The Christian Church possesses in its literature an abundant and incomparable treasure. But it is an inheritance that must be reclaimed by each generation. THE LIBRARY OF CHRISTIAN CLASSICS is designed to present in the English language, and in twenty-six volumes of convenient size, a selection of the most indispensable Christian treatises written prior to the end of the sixteenth century.
When I was a boy growing up in Greenville, South Carolina, my father was away from home about two-thirds of every year. And while he preached across the country, we prayed--my mother and my older sister and I. What I learned in those days was that my mother was omni-competent.
This book does not seek to present a complete historical genealogy of nihilism, even though there is a loose chronology directing the progression of the chapters. What is rather offered is a genealogy which endeavours, first of all, to isolate certain crucial historical moments in the history of nihilism, moments which at time reveal clearly an intermittent development of prior influences. In t…
Books are written for multiple and sometimes competing reasons. This book intends to serve the church and its mission o f communicating the good news o f Christ's atoning work to the world. So its primary and intended audience is Christian ministers, whether they be ordained clergy, seminary students seeking to become such, or lay leaders. To be sure, I am an “academic theologian” and the b…
Beginning with an account of how Christian theology is called upon to read the signs of the time, Cities of God traces the shift in urban culture in North America and Western Europe that took place in the 1970s. The modern sites of eternal aspiration and hope became the postmodern cities of eternal desires. The old, modern theological responses to the city become unbelievable and inadequate, ne…
There is little doubt that Thomas Forsyth Torrance (1913–2007) is one of the most significant English-speaking theologians of the twentieth century. According to Alister McGrath, those outside of Great Britain generally regard Torrance “as the most significant British academic theologian of the twentieth century” and, in his view, “one of the most productive, creative and important theo…
The Christian Church possesses in its literature an abundant and incomparable treasure. But it is an inheritance that must be reclaimed by each generation. THE LIBRARY OF CHRISTIAN CLASSICS is designed to present in the English language, and in twenty-six volumes of convenient size, a selection of the most indispensable Christian treatises written prior to the end of the sixteenth century.
This is a major study of the theological thought of John Calvin, which examines his central theological ideas through a philosophical lens, looking at issues in Metaphysics, Epistemology, and Ethics. The study, the first of its kind, is concerned with how Calvin actually uses philosophical ideas in his work as a theologian and biblical commentator. The book also includes a careful examination o…
What has theology to do with economics? They are both sciences of human action but have traditionally been treated as very separate and isolated disciplines. Divine Economy is the first book to directly address the need for an active dialogue between the two.
The works translated here deal with two major themes in the thinking of St Augustine (354-430): free will and divine grace. On the one hand, free will enables human beings to make their own choices; on the other hand, God's grace is required for these choices to be efficacious. 'On the Free Choice of the Will', 'On Grace and Free Choice', 'On Reprimand and Grace' and 'On the Gift of Perseveranc…
The collapse of positivism and its attendant verification principle of meaning was undoubtedly the most important philosophical event of the twentieth century. Their demise heralded a resurgence of metaphysics, along with other traditional problems of philosophy that verificationism had suppressed. Accompanying this resurgence has come something new and altogether unanticipated: a renaissance i…
In a recent ecumenical study, the Wesleyan theologian Edgardo Colón-Emeric observes that ‘predestination cannot simply be treated as a historical artifact...but as an abiding structural element of a sound doctrine of Christian perfection’.1 By contrast, the American religious historian Peter Thuesen speaks for the majority of contemporary theologians when he warns that predestinarian contr…
The nineteenth century was one of the most diverse and creative periods in the history of Christian theology. Its problems, challenges, and developments continue to be assimilated by theologians today, while its great thinkers – G. W. F. Hegel, Friedrich Schleiermacher, Søren Kierkegaard, John Henry Newman, et al. – are the subject of intensive international scholarship.
St Maximus the Confessor, the greatest of Byzantine theologians, lived through the most catastrophic period the Byzantine Empire was to experience before the Crusades. This book introduces the reader to the times and upheavals during which Maximus lived. It discusses his cosmic vision of humanity and his Christology. The study makes available several of Maximus’ theological treatises, many of…
This book was conceived in an unusual setting. The year was 1976. I had just arrived with my family in Aixen-Provence, France, where I was to spend a sabbatical year teaching at the university. We had rented a house for the year from Michel Vovelle, a well-known French historian who was just packing up to leave for a sabbatical year of his own at Princeton. The lease was for a certain rent, qui…
Despite the challenging theological language of Alfred North Whitehead and some of his followers, process theology can be accessible to students, laypeople, and pastors as well as academics; but, more importantly, process theology can be life-transforming. I am a process theologian, who has integrated writing, teaching, preaching, administration, pastoral care, and spiritual direction, for over…
Cov-e-nant (n): A binding agreement; a compact; a promise. Since biblical times covenants have been a part of everyday life. Simply put, they are promises, agreements, or contracts. But how do they translate into faith and the reading of Scripture? Are covenants merely elements of a narrative? Or do they represent something more? And what are the eternal implications of "cutting" a covenant wit…
This authoritative book introducing Karl Barth is written by leading scholars of his work, drawn from Europe and North America. They offer challenging yet accessible accounts of the major features of Barth's theological work, especially as it has become available through the publication of his collected works, and interact with the very best of contemporary Barth scholarship. The contributors a…
The rise of modern science and the proclaimed “death” of God in the nineteenth century led to a radical questioning of divine action and authorship – Bultmann’s celebrated “demythologizing”. Remythologizing Theology moves in another direction that begins by taking seriously the biblical accounts of God’s speaking. It establishes divine communicative action as the formal and materi…
What is Christian wisdom for living in the twenty-first century? Where is it to be found? How can it be learnt? In the midst of diverse religions and worldviews and the urgencies and complexities of contemporary life, David Ford explores a Christian way of uniting love of wisdom with wisdom in love....
How can we live together in the midst of our differences? This is one of the most pressing questions of our time. Tolerance has been the bedrock of political liberalism, while proponents of agonistic political thought and radical democracy have sought an answer that allows a deeper celebration of difference.
This book reconfigures the basic problem of Christian thinking or theological cognition as a twofold demand for integrity: integrity of reason and integrity of transcendence....
This book argues that the modern separation of humanity from nature can be traced to the displacement of the triune God. Locating the source of our current ecological crisis in this separation, Peter Scott argues that it can be healed only within theology, through a revival of a Trinitarian doctrine of creation interacting with political philosophies of ecology. Drawing insights from deep ecolo…
We have, as a theological community, generally lost a language in which to speak of the createdness of the world. As a consequence, our discourses of reason can not bridge the way we know God and the way we know the world....
How can academic biblical interpretation fruitfully contribute to Christian belief and living in today’s world? This book offers a synthesis of some of the best in pre-modern, modern, and post-modern approaches to biblical interpretation, and locates the discipline within a self-critical trinitarian rule of faith, where historical criticism, systematic theology, ethics, and spirituality are …
This book brings together for the first time traditional Christian theological perspectives on truth and reality with a contemporary philosophical view of the place of language in both divine and worldly reality...
This book tests the explanatory and descriptive power of the doctrine of sin in relation to two concrete situations: sexual abuse of children and the holocaust. Taking seriously the explanatory power of secular discourses for analysing and regulating therapeutic action in relation to such situations, the book asks whether the theological language of sin can offer further illumination by speakin…
An enterprise like this does not see the light of day without a large network of support, going back many years. I owe an immense debt of gratitude to one of my first teachers, Colin Kingsley of Edinburgh University, whose academic interests combined with high standards of performance provided an inspiration which has never waned, and to James Torrance, who many years ago introduced me to the l…
Which are the major theologies in vogue in our time? And how are they to be evaluated by evangelicals who want to be on the cutting edge of the Christian faith, but remain faithful to the authority of Scripture? A Handbook of Contemporary Theology answers both of these questions in detail. David L. Smith provides an extensive overview of the current traditional and nontraditional theologies…
If it is fair to consider Geerhardus Vos as the father of Reformed biblical theology, then we are now at a point several generations later where we can begin to assess the lasting impact of that theology, especially within Reformed churches. The reflections that follow, though incomplete, represent an attempt at such an assessment.
This book is the first accessible introduction in English to Tertullian's works, providing translations of Adversus Iudaeos (Against the Jews), Scorpiace (Antidote for the Scorpion's Sting) and De Verginibus Velandis (On the Veiling of Virgins). Tertullian (c. AD 160 - 225) was one of the first theologians of the Western Church and ranks among the most prominent of the early Latin fathers. H…
The book of Proverbs is the starting point of the biblical wisdom tradition. But how did individual proverbs, instructions and poems come together to form the various collections we have today? Katharine Dell explores the possible social contexts for this varied material in the royal court, wisdom schools and popular culture. She draws shrewdly on materials from the wisdom traditions of the anc…
Among the great philosophers of the Middle Ages Aquinas is unique in pursuing two apparently disparate projects. On the one hand he developed a philosophical understanding of Christian doctrine in a fully integrated system encompassing all natural and supernatural reality. On the other hand, he was convinced that Aristotle's philosophy afforded the best available philosophical component of such…
This series of critical reflections on the evolution and major themes of pre-modern Muslim theology begins with the revelation of the Koran, and extends to the beginnings of modernity in the eighteenth century. The significance of Islamic theology reflects the immense importance of Islam in the history of monotheism, to which it has brought a unique approach and style, and a range of solutions …
With over 550 entries ranging from Abba to Zwingli composed by leading contemporary theologians from around the world, The Cambridge Dictionary of Christian Theology represents a fresh, ecumenical approach to theological reference. Written with an emphasis on clarity and concision, all entries are designed to help the reader understand and assess the specifically theological significance of the…
In this timely analysis of a topic that threatens biblical churches, common misconceptions about feminism are clarified and a challenge to institute full biblical ministry is presented.
Feminism remains one of the most urgent issues the church is facing today, as shown by the increasing confusion over gender roles in marriages, families, and churches. With a growing number of theologians and denominations advocating radical gender egalitarianism, we must answer many questions about women in the church-and in the wider culture. In order to do this, first we need to understand t…
This is Volume V of nine in the Studies in Ethics and the Philosophy of Religion collection. The Series is meant to provide an opportunity for philosophical discussions of a limited length which pursue in some detail specific topics in ethics or the philosophy of religion, or topics which belong to both fields. A draft of this book was delivered as a lecture course at Oxford over the terms of 1…
A senior New Testament scholar offers a comprehensive introduction to the life and thought of Paul that combines historical and theological analysis.
Widely regarded as the foremost theologian in the world today, Wolfhart Pannenberg here unfolds his long-awaited systematic theology, for which his many previous (primarily methodological) writings have laid the groundwork. Volume 2 of Pannenberg's magnum opus moves beyond the highly touted discussion of systematic prolegomena and theology proper in Volume 1 to commanding, comprehensive stateme…
The publication of Volume 3 of German theologian Wolfhart Pannenberg's Systematic Theology completes the English edition of a work that will surely come to stand as one of the lasting theological statements of the twentieth century.
This is the first part of Paul Tillich's three-volume ""Systematic Theology, "" one of the most profound statements of the Christian message ever composed and the summation and definitive presentation of the theology of the most influential and creative American theologian of the twentieth century. In this path-breaking volume Tillich presents the basic method and statement of his system--his f…
In this clear and provocative account of the epistemology of religious experience, William P. Alston argues that the perception of God―his term for direct experiential awareness of God―makes a major contribution to the grounds of religious belief. Surveying the variety of reported direct experiences of God, Alston demonstrates that a person can be justified in holding certain beliefs about …
This popular text has been updated to ensure that it continues to provide a current and comprehensive overview of the main Christian theologies of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
An overview of discussions about the nature of New Testament theology, which examines the development, purpose and scope. * Contributions are written by some of the most distinguished writers in the field of New Testament studies. * Looks at the relationship of New Testament theology with other branches of theology.
These are fundamental questions that any thinking person wants answers to. These are questions that philosophy addresses. And the answers we give to these kinds of questions serve as the foundation stones for constructing any kind of worldview. Now updated and expanded in this second edition, Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview by J. P. Moreland and William Lane Craig offers a c…
The Christian church has a long tradition of systematic theology, that is, of studying biblical teaching on centrally important doctrines such as the Word of God, redemption, and Jesus Christ. Wayne Grudem's bestselling Systematic Theology has several distinctive Bibliographies in each chapter that cross-reference subjects to a wide range of other systematic theologies.
An upper-level introduction to the Old Testament that offers students a thorough understanding of three key issues: historical background, literary analysis, and theological message. This second edition of An Introduction to the Old Testament integrates recent developments in Old Testament scholarship. It has many distinctive features that set it apart from other introductions to the Old Testam…
Thomas Schreiner, a respected scholar and a trusted voice for many students and pastors, offers a substantial and accessibly written overview of the whole Bible. He traces the storyline of the scriptures from the standpoint of biblical theology, examining the overarching message that is conveyed throughout. Schreiner emphasizes three interrelated and unified themes that stand out in the biblica…