A Theology for the Twenty-First Century

by Douglas F. Ottati

Publisher:

Eerdmans

, 2020

Overview

Christianity in the United States is in crisis. Liberalism is declining, evangelicalism is splintering, increasing numbers of Christians are slipping away from churches, and more and more young people are for various reasons finding Christianity as they conceive it (a metaphysical thought system, or society of science-deniers, or an ideology for oppressors) not just implausible but repellent. At the same time, Christians across denominational and ideological divides are rediscovering a moral core, especially in the Jesus of the Gospels, that reactivates and unites them, and this kind of faith appeals to many who consider themselves averse to all traditional organized religion. But any revitalized Christian faith is going to need to understand its rootedness in, and interpretation of, Christianity’s foundational texts and traditions.

Noted theologian Douglas F. Ottati steps in to offer a theology for this new era. Combining deep learning in texts and traditions with astute awareness of contemporary questions and patterns of thought and life, he asks: what does it mean, in our time, to understand the God of the Bible as Creator and Redeemer? Distilling the content of Christian faith into seventy concise propositions, he explains each in lucid, cogent prose. A Theology for the Twenty-First Century will be an essential textbook for those training for ministry in our current climate, a wise guide for contemporary believers who wonder how best to understand and communicate their faith, and an inviting and intelligent resource for serious inquirers who wonder whether the way of Jesus might help them grasp the real world while remaining open to the transcendent.

Key Features

• Provides an essential textbook for those training for ministry in our current climate
• Features seventy concise propositions
• Combines deep learning in texts and traditions with astute awareness of contemporary questions

Contents

Part I: Method

• A Conception of Christian Theology
• The Formation and Arrangement of Theological Statements

Part II: Creation

• The Constitution of the Dynamic World: Cosmic Ecology
• The Dynamic Continuation of the World: Cosmic Passage
• Created and Sustained Human Life
• God the Creator

Part III: Redemption

• Jesus Christ and the Covenant of Grace
• The Way, the Truth, and the Life
• The Spirit and the Church
• Human Life: Sin and Regeneration
• The Fragmentation and Renewal of the World: Civil Government, Church, and Sustainability
• God the Redeemer
• Epilogue: The Sense the Trinity Makes

Product Details

• Title: A Theology for the Twenty-First Century
• Author: Douglas F. Ottati
• Publisher: Eerdmans
• Publication Date: 2020
• Pages: 832
• Resource Type: Systematic Theology
• Topic: Theology

About Douglas F. Ottati

Douglas F. Ottati is Craig Family Distinguished Professor of Reformed Theology and Justice at Davidson College in North Carolina. He taught for many years at what is now Union Presbyterian Seminary in Richmond, Virginia, and is a past president of the Society of Christian Ethics. He is a ruling elder in the Presbyterian Church (USA). Among his other books are Jesus Christ and Christian Vision and Hopeful Realism: Reclaiming the Poetry of Theology.