Christian Theologies of Scripture

by Holcomb, Justin S.

• ISBN13: 9780814736661
• ISBN10: 0814736661
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-04-01
• Publisher: New York Univ Pr

Summary

View the Table of Contents. Read the Introduction.What does it mean to call biblical writings the 'word of God'? This fine collection of readable essays based on current research gives an excellent overview of Christians' answers to that question from the third century to the present and undermines widespread caricatures and over-simplifications. --David H. Kelsey, Yale Divinity SchoolProvides a state-of-the-art introduction to how Christian theories of scriptural interpretation have been intimately bound up with beliefs about life with God, examining both the outlooks of movements and periods, and the contributions of great theologians. No one with an interest in theological exegesis of biblical hermeneutics can afford to miss this book.--David S. Yeago, Lutheran Theological Southern SeminaryAll religious traditions that ground themselves in texts must grapple with certain questions concerning the texts' authority. Yet there has been much debate within Christianity concerning the nature of scripture and how it should be understood--a debate that has gone on for centuries.Christian Theologies of Scripture traces what the theological giants have said about scripture from the early days of Christianity until today. It incorporates diverse discussions about the nature of scripture, its authority, and its interpretation, providing a guide to the variety of views about the Bible throughout the Christian tradition.Preeminent scholars including Michael S. Horton, Graham Ward, and Pamela Bright offer chapters on major figures in the pre-modern, reformation, and early modern eras, from Origen and Aquinas to Luther and Calvin to Barth and Balthasar. They illuminate each thinker's understanding of the Christian scriptures and their views on interpreting the Bible. The book also includes overview chapters to orient readers to the key questions regarding scripture in each era, as well as chapters on scripture and feminism, scripture in the African American Christian tradition, and scripture and postmodernism.This volume will be indispensable reading for students and all those interested in the nature and authority of Christian scripture.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	xi
Introduction: Mapping Theologies of Scripture
Justin S. Holcomb	1	(10)
PART 1: Patristic and Medieval
1 Patristic and Medieval Theologies of Scripture: An Introduction
Lewis Ayres	11	(10)
2 Origen
R.R. Reno	21	(18)
3 St. Augustine
Pamela Bright	39	(21)
4 St. Thomas Aquinas
Peter M. Candler, Jr.	60	(23)
PART II: Reformation and Counter-Reformation
5 Theologies of Scripture in the Reformation and Counter-Reformation: An Introduction
Michael S. Horton	83	(11)
6 Martin Luther
Mickey L. Mattox	94	(20)
7 John Calvin
Randall C. Zachman	114	(20)
8 Scripture and Theology in Early Modern Catholicism
Donald S. Prudlo	134	(23)
PART III: Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries
9 Theologies of Scripture in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries: An Introduction
John R. Franke	157	(8)
10 Friedrich Schleiermacher
Jeffrey Hensley	165	(18)
11 Karl Barth
Mary Kathleen Cunningham	183	(19)
12 Hans Urs von Balthasar
WT Dickens	202	(18)
13 Hans Frei
Mike Higton	220	(23)
PART IV: Contextual Theologies of Scripture
14 Tradition and Traditions: Scripture, Christian Praxes, and Politics
Graham Ward	243	(18)
15 Scripture, Feminism, and Sexuality
Pamela D.H. Cochran	261	(21)
16 Scripture in the African-American Christian Tradition
Lewis V. Baldwin and Stephen W. Murphy	282	(18)
17 Postmodern Scripture
Gerard Loughlin	300	(23)
About the Contributors	323	(4)
Index	327