This is a new release of the original 1938 edition.

Diese Festgabe für Friedrich Hermanni ist der Frage gewidmet, was das Denken mit Gott zu tun hat und Gott mit dem Denken. Der Band verbindet klassische mit zeitgenössischen Positionen, indem er das Verhältnis von Denken und Gott in Geschichte und Gegenwart analysiert und diskutiert. Gegliedert ist er in fünf Themenbereiche: I. Gott und Denken in Theologie und Philosophie - Prinzipientheoretische Überlegungen - II. Der Gottesgedanke und die Frage nach seiner Wahrheit - III. Der Gottesgedanke und die Frage nach seiner Bestimmtheit (...) - IV. Das Verhältnis von Gott und Denken in Gott und im Menschen - V. Zur Frage nach der Transzendenz Gottes Die international renommierten Autoren stellen sich diesen Themen und treten in das systematisch-theologische und religionsphilosophische Gespräch mit den Argumenten Friedrich Hermannis ein. Für die gegenwärtige Theologie und Philosophie werden dabei entscheidende Einsichten für die Verhältnisbestimmung von Gott und Denken gewonnen. (shrink)

2012 will mark 60 years since the death of Walter Williamson Bryden. This reprint of his bold 1940 publication, featuring a new introduction by Dr John A. Vissers, Principal of Knox College, Toronto, celebrate the work of this eminent Presbyterian theologian. Best known for bringing Karl Barth to Canada, W.W. Bryden predicted the decline of Idealism and liberal theology in Protestantism at the start of the twentieth-century. When that crisis hit the Canadian Protestant Churches he was ready with this book. (...) The Christian's Knowledge of God is a re-examination of Reformation teachings with particular focus on the revelation of God, by God through Christ. Bryden challenges his readers to question their blind acceptance of Christian doctrine and to reconsider what it means to have knowledge of the Divine and with it "the power to confront the world, no longer as those seeking, but as those having found God". Although the book concludes "Tempora mutantur, nos et mutamur in illis", we have not changed so much with the times as to make this book less relevant today than it was when first published. Indeed those seeking for knowledge of God today could do well to be reminded of Bryden's message. (shrink)

An outline of the James Sprunt Lectures for 1947 delivered by Dr. J. Harry Cotton at Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, Va., February 23-28, 1947.

In this clear and provocative account of the epistemology of religious experience, William P. Alston argues that the perception of God—his term for direct experiential awareness of God—makes a major contribution to the grounds of religious belief. Surveying the variety of reported direct experiences of God, Alston demonstrates that a person can be justified in holding certain beliefs about God on the basis of mystical experience.

The 13th and 14th centuries represented the most productive and influential period in the history of philosophy and theology in the West. A parallel and less influential (for the West) proliferation of arguments and theories took place in the East, at the same time, as a result of the defence of the Hesychastic movement offered by St Gregory Palamas and his followers. The papers brought together in this volume discuss the importance of Palamite ideas for the understanding of God in (...) terms of divine energies, and for contemporary approaches to solving perennial problems in science, metaphysics, aesthetics, and ethics. Some of the contributors take a more reserved evaluation of the Palamite corpus, preferring to highlight similarities and differences between Palamas and the chief representatives of Medieval Scholasticism, such as Thomas Aquinas, Duns Scotus and Ockham. Other essays offer a radical re-evaluation of the Western history of philosophy and theology, preferring to bring out the reasons for Western philosophical and theological shortcomings and providing a wider critique on Western culture. Contributors to this volume include some of the top scholars on Palamite studies from the fields of philosophy, theology, aesthetics, cultural criticism, and art theory. As such, it represents a particularly useful resource for advanced undergraduate students, postgraduate students and researchers in Christian theology and philosophy, Byzantine cultural studies and aesthetics. (shrink)

This book explores the concept of Knowing God and the Knowability of God from an interdisciplinary theological perspective. Approaching the issue from the perspectives of their respective theological disciplines, contributors reflect on what it means to know God, how people of faith have sought to know God in the past, and indeed whether, and to what extent, such knowledge is even possible.

Is belief in God epistemically justified? That's the question at the heart of this volume in the Great Debates in Philosophy series, with Alvin Plantinga and Michael Tooley each addressing this fundamental question with distinctive arguments from opposing perspectives. The first half of the book contains each philosopher's explanation of his particular view; the second half allows them to directly respond to each other's arguments, in a lively and engaging conversation Offers the reader a one of a kind, interactive discussion (...) Forms part of the acclaimed Great Debates in Philosophy series. (shrink)

Faith versus knowledge and knowledge versus faith.--Experience and experiment in theology.--Religious and philosophical knowledge of God.--Doubt and certainty in the knowledge of God.--The historical character of the knowledge of God.

Challenging the assumption that the concept of divine action is necessarily paradoxical, on the grounds that God is radically transcendent of finitude, or can perform only a master act of creating and sustaining the universe, Frank Kirkpatrick defends as philosophically credible the Christian conviction that God is a personal Agent who also acts in particular historical moments to further the divine intention of fostering universal community. Kirkpatrick claims that God and the world are distinct realities "together bound" in a mutual (...) relationship of reciprocal historical action. In this relationship, God both acts upon and responds to human beings in specific moments in their history. The implications of this claim for understanding the biblical narrative, the problem of evil, cosmological theories, and the realism of Christian community are pursued. (shrink)

Wrestling with God makes your faith stronger.

Philip Yancey has a gift for articulating the knotty issues of faith. In this 25th Anniversary edition of Disappointment with God, Yancey poses three questions that Christians wonder but seldom ask aloud: Is God unfair? Is he silent? Is he hidden? This insightful and deeply personal book points to the odd disparity between our concept of God and the realities of life. Why, if God is so hungry for relationship with us, does he seem so distant? Why, if he cares (...) for us, do bad things happen? What can we expect from him after all? Yancey answers these questions with clarity, richness, and biblical assurance. He takes us beyond the things that make for disillusionment to a deeper faith, a certitude of God's love, and a thirst to reach not just for what God gives, but for who he is. Included in this anniversary edition is a study guide with questions about these perplexing questions of faith that the author confronts. (shrink)

What all Christians need is a kingdom encounter. In Kingdom Encounters, Tony Evans explores how the faithful characters of Scripture encountered God-and were forever changed. Join Dr. Evans as he explores how these moments bolster your faith, restore your hope, and make clear to you the face of God.

In this important volume one finds the ultimate justification for de Lubac's positions against the atheisms of East and West.

In this follow-up to How to Pray, Pete Greig turns his attention to one of the most pressing and perplexing questions of our time: How to Hear God. Writing with characteristic humor and humanity, he draws deeply from the rich insights of a range of Christian traditions, adding his own hard-won discoveries.

Catholic philosopher's attempt to show the traditional ways by which the reality of God has been demonstrated.

This book is about contemporary evangelical approaches to the knowledge of God, considering--and suggesting--ways Christian philosophers and theologians envision and make use of theological knowledge in the postmodern context.

This book addresses late modern debates in Christian theology over the question of whether knowledge of God is available only through God's gracious self-revelation or through revelation plus philosophy or natural reason. The author examines the position of Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange as an exemplar of the latter, and the countervailing position of Karl Barth as an exemplar of the former, and then shows how Aquinas's grammar of God both dissolves and transcends these contentious debates altogether.

The paths of God chasers can be traced across the pages of history from Moses the stutterer, David the singer, and Paul the itinerant preacher to A. W. Tozer ...

God is for you -- We know God when we take a step of faith -- We know God when we know Jesus -- We know God when we experience his grace -- We know God when he gives us his holy spirit -- We know God when we see reality -- We know God when we begin a relationship -- We know God when we are redeemed -- We know God when we live like Jesus -- We know God (...) when he comes for us. (shrink)

Dr. Stanley introduces you to the essential beliefs for trusting God. Even when you cannot understand why God would allow certain situations to occur, these beliefs form the basis for trusting Him. It is what you believe that makes it possible to ask the right questions in the face of a tragedy or great needs in your life.

The experience of God and the development of personality.--The experience of God and social progress.--The experience of God and cosmic evolution.

Excerpt from The Self-Revelation of God Hence we recognize in man a spiritual capacity through which he is receptive of the revelation of God, and can know him when revealed; a Spiritual eye by which he can see the divine light if it shines on him spiritual susceptibilities through which he is sensitive to the divine influence when it touches him. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book (...) is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works. (shrink)

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:MORE THAN METAPHORS: MASCULINEGENDERED NAMES AND THE KNOWABILITY OF GOD LYNNE C. BOUGHTON Chicago, Illinois W:HAT WAS ONCE a phenomenon confined to advocacy groups has appeared in ordinary Catholic parishes. Priests celebrating liturgies offer blessings "In the name of the Creator, the Redeemer, and the Holy Love." Such invocations of Persons of the Trinity by names indicative of divine action, as well as the " naming " of God (...) with either gender-combined (Mother-Father) or gender-neutral (Friend) designations of personal relationships, suggest that the way in which God is addressed need not be different from the way in which one describes divine actions. Many argue that since one may refer to God's specific act as " Creator," characterize God's eternal and temporal activity as " Love," or note that in certain ways people experience God's care as that of a "Friend" or "Mother," these terms are suitable for addressing a divine Person. In early 1992 the Catholic Church's International Commission on English in the Liturgy endorsed non-gendered invocations by proposing that English language liturgical texts delete all masculine pronouns referring to God and replace "Father" in several prayers with gender-neutral names. Willingness to depart from the Father/Son/Holy Spirit terminology found in scripture and the Church's creedal statements is often grounded in the belief that God does not merely excel beyond human comprehension the fatherhood and sonship traditionally attributed to divine Persons, but rather that God, as transcendent being, is essentially unlike any quality that can be named. Those who define transcendence in this " epistemologi283 284 LYNNE C. BOUGHTON cal" way maintain that God is free of definition or distinction and that Persons of the Trinity negate and contradict, in their acts of existence, any permanent identity that the human mind may have " attributed " in scripture or Church doctrine to divine Personhood. Theologians such as Karl Rahner and David Tracy see no departure from the Church's authoritative theological teachings in their definition of transcendence as God's existential freedom from the limitations of eternally existing attributes of Persons. According to Rahner the names most indicative of who God is as God are " ineffable one," " nameless one," " silent one." For Tracy, the central " metaphor " and " doctrine" of Christianity is a " triune understanding" of the words " God is Love." 1 For theologians who define transcendence as God's being unconfined by categories, names by which divine Persons are addressed in Scripture are merely ways in which inspired communities or individuals likened God's dealings with them to lifeaffirming actions or admired personal qualities. If traditional names for God were " revealed" in this way, modern worshippers could reasonably address God in terms of likenesses to other, more 1 Karl Rahner, Foundations of Christian Faith: An Introduction to the Idea of Christianity, tr. William Dych (NY: Crossroad, 1982), pp. 46-71; David Tracy, "The Hermeneutics of Naming God," The Irish Theological Quarterly, 57 (1991) : 253-264. For an analysis and defense of the concept of transcendence as absence of metaphysical reality see Mark I. Wallace, "Can God Be Named Without Being Known?: The Problem of Revelation in Thiemann, Ogden, and Ricoeur," Journal of the American Academy of Religion 59/2 (1991): 281-308. Although the Fourth Lateran Council (1215) listed "ineffable " among the attributes of God, God was not named in this way and, moreover, the context of other listed attributes (omnipotence, eternity) suggests that " ineffable " does not mean God is without anything that can be described but that descriptions of God are not comprehensible to humans [H. J. D. Denzinger, Enchiridion Symbolorum, 30th ed., trans. Roy Deferrari (London: Herder & Herder, 1955), # 428]. This point is illustrated by the First Vatican Council (1869-1870) which refers to God as "ineffably most high above all things " and then proceeds to list a series of attributes (Denzinger, # 1782). In the Council of Toledo, "ineffable" was used as a modifier ("ineffable Trinity," "ineffable substance," "ineffably begot") for terms that were defined in the Council's creed (Denzinger # 275-276). Further discussion of " ineffable" is in note 6, below. MORE THAN METAPHORS 285 inclusive, human qualities. Invoking, rather than merely describing or praising, God with names derived from creative/redemptive... (shrink)

Speaking to non-believers and believers alike, Fr. Andrew Damick attempts to create a sacred space in which we can encounter God. In this compact volume, he distills the essence of the traditional Christian faith, addressing the fundamental mysteries of where God is, who God is, why we go to church, and why Christian morality matters. If you you've only heard about the Protestant or Roman Catholic version of Christianity, what he has to say may surprise you and make you (...) long to encounter God in Jesus Christ. From the Foreword by Jonathan Jackson: Fr. Andrew Damick has written a beautiful, humble, and profound book on the mystery of God s love for mankind. It is beautiful because the author is introducing the reader to the Beautiful One. It is humble because Fr. Andrew has no interest in conveying his own ideas or philosophies only the True Faith as passed down from Christ and His Apostles from generation to generation. It is profound because it is a clear and prayerful exposition of pristine Christianity. (shrink)

Man's Approach to God was the 5th lecture in the Wimmer Memorial Lecture Series (1947-1970) at Saint Vincent and was given in 1951 by Jacques Maritain. Maritain was one of the most influential figures in the Thomistic revival of the 20th century. Both in his personal life and in his prolific academic corpus, Maritain modeled the Church's commitment to the interrelationship between faith and reason. So seriously did he take his intellectual commitments in his student years that, along with soon-to-be (...) wife, Ra•ssa Oumansoff, he made a suicide pact that he would only break if he could find some meaning to life. This search ultimately led him to Catholicism. Maritain's works reveal an active mind capable of applying his speculative thought to virtually any subject. Every one of his works was an exploration of reason and its limits, and of how faith completes the natural desire to know. His Wimmer lecture is a model specimen of this approach. Maritain's Man's Approach to God is a three-part lecture. In it, he seeks to explain how man comes to know God existentially, as well as how faith responds to and completes this search for meaning. This lecture grew out of his desire to show that every human being, and not just philosophers, can penetrate into the depths of reality, for all bear within themselves the indelible image of God and are equally called to the communion of love for God and love for our brothers [as] a single love of charity. (shrink)