ON GIANTS’ SHOULDERS
Introducing great theologians from Luther to Barth
By Michael Reeves. IVP. 171 pages. £8.99
ISBN 978 1 844 744 954
For a book about theologians and their works, this is a very readable and interesting paperback! It provides a reliable introduction to men who have, for better or for worse, substantially influenced the church’s thinking from the 16th century to the present day.
Each of the six chapters follows a similar pattern: an informative biographical sketch of the theologian; a survey of his major writings; guidance for further reading; and a timeline setting the person within his historical context.
If you think you are already familiar with Luther or Calvin, you will be surprised at some of the fascinating detail given and, as you are taken through Luther’s 95 Theses and his other Reformation works or through Calvin’s Institutes, it will encourage you to go directly to these men’s writings.
It is pleasing that the great Puritan, John Owen, is brought to our attention. His treatise on Communion with God is considered in detail, with a brief examination of his other works on justification, the Person of Christ and the Holy Spirit.
The overview of Jonathan Edwards’s thought is most instructive, as we are introduced to his pastoral work, Religious Affections, his mind-blowing The End for which God Created the World and his sermon series on The History of the Work of Redemption.
Schleiermacher and Barth end this fine selection of Protestant thinkers. If we are to understand where the church is today, these two men cannot be ignored. It is to Schleierma cher that we owe the liberalism that blighted the ministries of so many preachers of the past 150 years. It is a sad but enlightening read. Among suggestions for further reading is Gresham Machen’s critique and James Barr’s criticism of conservative theology.
Barth is presented as the one who had the ‘awesome theological arsenal’ to wage war on liberalism. Reeves helps us to see the big picture in Barth’s massive unfinished work. As with the other theologians, he allows him to speak for himself, but there are times when the author has to clear up misunderstandings and is forced to comment on Barth’s views of Scripture, the Trinity and his universalism.
The author has certainly achieved his modest aim: ‘to make accessible what otherwise seems intimidating’. Church leaders and theological students will find this book particularly helpful.
Philip H. Eveson,
retired Principal of London Theological Seminary; member of Borras Park Church, Wrexham
