's Root Causes of Violence and the Bible's Theological-Anthropological Solution

174 Pages·2016·1.19 MB·English

by  Matthew J Distefano

“The Bible itself tells us to ‘rightly divide the word of truth.’ For 2000 years,
Christians have divided the testaments, but following René Girard, Distefano
argues that there are two streams within the Scriptures, one of religion and the
other of God’s revelation. From the Blood of Abel is a marvelous introduction to
Girardian thought for any struggling Evangelical who is seeking the really good
news of Christ Jesus.”
—Michael Hardin, executive director at Preaching Peace and author of The
Jesus Driven Life
“Matthew Distefano offers us a robust and intriguing approach to the Gospel.
Having had his Christianity restructured both by Girard’s insights into violence,
and by Becker’s understanding of death, he makes available a much stronger and
richer sense of what Jesus was about in undoing those things than so many
approaches which pile quote upon quote, leaving readers at the mercy of their
own violence. Those questioning received notions of hell, of wrath, and of an
exclusive God will find solid food here.”
—James Alison, Catholic priest, theologian, and author
“In this marvelous follow-up to All Set Free, Matthew Distefano synthesizes
Girard's ‘mimetic theory’ and Becker’s ‘death anxiety’ to diagnose the causes of
human violence right to the roots. He then faithfully applies the Christ-solution
as our effectual, life-giving remedy. It is especially striking that the author
moves easily from theology and theory into real-life scenarios and testimonies.
He recounts the excruciating reality of violence and exclusion—but does so to
spotlight the power of the beautiful gospel.”
—Brad Jersak, editor at CWR Magazine, faculty at Westminster Theological
Centre, and author of A More Christlike God: A More Beautiful Gospel
“Matthew Distefano’s From the Blood of Abel is a provocative examination of
the problem of human violence through the lenses of mimetic theory and
Christian theology. Distefano marshals theology, sociology, psychology,
anthropology, philosophy, and history to lead readers through humanity’s
horrifically violent past and present, and challenges us to look more closely at
the ultimate hope for peace that Christianity provides. Distilling insights from
René Girard, Ernest Becker, and Michael Hardin, Distefano offers a vibrant and
astute assessment of humanity’s seemingly implacable violent tendencies and
skillfully shows how the Bible effectively—and often surprisingly—addresses
our most fundamental problem.”
—Dan Wilkinson, editor of the Unfundamentalist Christians blog on
Patheos
“Matthew Distefano’s From the Blood of Abel is the book that our country and
our world needs right now. In a day where Christians are known for our violent
rhetoric, persecution complex, and scapegoating of all those who don’t fit within
our theological paradigm, Distefano powerfully speaks the truth of the Gospel of
peace in an accessible and deeply moving way that will shatter the false images
of God so many of us have been taught to believe in. In place of the false
images, Distefano unveils that the face of God is revealed in Christ, a face that
has the power to truly redeem our world. This book is a must read!”
—Brandan Robertson, author of Nomad: A Spirituality for Travelling Light
“Matthew’s desire to heal the human spirit is palpable in his writing. He rightly
identifies the human problem of violence as a temporary means of relieving
spiritual tension or uneasiness. Following the insights of René Girard, Matthew
walks the reader through the many reasons we create, or become, victims of
violence. Finding a solution to our collective problem leads the reader straight to
the heart of Jesus. By the final chapter, Matthew passionately implores the
reader to imitate the peaceful, forgiving image of God, modeled in the person of
Jesus Christ. A good read for those who dare to hope for a better tomorrow.”
—Carol Wimmer, author of The Clock: A Timekeeping Tool for the Church
of Tomorrow
“Humanity has a problem, and that problem has a name. The only problem is
that we’ve been largely unable to name this unseeable issue that seems to plague
us from the moment we first throw a punch at our siblings for taking away our
favorite toy. In many ways, the modern surge toward understanding our personal
anthropology, and specifically that which is in relation to our own spirituality as
well, has been not unlike a pressure-cooker, whistling and gaining volume until
someone finally blows the lid off and releases the pressure. What comes out has
such force its best to step back and watch from a distance. What is this problem?
War, but more to the point, it is in our propensity toward war as a default
response to social dissonance. Whether that is a war against metaphorical icons
like terror or drugs, or war against other humans, we wage it whenever given the
chance. In From the Blood of Abel, Matthew Distefano shows this in force, while
making the necessary, important connection between the deity we worship, the
theology we espouse, and the wars we wage in the temporal—all while
remaining faithful to those serious students of Girardian philosophy and
theology. Whether or not we will ever be free of the cancer that is human
violence remains to be seen, but the more we have voices like Matthew’s,
flooding the scene with this truth, the greater hope I have for that end.”
—Caleb Miller, author of The Divine Reversal: Recovering the Vision of
Jesus Christ as the Last Adam and Saving God: Freeing Abba from the
Captivity of Religion
“When reaching the final quarter of faith’s pilgrimage in life, it’s a natural
instinct to look back to see if anyone is coming after one’s self with the same
spiritual heart beat. When I metaphorically look back, I rejoice to see a new
generation of young theological thinkers (in their twenties and thirties) who have
already grappled with issues that some of us did not come to grips with until our
fifties or sixties… if ever! I truly feel a fatherly ‘cheer’ arise in my heart for
them. Matthew Distefano is of that number.
Matthew’s book, From the Blood of Abel is an excellent book to recommend
to seekers who have begun to question traditional Evangelical teachings on
alleged God-sanctioned violence, a sacrificial hermeneutic, doctrines of hell and
eternal punishment, and much more. Matthew has processed weightier works on
these topics and synthesized their salient points into a volume that is reachable to
the majority who may have neither time nor inclination to read academic-level
treatments on those subjects. In doing so, Matthew has done the body of Christ a
great service. I wish I had read a book like From the Blood of Abel when I was
twenty-one. If I had, my life would have charted a much different and much
more Christ-conformed path, much earlier.”
—Stephen R. Crosby, D. Min., founder of Stephanos Ministries and author
of How New is the New Covenant? and 13 other titles
“If you have stayed away from the Bible because it’s filled with violence and
superstitious myths or because the God of the Bible seems violent, wrathful and
prone to punishment, you may have overlooked a singular resource for peace.
Matthew Distefano offers a persuasive case for reading Scripture as revealing
two intertwined realities: humanity’s violence and God’s nonviolence. Making
good use of the mimetic insight of René Girard, Distefano guides his readers
gently but confidently to a new understanding of the unity between the Old and
New Testaments, between the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and the God
revealed by Jesus’ death and resurrection. Distefano believes that the Bible
contains God’s plan for achieving peace in the here and now. When you have
finished From the Blood of Abel, you will find yourself believing, too.”
—Suzanne Ross, cofounder of The Raven ReView and author of The Wicked
Truth: When Good People Do Bad Things
“Matthew Distefano’s From the Blood of Abel is a literary construction of
power, precision and depth perfectly positioned for such a time as this.
Navigating through layers and angles of human history, psychology, and
spirituality, Matthew tactfully backs the reader and all humanity into the corner
—dissecting, diagnosing and disarming our intoxication with violence. One
cannot help but to be changed and perhaps even a bit haunted by the revelation
of this monumental writing.”
—Chris Kratzer, pastor and blogger at chriskratzer.com
“Despite two centuries of exponential growth in human flourishing, our
propensity for violence is still a fundamental theological issue. In From the
Blood of Abel, Matthew Distefano does what few writers can do: he uses tools
from multiple disciplines to unearth the origins of human conflict, yet still
presents a hopeful path forward. Through biblical analysis and the insights of
intellectual giants René Girard and Ernest Becker, Distefano shows how the
answer to the human condition is the Gospel of Jesus Christ—the True Human.
His argument is captivating and deserves the attention of all who care about
resolving human conflict. Even those unconvinced by some of Distefano’s
conclusions will profit from his penetrating analysis of what ails the world and
the God who heals it.”
—Doug Stuart, regular contributor for The Libertarian Christian Institute
“Matthew Distefano’s book, From the Blood of Abel, places bible stories in their
historical context and in the light of modern anthropological insight, revealing an
astonishing and refreshing depth of meaning. The book digs to the roots of who
we are, and offers a view of Christianity that addresses our tendency to be
separatists, sometimes to the point of violence. Much of the ‘Christianity’ we
imagine postpones heaven to the postmortem, and rips humanity apart in the
meantime. But Matthew reminds us that the kingdom of God is within us, and
that Jesus doesn't heal this world through war, ethnic or religious cleansing, or
the devaluation of the ‘other’; but through forgiveness, reconciliation, and love.”
—Wendy Francisco, author and animator of the book and viral video, GoD
and DoG

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critical articles and reviews. Permission for wider usage of this material can be
obtained through Quoir by emailing [email protected].
Copyright © 2016 by Matthew J. Distefano.
First Edition
Cover design and layout by Rafael Polendo (polendo.net) Scripture quotations,
unless otherwise noted, taken from the New Revised Standard Version and are
copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council
of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. and are used by permission.
Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of
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Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 (2nd edition, 1971) by
the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of
Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Chapter 1: Permission granted by Dominic Moes to use the testimony contained
in his December 27, 2015 email to the author. Permission granted by Robert
Lofgren to use the testimony contained in his August 7, 2016 email to the author.
Chapter 2: Permission granted by Brian Cordova to use the testimony contained
in his April 2, 2016 email to the author. Permission granted by Suzanne Ross
and The Raven ReView to use the content from the poster entitled “Mimetic
Desire.”
Chapter 5: Permission granted by Adam Ericksen to use the essay entitled “Myth
and Gospel.”
ISBN 978-1-938480-19-5
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Orange, California
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