Posted in Book Reviews, Evangelicalism, Theology, Tradition on January 29, 2009 | 1 Comment »
A guest post by David Buschart
Evangelicals are, almost by definition, deeply concerned with matters of theology and doctrine.
And, in recent years, there has been a flourishing of interest among North American evangelicals in matters of history. (The multiple manifestations of the latter include the rise of a cadre of outstanding evangelical historians [e.g., George [...]
Posted in Jonathan Edwards, Theology on January 26, 2009 | 1 Comment »
In continuing our brief (and admittedly superficial) look at several theologians, we have been asking the question: Should theologians be spiritual? In doing so, we have been looking to answer another question: Is one’s spiritual depth directly related to one’s theological ability? In other words, if it were possible to objectively “read” another person’s spiritual [...]
Posted in Dostoevsky, Literature, Rowan Williams on January 23, 2009 | 6 Comments »
What does Christian faith have to do with fiction, the novel?
On Rowan Williams’ account, Dostoevsky: Language, Faith, and Fiction, we find in Dostoevsky’s fiction something of a theology of writing, one indicating a relationship between faith and fiction that points toward the gratuitous nature of both. Williams’ comments regarding the correlation between Dostoevsky’s narratives and [...]
Posted in Christian Life, Spiritual Formation, Theology on January 20, 2009 | 14 Comments »
For the third part of this discussion, I thought it would be interesting to turn to an Eastern Orthodox theologian. This will close out our look at more mystically minded theologians. In doing so I will look at Vladimir Lossky’s The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church (and because I wanted to remind Mark that [...]
Posted in Book Reviews on January 20, 2009 | 7 Comments »
I just received two books from Paternoster on which I will be posting some remarks later this Spring (thanks for the review copies). In Gifted Response: The Triune God as the Causative Agency of our Responsive Worship, Dennis Ngien sets out to back-fill the contemporary Church’s emphasis on the practicalities of worship (‘how to’) by analyzing the [...]
Posted in Christian Life, Spiritual Formation, Theology, Von Balthasar on January 19, 2009 | 5 Comments »
After looking briefly at Hans Urs Von Balthasar, I thought it would be appropriate to look at a Balthasar commentator, Mark McIntosh. I will mainly be referring to McIntosh’s prolegomna discussion in his book Mystical Theology. He starts by addressing some issues in defining spirituality, landing on an understanding which focuses on a discovery of [...]
Posted in Prayer, Spiritual Formation, Theology, Von Balthasar, tagged Von Balthasar on January 16, 2009 | 7 Comments »
There is a sense where this question is obvious. Of course theologians should be spiritual, shouldn’t everyone? But the question is a bit deeper than this. In taking upon oneself the task of being a theologian under the Word, for the church, is part of the task holiness? In so doing, we will be asking [...]
Posted in Prayer on January 15, 2009 | 2 Comments »
One of the more illuminating books I read over 2007 was the Pope’s fabulous Jesus of Nazareth. Over Christmas, I revisited it with my grandmother, and this portion on the first petition of the Lord’s Prayer seemed worth sharing.
Benedict XVI reminds us that we are able to call upon God only because God revealed his name to us in his [...]
Posted in Spiritual Formation, Theology on January 13, 2009 | 9 Comments »
My wife and I are reading a book with our small group at church called Emotionally Healthy Spirituality. The author reminded me that John of the Cross suggests seven deadly spiritual sins in beginners that must be purified. After reading through these, and being reminded of John of the Cross’s never ending existential insight, I [...]
Posted in Teaching, Theology on January 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Anyone who has taught an undergraduate or graduate introductory theology course knows the nerve-wracking anxiety that surrounds picking the right text(s). Do I use a standard systematic theology or an anthology? Would articles and excerpts be more helpful? How do I determine the reading levels of my students? How will the use of my text [...]
Posted in Apologetics on January 6, 2009 | 8 Comments »
William Willimon has written a forceful review of Bart Ehrman’s latest book, God’s Problem: How the Bible Fails to Answer Our Most Important Question-Why We Suffer. It is quite blunt, as Willimon seems baffled at someone like Ehrman. It is interesting, however, for at least two reasons: (1) the criticisms of Ehrman leveled by Willimon; and [...]
Posted in Book Reviews, Trinity on January 5, 2009 | 2 Comments »
Kyle mentioned his disappointment in his last post that Leupp’s The Renewal in Trinitarian Theology did not turn out to be the primer on developments in trinitarian doctrine that he had hoped.
Let me suggest instead Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen’s book, The Trinity: Global Perspectives (WJK, 2007), as an introductory volume that – while not perfect - might [...]
Posted in Book Reviews, Trinity on January 2, 2009 | 8 Comments »
As you might be able to tell from my last several posts, I have been looking at various volumes for possible use in the classroom. The latest I have perused is The Renewal of Trinitarian Theology: Themes, Patterns & Explorations by Roderick T. Leupp. I was first interested in this volume because I thought it [...]
