Huskeys Study Notes On Historical Theology

“My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). The modern church is in grave danger. If you pay attention at all, this is easy to see. One of the reasons we are in grave danger is our lack of knowledge. The late Dr. R. C. Sproul once said, “Everyone is a theologian.” The danger here lies in that if we do not have a correct understanding of God and his attributes, we will create an idol of who we would like God to be. Scripture tells us to love God with our whole minds. A study of church history and of theology will help us accomplish this. What you will find within the pages of this study is an emphasis on theology and doctrine as it was forced to become razor sharp due to people making God into the god they idolized. As you proceed through these chapters you will be faced with questions that will help you to learn how to think critically. You will learn many of the attributes of God. You will also learn Christology, soteriology, hermeneutics, apologetics, polemics, and a number of other tools to help guide you into who the biblical God truly is.

"My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge" (Hosea 4:6). The modern church is in grave danger. If you pay attention at all, this is easy to see. One of the reasons we are in grave danger is our lack of knowledge. The late Dr. R. C. Sproul once said, "Everyone is a theologian." The danger here lies in that if we do not have a correct understanding of God and his attributes, we will create an idol of who we would like God to be. Scripture tells us to love God with our whole minds. A study of church history and of theology will help us accomplish this. What you will find within the pages of this study is an emphasis on theology and doctrine as it was forced to become razor sharp due to people making God into the god they idolized. As you proceed through these chapters you will be faced with questions that will help you to learn how to think critically. You will learn many of the attributes of God. You will also learn Christology, soteriology, hermeneutics, apologetics, polemics, and a number of other tools to help guide you into who the biblical God truly is.

The Dictionary of Historical Theology is a major new reference work designed for everyone with an interest in the history and development of Christian theology. With 314 entries covering the key figures, theological movements, and significant texts that have shaped Christian thought, The Dictionary of Historical Theology traces the doctrinal development of Christianity from the early church to the present. Varying in length from 500 to 15,000 words, these entries treat the intellectual antecedents and descendents of the figures or schools of thought covered as well as their influence on the wider development of the Christian theological tradition. The 173 contributors to The Dictionary of Historical Theology are without exception proven experts on the topics they address. Drawn from international and interdenominational circles, they tell the story of Christianity from a wide variety of perspectives, successfully capturing the great diversity of traditions that make up the Christian community today. -- Traces Christian theology from the early church to the present -- Covers the key figures, trends, and texts -- Written by 173 acclaimed contributors -- International and interdenominational in orientation -- Reflects the best, most current scholarship in the field -- Includes succinct bibliographies for further study -- Carefully compiled index at end of book -- Useful to teachers, students, ministers, and general readers alike Comprehensive in scope yet concisely written, The Dictionary of Historical Theology is the most accessible and reliable single-volume compendium of Christian thought available.

Change is a universal phenomenon that commands the attention of the historian. For Christian theology, change raises special difficulties. How are we to reconcile the notion of the revelation of an unchanging God, who is abiding truth, with the notion of the pervading mutability of all human affairs? This problem, which is as old as religion, is intensified by the Christian belief in the fullness and finality of the revelation made through Jesus Christ. Professor Pelikan begins his study of historical theology with this basic problem and traces the origins of the difficulties that inevitably follow upon the admission of the possibility of change. His investigations lead him to critically examine the dogmatic solution of Vincent of Lerins, the later dialectical interpretation of Abelard, the approach of Thomas Aquinas, and finally, the nineteenth century's Adolf von Harnack to propose a working definition of Christian doctrine and of the task of the historical theologian. Pelikan's work is a perceptive and penetrating study of the interaction of history and theology. Theology must be historical because man is historical. To neglect history, or worse still, to renounce it, is to deny man and theology their common future. Historical Theology is a worthy introduction to a task that must continually seek to weld past, present, and future into a living whole.

In Historical Theology for the Church, editors Jason Duesing and Nathan Finn bring together top contributors to survey key doctrinal developments in every era of church history. They not only trace the development of various doctrines within historical congregations; they also provide a resource for contemporary congregations. Steered by the conviction that historical theology serves the church both local and global, each chapter concludes with an application section that clarifies the connection between the historical doctrine being covered and the Christian church today.

This broad-ranging collection of the primary sources that have shaped the theology of Christianity, spans Old Testament to modern writings. This historical theology textbook includes informative introductions and guiding questions from the author.

ÒAn ideal historical theology, or even an introduction to it, Ò says Geoffrey Bromiley, Òlies beyond the limits of human possibility.Ó And he does not intend this volume to be an all-inclusive theological study about everybody and everything. Rather, Òthis work is composed for beginners, for inquirers, for those who know nothing or very little of the history of theology, but who want to know something, or something more.

This work on historical theology follows key Christian beliefs chronologically discussing the most important movements and doctrinal developments for theology according to their historical appearance. Historical Theology Made Easy offers students of the Bible the opportunity to study the historical development of theology according to God's providence throughout the history of the Christian church. This approach allows readers to concentrate practically on the development of Christian teachings and their formulation in the early church, through the Middle Ages, Reformation, post-Reformation and into the modern period. This book includes key primary sources citing quotes from Iranaeus, Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, Calvin, the Puritans and others. It makes historical theology, which is often overwhelming, easy to follow.

William Cunningham (1805-1861) was an Scottish theologian. He was, in 1843, one of the founders of the Free Church of Scotland, and succeeded the doughty Thomas Chalmers as principal of the New College, Edinburgh, in 1847. His lectures surveying the history of theology, delivered between 1847 and 1861, became the basis for his Historical Theology. It remains a classic in the Reformed and Presbyterian tradition. In his magnum opus Cunningham surveys the following topics: I. The Church II. The Council of Jerusalem III. The Apostles’ Creed IV. The Apostolical Fathers V. The Heresies of the Apostolic Age VI. The Fathers of the Second and Third Centuries VII. The Church of the First Two Centuries VIII. The Constitution of the Church IX. The Doctrine of the Trinity X. The Person Of Christ XI. The Pelagian Controversy XII. The Worship of Saints and Images XIII. Civil and Ecclesiastical Authorities XIV. Scholastic Theology XV. Canon Law XVI. Witnesses for the Truth During The Middle Ages XVII. The Church at the Era of the Reformation XVIII. Council of Trent XIX. The Doctrine of the Fall XX. The Doctrine of the Will XXI. Justification XXII. The Sacramental Principle XXII. The Socinian Controversy XXIV. Doctrine of the Atonement XXV. The Arminian Controversy XXVI. Church Government XXVII. The Erastian Controversy