This ecclesiological study argues that Reformed ecclesiology cannot be separated from Reformed Christology. The christological foundation of Reformed doctrine of the church will be examined as Reformed theology portrays the important ecclesiological topics in the light of its christological thoughts. This book offers potential for the future of the church with her pastoral concern. It will serve as a stimulus against the erroneous paths of ecclesiocentrism on the one hand and church-forgetfulness on the other. Even though the chapters of the book deal with classical topics in ecclesiology, the work will try to analyze and answer contemporary challenges the church faces. This book is not a systematic treatment in the sense of an examination of the whole developed in terms of one principle (that is, Christology). Rather, the concern of this book is to expound the Holy Scripture realistically and to engage with the contemporary church in her concrete existence. The study will weave together insights from biblical, historical, confessional, philosophical, and contemporary studies in a fruitful way.

This research guide introduces scholars to the field of Reformed theology, focusing on works of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries in the English language. After a brief introductory section on the debates about what counts as “Reformed theology,” Martha Moore-Keish explores twenty-one major theological themes, with attention to classical as well as current works. The author demonstrates that this stream of Protestantism is both internally diverse and ecumenically interwoven with other Christian families, not just a single clearly defined group set apart from others. In addition, this guide shows that contemporary Reformed theology has been rethinking the doctrines of God, humanity, and their relationship in significant ways that challenge old stereotypes and offer fresh wisdom for our world today.

Christian theology, classically defined, is faith's intellectual work of seeking understanding, not in order to prove its truth but to persuade those who hear it proclaimed. Theology done from within the Reformed tradition has long displayed this quality, and it continues to develop in response to our changing world. "Reformed Theology: Identity and Ecumenicity" is an excellent resource for readers interested in examining current trends and motifs in Reformed thought. Written by systematic theologians from around the world, this book explores the meaning of the Reformed tradition and its relevance for the contemporary church. The contributors highlight ways that Reformed theology can enrich the church ecumenical even as they seek to realize a more catholic Reformed community of inquiry. Contributors: P. Mark Achtemeier Wallace M. Alston Jr. H. Russel Botman Eberhard Busch Dawn DeVries Margit Ernst Gabriel Fackre Douglas Farrow David Fergusson Botond Gaal Colin Gunton George Hunsinger William Stacy Johnson Yung Han Kim Ulrich H. J. Kortner Jan Milič Lochman Bruce L. McCormack Peter McEnhill Daniel L. Migliore Piet J. Naude Milan Opocě nsky Jan Rohls Dirk Smit George W. Stroup A. van de Beek Leanne Van Dyk Michael Weinrich Michael Welker Myung Yong Kim Carver T. Yu

Many congregations today focus on strategy and purpose—what churches "do"—but Cheryl Peterson submits that mainline churches need to focus instead on "what" or "who" they are—to reclaim a theological, rather than sociological, understanding of themselves. Peterson suggests that we understand the church as a people created by the Spirit to be a community, and that we must claim a narrative method to explore the church's identity—specifically, the story of the church's origin in the Acts of the Apostles. Finally, here is a way of thinking of church that reconciles the best of competing models of church for the future of mainline Protestant theology.

Many events were staged and a plethora of new books appeared to mark the quincentenary of the birth of John Calvin, in 2009. But one area received considerably less attention in that anniversary year - namely, Calvin's ecclesiology. This study explores the development and fundamental legacy of Calvin's perspectives on and relationship with the church. Contributions are included which explore the later development and 'denominational variations' of Calvin's ecclesiology, along with ecumenical discussions/responses to and implications of Calvin's understanding of the church. There are further chapters which focus on particular aspects such as Calvin's ecclesiological method, understanding of ministry, the 'sacramental' principle, the 'invisible church' etc. Contributions on the use of Calvin's ecclesiology by later and modern/contemporary ecclesiologists also feature. This is a volume that brings together leading and emerging theological voices from Europe, North America and Latino America and from across the different theological sub-disciplines. Significantly, the book has a decidedly ecumenical perspective, with writers from several different denominational traditions contributing.

Once upon a time, the state shared the public square with the church. The central location of the church building in every European town is mute testimony to this state of affairs. But those days are long gone. Nowadays there is an implicit or explicit consensus regarding the proper place of the church: out of sight and out of mind. How has this sea change come about? Through a complete metanoia (“change of mind”) regarding the public square. Church and state used to be in agreement about ultimate reality, but then came the wars of religion and the desire for a neutral state. This gave us the agnostic state, incapable of making any judgement regarding truth or falsehood regarding religion. Freedom of religion has been the result. But this freedom has come with a price – the loss of a grip on ultimate reality, on transcendent standards and values. It is every person for him- or herself, the triumph of congeries of opinion over truth. Under these conditions, the church has itself experienced a transformation. It has been fragmented into myriad churches, none of which may claim ultimacy, all of which claim to proclaim the truth. We no longer have the body of Christ visibly expressed; instead we have denominations, private-legal constructs expressive of various consumer-oriented flavors of faith orientation. Has unity then been abandoned? No; for it is not a question of unity or no unity, it is a question of what kind of unity. In the modern world, the churches have exchanged unity in terms of confession, with unity in terms of politics. Political parties are the vehicles through which Christians express a joint conviction. And this has brought the church down to the level of the interest group and the lobbyist, the inevitable result of an age of denominationalism. Over 100 years ago, P. J. Hoedemaker already delineated and analyzed this state of affairs. The abysmal condition of the Dutch Reformed church formed the historical backdrop for his analysis, but the principles he developed during the course of his critique of the national church are applicable across the board in the modern world. Hoedemaker excavates the biblical and Reformational foundations of ecclesiology, the basics apart from which the church cannot escape from its current abasement.

Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen provides an up-to-date survey and analysis of the major ecclesiological traditions, the most important theologians, and a number of contextual approaches to both the unity and the diversity of ecclesiastic understandings and practices.

What does it mean to be Reformed Christians in the world today ? and in Africa and South Africa? What does it mean to commemorate the legacy of John Calvin (1509-1564) after 500 years ? in a modern world characterised by democracy, by popular notions of human dignity and human rights, by worldwide struggles for individual freedoms and for social justice, by a global economy in crisis ? when social historians argue about the lasting contribution of Calvin and his followers precisely with respect to all these modern phenomena? The 28 essays by Dirkie Smit selected for this volume deal with such questions.

Culled from the theology lectures of Geerhardus Vos, Reformed Dogmatics represents the early work of one of the most important biblical theologians and Reformed thinkers of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Vos, who later taught at Princeton Seminary for 39 years, gave these lectures during his time at Calvin Seminary, 1888–1893. Taken from his students’ notes and first published in Dutch in 1896 as Gereformeerde Dogmatiek, these lectures are now available in English for the first time in this translation.

Ecclesiology is a key issue for the present age of church history. This groundbreaking work by one of today's leading theologians offers a major Protestant ecclesiology for the church catholic. This volume, the first of three, considers the priesthood of the church in light of the priesthood of Christ. Tom Greggs shows the connection between Christ's work as high priest and the universal church's role in salvation. All together, the three volumes will offer a major statement on the doctrine of the church for Christians from a variety of backgrounds.