Rock of Ages? :
Butler, John,
Rock of Ages? : the Changing faces of the Christian God / John Butler. - 1 online resource (235 pages)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
The origins of the Gods -- The God of Israel -- The God of laws and Psalms -- The God of messianic expectation -- The God of the Damascus Road -- The God who came to earth -- The God of dogma and heresy -- The God of creeds -- The God of selective grace -- The God of medieval scholasticism -- The God of reason and revelation -- The God of the reformers -- The God of predestination -- The God of prevenient grace -- The God of the gaps -- The God for enlightened times -- The God who warms the heart -- The God who was fading away -- The God of the liberals -- The God of the fundamentalists -- The God of neo-orthodoxy -- The God of silence and suffering -- The God for the twentieth century -- The God of the past and the God of the future.
Far from being the immutable 'Rock of Ages' He is often assumed to be, the God of Christian history and tradition has had many different and often conflicting faces. Rock of Ages? opens with the emergence of the biblical God from the pantheon of deities in bronze age Canaan, and culminates in the radical images of God that were appearing at the end of the twentieth-century, providing a historical overview of the different and sometimes conflicting ways in which He has been understood. By examining the ideas of key writers down the ages, whose ecclesiastical or intellectual power has allowed their insights to become embedded in the mainstream traditions of the Christian churches, Butler seeks to answer one central question: Why is it that people across the ages have claimed to have seen so many different and sometimes contradictory faces of the Christian God? Or more specifically: If there is one true God, and if He is known to those who believe in him through the revelation of Himself in history, why hasn't a consistent and unified understanding of Him emerged in the witness and testimony of those who claim to have seen his face? In the best of scholarly traditions, Butler presents his work as a clear account of his own quest for an answer; but although suggesting possibilities, he leaves others to come to their own judgements using the evidence available. Written in a clear and attractive style, this is a book for anyone without any prior knowledge of history, theology or philosophy, be they atheists, Christians looking to explore their faith, students or simply anyone interested in the history of religion.
1299677711 9781299677715 0718841808 9780718841805
499021 MIL 22573/ctt1cg4p9b JSTOR
God (Christianity)--History of doctrines.
God (Christianity)--Attributes.
RELIGION--Christian Theology--General.
God (Christianity)--Attributes.
God (Christianity)--History of doctrines.
RELIGION / Christian Theology / History
Electronic books.
BT98 / .B88 2013
231.044
Rock of Ages? : the Changing faces of the Christian God / John Butler. - 1 online resource (235 pages)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
The origins of the Gods -- The God of Israel -- The God of laws and Psalms -- The God of messianic expectation -- The God of the Damascus Road -- The God who came to earth -- The God of dogma and heresy -- The God of creeds -- The God of selective grace -- The God of medieval scholasticism -- The God of reason and revelation -- The God of the reformers -- The God of predestination -- The God of prevenient grace -- The God of the gaps -- The God for enlightened times -- The God who warms the heart -- The God who was fading away -- The God of the liberals -- The God of the fundamentalists -- The God of neo-orthodoxy -- The God of silence and suffering -- The God for the twentieth century -- The God of the past and the God of the future.
Far from being the immutable 'Rock of Ages' He is often assumed to be, the God of Christian history and tradition has had many different and often conflicting faces. Rock of Ages? opens with the emergence of the biblical God from the pantheon of deities in bronze age Canaan, and culminates in the radical images of God that were appearing at the end of the twentieth-century, providing a historical overview of the different and sometimes conflicting ways in which He has been understood. By examining the ideas of key writers down the ages, whose ecclesiastical or intellectual power has allowed their insights to become embedded in the mainstream traditions of the Christian churches, Butler seeks to answer one central question: Why is it that people across the ages have claimed to have seen so many different and sometimes contradictory faces of the Christian God? Or more specifically: If there is one true God, and if He is known to those who believe in him through the revelation of Himself in history, why hasn't a consistent and unified understanding of Him emerged in the witness and testimony of those who claim to have seen his face? In the best of scholarly traditions, Butler presents his work as a clear account of his own quest for an answer; but although suggesting possibilities, he leaves others to come to their own judgements using the evidence available. Written in a clear and attractive style, this is a book for anyone without any prior knowledge of history, theology or philosophy, be they atheists, Christians looking to explore their faith, students or simply anyone interested in the history of religion.
1299677711 9781299677715 0718841808 9780718841805
499021 MIL 22573/ctt1cg4p9b JSTOR
God (Christianity)--History of doctrines.
God (Christianity)--Attributes.
RELIGION--Christian Theology--General.
God (Christianity)--Attributes.
God (Christianity)--History of doctrines.
RELIGION / Christian Theology / History
Electronic books.
BT98 / .B88 2013
231.044
