A Brief Book Notice from Books At a Glance
Table of Contents
1 Why Study Theology?
2 Origen
3 Athanasius
4 Augustine
5 Thomas Aquinas
6 Martin Luther
7 John Calvin
8 Jonathan Edwards
9 Friedrich Schleiermacher
10 John Henry Newman
11 Karl Barth
12 Hans Urs Von Balthasar
13 What These Theologians Teach Us About Theology
Selected Quotes
- “Therefore, there is no faith without theology. There is no reading of the Bible without a theology that is used—wittingly or unwittingly—to interpret the Bible.” (12)
- “But all the theologians in this book have had great influence on the development of Christian thought. That doesn’t mean that the theology of every one has been good. In fact, some have done damage to Christian thinking.” (14)
- “Augustine: The Most Influential Theologian Ever.” (48)
- “Although Luther was the first great Reformer, Calvin took Reformation insights (such as salvation by the grace of God in Christ and through faith not by works, and the final authority of Scripture) and organized them in a systematic but accessible way.” (97)
- “Edwards can also show us, perhaps better than anyone else in the history of American Christianity, that true faith involves both mind and heart.” (131)
- “Most Christians have never heard of Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834), but his influence is hard to overestimate…[he] is usually called the father of liberal theology.” (134)
- “Balthasar’s greatest legacy may be his all-encompassing vision for theology as a way to think through all of human philosophy and religion by using the prism of the glory of God in Christ.” (198)
- “If there is a thesis of this book, it is this: The best way to navigate our way theologically is to use the Great Tradition of orthodox theology as a lens through which to evaluate all competing traditions.” (209)