Editor's Choice
Audience: Religious enthusiasts, theological researchers, cultural readers.
*Introduction to the Theology of Teaching" is a work of broad knowledge and clear narrative. The combination of Allister McGrath's mastery of the history of theological thought and his ability to write and express himself has resulted in this universally applicable textbook in the field.
Gabriel Fackre is a professor at Edward Newton Theological Seminary (formerly Harvard University).
Allister McGrath is a master of his work on the theology of the Church. The fifth edition continues the previous style, and both teachers and students will benefit greatly. All scholars who study theological traditions will benefit from McGrath.
Douglas Meeks, MDouglas Meeks is a professor at Vanderbilt University School of Divinity.
This meticulous work has achieved great success, guiding thousands of students into the door of theology with a wealth of knowledge, concise methods and standards, and a language that is difficult to grasp but clearly understood.
Book Review of Religion and Theology.
Introduction
This book is the author's experience of teaching theology at Oxford University for more than ten years, and it concisely and clearly expounds the basic knowledge about teaching theology. The book outlines the core themes in the great tradition of religion throughout the ages, shows readers the rich ideas and historical origins of religion theology, and allows readers to understand the advantages and disadvantages of each thought through analysis and thinking, so that readers can fully grasp the basic views and profound insights of religion theology. As a popular theological textbook in the world, this book is well-selected and well-arranged, and is widely welcomed by teachers and students all over the world. Whether you are studying theology or understanding the culture of teaching, this book is a must-read primer.
About the Author
Zhao Chengyi graduated from Dalian College of Foreign Chinese, Jinling Union Theological Seminary, Bosse Epe Theological Seminary (University of Geneva), and is currently teaching at Jiangsu Theological Seminary. He has translated "Introduction to Theology", "A Brief History of Doctrine", "History of Teaching", etc.
Shi Hengtan, Ph.D. from Peking University, visiting scholar at the University of Berkeley, winner of the 30th Hong Kong Tang Qing ** Religion Literature and Art Award, and researcher at the Institute of World Religions of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. He is the author of "Freedom and Creation: An Introduction to Berdyaev's Philosophy of Religion" and "Faith, Hope and Love in Light and Shadow", and his translations include "The City-State: From Ancient Greece to the Present Century" and "The Philosophy of the Spirit of Freedom".
Table of Contents
Part 1 Epoch-making Milestones: Historical Periods, Themes, and Theologians.
Introduction 003
Chapter 1: The Patristic Period (c. 100—c. 700) 005
Chapter 2 The Middle Ages and the Renaissance (c. 700-c. 1500) 023
Chapter 3 The Reformation Period (c. 1500—c. 1750) 045
Chapter 4 The Modern Period (c. 1750-Present) 069
Part 2 ** and Methodology.
Chapter 5 Preparing for the Journey: The Basics of Getting Started 107
CHAPTER VI Theological ** 127
Chapter 7: Knowing God: Nature and Revelation 161
Chapter 8 Philosophy and Theology: Dialogue and Debate 183
Part 3 **Teaching Theology.
Chapter 9: On God 211
Chapter 10 On the Trinity 253
Chapter 11 On the Person of ** 291
Chapter 12 Faith and History: Modern Issues 325
CHAPTER XIII. On the Salvation of ** 347
Chapter 14: On Human Nature, Sin, and Grace 385
CHAPTER XV. On the Church 417
CHAPTER XVI. On the Sacraments 445
CHAPTER XVII. Religion and World Religions 473
Chapter 18: The Last Things: Teach Hope 495
Theological Glossary 519
Wonderful book excerpts
Patristic period. (c. 100 - c. 700).
* Religion originated in Palestine in the first century C.E. – more precisely in the land of Judah, especially the city of Jerusalem. Religion considers itself to be the continuation and development of Judaism, which initially flourished in some areas traditionally associated with Judaism, notably Palestine. However, the religion spread rapidly to nearby areas, thanks in part to the efforts of the early evangelists, such as Paul of Tarsus.
Theological Issues in the Patristic Period.
The patristic period was crucial as many controversial issues were resolved during this period. One issue that had to be addressed in the early days of Christianity was the relationship between Christianity and Judaism. Paul's epistles in the New Testament show that this issue was of considerable importance in the history of the first century C.E., because Paul dealt with a range of related doctrinal and practical issues in his epistles. Is it mandatory for Gentile (i.e., non-Jewish) to be circumcised? Do apostles have to obey the Jewish dietary laws? How to interpret the Old Testament correctly?
However, other problems soon arose. In the second century A.D., apologetics appeared, which used reason to refute the criticism of others and to defend and prove the beliefs of the Christians. In the early history of the Church, the Church was often subjected to the Roman Empire, so the most important issue was survival; When the church is in danger, there is naturally little room for theological arguments. So I can understand why apologetics was so important to the early church. For example, the Justin Martyr (c. 100-c. 165), a theologian of the time, was concerned with explaining and defending the beliefs and practices of the Church to a hostile pagan population. This period produced several prominent theologians, such as Irenaeus of Lyons (c. 130-c. 200) in the West and Origen (c. 185-c. 254) in the East—and theological debates did not come into full force until the church ceased to be victimized.
In the 4th century AD, Constantine converted to the Church and became emperor of the Roman Empire, which created favorable conditions for theological debate. During his reign (306-307), Constantine succeeded in mediating between the Church and the Roman Empire, with the result that the Church was no longer under attack. In 321 AD, Constantine decreed that Sunday should be an official holiday. Because of his influence on the Roman Empire, the public began to pay attention to beneficial theological arguments. With the exception of a brief period of unrest during the reign of Julian the Apostate (361-363), the Church was always supported by the Roman Empire. Thus, theology emerged from the secret world of the secret church and became the focus of attention throughout the Roman Empire. Theologically and politically, doctrinal debates are becoming increasingly important. Constantine wanted a unified church in his empire and was therefore most concerned with the church resolving doctrinal differences through debate.
Thus, the latter part of the patristic period (c. 310-451) can be seen as a watershed in the history of Christian theology. During this period, theologians did not have to worry about suffering and were free to discuss many important issues that were being reached within the Church of Gongzhou. However, the consensus sparked widespread debate, which became a painful learning process for the church: the church found that it had to be willing to endure disagreements and ongoing tensions. Still, during this formative period, the church reached some important consensus, which was eventually written into the church's universal creed. It can be said that this is a great step forward in the patristic period.
For the theology of the church, the patristic period is obviously quite important. However, many students of theology in modern times find it difficult to learn during the patristic period. This is mainly due to the following four reasons:
1.Some of the debates of the patristic period seem to have nothing to do with the modern world. These arguments may have been crucial at the time, but they are often difficult for modern readers to understand why they have attracted so much attention. In this regard, it would be interesting to compare the patristic period with the Reformation. At the time of the Reformation, many of the issues debated by theologians are still of concern to the church today; Many theology teachers find that their students are more relatable to the concerns of the Reformation.
2.Many of the theological controversies of the patristic period were based on philosophical questions, and to understand them, the reader must be familiar with the philosophical controversies of the time. In fact, at least some of the students of theology are familiar with the ideas of Plato's dialogues; But the problem is that during the patristic period, Plato's ideas developed a lot in the Mediterranean world and received a lot of criticism. Platonism in the Middle Period was very different from Neo-Platonism, and they were very different from Plato's original ideas. The many unfamiliar philosophical ideas of the patristic period have become another obstacle to the study of the patristic period, making it difficult for many students of theology to fully understand what some of the debates of the patristic period are actually arguing.
3.The teachings of the patristic period were endless. It was a time of contention, with epoch-making, standard texts and teachings appearing one after another, including the Nicene Creed and the doctrine of the two sexes. The establishment of the canon of Scripture began in the fourth century C.E., and was important for theological debate. Doctrine was relatively stable at other times (e.g., the person was not a very important issue during the Reformation), but students who are familiar with this stability of doctrine find that the doctrine of patristic times is volatile.
4.During the patristic period, due to many factors such as politics and language, there was a serious emergence between the Greek-speaking church in the East and the Latin-speaking church in the West. Many scholars have noted that there are clear differences between Eastern and Western theologians in terms of theological temperament: Eastern theologians are generally philosophically inclined and prefer theological speculation, while Western theologians tend to be hostile to philosophical intrusion into theology, believing theology to be the doctrine expounded by the Bible.
Preface Preamble
Anyone who thinks about important topics in teaching theology will quickly find that many of them have already been overwritten. Theology does not come out of nowhere, and the study of theology requires looking back at the work of previous people and their answers. In a sense, "tradition" is willing to take seriously the theological heritage that has survived to this day. Karl Barthes notes that the theological masters of the past still play an important role in today's theological debates. Barthes is astute and direct in his view that, as far as theology is concerned, being in the church, we cannot but take the same responsibility for the theology of our past as we do in our own time. Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, Schleiermacher, and all other theologians are not dead, but alive. They are still talking, asking us to listen as if we were listening to a living voice; We know that they are with us in the church. It is therefore important to be familiar with the main ideas and dialogues of the past, which are interesting in their own right and have become indispensable references in the theological debates of our own time. The first part of the book aims to provide an overview of the development of theology of religion, and will devote four chapters to defining the important periods, themes, and theologians that influenced this development process, with a focus on developments after the Renaissance as the developments of this period have influenced the development of modern Western theology, including:
* Teach the center of thought.
Contentious theological issues.
The school of thought behind theological questions.
Important theologians of our time and their particular concerns.
Among the theological developments outlined in the first part of this book are the following formative periods of theological development:
patristic period, c. 100-c. 700 (chap. 1); the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, c. 700-c. 1500 (chap. 2); The Reformation and the aftermath of the Reformation, c. 1500-c. 1750 (chap. 3); The modern period, circa 1750 to the present (Chapter 4). The distinction between these periods is often difficult to draw clearly. For example, the line between the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and the Reformation is still debated today, and some scholars believe that the Renaissance and the Reformation were a continuation of the Middle Ages; Other scholars see the three as separate movements, each with its own characteristics. There is a certain arbitrariness in each division of historical periods.