Here are some excellent new theology books * that were released in May 2026 :
* broadly interpreted, including ethics, church history, biblical studies, and other areas that intersect with theology
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Hesed, the Seed of the Biblical Story: New Life for Old Testament Theology
Jennifer M. Matheny
(Baker Academic)
The Hebrew word hesed is often translated as love, faithfulness, loyalty, or steadfastness of God, but it means so much more. Could hesed be the seed from which the diverse biblical story grows and expands?
Traditionally, Old Testament theology has focused on key themes or a “center” around which to organize the Old Testament. These approaches may help unify the Old Testament, but they also ignore important material and simplify the Old Testament’s complexity and diversity. As an alternative to a gravitational center that reduces, Jennifer M. Matheny’s argument emphasizes possibilities as she posits that hesed is the relational seed from which the complex and diverse biblical story grows.
In her accessibly written analysis, Matheny engages theologically with the Torah, Prophets, and Writings to trace hesed’s relational impact through the Old Testament. Through stories, poems, and songs of broken covenants, war, and exile, Matheny also shows how violence and injustice reign when humanity fails to be keepers and doers of Yhwh’s hesed,while justice and hope prevail when humanity chooses courageous acts of hesed.
This fresh, introductory-level approach emphasizes the importance of story, complexity, and diversity–and how we do hesed to others and back to Yhwh.
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Trinity and Inculturation: The Humanity of God and the Future of African Theology
Bede Uche Ukwuije
( U of Notre Press )
Trinity and Inculturation offers a renewed examination of the naming of God in the context of contemporary fundamental theology and African inculturation theology.
In the past decades, missionary discourse has developed an intentional theological awareness of the intricacies of African traditional religions. Its aim of counteracting the prevalent devaluation of African culture throughout history, however, has come at the expense of foundational components of Trinitarian theology. Trinity and Inculturation seeks to reconcile the disjunction between theology and Christology present in African inculturation theology by re-centering the conversation on the Trinitarian nature of the Christian God revealed through Jesus Christ and the activities of the Holy Spirit.
Father Bede Uche Ukwuije uses the work of German theologian Eberhard Jüngel, and more specifically his idea of the humanity of God, to overcome the dependence of African theology on Western theism. Through this dialogue, Ukwuije crafts a thorough, Trinitarian argument that calls for a reconsideration of fundamental Christian apologetics and the renewal of Christian mission and interreligious dialogue.
*** Which of these theology books of May 2026 do you want to read first?
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C. Christopher Smith is the founding editor of The Englewood Review of Books. He is also author of a number of books, including most recently How the Body of Christ Talks: Recovering the Practice of Conversation in the Church (Brazos Press, 2019). Connect with him online at: C-Christopher-Smith.com
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