Justification in Perspective: Historical Developments and Contemporary Challenges

by Bruce L. McCormack

The last thirty years have seen much scholarly debate surrounding the Protestant doctrine of justification. These discussions have especially been fueled by the development of the ''New Perspective on Paul,'' which goes against the traditional understanding of first-century Judaism as a legalistic and works-based system and so changes our understanding of Paul's writings on justification in the New Testament. This major work presents a historical survey of the doctrine's development from the early church through the Reformation and on to today. Contributors include Henri Blocher, Tony Lane, Bruce McCormack, Carl Trueman, David Wright, and N. T. Wright. Though these distinguished authors have different perspectives, they approach the topic graciously, making for a constructive dialogue that will help pastors, students, and interested laypersons wrestle with this important theological issue.

Genres: Theology, History, Church History, Christian

Paperback

First published October 1, 2006

About the author

Bruce L. McCormack (PhD, Princeton Theological Seminary; DrTheol hc, Friedrich Schiller University) is Charles Hodge Professor of Systematic Theology at Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, New Jersey. A world-renowned Barth scholar, he is a frequent writer and lecturer on topics of Reformed theology.

Reviews

[Neil Kruger · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

A gem of a collection of essays on justification.

Two contributions in particular stand out:
1. Justification in the Early Church Fathers - Nick Needham
2. The Doctrine of Justification in Paul and Beyond - Simon Gathercole

[Maxime N. Georgel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dans cet ouvrage collectif, je n'ai lu que les 2 chapitres traitant des pères de l'Église et de la justification, à savoir celui que Needham sur les pères des 4 premiers siècles et celui de David Wright sur Augustin et la justification.

Le premier est vraiment excellent, et ne passe pas sous silence les difficultés comme j'ai pu le voir de manière malheureuse chez d'autres (Faber, en particulier). Le deuxième me laisse sur ma faim, même si sa conclusion part à mon avis dans la bonne piste. Dongsun Cho semble sur une piste plus intéressante en étudiant, dans un même article, Augustin et Bucer côte à côte.

[Simon Wartanian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent discussions on "the main hinge on which religion turns." My favorite chapters are the historical survey, the one on the ordo salutis, Dr. Gathercole's, and Dr. Wright's (although I strongly disagree with him). It was good to hear Dr. Wright's novel view, too.

[Stratkey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the best books on the current debates over the doctrine of justification that I have read. McCormack does a masterful job bringing all the key players to the table for a discussion.