With a methodological tradition that differs somewhat from biblical theology, systematic theology draws on the core sacred texts of Christianity, while simultaneously investigating the development of Christian doctrine over the course of history, particularly through philosophy, ethics, social sciences, and natural sciences. Using biblical texts, it attempts to compare and relate all of scripture which led to the creation of a systematized statement on what the whole Bible says about particular issues. In other words, "In reconstructing Christian teaching, systematic theology proceeds by a process of conceptual abstraction and schematization."[4]
In a seminal article, "Principles of Systematic Theology," Anglican theologian John Webster describes systematic theology as proceeding along a series of principles, which he draws from various theologians including Thomas Aquinas:
The Trinity: The Ontological Principle (principium essendi)
Scripture: The External/Objective Cognitive Principle (principium cognoscendi externum)
The Redeemed Intelligence of the Saints: The Internal/Subjective Cognitive Principle (principium cognoscendi internum)[5]
Webster has also considered the task of all systematic theology as articulating the Creator/creature distinction, known also as the Categorical Distinction or the Infinite Qualitative Distinction, a concept also explored from the perspective of compatiblistic metaphysics by Kathryn Tanner in God and Creation in Christian Theology (1988).[6][7]
Within Christianity, different traditions (both intellectual and ecclesial) approach systematic theology in different ways impacting a) the method employed to develop the system, b) the understanding of theology's task, c) the doctrines included in the system, and d) the order those doctrines appear. Even with such diversity, it is generally the case that works that one can describe as systematic theologies begin with revelation and conclude with eschatology.
Since it is focused on truth, systematic theology is also framed to interact with and address the contemporary world. Many authors have explored this area, including Charles Gore, John Walvoord, Lindsay Dewar, and Charles Moule. The framework developed by these theologians reviews the postbiblical history of a doctrine, following a treatment of the biblical materials.[clarify][8] This process concludes with applications to contemporary issues.
Categories
Since it is a systemic approach, systematic theology organizes truth under different headings[1] and there are certain basic areas (or categories), although the exact list may vary slightly. These are:[9]
The establishment and integration of varied Christian ideas and Christianity-related notions, including diverse topics and themes of the Bible, in a single, coherent and well-ordered presentation is a relatively late development.[10] The first known church father who referred to the notion of devising a comprehensive understanding of the principles of Christianity was Clement of Alexandria in the 3rd century, who stated thus: "Faith is then, so to speak, a comprehensive knowledge of the essentials."[11] Clement himself, along with his follower Origen, attempted to create some systematic theology in their numerous surviving writings. The first systematic theology in Latin was Lactantius's Divine Institutes, and the term Intitutio would set a precedence for works of systematic theology in the western tradition.[12] In Eastern Orthodoxy, an early example is provided by John of Damascus's 8th-century Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, in which he attempts to set in order and demonstrate the coherence of the theology of the classic texts of the Eastern theological tradition.
The 17th century saw a boom in focused systematic theologies within a renaissance of the scholastic method. Francis Turretin's Institutes of Elenctic Theology (1696) and Petrus van Mastricht's Theoretical-Practical Theology (1680) became touchstone works in the field, profoundly influencing later theologians like William Cunningham, Jonathan Edwards, Charles Hodge, and Herman Bavinck. Similarly, William Ames's systematic treatise, The Marrow of Theology (1629), would become the standard textbook for Harvard and Yale in their nascent years.[13]
In the 19th century, primarily in Protestant groups, varieties of systematic theology arose that attempted to demonstrate that Christian doctrine formed a more coherent system premised on one or more fundamental axioms, often reasoned out as a form of dogmatic theology. Such theologies often involved a more drastic pruning and reinterpretation of traditional belief in order to cohere with the axiom or axioms, and continental theology divided between various schools of dogmatic theology, e.g. Erlangen Theology ( e.g. F.C.K. Hoffman, Thomasius, and Gisle Johnson), Mediating Theology (e.g. Isaak Dorner), classical confessionalism (e.g. Hans Lassen Martensen and Herman Bavinck), and liberal theology (e.g. Friedrich Schleiermacher and Albrecht Ritschle). In the United States, Charles Hodge's Systematic Theology became a popular text in conjunction with his work at Princeton Theological Seminary. Significant for this period, Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher's Der christliche Glaube nach den Grundsätzen der evangelischen Kirche (The Christian Faith According to the Principles of the Protestant Church [1821-1822]) espoused the fundamental idea of a universal presence among humanity, sometimes more hidden, sometimes more explicit, of a feeling or awareness of 'absolute dependence,' and this became a focal point of either acceptation, integration, or rejection among theologians.[14] As such, systematic theology in the 19th century became a sophisticated endeavor of developing and articulating theology from certain assumed first principles, often on the back of the philosophical conversations inherited from Hegel, Kant, and Schleiermacher.[15]
Systematic theology likewise saw a great variety of development into the 20th century, most notably with the advancement of Neo-Orthodoxy and the multivolume Church Dogmatics of Karl Barth. Helmuth Thielicke wrote his three-volume work, The Evangelical Faith, as a confessionally-Lutheran theology with existentialist emphases, and Wolfhart Pannenberg's three-volume Systematic Theology is an eclectic example of modernist systematics that attempts to integrate faith and science. Robert Jenson's two-volume Systematic Theology, stands as a final installment of 20th century systematic theology, looking to questions of postmodernity from a Barthian perspective. Several popular-level textbook-style works emerged during this period within Evangelical theology, from Lewis Sperry Chafer's eight-volume Systematic Theology to Wayne Grudem's stand-alone title Systematic Theology, a particularly sophisticated non-textbook example being the epistemological worldview theology of Carl F.H. Henry, contained in his six-volume God, Revelation and Authority.Reformed theology also saw considerable contributions in the twentieth century, including Louis Berkhof's popular Systematic Theology and G.C. Berkouwer's multivolume Studies in Dogmatics. The latter half of the twentieth century also saw the emergence of systematic theologies dealing with critical themes from social, political, and economic perspective, including the Liberation Theology of James Cone and Gustavo Gutiérrez, the Post-liberal Theology associated with Yale Divinity School, and Feminist Theology (e.g. Sarah Coakley). As such, the variety and perspectives of systematic theology in the 20th century has tracked well with both the broadening of ethical concerns post-World War II, its expansive pluralism, and the advent of postmodernism.[16][15]
Karl Barth was a Swiss Reformed theologian. Barth is best known for his commentary The Epistle to the Romans, his involvement in the Confessing Church, including his authorship of the Barmen Declaration, and especially his unfinished multi-volume theological summa the Church Dogmatics. Barth's influence expanded well beyond the academic realm to mainstream culture, leading him to be featured on the cover of Time on 20 April 1962.
In Christianity, Neo-orthodoxy or Neoorthodoxy, also known as theology of crisis and dialectical theology, was a theological movement developed in the aftermath of the First World War. The movement was largely a reaction against doctrines of 19th century liberal theology and a reevaluation of the teachings of the Reformation. Karl Barth is the leading figure associated with the movement. In the U.S., Reinhold Niebuhr was a leading exponent of neo-orthodoxy. It is unrelated to Eastern Orthodoxy.
Liberal Christianity, also known as liberal theology and historically as Christian Modernism, is a movement that interprets Christian teaching by prioritizing modern knowledge, science and ethics. It emphasizes the importance of reason and experience over doctrinal authority. Liberal Christians view their theology as an alternative to both atheistic rationalism and theologies based on traditional interpretations of external authority, such as the Bible or sacred tradition.
Thomas Forsyth Torrance, commonly referred to as T. F. Torrance, was a Scottish Protestant theologian and Presbyterian minister. He was a member of the famed Torrance family of theologians. Torrance served for 27 years as professor of Christian dogmatics at New College, in the University of Edinburgh. He is best known for his pioneering work in the study of science and theology, but he is equally respected for his work in systematic theology.
Gerrit Cornelis "G.C." Berkouwer was for years the leading theologian of the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands (GKN). He occupied the chair in systematic theology of the Faculty of Theology, Free University (VU) in Amsterdam.
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.
Historical theology is the study of the history of Christian doctrine. Alister McGrath defines historical theology as 'the branch of theological inquiry which aims to explore the historical development of Christian doctrines, and identify the factors which were influential in the formulation and adoption.' Grenz, Guretzki and Nordling describe it as, "The division of the theological discipline that seeks to understand and delineate how the church interpreted Scripture and developed doctrine throughout its history, from the time of the apostles to the present day. The twofold function of historical theology is to show the origin and development of beliefs held in the present day and to help contemporary theologians identify theological errors of the past that should be avoided in the present."
Herman Bavinck was a Dutch Calvinist theologian and churchman. He was a significant scholar in the Calvinist tradition, alongside Abraham Kuyper, B. B. Warfield, and Geerhardus Vos.
This is a sub-page for the Justification (theology) page.
The attributes of God are specific characteristics of God discussed in Christian theology.
Neo-Calvinism, a form of Dutch Calvinism, is a theological movement initiated by the theologian and former Dutch prime minister Abraham Kuyper in the first years of the twentieth century. James Bratt has identified a number of different types of Dutch Calvinism: The Seceders, split into the Reformed Church "West" and the Confessionalists; the neo-Calvinists; and the Positives and the Antithetical Calvinists. The Seceders were largely infralapsarian and the neo-Calvinists usually supralapsarian.
Herman Hoeksema was a Dutch Reformed theologian. Hoeksema served as a long time pastor of the First Protestant Reformed Church in Grand Rapids. In 1924 he refused to accept the three points of common grace as formulated which had then been declared official church dogma of the Christian Reformed Church, as an addition to its adopted creeds and confessions. The result of this controversy was that Hoeksema, and ministers George Ophoff, and Henry Danhof, were deposed by their respective classes before leaving the CRC with their congregations. These men then established the Protestant Reformed Churches. He also was professor of theology at the Protestant Reformed Theological Seminary in Grandville, Michigan for 40 years.
Louis Berkhof was a Dutch-American Reformed theologian whose works on systematic theology have been influential in seminaries and Bible colleges in the United States, Canada, Korea and with individual Christians in general throughout the 20th century.
Dogmatic theology, also called dogmatics, is the part of theology dealing with the theoretical truths of faith concerning God and God's works, especially the official theology recognized by an organized Church body, such as the Roman Catholic Church, Dutch Reformed Church, etc. Accordingly, "dogmatics is the theological discipline that, on the basis of the biblical witness and against the background of church tradition, thinks through and systematically presents the truth of the Christian faith in its central contents (dogmas), adopting a scientific and critical method and taking into account the contemporary situation."
Geerhardus Johannes Vos was a Dutch-American Calvinist theologian and one of the most distinguished representatives of the Princeton Theology. He is sometimes called the father of Reformed Biblical theology.
Kevin Jon Vanhoozer is an American theologian and current research professor of Systematic Theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS) in Deerfield, Illinois. Much of Vanhoozer's work focuses on systematic theology, hermeneutics, and postmodernism.
Christopher Ludwig Morse is an American Christian theologian. He is Dietrich Bonhoeffer Professor of Theology and Ethics at Union Theological Seminary in New York City.
Carl Edward Braaten was an American Lutheran theologian and minister.
Richard A. Muller is an American historical theologian.
The Reformed systematic theology bibliography lists complete works of systematic theology in the Reformed tradition. Systematic theology is the orderly formulation of Christian doctrines and beliefs. This bibliography includes works which attempt to present a coherent account of all major doctrines of the Reformed faith. Theologians considered by scholars to be in the Reformed tradition are included, even if they are considered to have departed from any particular conception of the Reformed faith.
References
1 2 Carson, D. A. (2018). NIV, Biblical Theology Study Bible, eBook: Follow God's Redemptive Plan as It Unfolds throughout Scripture. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan. ISBN9780310450436.
↑ Garrett, James Leo (2014). Systematic Theology, Volume 1, Fourth Edition. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock Publishers. p.20. ISBN9781498206594.
↑ Tanner, Kathryn (1988). God and Creation in Christian Theology. Minneapolis: Fortress Press.
↑ Webster, John (1982). Distinguishing Between God and Man: Aspects of the Theology of Eberhard Jüngel (doctoral dissertation). Cambridge University Press.
↑ Garrett, James Leo (2014). Systematic Theology, Volume 2. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock Publishers. p.138. ISBN9781498206600.
↑ Lactantius (2008). The Divine Institutes. Translated by McDonald, Mary Francis. The Catholic University of America Press. ISBN978-0813215679.
↑ Marsden, George (1996). The Soul of the American University: From Protestant Establishment to Established Nonbelief. Oxford University Press. pp.39–44.
↑ Brock, Cory (2020). Orthodox yet Modern: Herman Bavinck's Use of Friedrich Schleiermacher. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
1 2 Ritschl Dorothea Sattler, Dietrich; Sattler, Dorothea (2005). The Encyclopedia of Christianity. Vol.5. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans. Systematic Theology.
↑ Grenz, Stanley; Olson, Roger (1992). 20th Century Theology: God & the World in a Transitional Age. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. pp.11–13, 310–315.
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