Summer Reading List
Summer for me is always a time for ridiculously ambitious reading lists that I never come close to fulfilling. I could make more realistic lists...but wheres the fun in that?
1.) Matthew Levering, Scripture and Metaphysics: Aquinas and the Renewal of Trinitarian Theology 254pp.
Just finished this one actually (I put it on my summer reading list to feel better about myself when I inevitably fall short of my goals). This is a pretty fascinating work that defends Thomas Aquinas by putting his methodology and metaphysical thinking into dialogue with many modern day detractors. Most helpfully Levering is at pains through the whole book to demonstrate that Aquinas is not a pie-in-the-sky metaphysician, rather his metaphysical reflection is fundamentally driven by exegetical and biblical questions. Worth the price of admission alone is his chapter on the passion, in which Levering puts Aquinas in dialogue with Richard Bauckham, N.T. Wright, and Hans Urs von Balthasar, and his chapter on justifying the psychological analogy as a method of theological exegesis of scripture by putting Aquinas into dialogue with David Coffey's recent book (which is worth reading by the by) Deus Trinitas.
2.) Keith E. Johnson Rethinking the Trinity and Religious Pluralism: An Augustinian Assessment 286pp.
Almost through this one too, with two chapters to go (to be fair I did actually start this after school ended so it counts!) This is an extremely important book (and not just because it reinforces some of my own feelings regarding the problems of contemporary trinitarianism) and has already been heralded by many as one of the more notable releases of 2011. Johnson is arguing that recent uses of the Trinity to ground some sort of theological justification for the salvific nature of other religions (or in Mark Heim's case, varying religious ends) ends up actually completely subverting the doctrine of the Trinity as developed in pro-Nicene theology--specifically Augustine--and whats more (and perhaps the more burning issue on evangelical minds, for better or worse) that they lack legitimate biblical warrant. Johnson goes on to argue in the final chapter that this methodological difficulty is actually system-wide in recent Trinitarian efforts, and not limited to Trinitarian theologies of Religions. I heartily agree.
3.) Francesca Aran Murphy, God Is Not A Story: Realism Revisited 356pp.
Critiquing some trends in contemporary theology (sense a theme?) Murphy targets specifically the idea of Narrative theology that has filtered both Barth and Aquinas via post-Liberal theological sensibilities. I have not started this one yet, so I do not know the ins and outs of her argument, but ultimately agree or disagreeing with her it looks like a pretty gripping read.
4.) Kevin Vanhoozer, Remythologizing Theology: Divine Action, Passion, and Authorship 539pp.
Vanhoozer might not be the most prolific of authors in terms of sheer number of books, but for those who have read First Theology, Is There a Meaning in This Text? or more recently The Drama of Doctrine, when Vanhoozer writes a book he does it big. Big as in: big ideas, lots of footnotes, a small forest's worth of pages. This book actually came out in 2010 but for some reason was not released into paperback until several months ago. And while the paperback is not cheap, the hardback is about as expensive as my car (only half joking). I leave for vacation next week and this is what Im taking with me. Ill probably only partially dent this behemoth, but Im sure it will be a great poolside companion.
5.) Georgio Agamben, The Kingdom and the Glory: For a Theological Genealogy of Economy and Government 303pp.
Probably the most fascinating on this list (at least to me). Agamben is an Italian philosopher and political theorist and in this book he makes the fascinating claim that when the doctrine of the Trinity was introduced in the guise of an economy of God's providential government in the early church this paradigm unexpectedly lies at the origin of many of the most important categories of modern politics and economic theory. This is of course a very negative thing for Agamben (an atheist) but nonetheless a fascinating topic.
6.) Cyril O'Regan Gnostic Return in Modernity 311pp.
Another book dealing with the theme of genealogy, O'Regan actually argues many modern discourses can be traced back to narrative variations of Valentinian gnosticism. This is a dense book but the outline of his argument seems to indicate that there is a fairly vast field of discourse that can be demonstrated to operate on Gnostic principles. Most important for the theme Im sure many have sensed already in this list, O'Regan argues that many contemporary Trinitarian discourses have likewise suffered under this mutation.
Anyway thats the list (so far!) which is pretty hefty. What are you all reading?
Just finished this one actually (I put it on my summer reading list to feel better about myself when I inevitably fall short of my goals). This is a pretty fascinating work that defends Thomas Aquinas by putting his methodology and metaphysical thinking into dialogue with many modern day detractors. Most helpfully Levering is at pains through the whole book to demonstrate that Aquinas is not a pie-in-the-sky metaphysician, rather his metaphysical reflection is fundamentally driven by exegetical and biblical questions. Worth the price of admission alone is his chapter on the passion, in which Levering puts Aquinas in dialogue with Richard Bauckham, N.T. Wright, and Hans Urs von Balthasar, and his chapter on justifying the psychological analogy as a method of theological exegesis of scripture by putting Aquinas into dialogue with David Coffey's recent book (which is worth reading by the by) Deus Trinitas.
Almost through this one too, with two chapters to go (to be fair I did actually start this after school ended so it counts!) This is an extremely important book (and not just because it reinforces some of my own feelings regarding the problems of contemporary trinitarianism) and has already been heralded by many as one of the more notable releases of 2011. Johnson is arguing that recent uses of the Trinity to ground some sort of theological justification for the salvific nature of other religions (or in Mark Heim's case, varying religious ends) ends up actually completely subverting the doctrine of the Trinity as developed in pro-Nicene theology--specifically Augustine--and whats more (and perhaps the more burning issue on evangelical minds, for better or worse) that they lack legitimate biblical warrant. Johnson goes on to argue in the final chapter that this methodological difficulty is actually system-wide in recent Trinitarian efforts, and not limited to Trinitarian theologies of Religions. I heartily agree.
Critiquing some trends in contemporary theology (sense a theme?) Murphy targets specifically the idea of Narrative theology that has filtered both Barth and Aquinas via post-Liberal theological sensibilities. I have not started this one yet, so I do not know the ins and outs of her argument, but ultimately agree or disagreeing with her it looks like a pretty gripping read.
Vanhoozer might not be the most prolific of authors in terms of sheer number of books, but for those who have read First Theology, Is There a Meaning in This Text? or more recently The Drama of Doctrine, when Vanhoozer writes a book he does it big. Big as in: big ideas, lots of footnotes, a small forest's worth of pages. This book actually came out in 2010 but for some reason was not released into paperback until several months ago. And while the paperback is not cheap, the hardback is about as expensive as my car (only half joking). I leave for vacation next week and this is what Im taking with me. Ill probably only partially dent this behemoth, but Im sure it will be a great poolside companion.
Probably the most fascinating on this list (at least to me). Agamben is an Italian philosopher and political theorist and in this book he makes the fascinating claim that when the doctrine of the Trinity was introduced in the guise of an economy of God's providential government in the early church this paradigm unexpectedly lies at the origin of many of the most important categories of modern politics and economic theory. This is of course a very negative thing for Agamben (an atheist) but nonetheless a fascinating topic.
Another book dealing with the theme of genealogy, O'Regan actually argues many modern discourses can be traced back to narrative variations of Valentinian gnosticism. This is a dense book but the outline of his argument seems to indicate that there is a fairly vast field of discourse that can be demonstrated to operate on Gnostic principles. Most important for the theme Im sure many have sensed already in this list, O'Regan argues that many contemporary Trinitarian discourses have likewise suffered under this mutation.
Anyway thats the list (so far!) which is pretty hefty. What are you all reading?
Comments
As for my list, I'm organizing by categories, hoping to get as much done as possible: Trinity, Eschatology, Pannenberg, Barth, Moltmann, philosophy/theology of history. We'll see how it goes. Enjoy the pool!
If Derek checks back in here, I would love to get my hands on Johnson's dissertation if you have an extra copy :).