There are a number of great theology books coming out in the months ahead, which I think will make 2007 a particularly great year for theology buffs like myself (and, I imagine anyone who takes the time to read a blog like this). Coming out this month is a brand new book by Stanley Hauerwas entitled The State of the University: Academic Knowledges and the Knowledge of God. In this new work, Hauerwas diagnoses the fact that in the modern university, theology is seen as unnecessary to the task of higher education. He goes on to probe why this is the case, coming to the conclusion that theology is often excluded from the categories of academic knowledges because it is predicated on a very different understanding of time than that of the other intellectual disciplines. Secular intellectual disciplines, Hauerwas argues are predicated on an understanding of time that makes economic and state realities seem inevitable. Christian theology, on the other hand offers a different understanding of time, which radically calls these presuppositions into question. In contrast to the direction of the university in today’s world, to exclude theology on this basis, Hauerwas argues that precisely because theology understands time differently, it makes in inestimable contribution towards the formation of people who are capable of imagining alternative possibilities for life in the world. This looks to be an excellent book.
Also, we are going to be graced by not one, but two publications from Rowan Williams later this year. Hopefully next month we will see his long awaited introduction to Christian theology, Tokens of Trust: An Introduction to Christian Belief. This book follows the contours of the creeds and delves into the basic convictions that make up Christian theology. Later this year, we are also going to get a new book of Williams’ essays in modern theology entitled Serious Negotiations: Conversations in Modern Theology. I cannot begin to say how much I look forward to these books from this theological master.
For right now, I am entrenched in Pope Benedict XVI’s new book, Jesus of Nazareth. This will certainly become a very important contribution to Christology and historical Jesus studies in the years ahead. The fundamental thesis of Benedict’s Christology is that we can rightly understand the significance of Jesus only in light of his immediate and intimate relationship with the Father. Thus, Benedict, in contrast to much New Testament scholarship contests (rightly, in my view), that our understanding of Jesus and his significance for our life of faith is grounded in a Trinitarian understanding of God. Or, put another way, since Jesus is included within the divine identity by virtue of his relationship with the Father, his life, death, and resurrection constitute the ultimate meaning of history and all of our lives. I highly recommend the Holy Father’s book to all Christians, regardless of their denomination. Benedict claims that this book in no way represents the teachings of the Magisterium, but rather is his personal quest for the face of the Lord. I think we will all catch a glimpse of the Crucified and Risen One through this excellent book.
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