Trinitarian Soundings in Systematic Theology

by Paul Louis Metzger

Book Overview

Trinitarian Soundings in Systematic Theology is a multi-authored exploration of systematic theology from a Trinitarian perspective. Its aim is to show how the doctrine of the Trinity sheds light on other key doctrines-from prolegomena to eschatology and theological ethics. To borrow a phrase from Robert Jenson, the doctrine of the Trinity 'is not a separate puzzle to be solved but the framework within which all theology's puzzles are to be solved'...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0567084108
• ISBN13: 9780567084101
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: T&T Clark
• Length: 236 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Great Trinitarian Introduction!

Trinitarian Surroundings presents a great introduction to the study of the Trinity. With multiple authors from various backgrounds, this book opens up an array of topics centered upon a Triune God.

A tribute that Colin Gunton would be proud of!

Eberhard Jungel wrote a book aptly entitled "God as the Mystery of the World." If this is true, and indeed God is the mystery of the world, then to understand the world, and Christian doctrine as it interpretes the world, one must understand God. This has been the thematic task of many theologians, most recently and notably, Robert Jenson, Jurgan Moltmann, Wolfhart Pannenberg, the aforementioned Eberhard Jungel, and, of course, the late, great, Colin Gunton, to whom the essays of this volume are dedicated. Gunton was one of the few to understand that Christians for too long have viewed the doctrine of the Trinity as a mystery, a puzzle to be solved. But more than that, it was viewed as merely a doctrine among doctrines. Karl Rahner once complained that Christian theology (in particular Catholicism following the Scholasticism of Thomas Aquinas) seperated the theology of "De Deo Uno" (The One God) from "De Deo Trino" (The Triune God) seemingly relegating the Trinity to an uneeded appendage, mentioned only after the attributes of the One God were expounded. If the idea of God could be explained without initial reference to the Trinity, then the idea could arise that perhaps Trinitarianism was an unessesary addition to an otherwise "proper" monotheism. Rahner recommended that we treat the two doctrines together, so that we cannot understand the "what" of God's essence apart from the "who" of the persons of the trinity. Gunton took Rahner's idea a step further, understanding that all of Theology, even when it references other things like man or the world, was essentially an unpacking of its relationship to God, and hence systematic theology is itself produced within a trinitarian framework. "The Trinity," writes Robert Jenson, "is not a puzzle to be solved, but a framework in which all puzzles are solved"; so too goes Colin Gunton, who saw in the Trinity the richest depths of reality itself encountering us in the Three-Personed God. The essays in Trinitarian Soundings in Systematic Theology, edited by Dr. Paul Metzger of Multnomah Seminary in Oregon, a former student of Colin Gunton at Kings College London, are not only dedicated as such to Colin Gunton, but the scope and the framework itself is preformed always as an outworking of the idea of Trinity. The essays progress in a fairly standard order for systematic theology, e.g. prolegomena, scripture and revelation, etc... yet all attempt to move beyond tradition by heavily emphasizing the necessity of understanding and working the implications that our God is Triune and not a simplistic monad. All the contributors to the book are, obviously, related in some way to Gunton, some being Gunton's former students, former teachers of Gunton (in the case of Robert Jenson, who actually was Gunton's thesis advisor), and contemporaries, and all are equally motivated by Gunton's vision of a truly Trinitarian theology. Tribute aside, all the essays are quite well written, if not brief. Details of mos

Stepping further into the Trinitarian Reality

As Shakespeare wrote, `Come what come may/ Time and the hour runs through the roughest day' (Macbeth, 1.3.156-7), time has a way of exposing mystery, and the greatest of all mysteries today is that of the Trinity. The typical mind set of the Trinity being the greatest mystery of the Christian faith tends to create an atmosphere of distance within the sphere of theology. This distance however, is made to be but a small step through giant leap of excellence in Trinitarian scholarship found within the pages of Trinitarian Soundings. Dedicated to the memory of a pioneer in the resurgence of Trinitarian theology, the late Professor Colin E. Gunton, the essays in this volume are as Bruce McCormack states in his forward to the book, `proof that his legacy lives on.' Gunton's legacy draws out the crucial element of theology as it approaches all aspects of the faith from a Trinitarian perspective. Because a Trinitarian perspective is central to the theologian's overarching enterprise, this book is a must for all who desire to step further into the reality of our One and Triune God. As Paul Metzger, the editor of Trinitarian Soundings notes, `Ultimately, much of the renaissance in Trinitarian theology involves reflecting on the revelation of the Triune God, and seeking to think outward from it.' For when man lives apart from the revelation of God in Christ and through the Spirit, chaos is the norm. But life lived in and through the Trinity as revealed by the incarnation, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit, humanity becomes fully human. Trinitarian Soundings in Systematic Theology explores interfaces between Trinitarian thought and major themes of systematic theology such as Prolegomena (Rae, Chapter 1), Revelation (Metzger, Chapter 2), the Imago Dei (Grenz, Chapter 7), Atonement (Pfleiderer, Chapter 10), the Church (Volf, Chapter 12), the Eucharist (Molnar, Chapter 13), and Eschatology (Kapic, Chapter 14). Trinitarian Soundings is a must read for all who wish to be consumed further by the overflowing love of the Father Son and Spirit that has been poured out into our hearts while also developing a deeper understanding of our One and Triune God. As noted in the introduction of the book, the Trinity is not a `separate puzzle to be solved, but the framework within which all theology's puzzles are to be solved.' Trinitarian Soundings is an excellent resource for the scholar and the layman as it is a theological gem that builds upon the resurgence of Trinitarian theology initiated by Gunton while sustained through the work of the fine scholarship of each of the contributors. The importance of this present work is crucial in today's ever-present desire for a better understanding of both theology and humanity. It is only through a Trinitarian perspective that the union--the relationship between the divine and human being in interpersonal and communal terms can be understood. Thus, as Metzger notes in his in