In recent years the theological writings of Wolfhart Pannenberg have exerted considerable influence. However, Pannenberg's work has also been criticized for not taking seriously the postmodern challenge to traditional conceptions of rationality and truth. This volume by F. LeRon Shults argues that the popular "foundationalist" reading of Pannenberg is a misinterpretation of his methodology and shows that, in fact, the structural dynamics of Pannenberg's approach offer significant resources for the postfoundationalist task of theology in our postmodern culture. Shults begins by laying out the first comprehensive summary and interpretation of the emerging postfoundationalist model of theological rationality. He then revisits Pannenberg's theological method and finds the German theologian to be a surprising ally in the quest to reconstruct a theological rationality along postfoundationalist lines. In the course of his discussion, Shults challenges views that see the future, reason, or history as the central concept of Pannenberg's thought and offers instead a new interpretation of Pannenberg's basic theological principle as understanding and explaining all things sub ratione Dei (under the aspect of the relation to God)-an interpretation endorsed by Pannenberg himself in the book's foreword. Shults also focuses on Pannenberg's unique way of linking philosophical and systematic theology and demonstrates how the underlying reciprocity of this method can carry over into the postfoundational concern to link hermeneutics and epistemology in the postmodern context.

This collection of essays boldly addresses many of the challenges faced by Christian theology in the context of contemporary postmodern thought. Handling abstract topics in a remarkably clear and concise way, J. Wentzel van Huyssteen presses the case for a "postfoundationalist theology" as a viable third option beyond the extremes of foundationalism and nonfoundationalism. Van Huyssteen discusses themes related to rationality, epistemology, and philosophy of science. In the process he critically engages the work of such thinkers as Wolfhart Pannenberg, Nancey Murphy, Jerome Stone, and Gerd Theissen. The result is a convincing argument that only a truly accessible and philosophically credible notion of interdisciplinarity will be able to pave the way for a plausible public theology that can play an important intellectual role in our fragmented culture today.

Postfoundationalist Reflections in Practical Theology seeks to explore the implications of a Postfoundationalist theology for the discipline of Practical Theology. While moving beyond the modernist and postmodernist debates, it charts a way forward for a theology that is bound by neither relativism nor certainty. It believes that Practical Theology is well suited to this task by its very nature and methodology.

In this comprehensive study, a renowned theologian examines the anthropological disciplines-human biology, psychology, cultural anthropology, sociology and history-for their religious implications. The result is a theological anthropology that does not derive from dogma or prejudice, but critically evaluates the findings of the disciplines. Pannenberg begins with a consideration of human beings as part of nature; moves on to focus on the human person; and then considers the social world: its culture, history and institutions. All the elements of this multi-faceted study unite in the final chapter on the relation of human beings to their history.

An introduction to the theology of Wolfhart Pannenberg.Pannenberg's extensive works, especially his recently published Systematic Theology, are increasingly regarded as of major importance. Professor Mostert here provides not only a general introduction to Pannenberg's theology, and many keys to enable the serious reader of theology to access Pannenberg's individual works, but also sets Pannenberg's complex thought in the broadest context of contemporary philosophical and theological thought.

With the profound changes in today's intellectual and scientific landscape, traditional ways of speaking about human nature, sin, and the image of God have lost their explanatory power. In this volume F.LeRon Shults explores the challenges to and opportunities for rethinking current religious views of humankind in contemporary Western culture. From philosophy to theology, from physics to psychology, we find a turn to the categories of "relationality." Shults briefly traces this history from Aristotle to Levinas, showing its impact on the Christian doctrine of anthropology, and he argues that the biblical understanding of humanity has much to contribute to today's dialogue on persons and on human becoming in relation to God and others. Shults's work stands as a potent effort to reform theological anthropology in a way that restores its relevance to contemporary interpretations of the world and our place in it.