Ten Theology Books to Watch For [July 2019]

The Fathers of the Church
in Christian Theology

Michel Fedou, S.J.

Catholic U of America Press

The main purpose of The Fathers of the Church in Christian Theology is to argue that Patristic studies still has much to contribute to theological reflections in our time. Throughout history, the reading of the Fathers of the Church has made major contributions to Christian thinking. This fecundity was notably verified in the 20th century through the work of theologians like Henri de Lubac and Hans Urs von Balthasar. It was as well manifested broadly in the life of the church that, with the Vatican II council, drew from the patristic tradition a source of inspiration for its own renewal.

However, even though the research and work on early Christianity has experienced considerable growth for several decades, Christian theology is today confronted with new questions. Thus, what status to recognize in the exegesis of the Fathers? Has not the distance from the heritage of patristic thinking been widened? More radically, do not the demands of contextual theologies on diverse continents compel a distancing away from some traditions that formerly were principally limited to Mediterranean and European regions?

If these questions must be taken into account, they, nevertheless, cannot dispense with Christian theology being, today as yesterday, inspired and made fecund by the writings of the Fathers. Michel Fédou attempts to shed light on what, in our own era, justifies the necessity of a patristic theology. He shows how the reading of the Fathers contributes to the understanding of the faith in the different fields of Christian thinking. It highlights the importance of their writings for the spiritual life and the valuable nourishment that they thus offer to our times.

The Image of God in the
Theology of Gregory of Nazianzus 

Gabrielle Thomas

Cambridge UP

Gregory of Nazianzus, known best for his Christology and Trinitarian doctrine, presents an incomparable vision of the image of God. In this book, Gabrielle Thomas offers a close analysis of his writings and demonstrates how Nazianzen depicts both the nature and experience of the image of God throughout his corpus. She argues that Nazianzen’s vision of the human person as an image of God is best understood in light of biblical and extra-biblical themes. To establish the breadth of his approach, Thomas analyzes the image of God against the backdrop of Nazianzen’s beliefs about Christology, Pneumatology, creation, sin, spiritual warfare, ethics, and theosis. Interpreted accordingly, Nazianzen offers a dynamic and multifaceted account of the image of God, which has serious implications both for Cappadocian studies and contemporary theological anthropology.

<<<<< PREV. PAGE | BACK TO TOP >>>>>
PAGE 5 of 5