For many Christians traditional theology is a rather dull, if not a dead subject. This neither proves that modern people have lost their awareness of God nor their interest in theology; it merely indicates that theologians, by and large, have been speaking in their own tongue to fellow theologians and both what and how they have been saying it seem rather irrelevant to the educated Christian. This is particularly true of the doctrine of grace, especially when presented in the garb of scholasticism which overemphasizes the rational at the expense of the empirical. This book is a new beginning; it is an invitation to explore and develop new perspectives and to make a focal doctrine more vital and more intelligible to our times. In explaining grace - "God's loving presence and [human] transformation in it" - the author displays a profound understanding of the religious moods, culture and needs of our time, as well as an expert knowledge of scriptural, patristic, theological and modern ideas on the subject. Here is a relevant, seminal and eminently readable study for all those interested in a vibrant theology for today and tomorrow.

For many Christians traditional theology is a rather dull, if not a dead subject. This neither proves that modern people have lost their awareness of God nor their interest in theology; it merely indicates that theologians, by and large, have been speaking in their own tongue to fellow theologians and both what and how they have been saying it seem rather irrelevant to the educated Christian. This is particularly true of the doctrine of grace, especially when presented in the garb of scholasticism which overemphasizes the rational at the expense of the empirical. This book is a new beginning; it is an invitation to explore and develop new perspectives and to make a focal doctrine more vital and more intelligible to our times. In explaining grace - ÒGod's loving presence and [human] transformation in itÓ - the author displays a profound understanding of the religious moods, culture and needs of our time, as well as an expert knowledge of scriptural, patristic, theological and modern ideas on the subject. Here is a relevant, seminal and eminently readable study for all those interested in a vibrant theology for today and tomorrow.

Grace in Practice is a challenging call to live life under grace -- a concept most Christians secretly have trouble with. Paul Zahl pulls no punches, contending that no matter how often we talk about salvation by grace, in our "can-do" society we often cling instead to a righteousness of works. Asserting throughout that grace always trumps both law and church, Zahl illuminates an expansive view of grace in everything, extending the good news of grace to all creation. Conversationally written and filled with fascinating insights, Grace in Practice will reward any Christian who seeks to understand the full measure of God's grace and the total freedom it offers.

How does an infinite God relate to finite human beings? How does the death of Jesus Christ bring about human salvation? How are Christians able to actively address the world's ills while maintaining their citizenship in the kingdom of God? These are questions the church grapples with today, as it always has. Yet, according to Thomas C. Oden, contemporary theology has neglected the church's traditional answer to these questions: the doctrine of grace. All too often modern theologians either ignore the doctrine of grace or relate it to the achievement of a particular political agenda. Oden asserts that only by reclaiming the centrality of grace--defined as God's self-giving through Jesus Christ in personal encounter with the individual human will--can Christian theology be true to the gospel. In order to reclaim the doctrine of grace, the author reaches back, beyond the fragmentation of theology that took place during and after the Enlightenment. He draws upon the ecumenical consensus held by early Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Protestant theologians, councils, and creeds regarding this cardinal Christian doctrine. By adducing this ancient unity, Oden challenges modern assumptions concerning the sources and methods of the theological enterprise and calls contemporary Christians to discern what their forebears in the faith knew to be essential to the gospel: that to be a Christian is to be formed, nurtured, and upheld solely by divine grace.

Few topics in theology are as complex and multifaceted as grace: over the course of centuries, many seemingly arbitrary distinctions and arcane debates have arisen around it. Edward Oakes, however, argues that all of these distinctions and debates are ultimately motivated by one central question: What are God’sintentions for the world? In A Theology of Grace in Six Controversies Oakes examines issues relating to grace and points them back to that central question, illuminating and explaining what is really at stake in these debates. Maintaining that controversies clarify issues, especially those as convoluted as that of grace, Oakes works through six central debates on the topic, including sin and justification, evolution and original sin, and free will and predestination.

How does the Christian proclamation of salvation in Jesus Christ relate to the lives of the people who suffer most? Does salvation consist entirely of the hope for eternal life with God? How might the church effectively preach the message of salvation in Christ today? In Jesus and Salvation, Robin Ryan adopts a historical approach to these questions, discussing key themes and classic authors in the developing tradition about Christ the Savior. He examines modern soteriology by engaging the thought of Karl Rahner, Edward Schillebeeckx, Gustavo Gutiérrez, and Elizabeth Johnson. He also discusses contemporary conceptions of salvation within an evolutionary view of the cosmos as well as issues related to the Christian confession of Jesus as universal savior in a religiously pluralistic world. Ryan concludes by offering his own reflections on the meaning of salvation from God in Jesus Christ. By understanding salvation in Christ as both gift and call, Ryan invites readers to recognize in the saving grace of God a responsibility for the well-being of the human family and the rest of creation.

This study ponders different ways Christian thinkers understood humanity in its relationship to divine grace. It names fallacies that have in the past skewed theological understanding of that relationship. It argues that the philosophy of Charles Sanders Peirce avoided those same fallacies and provides a novel frame of reference for rethinking the theology of grace. The author shows how the insights of other American philosophers flesh out undeveloped aspects of Peirce's thought. He formulates a metaphysics of experience derived from his philosophical analysis. Finally, he develops an understanding of supernatural grace as the transmutation and transvaluation of human experience.