The Companion Encyclopedia of Theology provides a comprehensive guide to modern theological thought. An international team of theologians and practitioners of both the Christian and Jewish faiths investigate and consider aspects of theology in 48 self-contained articles. Neither partisan and denominational, nor detached and abstract, this Companion explores the resources and applications of theology in the light of Christianity's place in the modern world. The Structure The Companion Encyclopedia of Theology is divided into six parts. The first three deal with major foundational aspects of Western theological reflection: * the Hebrew and Christian Bible * the Tradition * the contribution of Philosophy The second half of the Companion is concerned with application: * in relation to Spirituality * in relation to contemporary Ethics * in relation to issues in and aspects of present-day theological construction The 48 essays are descriptive, informative and analytical; their wide-ranging content is bound into a unified perspective by the editors' general introduction and the introductions to each of the six parts. At the end of each article, there are suggestions for further reading and the work is concluded with a comprehensive index. This Companion Encyclopedia is a valuable source of reference for students, teachers and both lay and clerical practitioners of Christian and Jewish theology. Key Features * Broad Coverage - contains 48 in-depth essays covering both the history and application of Western theological thought * International Authorship - written in non-technical language by a distinguished team of editors and authors from both Christian and Jewish faiths * Balanced Approach - discusses and analyses the key issues without imposing any single viewpoint * Clearly Presented - at the end of each article, there are suggestions for further reading and the work contains a comprehensive index

This updated reference guide directs students to over five hundred significant theological resources across a wide area of theological research. It details bibliographic sources for encyclopedias, dictionaries, and electronic resources in biblical studies, historical studies, theology, and practical theology.

Recent Reference Books in Religion provides incisive summaries and evaluations of more than 350 contemporary reference works on religious traditions ancient and modern that have been published in English, French and German. For maximum usefulness to readers, Professor Johnston has broadly defined religion to include not just the world religion of Christianity , Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism but also such alternative approaches as mythology, folklore, and the philosophy of ethics. Each entry, analyzing a particular work, includes full bibliographic details as well as commentary: outstanding articles and contributors are highlighted, strengths and weaknesses are carefully noted and weighed. Readers are directed to volumes whose strengths and weaknesses are carefully noted and weighed. Readers are directed to volumes whose strengths complement the weaknesses of others. An indispensable guide in any religious studies collection, Recent Reference Books in Religion: 2nd Edition includes works published through the end of 1997. It also includes a Glossary that describes types and functions of refernce books, and five indexes: Titles, Authors, Topics, Persons and Places.

In The Holy Spirit as Communion, Leon Harris examines the pneumatologies of Colin Gunton and Frank Macchia. For both theologians, the doctrine of the Holy Spirit is foundational to understanding their doctrine of God, Christology, and ecclesiology. Drawing on the theme of communion, The Holy Spirit as Communion expresses the concept that the Holy Spirit is the person who perfects the divine nature and personhood of the Father and Son. It is the Holy Spirit who perfects the eternal communion within the divine Trinity, which is the source of the divine action that also perfects the communion in creation as an expression of the Father's will through Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit as Communion explores the essentiality of the Holy Spirit through a unique approach to Spirit Christology: Gunton is represented by a radicalized version of Chalcedon Christology, and Macchia formulates his account through the overarching metaphor of "Spirit baptism." Therefore, the doctrine of God, Christology, ecclesiology, and eschatology cannot be construed without a proper account of pneumatology that takes into consideration the eschatological perfecting work of the third person of the Trinity--who perfects creation's koinonia as a gift from the Father through the grace of Jesus Christ.

Typically, mystery does not receive much attention in philosophy. Although Heidegger and other key philosophers have made a place for mystery in philosophy, many find such philosophizing suspect and unconvincing. As a general rule, contemporary philosophers have taken a different approach, and, thus, there has been very little discussion of mystery in philosophy. As a study of mystery in philosophy, this book is therefore somewhat unique. Moreover, it is also distinctive in the way it approaches the subject, tuning to an unpopular figure—Dionysius the Areopagite (c. 500)—in contemporary philosophy in effort to make connections between that form of thought and various claims and indications of mystery. Thus, the book is unconventional in terms of both its subject matter and its methodology.

“What Is Religion?” is one of those questions rarely asked by Christian theologians who engage in interreligious discourse. Nigel Ajay Kumar makes the case, however, that to answer this question is critical for Christian scholars who want to negotiate multiple religious identities, as well as for those who want a clearer understanding of their own faith as religion. Kumar takes a historical and theological approach to answering this question. The history of the concept of religion is traced from biblical times to the Indian independence era. Then, a theological answer is offered not only by looking at the classical Indian theologian, Pandipeddi Chenchiah, but also by listening to other contemporary secular and theological voices. (This is the South Asian Edition of the original Wipf & Stock edition (2013) with the same name).

Religion is a dominant force in the lives of many Americans. It animates, challenges, directs and shapes, as well, the legal, political, and scientific agendas of the new Age of Biotechnology. In a very real way, religion, biomedical technology and law are - epistemologically - different. Yet, they are equal vectors of force in defining reality and approaching an understanding of it. Indeed, all three share a synergetic relationship, for they seek to understand and improve the human condition. This book strikes a rich balance between thorough analysis (in the body), anchored in sound references to religion, law and medical scientific analysis, and a strong scholarly direction in the end notes. It presents new insights into the decision-making processes of the new Age of Biotechnology and shows how religion, law and medical science interact in shaping, directing and informing the political processes. This volume will be of interest to both scholars and practitioners in the fields of religion and theology, philosophy, ethics, (family) law, science, medicine, political science and public policy, and gender studies. It will serve as a reference source and can be used in graduate and undergraduate courses in law, medicine and religion.

This title was first published in 2002. One of the most fascinating and controversial interpretations of religious diversity is 'religious pluralism.' According to John Hick's model of religious pluralism, all the world's great religions are equally valid ways of understanding and responding to the ultimate spiritual reality. This book offers an exposition of, and critical response to, John Hick's model. Introducing the various interpretations of religious diversity being discussed today, this book presents constructive suggestions as to how things could be further developed to offer a more accurate, less confusing presentation of the various options in theology of religions. The standard threefold typology of responses to religious diversity - exclusivism, inclusivism, and pluralism - are explained and defended. Hick's pluralist interpretation of religious diversity is traced, culminating in a critical assessment of Hick's pluralistic model and an up-to-date summary of a variety of critiques directed toward Hick's proposal. Paul Rhodes Eddy concludes that Hick's present model is ultimately unsuccessful in retaining both of his long-cherished goals, a robust religious realism and a consistent religious pluralism, whilst overcoming the most difficult problem for the pluralist, the fact that the world's religions understand the divine in often contradictory ways.

Why does the Christian walk often feel like an ongoing struggle and why does God's creation include imperfection, let alone forces that are intent on thwarting God's creative work? In seeking a response to these questions, this book argues that the biblical accounts describe creation in terms of a progressive transformation process whereby the initially incomplete created order will reach perfection only in the fulfillment of new creation. The following discussion then outlines a comprehensive framework for the biblical theology of humanity's struggles, centered on three key themes: corporeal temptation, deficient social structures, and the much-debated notion of spiritual warfare. The book presents an overarching canonical narrative that threads together a series of diverse biblical topics, from Job's temptation to the Atonement. The final part surveys biblical teaching on how human conduct can be aligned with God's creative purpose, and discusses three "assignments" from Jesus to believers: to celebrate the Eucharist, to pray the Lord's Prayer, and to fulfill the Great Commission.

This book, an exploration in theological ethics, is motivated by two central questions. First: How can we think and speak with integrity about God as One who is active in human affairs and the world? How can God make a difference in our world and in our lives? Second, and no less important: What is the character of God's activity in the world, and how are we to relate and respond to this activity? How does God make a difference in our world and our lives, and what are some of the implications for our own actions? As the book's title indicates, Bangert claims that a proper engagement in theological ethics requires both consenting to God and consenting to nature. This means both consenting to the reality that is God, the One with whom we ultimately have to do, and the acceptance of the natural or physical world as hugely determinative of the limits and possibilities of human life and all existence. He argues that this calls for a theocentric, naturalistic, theological ethics. Bangert shows how the work of three major contemporary Protestant thinkers, James M. Gustafson, Sallie McFague, and David Ray Griffin, may be fruitfully appropriated for the articulation of just such an ethics, one that is responsive to the Christian tradition while also sharing the modern commitment's appeal to human experience and reason. Each of these three thinkers eschews a priori appeal to the authority of religious tradition, as each takes seriously scientific knowledge of our world. Each accents ways in which current scientific understandings inform, and in some cases are informed by, contemporary appropriations of the language and thought of Christian tradition. Each is also concerned to relate his or her approach to human valuing, life, and action. A critical appraisal of their work shows that none provides a sufficient basis for an intellectually and religiously adequate theological ethics, but that each contributes elements necessary to the articulation of such an ethics within the Protestant Christian tradition as it confronts the religious and intellectual challenges of today's world.