Autorentext

Chad Meister is Affiliate Scholar of the Ansari Institute for Global Engagement with Religion at the University of Notre Dame. He has written and edited over 30 books, including The Routledge Companion to Modern Christian Thought.

J.B. Stump is Vice President of BioLogos, now working primarily at the intersection of Christianity and science. His latest book is The Sacred Chain: How Understanding Evolution Leads to Deeper Faith.

Klappentext

Christian Thought: A Historical Introduction offers a clear and engaging overview of the major ideas, figures, and movements that have shaped Christian theology from the early Church to the present day. Now in its third edition, this accessible and engaging book introduces readers to the historical development of Christian thought, emphasizing how theology has been shaped by-and has responded to-changing cultural, philosophical, and political contexts.

This new edition features expanded coverage of Eastern Orthodoxy, the Reformation beyond Calvin, and the global expressions of Christianity that have come to the fore in recent decades. It also offers greater attention to the theological contributions of women and includes updated chapters on the Bible and the Trinity. Supplementary visuals help contextualize the material, making this an excellent resource for both classroom use and personal study.

Written in clear, student-friendly language and assuming no prior background in theology, Christian Thought is both intellectually serious and widely accessible. Readers will be guided through the rich and complex journey of Christian ideas, and understand why they continue to matter today.

Inhalt

Part 1 Incubations and origins: the ancient period 500bce-70ce 1. The pre-history of Christian thought 2. Jesus of Nazareth 3. The Apostle Paul: his thought and context 4. The break from Judaism Part 2 Definition and resistance: The Patristic period 70-500 5. Persecution of Christians 6. Spirituality and asceticism: the desert fathers and mothers 7. The Christian apologists: interacting with Gnosticism and other "heresies" 8. The early Church councils: Christological controversy and definition 9. Trinitarian debate 10. Formation of the New Testament canon 11. Augustine: philosopher, theologian, and church father Part 3 Establishment and diversification: the Medieval period 500-1500 12. Monasticism of the early Middle Ages 13. Early Diversification and the East-West Schism 14. Anselm, Abelard, and Bernard 15. Islam and Judaism in the Middle Ages 16. Women and theology in the Middle Ages 17. Thomas Aquinas 18. Preparation for reform Part 4 Protest and revolution: the Reformation period 1500-1700 19. Martin Luther 20. The Reformed tradition 21. Protesting against the Protestants: Anabaptism and the Radical Reformation 22. Reformation continues: the English and the Catholics Part 5 Enlightenment and evolution: the Modern period 1700-2000 and beyond 23. The challenge of modernism 24. Pietism and revivalism 25. Romanticism's response to Enlightenment theology 26. Neo-orthodoxy: Karl Barth and others 27. Liberal Protestantism 28. Major theological traditions and developments in the twentieth century 29. Recent and emerging themes