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Constructive theology is the redefinition or reconceptualization[ citation needed ] of what historically has been known as systematic theology. [1]
The reason for this reevaluation stems from the idea that, in systematic theology, the theologian attempts to develop a coherent theory running through the various doctrines within the tradition (Christology, eschatology, pneumatology, etc.). A potential problem underlying such study is that in constructing a system of theology, certain elements may be "forced" into a presupposed structure, or left out altogether, in order to maintain the coherence of the overall system.
In response to these perceived problems, some modern theologians, especially Christian feminists such as Sallie McFague, Catherine Keller, and Sharon V. Betcher, feel that the term systematic is no longer accurate in reference to theology, and prefer the language of constructive theology.[ citation needed ] However, constructive theologians vary as to whether they reject the term systematic altogether, with the term systematic continuing to be preferred especially by Roman Catholics. [1] While not a proponent of the language of constructive theology, Karl Barth frequently criticized the practice of systematizing theology or structuring a coherent system upon a philosophical foundation external to theology's own internal commitments. Constructive theology tends to be interdisciplinary, imaginative, open-ended, public facing, lay-led, and practical. [2]
The term constructive theology has been in use mostly since the 1980s. [3] Constructive Theology is also the title of a journal on the subject. A Bloomsbury book series on constructive theology, titled Rethinking Theologies, Constructing Alternatives, is edited by Marion Grau, Susannah Cornwall, Steed Davidson, and Hyo-Dong Lee. This has included Cornwall's Un/familiar Theology, Jan-Olav Henriksen's Christianity as Distinct Practices, an edited volume entitled What is Constructive Theology? by Marion Grau and Jason Wyman, and Shelli M. Poe's The Constructive Promise of Schleiermacher's Theology.
Dorothee Steffensky-Sölle, known as Dorothee Sölle, was a German liberation theologian who coined the term "Christofascism". She was born in Cologne and died at a conference in Göppingen from cardiac arrest.
Pneumatology refers to a particular discipline within Christian theology that focuses on the study of the Holy Spirit. The term is derived from the Greek word Pneuma, which designates "breath" or "spirit" and metaphorically describes a non-material being or influence. The English term pneumatology comes from two Greek words: πνεῦμα and λόγος. Pneumatology includes study of the person of the Holy Spirit, and the works of the Holy Spirit. This latter category also includes Christian teachings on new birth, spiritual gifts (charismata), Spirit-baptism, sanctification, the inspiration of prophets, and the indwelling of the Holy Trinity. Different Christian denominations have different theological approaches on various pneumatological questions.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Christian theology:
Systematic theology, or systematics, is a discipline of Christian theology that formulates an orderly, rational, and coherent account of the doctrines of the Christian faith. It addresses issues such as what the Bible teaches about certain topics or what is true about God and his universe. It also builds on biblical disciplines, church history, as well as biblical and historical theology. Systematic theology shares its systematic tasks with other disciplines such as constructive theology, dogmatics, ethics, apologetics, and philosophy of religion.
Postliberal theology is a Christian theological movement that focuses on a narrative presentation of the Christian faith as regulative for the development of a coherent systematic theology. Thus, Christianity is an overarching story, with its own embedded culture, grammar, and practices, which can be understood only with reference to Christianity's own internal logic.
Sarah Anne Coakley is an English Anglican priest, systematic theologian, and philosopher of religion with interdisciplinary interests. She became an honorary professor at the Logos Institute, the University of St Andrews, after retiring from the position of Norris–Hulse Professor of Divinity (2007–2018) at the University of Cambridge. She was a visiting professorial fellow (2019-22) then honorary professor at the Australian Catholic University, and an honorary fellow of Oriel College, Oxford.
Catherine Keller is a contemporary Christian theologian and Professor of Constructive Theology at Drew University's Graduate Division of Religion. As a constructive theologian, Keller's work is oriented around social and ecological justice, poststructuralist theory, and feminist readings of scripture and theology. Both her early and her late work brings relational thinking into theology, focusing on the relational nature of the concept of the divine, and the forms of ecological interdependence within the framework of relational theology. Her work in process theology draws on the relational ontology of Alfred North Whitehead, fielding it in a postmodern, deconstructive framework.
Luke Timothy Johnson is an American Catholic New Testament scholar and historian of early Christianity. He is the Robert W. Woodruff Professor of New Testament and Christian Origins at Candler School of Theology and a Senior Fellow at the Center for the Study of Law and Religion at Emory University.
Gordon Dester Kaufman was an American theologian and the Mallinckrodt Professor of Divinity at Harvard Divinity School, where he taught for over three decades beginning in 1963. He also taught at Pomona College and Vanderbilt University, and lectured in India, Japan, South Africa, England, and Hong Kong. Kaufman was an ordained minister in the Mennonite Church for 50 years.
Kathryn Eileen Tanner is an American Anglican theologian who serves as Frederick Marquand Professor of Systematic Theology at Yale Divinity School.
Hendrik Kraemer was a lay missiologist and figure in the ecumenical movement from Dutch Reformed Church in the Netherlands. He encouraged the Dutch to allow the spread missionary activities outside of the Dutch East India Company-restricted area in eastern Indonesia to the rest of the archipelago.
Grace Ji-Sun Kim is an American theologian and Professor of Theology at Earlham School of Religion, Richmond, Indiana. She is best known for books and articles on the social and religious experiences of Korean women immigrants to North America.
By the end of the 20th century, the theological importance of the Holy Spirit in Johannine literature had been accepted by New Testament scholars, overshadowing the early 20th-century views that minimized its role in the writings of John.
Moral Man and Immoral Society: A Study in Ethics and Politics is a 1932 book by Reinhold Niebuhr, an American Protestant theologian. The thesis of the book is that people are more likely to sin as members of groups than as individuals. The book attacks liberalism, both secular and religious, and is particularly critical of John Dewey and the Social Gospel.
Katherine Sonderegger is William Meade Chair in Systematic Theology at Virginia Theological Seminary.
Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen is a Finnish theologian. He is Professor of Systematic Theology at Fuller Theological Seminary. He is an ordained Lutheran minister and an expert on Pentecostal-Charismatic theologies.
Wolfgang Vondey is a German-born Pentecostal theologian who currently serves as Professor of Christian Theology and Pentecostal Studies at the University of Birmingham, United Kingdom, where he also directs the Centre for Pentecostal and Charismatic Studies.
Joerg Michael Rieger is a German and American professor of Christian theology whose work emphasizes economic justice and political movements. Rieger is also an ordained minister of the United Methodist Church.
Mary Shawn Copeland, known professionally as M. Shawn Copeland, is a retired American womanist and Black Catholic theologian, and a former religious sister. She is professor emerita of systematic theology at Boston College and is known for her work in theological anthropology, political theology, and African American Catholicism.
Laurel C. Schneider is an American theologian and a professor of Religion and Culture as well as a professor of Religious Studies at Vanderbilt University. Schneider is known for her theological analysis of images of God in relation to questions of social justice and liberation. Her work has contributed to the development of a theological framework, using concepts like multiplicity and polydoxy, as an alternative to orthodoxy and more traditional approaches to religious belief and theological reflection. Schneider's work focuses on collaborative models of thinking and publishing. She has worked as co-convener of the National Workgroup in Constructive Theology resulting in a co-written publication entitled Awake to the Moment: Introducing Constructive Theology. Her other areas of research are queer theory and Native American religious traditions.
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