Contemporary Theology: An Introduction: Classical, Evangelical, Philosophical, and Global Perspectives
Overview
Contemporary Theology: An Introduction by Kirk MacGregor introduces major thinkers and schools of thought from the beginning of the 19th century to the present, including non-Western voices, evangelical perspectives, and philosophical developments alongside the widely acknowledged main streams of modern theology.
Accessible and comprehensive, Contemporary Theology: An Introduction by professor and author Kirk R. MacGregor provides a chronological survey of the major thinkers and schools of thought in modern theology in a manner that is both approachable and intriguing.
Unique among introductions to contemporary theology, MacGregor includes:
- Evangelical perspectives alongside mainline and liberal developments
- The influence of philosophy and the recent Christian philosophical renaissance on theology
- Global contributions
- Recent developments in exegetical theology
- The implications of theological shifts on ethics and church life
Contemporary Theology: An Introduction is noteworthy for making complex thought understandable and for tracing the landscape of modern theology in a well-organized and easy-to-follow manner.
- Provides a clear and unbiased overview of the theological landscape of the past two centuries
- Introduces the major thinkers and schools of thought in Christian theology
- Explains how today’s evangelical, mainline, and radical perspectives have achieved their current shape
- Philosophical Backgrounds
- Friedrich Schleiermacher: The Founder of Modern Liberal Theology
- G. W. F. Hegel: Dialectical Theology
- Søren Kierkegaard: Existentialism
- Early Dispensationalism
- Princeton Theology
- Charles Haddon Spurgeon: Practical Biblical Theology
- Vatican I and Neo-Thomism
- Revivalist Theology
- The Social Gospel
- Fundamentalism
- Karl Barth and Neo-Orthodoxy
- Christian Realism
- Pentecostalism and Latin American Pneumatology
- Ludwig Wittgenstein and Language Games
- The Birth of Contemporary Evangelicalism
- Rudolf Bultmann: Demythologization
- Paul Tillich: Theology of Culture
- Death of God Theologies
- Vatican II: Aggiornamento
- Process Theology
- Jürgen Moltmann: Theology of Hope
- John Howard Yoder: Current Anabaptist Theology
- Liberation Theology
- Feminist Theology
- Evangelical Complementarianism and Egalitarianism
- Reformed Epistemology
- African Christology: Healer and Ancestor
- Postmodern Theology
- Open Theism
- Philosophy of Religion and Analytic Theology
- Chinese Eschatology
- Postliberal Theology
- Theology and the Arts
- A New Perspective on Paul and Justification
- Theological Interpretation of Scripture
- Evolutionary Creation
- Postconservative Theology
Top Highlights
“Many intellectual historians have justifiably quipped that modern philosophy began with the thought of French philosopher and mathematician René Descartes (1596–1650), for he introduced major changes in philosophical thinking and method that have profoundly shaped the course of philosophy since his time. The most monumental of all these changes was the removal of God from the center of the philosophical enterprise.” (Page 13)
“Bonaventure posited illumination as the basis of his epistemology” (Page 14)
“Kant believed that religion had one main purpose: to furnish moral foundations and education for society” (Page 21)
“Related to epistemology is metaphysics, which deals with the nature and structure of reality” (Page 18)
“There are three reasons for our focus on Latin America. First” (Page 143)
Contemporary Theology: An Introduction will assuredly—and quickly—become an indispensable addition to the required reading list for undergraduate and graduate courses on Christian theology and Christian ethics. As in all his publications, Professor MacGregor combines comprehensive and context-driven historical analysis with superlative writing skills. Difficult concepts are presented in a clearly-written, crisp, and engaging style. For the general reader interested in the positive impact of Christian ethics on our fragmented and contentious world, your understanding of the ongoing cultural struggle for ethical assurances, drawn from the long history of Christian theology, will be exponentially enhanced. Highly recommended!
—John K. Simmons, professor emeritus of religious studies, Western Illinois University
With Contemporary Theology: An Introduction Professor MacGregor presents the theological community a highly readable, cogent, and insightful inventory of two centuries of modern theological thought. Scholars will appreciate the comprehensive overview, students will love the easy access of thirty-eight nearly standalone chapters, and the generally educated layperson will value the contextualization of their own experiences which this volume offers. Additionally, the extensive critical apparatus helpfully lays out both pivotal primary texts and useful secondary sources, thus ensuring that Contemporary Theology shall soon become a sought after college and seminary textbook as well as a frequently consulted theological handbook.
—Romwald Maczka, professor emeritus of religion, Carthage College
In Contemporary Theology Kirk MacGregor skillfully acquaints readers with the principal thinkers and schools of thought in Christian theology over the past two hundred years, both inside and outside evangelicalism. MacGregor beautifully discloses how the renaissance in philosophy of religion over the past half-century has shaped many of the most creative and constructive strides in theology today. I heartily recommend this book.
—William Lane Craig, research professor of philosophy, Talbot School of Theology, and professor of philosophy, Houston Baptist University
- Title: Contemporary Theology: An Introduction
- Author: Kirk R. MacGregor
- Publisher: Zondervan
- Publication Date: 2019
- Pages: 416
- Resource Type: Introduction
- Topic: Theology
Reviews
0 ratings
Casey Sandberg
7/9/2022
Please update this product placement with the newest printing, the revised edition.