The Nature and Destiny of Man issues a vigorous challenge to Western civilization to understand its roots in the faith of the Bible, particularly in the Hebraic tradition. Niebuhr here lays out his influential understanding of the two poles of human existence: finitude and freedom. Individual human thriving requires that we fully understand and honor both of these aspects of our nature, yet human history demonstrates our penchant for placing one over the other. This book is arguably Reinhold Niebuhr's most important work. It offers a sustained articulation of Niebuhr’s theological ethics...

Reinhold Niebuhr's An Interpretation of Christian Ethics is both an introduction to the discipline and a presentation of the author’s distinctive approach. That approach focuses on a realistic (rather than moralistic) understanding of the challenges facing human individuals and institutions, and a call for justice—imperfect though it might be—as what love looks like in a fallen world. The book’s most distinctive aspect is the author’s insistence that perfect love and justice are unattainable in this world, yet they remain our most important goals.