Calvin And The Christian Tradition

Download or read book Calvin and the Reformed Tradition written by Richard A. Muller and published by Baker Books. This book was released on 2012-11-15 with total page 454 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Richard Muller, a world-class scholar of the Reformation era, examines the relationship of Calvin's theology to the Reformed tradition, indicating Calvin's place in the tradition as one of several significant second-generation formulators. Muller argues that the Reformed tradition is a diverse and variegated movement not suitably described either as founded solely on the thought of John Calvin or as a reaction to or deviation from Calvin, thereby setting aside the old "Calvin and the Calvinists" approach in favor of a more integral and representative perspective. Muller offers historical corrective and nuance on topics of current interest in Reformed theology, such as limited atonement/universalism, union with Christ, and the order of salvation.

Download or read book Calvin and the Christian Tradition written by R. Ward Holder and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2022-06-09 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: John Calvin lived in a divided world when past certainties were crumbling. Calvin claimed that his thought was completely based upon scripture, but he was mistaken. At several points in his thought and his ministry, he set his own foundations upon tradition. His efforts to make sense of his culture and its religious life mirror issues that modern Western cultures face, and that have contributed to our present situation. In this book, R. Ward Holder offers new insights into Calvin's successes and failures and suggests pathways for understanding some of the problems of contemporary Western culture such as the deep divergence about living in tradition, the modern capacity to agree on the foundations of thought, and even the roots of our deep political polarization. He traces Calvin's own critical engagement with the tradition that had formed him and analyzes the inherent divisions in modern heritage that affect our ability to agree, not only religiously or politically, but also about truth. An epilogue comparing biblical interpretation with Constitutional interpretation is illustrative of contemporary issues and demonstrates how historical understanding can offer solutions to tensions in modern culture.

Download or read book Calvin vs. Wesley written by Dr. Don Thorsen and published by Abingdon Press. This book was released on 2013-10-15 with total page 187 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Congregations are made up of people with all sorts of theologies. Pastor Mike Slaughter even says that these can stand in the way of the church’s mission of social and personal holiness. But most people do not adopt a theology on purpose, mostly they merely breathe in the prevailing cultural air. The theology "de jour" seems to be Calvinist, with its emphasis on “the elect” and “other worldly salvation.” In fact, there is so much Calvinism saturating the culture, that some do not even know there is an alternative way of thinking about their faith. They don’t know where to go to find a viable option; they don’t even know the key words to search Google. So people are left thinking like Calvinists but living with a desire to change the world, offering grace and hope to hurting people in mission and ministry—loving the least, the last, and the lost. In other words, they are living like Wesleyans. This book shows what Calvinist and Wesleyans actually believe about human responsibility, salvation, the universality of God’s grace, holy living through service, and the benefits of small group accountability--and how that connects to how people can live. Calvinists and Wesleyans are different, and by knowing the difference, people will not only see the other benefits of Wesleyan theology but will be inspired to learn more. By knowing who they are as faithful people of God, they will be motivated to reach out in mission with renewed vigor. And they won’t be obstacles to grace and holiness, but they can be better disciples and advocates for Christ through service in this world.

Download or read book Empire and the Christian Tradition written by Don H. Compier and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 560 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The radically altered situation today in religion, politics, and global communication-what can broadly be characterized as postmodern and postcolonial-necessitates close rereading of Christianity's classical sources, especially its theologians. In this groundbreaking textbook anthology, twenty-nine distinguished scholars scrutinize the relationship between empire and Christianity from Paul to the liberation theologians of our time. The contributors discuss how the classical theologians in different historical periods dealt with their own contexts of empire and issues such as center and margin, divine power and social domination, war and violence, gender hierarchy, and displacement and diaspora. Each chapter provides insights and resources drawn from the classical theological tradition to address the current political situation. Book jacket.

Download or read book John Calvin's Institutes of the Christian Religion written by Bruce Gordon and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2016-05-17 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An essential biography of the most important book of the Protestant Reformation John Calvin's Institutes of the Christian Religion is a defining book of the Reformation and a pillar of Protestant theology. First published in Latin in 1536 and in Calvin's native French in 1541, the Institutes argues for the majesty of God and for justification by faith alone. The book decisively shaped Calvinism as a major religious and intellectual force in Europe and throughout the world. Here, Bruce Gordon provides an essential biography of Calvin's influential and enduring theological masterpiece, tracing the diverse ways it has been read and interpreted from Calvin's time to today. Gordon explores the origins and character of the Institutes, looking closely at its theological and historical roots, and explaining how it evolved through numerous editions to become a complete summary of Reformation doctrine. He shows how the development of the book reflected the evolving thought of Calvin, who instilled in the work a restlessness that reflected his understanding of the Christian life as a journey to God. Following Calvin's death in 1564, the Institutes continued to be reprinted, reedited, and reworked through the centuries. Gordon describes how it has been used in radically different ways, such as in South Africa, where it was invoked both to defend and attack the horror of apartheid. He examines its vexed relationship with the historical Calvin—a figure both revered and despised—and charts its robust and contentious reception history, taking readers from the Puritans and Voltaire to YouTube, the novels of Marilynne Robinson, and to China and Africa, where the Institutes continues to find new audiences today.

Download or read book After Calvin written by Richard Alfred Muller and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2003 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this sequel to Muller's 'The Unaccommodated Calvin' (OUP 2000), the author carries his approach forward, with the goal of overcoming a series of 19th- and 20th-century theological frameworks characteristic of much of the scholarship on Reformed orthodoxy, or 'Calvinism after Calvin'.

Download or read book Calvin, Participation, and the Gift written by J. Todd Billings and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2007-11-15 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Is the God of Calvin a fountain of blessing, or a forceful tyrant? Is Calvin's view of God coercive, leaving no place for the human qua human in redemption? These are perennial questions about Calvin's theology which have been given new life by Gift theologians such as John Milbank, Graham Ward, and Stephen Webb. J. Todd Billings addresses these questions by exploring Calvin's theology of `participation in Christ'. He argues that Calvin's theology of `participation' gives a positive place to the human, such that grace fulfils rather than destroys nature, affirming a differentiated union of God and humanity in creation and redemption. Calvin's trinitarian theology of participation extends to his view of prayer, sacraments, the law, and the ecclesial and civil orders. In light of Calvin's doctrine of participation, Billings reframes the critiques of Calvin in the Gift discussion and opens up new possibilities for contemporary theology, ecumenical theology, and Calvin scholarship as well.