Book excerpt: In the last several years, Walter Brueggemann's writings have directly addressed the situation of Christian communities in today's globalized context, with its consumerist lifestyles, vast inequalities, and near-imperial exercises of power. His insights, forged in rugged encounters with the texts of the Old Testament, are sharp, painful, and indispensable. In the people Israel Brueggemann finds a model of an alternative community - anchored in YHWH, ever exploring new possibilities, and prophetically bent against empire. Part I: The Word Redescribing the World Part II: The Word Redefining the Possible Part III: The Word Shaping a Community of Discipleship