Since the late 1970s, theologians have been attempting to integrate mimetic theory into different fields of theology, yet a distrust of mimetic theory persists in some theological camps. In René ...Girard, Unlikely Apologist: Mimetic Theory and Fundamental Theology, Grant Kaplan brings mimetic theory into conversation with theology both to elucidate the relevance of mimetic theory for the discipline of fundamental theology and to understand the work of René Girard within a theological framework. Rather than focus on Christology or atonement theory as the locus of interaction between Girard and theology, Kaplan centers his discussion on the apologetic quality of mimetic theory and the impact of mimetic theory on fundamental theology, the subdiscipline that grew to replace apologetics. His book explores the relation between Girard and fundamental theology in several keys. In one, it understands mimetic theory as a heuristic device that allows theological narratives and positions to become more intelligible and, by so doing, makes theology more persuasive. In another key, Kaplan shows how mimetic theory, when placed in dialogue with particular theologians, can advance theological discussion in areas where mimetic theory has seldom been invoked. On this level the book performs a dialogue with theology that both revisits earlier theological efforts and also demonstrates how mimetic theory brings valuable dimensions to questions of fundamental theology.
A comprehensive series of essays exploring Peter C.
Phan's groundbreaking work to widen Christian theology beyond the
Western world
Peter C. Phan's wide-ranging contributions to theology and his
...pioneering work on religious pluralism, migration, and Christian
identity have made a global impact on the field.
The essays in Theology without Borders offer a variety
of perspectives across Phan's fundamental work in eschatology,
world christianity, interreligious dialogue, and much more.
Together, these essays offer a comprehensive assessment of Phan's
groundbreaking work across a range of theological fields. Included
in the conversation are discussions of world Christianity and
migration, Christian identity and religious pluralism, Christian
theology in Asia, Asian American theology, eschatology, and Phan's
lasting legacy.
Theology without Borders provides a welcome overview
for anyone interested in the career of Peter C. Phan, his body of
work, and its influence.
Peter C. Phan's contributions to theology and pioneering work on
religious pluralism, migration, and Christian identity have made a
global impact on the field. The essays in Theology without
Borders offer a variety of perspectives across Phan's
fundamental work, providing an overview for anyone interested in
his body of work and its influence.
"Speaking God today … signifies assuming the task constitutive of the discipline of systematic theology. … A relational God who lives in ex-static self-giving, creates Christian communities of ...hospitality and generosity, and offers a healing vision of truth, goodness, and beauty. Speaking the Triune God extends the promise of the benediction, May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Spirit be with you all.” Rian Venter In this first volume on doing Theology in South Africa, Henco van der Westhuizen assembled an array of articles by South African theologians on Trinitarian Theology from 1976 to today.
Jan-Olav Henriksen reconstructs and analyzes Christianity as a cluster of practices that manifest a distinct historically and contextually shaped mode of being in the world. Henriksen suggests that ...these practices imply a complicated relationship between the tradition in which they originate, the community that emerges from and is constituted by that tradition, and the individuals who appropriate the tradition that these communities mediate through their practices. Thus, to think of Christianity simply in terms of belief is misleading and represents an underdetermination of its distinct character. Henriksen further argues this relationship needs to be described primarily as practices aimed at orientation and transformation. His analysis points to Christianity’s similarity to other religions in regard to the functional or pragmatic dimensions it displays. Examining facets such as prayer, the use of scripture, preaching and doctrine, Henriksen emphasizes that the element that makes a practice distinctively Christian is how it relates to and is informed by the Jesus story.
Twenty years after the fall of Communism in Central and East Europe is an ocassion to reevaluate the cultural and theological contribution from that region to the secularization - post-secularization ...debate. Czech theologian Ivana Noble develops a Trinitarian theology through a close dialogue with literature, music and film, which formed not only alternatives to totalitarian ideologies, but also followed the loss and reappeareance of belief in God. Noble explains that, by listening to the artists, the churches and theologians can deal with questions about the nature of the world, memory and ultimate fulfilment in a more nuanced way. Then, as partakers in the search undertaken by their secular and post-secular contemporaries, theologians can penetrate a new depth of meaning, sending out shoots from the stump of Christian symbolism. Drawing on the rich cultures of Central and East Europe and both Western and Eastern theological traditions, this book presents a theological reading of contemporary culture which is important not just for post-Communist countries but for all who are engaged in the debate on the boundaries between theology, politics and arts.
Contents: Preface; Introduction: culture as a theological theme; Part I The World: Images of the world in Karel Capek and Isaac Bashevis Singer; Theologies of the world. Part II Memory: Heritage of totaltarian cultures in folk music; Redemptive memory on theology. Part III The Ultimate Fulfilment: Figuring the ultimate fulfilment in Central European cinema; Love as the ultimate fulfilment in theology; Conclusion; Bibliography; Index.
Ivana Noble (DolejÅ¡ová) is a Czech theologian, a graduate of the Hussite Theological Faculty in Prague, where she finished her Masters degree just after the fall of Communism. She completed her doctoral studies at Heythrop College in London with a thesis Account of Hope: A Problem of Method in Postmodern Apologia (published in 2001). In 1994-2000 she was Director of the Institute of Ecumenical Studies in Prague, which she co-founded. During that time she wrote also her habilitation work, published in Czech as Po BozÃch stopách: Teologie jako interpretace nábozenské zkuÅ¡enosti (in 2004), which has now been published in English under the title Tracking God: Ecumenical Fundamental Theology (2010). She is a former president of Societas Oecumenica, the European association for ecumenical theology and author of numerous articles on the hermeneutics of Christian tradition, the dialogue between philosophy, theology and arts, as well as on theological responses to totalitarian thinking and the secularization - post-secularization debate. Currently she works as an associate professor of Ecumenical Theology at the Protestant Theological Faculty of Charles University and is also a Senior Research Fellow at the International Baptist Seminary in Prague, Czech Republic.
In this accessible introduction to the doctrines of the Christian faith, readers will gain a unique understanding of the core areas of systematic theology, including God, revelation, humanity, sin, ...Christ and his work, salvation, the church, and the future.
Faithfully Seeking Understanding provides a first-hand opportunity for English-speaking readers to encounter the thought of Johannes Kuhn (1806-1887), widely considered the greatest speculative ...theologian of the renowned Catholic Tübingen School.
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