Since the publication of Sang Hyun Lee's revolutionary commentary, The Philosophical Theology of Jonathan Edwards, scholars have considered the possibilities of understanding Jonathan Edwards's thought in terms of dispositional laws, forces, and habits. While some scholars reject the notion of a dispositional ontology in Edwards, others have taken the concept of disposition in his thought beyond the usage the Northampton minister ever indicated, especially with respect to soteriological considerations. The preacher of "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" is made to be an inclusivist, if not a crypto-universalist. Jonathan Edwards's Vision of Reality substantiates that Edwards, in an effort to combat deistic and materialistic Enlightenment paradigms, employs dispositions in his philosophy, but that his radical theocentrism and Calvinistic particularism established its boundaries within his apologetical reconsideration of spatiotemporal and metaphysical reality. Within his "spiritual vision" of reality, Edwards leaves no stone unturned: history and even the reprobate find inherent value and a positive functional role not only in God's program of self-glorification but as manifestations of divine being--the damned are "deformities" in God. The logic of Edwards's theocentric vision of reality pushes his ideas to the limits of acceptable Reformed orthodoxy, and sometimes beyond those limits.

"Useful men are some of the greatest blessings of a people. To have many such is more for a people's happiness than almost anything, unless it be God's own gracious, spiritual presence amongst them; they are precious gifts of heaven." Certainly one of the most useful men in evangelical history was the man who preached those words, pastor and theologian Jonathan Edwards. Commemorating his 300th birthday, general editors John Piper and Justin Taylor chose ten essays that highlight different aspects of Edwards's life and legacy and show how his teachings are just as relevant today as they were three centuries ago. Even within the church, many people know little more about Edwards than what is printed in American history textbooks-most often, excerpts from his best-known sermon, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." They unjustly envision Edwards preaching only fire and brimstone to frightened listeners. But he knew and preached God's heaven as much as Satan's hell. He was a humble and joyful servant, striving to glorify God in his personal life and public ministry. This book's contributors investigate the character and teachings of the man who preached from a deep concern for the unsaved and a passionate desire for God. Studying the life and works of this dynamic Great Awakening figure will rouse slumbering Christians, prompting them to view the world through Edwards's God-centered lens.

Many Evangelicals want to believe in a God who is merciful to the multitudes that never hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but lack the theological categories to support that aspiration. This book addresses these areas of evangelical theology by drawing on a well-known figure in the evangelical tradition-Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758)-and a contemporary Roman Catholic theologian-David Coffey (1934-). Though they may seem theological worlds apart, their use of a common trinitarian theology-the Augustinian mutual love model-led them to similar conclusions on Christology, pneumatology, and the theology of grace. Their common trinitarian vision provides resources to develop a transformational and relational vision of redemption and an inclusivist theology of religions within the evangelical tradition. The book brings Jonathan Edwards' and David Coffey's trinitarian understanding of God and redemption into ecumenical and constructive dialogue. The Trinity plays a systemic role in their theology and leads them to similar Spirit Christologies and pneumatological concepts of grace. Their use of the Augustinian mutual love model of the Trinity and their integration of it with Christology and pneumatology provide the resources to develop a transformational and relational vision of redemption and inclusivist theology of religions. To achieve its historical, ecumenical, and constructive program, the book moves through three steps. The first describes the Augustinian mutual love model of the Trinity in light of two of its major historical representatives-St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas-and situates Edwards' and Coffey's thought in continuity with that tradition. The second section demonstrates that Edwards and Coffey's shared trinitarian theology led them to similar Spirit Christologies and pneumatological concepts of grace. Based on the historical and comparative work in the first two sections, the third section makes two constructive proposals. First, it presents a relational and transformational understanding of redemption in place of the traditional Protestant evangelical legal doctrine of justification and formulaic approach to spiritual formation. Second, it proposes an inclusive theology of religions that includes a positive theological attitude toward the universal human religious quest and its manifestation in various religious traditions of the world. Intended for students and scholars working in evangelical, ecumenical, and trinitarian theology, this project seeks to make a constructive contribution to contemporary evangelical theology.The book will appeal to multiple audiences. First, it is important for Edwards scholars and to readers with a general interest in Edwards since there are few book-length treatments of his trinitarianism. Moreover, and accenting its appeal, the book presents an alternative interpretation of his trinitarian theology relative to the previous books. Second, it should attract the attention of evangelical theologians interested in the doctrine of the Trinity, ecumenical theology, revising traditional evangelical views on Christ and the Holy Spirit, and developing an evangelical theology of religions. Finally, the book will be valuable to Catholic theologians interested in ecumenical theology and especially that related to Evangelicalism.

Josh Moody has assembled a team of internationally reputed Edwards scholars to ask and answer the question: What is Jonathan Edwards’s doctrine of Justification? The contributors also examine the extent to which Edwards’s view was Reformational while addressing some of the contemporary discussions on justification. This volume helps us look at justification through the eyes of one of America’s greatest theologians, and speaks credibly and winsomely to the needs of the church and the academy today.

Jesus said we should focus our minds and hearts on God above all else. No small task! Is there someone we can turn to for help? "Wisdom tells us to sit at the feet of our elders rather than the latest ministry fad," notes author Kyle Strobel. And is there a better elder to guide us than Jonathan Edwards? In Edwards, the eighteenth-century Puritan pastor and theologian, we find deep thought balanced with deep passion. Through his writings and practices, Edwards provides us with the tools—the "means of grace"—that make us receptive to God's work in our lives as we learn to abide in Christ. Here we find a well-rounded account of being formed for the glory of God.

Jonathan Edwards is one of the most extraordinary figures in American history. Arguably the most brilliant theologian ever born on American soil, Edwards (1703–1758) was also a pastor, a renowned preacher, a missionary to the Native Americans, a biographer, a college president, a philosopher, a loving husband, and the father of eleven children. George M. Marsden -- widely acclaimed for his magisterial large study of Edwards -- has now written a new, shorter biography of this many-sided, remarkable man. A Short Life of Jonathan Edwards is not an abridgment of Marsden's earlier award-winning study but is instead a completely new narrative based on his extensive research. The result is a concise, fresh retelling of the Edwards story, rich in scholarship yet compelling and readable for a much wider audience, including students. Known best for his famous sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” Jonathan Edwards is often viewed as a proponent of fire, brimstone, and the wrath of God. As Marsden shows, however, the focus of Edwards's preaching was not God's wrath but rather his overwhelming and all-encompassing love. Marsden also rescues Edwards from the high realms of intellectual history, revealing him more comprehensively through the lens of his everyday life and interactions. Further, Marsden shows how Edwards provides a window on the fascinating and often dangerous world of the American colonies in the decades before the American Revolution. Marsden here gives us an Edwards who illumines both American history and Christian theology, an Edwards that will appeal to readers with little or no training in either field. This short life will contribute significantly to the widespread and growing interest in Jonathan Edwards.

Jonathan Edwards (1703&–1758) has been acclaimed as the quintessential puritan of eighteenth-century America who defined not only what Puritanism was, but also what American Christianity would become. Anri Morimoto finds that Edwards's theology, once regarded as disarrayed, precarious, and dangerously unorthodox, is in fact consistent and integral to his general ontology and natural philosophy. By presenting Edwards's vision of salvation as a dynamic process of sharing God's excellence and holiness, Morimoto presents a new paradigm that is radically inclusive, yet theologically responsible. By discussing Edwards in relation to Roman Catholic traditions, Morimoto places him in the context of a broader Christian tradition rather than that of New England Puritanism. Morimoto argues that this view of salvation was not new to the Protestant tradition&—in fact, this view was present in Luther, Calvin, and much of the Reformed tradition&—but Edwards accented it more clearly and emphatically than anyone else. Morimoto concludes that one does not have to surrender or compromise one's theology to promote ecumenical harmony. This study will be of interest to scholars, teachers and students of theology and religion, church leaders and lay persons of all denominations, evangelical or liberal, and especially those interested in Edwards, Puritanism, and early American intellectual history.