The Routledge Encyclopedia of Theology

Peter Byrne, Leslie Houlden, Rev Prof Leslie Houlden0415064473, 9780415064477, 9780203414033

This unique new reference is a comprehensive guide to modern theological thought. In 48 self-contained articles, an international team of theologians and practitioners of the Christian and Jewish faiths investigate and consider aspects of theology. The strive to be practical, but not partisan as they explore the applications of modern theology in the light of Christianity’s place in the modern world. The Companion Encyclopedia of Theology is divided into six parts. The first three deal with major foundational aspects of Western theological reflection: the Hebrew and Christian Bible, the Tradition, and the contribution of Philosophy. The second half of the Companion is concerned with applications in relation to spirituality, contemporary ethics, and issues of present-day theological construction. The 48 essays are descriptive, informative, and analytical. They cover a wide range of contemporary topics including Feminism in the Philosophy of Religion, The Idea of

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Table of contents :
Book Cover……Page 1
Title……Page 4
Contents……Page 5
General Introduction……Page 10
The contributors……Page 14
Introduction……Page 28
The Hebrew Bible: formation and character……Page 32
The Hebrew Bible: role in Judaism……Page 53
The Christian adoption of the Old Testament……Page 72
The Old Testament: historical study and new roles……Page 89
The New Testament: content and character……Page 110
The New Testament: the tradition of interpretation……Page 127
The New Testament in theology……Page 147
The Bible as holy book……Page 167
Introduction……Page 188
Jesus in history and belief……Page 193
The triune God of the Bible and the emergence of orthodoxy……Page 212
Christendom: medieval Christianity……Page 231
The transition to modernity……Page 255
The Enlightenment……Page 276
Theology now……Page 297
Christian theology and other faiths……Page 316
Christian theology’s dialogue with culture……Page 339
Introduction……Page 362
The concept of God……Page 367
The idea of reason……Page 392
Natural theology……Page 413
Religious language……Page 438
Theology and scientific understanding……Page 458
Theological anthropology……Page 478
Evil and theology……Page 497
Feminism in the philosophy of religion……Page 517
Introduction……Page 536
Spirituality and theology……Page 539
Patristic spirituality……Page 561
Mysticism and devotion in the Middle Ages……Page 583
Religious experience in the era of reform……Page 601
Theology and spirituality in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries……Page 619
Religious experience and language……Page 645
Spirituality and liberation……Page 667
Spirituality and liturgy……Page 690
Introduction……Page 712
The idea of Christian ethics……Page 716
Violence, warfare and peace……Page 741
Ethics and the personal life……Page 763
Theology, wealth and social justice……Page 784
Power and the State……Page 802
The pastoral experience……Page 819
Theology, medicine and health……Page 842
Environmental ethics……Page 868
Introduction……Page 896
The character and possibility of Christian theology today……Page 900
Making sense of God……Page 920
The figure of Jesus Christ in contemporary Christianity……Page 942
The Trinity in modern theology……Page 962
Theology in the narrative mode……Page 983
Theology in the dogmatic mode……Page 1001
Theology as praxis……Page 1026
Theology and the future of the Church……Page 1042
Index……Page 1061