Realizing Hope

Someone once said that it is easier to imagine the end of the world than to imagine the end of capitalism. Michael Albert would disagree. Realizing Hope offers a speculative vision of a future beyond capitalism - an alternative to the exploitation of human labour, the unchecked destruction of the earth, and the oppression of all for the benefit of the few. Participatory economics - parecon for short - is Albert's concrete proposal for a classless economy, developed from anarchist principles first introduced by Kropotkin, Bakunin, Pannekoek and others. In this classic text, Albert takes the insights and hopes of parecon and enlarges them to address all key aspects of social life and society - gender, culture, politics, science, technology, journalism, ecology, and others. Realizing Hope provides vision to help us all together conceive a world that might be just over the horizon, a world we can begin building today.

Easter is the high point of the church year and the very heart of Christian hope, and yet sometimes we are tempted to simply move on once Easter Sunday is over. Easter, Season of Realized Hope invites us to linger a bit. Join the women who visit the tomb of Jesus in the early morning and encounter the risen Lord. Travel with the disciples walking to Emmaus and let your heart burn with recognition. Learn from Paul what a difference it makes that Christ is risen. Let your deepest hopes be realized.

“[A] landmark book . . . Solnit illustrates how the uprisings that begin on the streets can upend the status quo and topple authoritarian regimes” (Vice). A book as powerful and influential as Rebecca Solnit’s Men Explain Things to Me, her Hope in the Dark was written to counter the despair of activists at a moment when they were focused on their losses and had turned their back to the victories behind them—and the unimaginable changes soon to come. In it, she makes a radical case for hope as a commitment to act in a world whose future remains uncertain and unknowable. Drawing on her decades of activism and a wide reading of environmental, cultural, and political history, Solnit argues that radicals have a long, neglected history of transformative victories, that the positive consequences of our acts are not always immediately seen, directly knowable, or even measurable, and that pessimism and despair rest on an unwarranted confidence about what is going to happen next. Now, with a moving new introduction explaining how the book came about and a new afterword that helps teach us how to hope and act in our unnerving world, she brings a new illumination to the darkness of our times in an unforgettable new edition of this classic book. “One of the best books of the 21st century.” —The Guardian “No writer has better understood the mix of fear and possibility, peril and exuberance that’s marked this new millennium.” —Bill McKibben, New York Times–bestselling author of Falter “An elegant reminder that activist victories are easily forgotten, and that they often come in extremely unexpected, roundabout ways.” —The New Yorker

Someone once said that it is easier to imagine the end of the world than to imagine the end of capitalism. Michael Albert would disagree. Realizing Hope offers a speculative vision of a future beyond capitalism - an alternative to the exploitation of human labour, the unchecked destruction of the earth, and the oppression of all for the benefit of the few. Participatory economics - parecon for short - is Albert’s concrete proposal for a classless economy, developed from anarchist principles first introduced by Kropotkin, Bakunin, Pannekoek and others. In this classic text, Albert takes the insights and hopes of parecon and enlarges them to address all key aspects of social life and society - gender, culture, politics, science, technology, journalism, ecology, and others. Realizing Hope provides vision to help us all together conceive a world that might be just over the horizon, a world we can begin building today.

This book is an account and accumulation of information I have learned on my journey from the beginning to today. It also includes my testimony (how and why I came to Christ) and stories showing what happened to me afterward while journeying with God on my path of life. It talks about the steps I took (I believe the steps God wants all of us to follow) in becoming a disciple of Jesus Christ. It also talks to how I put that training into my everyday life. The most important aspect of this book in weaving my story throughout it is that it gives the reader my reasons why and shows the how-to everyone asks about. It will show the reader why the subtitle is "Conquering Your Fear of Change." I have been walking with the Lord for over thirty years (more than half of my life). I can now say that through my experiences, God truly loves me and has shown that to me countless times and that I trust him fully. I am now able to, every day, surrender my selfish will over to him and seek his guidance and direction (his will) for my life, no matter what the surrounding circumstances of life, to know that he loves me, wants me to be successful as a disciple of Jesus Christ, and is in control of life. I also know that all my prayers are being answered in his way and his timing. I may not ever see the result of my prayer, but I know he will answer each one. Don't you want that blessed assurance in your life? That hope to be able to change from who you were to who you are now and truly love yourself? Don't you want to feel that peace that passes all understanding each and every day along with the joy only God can offer? You can. Yes, even you can! So, come join me as you visit my journey. Hopefully, you learn God's truth so you can compare it to the world's lies and decide for yourself which you will follow.

Easter is the high point of the church year and the very heart of Christian hope, and yet sometimes we are tempted to simply move on once Easter Sunday is over. Easter, Season of Realized Hope invites us to linger a bit. Join the women who visit the tomb of Jesus in the early morning and encounter the risen Lord. Travel with the disciples walking to Emmaus and let your heart burn with recognition. Learn from Paul what a difference it makes that Christ is risen. Let your deepest hopes be realized.

"What is the alternative to capitalist globalization?" is a question challenging activists around the world. Michael Albert has wrestled with this question for many years, and his answer has captured the imagination of many. Participatory Economics--"Parecon" for short--is Albert's proposal for an economic system which offers a real alternative to capitalism, built on familiar values including solidarity, equity, diversity. In this ambitious new book, Albert goes further. Realizing Hope offers a vision of how whole areas of life might be transformed in a post-capitalist society, one where communities rather than profits are placed firmly at the center.