Owen Among the Theologians: Conversations Across the Christian Tradition

by Kelly M. Kapic, Ty Kieser

Genres: Theology

272 pages, Paperback

Published March 17, 2026

Reviews

[Edward Meshell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this one from Dr. Kieser and Dr. Kapic. I’ve always respected Owen as a theologian, and have wanted to expose myself more to him and his thought. This was a great primer on Owen and his theology, comparing him to other theologians throughout church history. There were obvious ones like Augustine and Calvin, but I even got to meet new people like Macrina and Lemuel Haynes (how have I never heard of them before??)

Recommend to anyone interested in Owen! It does get a bit academic at times, but can be mostly understood by a lay person.

[Daniel Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very fun to read comparison of Owen and a couple different theologians throughout church history. Some chapters were great! Some, not so much, but I definitely came out with a greater appreciation for our triune God and his glorious gospel, while also coming to a greater appreciation of Owen.

My favorite chapters for his dialogue with didymus the blind on the Holy Spirit, John Calvin on the eternal priesthood of Christ, and Jonathan Edwards on preservation of the saints.

[Josh Kannard · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am quite grieved over this rating. I had high expectations for this book. The moment I found out about it, I rushed down the road to Crossway to secure a copy for myself. Owen paired with theologians throughout Christian history? What a great idea!

Unfortunately, it was not executed as well as I hoped it would be. I was unsure why I was supposed to care about the pairings in most chapters. The chapters tended to go as follows: (1) simple introduction to the theological topic; (2) presentation of one figure's thought; (3) presentation of Owen's thought; (4) conclusion. Most of the time, the figures were pretty much saying the same thing, and the slight difference between them didn't seem to contribute much more than satisfying an itch of curiosity.

In the end, I don't think this book contributed much to any conversation, which I believe should be the aim of scholarship like this. It felt like mere information for information's sake. However, I must commend the authors' presentation of the chosen figures and Owen's thought. The summaries of their theologies were always clear and accurate, but the payoff was weak. Nevertheless, there is a sense in which the book accomplished its aim: I am even more eager to go read Owen for myself than I was before picking up this volume. Excited to do so this fall with Dr. Shawn Wright at SBTS!

[Joel Wentz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grabbed this because I'm a big fan of Kelly Kapic and church history, and while I really liked a few chapters, overall it didn't spark any new interest for me. It landed in that weird middle ground of staying light and readable, while also attempting to cover a LOT of historical theology, and ultimately didn't go deep enough in any particular area. Probably really good for big fans of John Owens, or the Puritans more broadly.

Video review here: https://youtu.be/4P4SxxEeVoY