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Varieties of unbelief
Lutheran theology.
- GenresPhilosophyChristian
231 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1964
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About the author
Martin E. Marty
241 books34 followersMartin E. Marty was an American religious scholar and historian known for his extensive work on religion in the United States. A Lutheran pastor before transitioning into academia, he became a leading voice in religious studies, particularly in the areas of American Protestantism, fundamentalism, and public religion. He was a longtime professor at the University of Chicago Divinity School, where he mentored numerous doctoral students and held the prestigious Fairfax M. Cone Distinguished Service Professorship.
Marty wrote or edited a book for nearly every year of his academic career, producing influential works such as Righteous Empire: The Protestant Experience in America, which won the National Book Award, and the five-volume Fundamentalism Project, co-edited with R. Scott Appleby. He was a prolific columnist for The Christian Century and wrote extensively on religion's role in American public life.
A recipient of numerous honors, including the National Humanities Medal and over 80 honorary doctorates, Marty also served as president of several academic societies and participated in U.S. presidential commissions. The Martin Marty Center for the Advanced Study of Religion at the University of Chicago was named in his honor.
Marty wrote or edited a book for nearly every year of his academic career, producing influential works such as Righteous Empire: The Protestant Experience in America, which won the National Book Award, and the five-volume Fundamentalism Project, co-edited with R. Scott Appleby. He was a prolific columnist for The Christian Century and wrote extensively on religion's role in American public life.
A recipient of numerous honors, including the National Humanities Medal and over 80 honorary doctorates, Marty also served as president of several academic societies and participated in U.S. presidential commissions. The Martin Marty Center for the Advanced Study of Religion at the University of Chicago was named in his honor.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
July 20, 2024
A RELIGIOUS SCHOLAR LOOKS AT THE MEANING OF "UNBELIEF"
Martin Emil Marty (born 1928) is an American Lutheran religious scholar who served as a Lutheran pastor, then taught at the University of Chicago Divinity School, where he now holds emeritus status. He has written many books, such as 'A Short History of Christianity (Revised Edition)', 'Pilgrims in Their Own Land: 500 Years of Religion in America,' etc.
He wrote in the Introduction to this 1964 book, "This book attempts to describe two types and a number of forms of modern unbelief. Unbelief can be defined in as many ways as can its opposite, belief. In this book it represents ways in which people of the recent past have expressed themselves apart from belief in the God of Christian revelation."
After defining "belief," he suggests that unbelief "implies any kind of serious or permanent departure from belief IN God... and from belief THAT God not only is but acts." (Pg. 30)
He notes that although "Virtually all Americans shun the label 'atheist,'" whatever unbelief is occurring in the United States "will have to be sought not in overt expressions of atheism and disbelief but under the symbols of continuity established by organized religious groups, particularly those with historic Christian reference." (Pg. 91)
He states in conclusion, "Apologists know that proof is convincing only when people are already predisposed to believe... People cannot well be cajoled or deluded into believing... Instead, most apologists ... ask that the undecided who are really receptive keep things open and unresolved, not close themselves off to all kinds of evidence but one." (Pg. 209)
Although the statistical data is quite "dated," many of Marty's points are still of interest today.
Martin Emil Marty (born 1928) is an American Lutheran religious scholar who served as a Lutheran pastor, then taught at the University of Chicago Divinity School, where he now holds emeritus status. He has written many books, such as 'A Short History of Christianity (Revised Edition)', 'Pilgrims in Their Own Land: 500 Years of Religion in America,' etc.
He wrote in the Introduction to this 1964 book, "This book attempts to describe two types and a number of forms of modern unbelief. Unbelief can be defined in as many ways as can its opposite, belief. In this book it represents ways in which people of the recent past have expressed themselves apart from belief in the God of Christian revelation."
After defining "belief," he suggests that unbelief "implies any kind of serious or permanent departure from belief IN God... and from belief THAT God not only is but acts." (Pg. 30)
He notes that although "Virtually all Americans shun the label 'atheist,'" whatever unbelief is occurring in the United States "will have to be sought not in overt expressions of atheism and disbelief but under the symbols of continuity established by organized religious groups, particularly those with historic Christian reference." (Pg. 91)
He states in conclusion, "Apologists know that proof is convincing only when people are already predisposed to believe... People cannot well be cajoled or deluded into believing... Instead, most apologists ... ask that the undecided who are really receptive keep things open and unresolved, not close themselves off to all kinds of evidence but one." (Pg. 209)
Although the statistical data is quite "dated," many of Marty's points are still of interest today.
Displaying 1 of 1 review