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God Without Measure: Working Papers in Christian Theology: Volume 2: Virtue and Intellect
In this second volume, John Webster advances the discussion to include topics in moral theology and the theology of created intellect. An opening chapter sets the scene by considering the relation of Christology and moral theology. This is followed by a set of reflections on a range of ethical themes: the nature of human dignity; mercy; the place of sorrow in Christian existence; the nature of human courage; dying and rising with Christ as a governing motif in the Christian moral life; the presence of sin in human speech. Webster concludes with studies of the nature of intellectual life and of the intellectual task of Christian theology.
- GenresTheology
200 pages, Hardcover
First published November 19, 2015
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69 people want to read
About the author
John B. Webster
47 books39 followersProfessor John B. Webster, MA, PhD, DD, FRSE was a notable contemporary British theologian of the Anglican communion writing in the area of systematic, historical and moral theology. He was educated at the independent co-educational Bradford Grammar School and at the University of Cambridge.
See also: John Webster
Image: Drawn by Rachel Nigh
See also: John Webster
Image: Drawn by Rachel Nigh
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
June 19, 2023
Webster's method of moving from God in himself, to creation, fall, redemption, Pentecost, and then finally approaching the topic has shaped the way I think about the world. It's an immensely clarifying and all-encompassing way of biblically understanding any topic in Christian theology, and he shows that it holds true for theological-ethical thinking as well.
December 29, 2021
Like everything else I've read by Webster thus far, this book was an unalloyed pleasure that deeply challenged and encouraged both heart and mind. Few writers have challenged me more to think so deeply about the nature and purposes of theology, and none have so patiently reinforced the necessity of doing so while being mindful of my own creatureliness. Webster argues again and again for a proper sense of creatureliness that informs and animates the pursuit and cultivation of both virtue and intellect. Full of both reverent, faithful intellectual rigor and genuine pastoral warmth, this is a book I'll be reading again and again.
November 15, 2018
John Webster provides clear, thought-provoking theological thinking. To my mind, he models the kind of analytic thinking that we should aim to adopt into our own lives. Certainly, Webster writes in an academic and specific area of theology---so his work is not a replacement for standard theology books.
I highly recommend this volume to anyone interested in theology and analytic thinking.
I highly recommend this volume to anyone interested in theology and analytic thinking.
March 16, 2022
Webster, while not producing a full systematic theology, has given us in 3 books the contours of one. Whereas "The Domain of the Word" focused on Scripture and Theological Reason, and the first volume of "God Without Measure" focused on God and God's Works, this volume covers the area of Anthropology (or as Webster calls it, "Moral Theology"). In it, Webster begins to display both the fruits, and difficulties, of his project of "theological theology" by the intentional focus on anthropological topics. The book moves from basic principles, to moral affections, to moral virtues, and finally to intellectual virtues (although this organization is implicit). It is worth multiple readings.
A brief comment about style: Webster is extremely repetitive across the three books, and between essays. While this is irritating when read quickly, it is helpful in prompting connections and reminders when read reflectively. He also has certain words and phrases that he likes ("flourishing" comes especially to mind) which at times he seems to rely on to do the work for him. He also prefers definition above demonstration many times - asserting statements and proceeding from them in an explanatory manner, instead of showing us that they are true. All of these seem to be by-products of the fact that the books are composed of collected essays which were written independently, instead of together as an integrated whole.
In the first volume of "God Without Measure," I experienced a little disappointment as Webster's intent of "theological theology" in the section on God's Works seemed to result in mainly a repetition of theology proper, and only partially realized his intention. Here, at times the same difficulty of Webster's project is on display - but for the most part, the difficulty is overcome and Webster is much more successful at giving us a better look at "theological anthropology."
Chapter 1: Agere Sequitur Esse
Basic idea: action follows being. This chapter is the short "introduction" and lays out the principle that is throughout Webster's theology. Creaturely being is enacted, and reaches perfection, in history. Being precedes action, and action is sourced in it. For ethics: to understand ethics (action), one must attend first to human nature (being) - and specifically to human nature in a theological sense (as creaturely).
Chapter 2: Christology and Ethics
The purpose here is to trace the interrelationship between Christology and Ethics in the book of Colossians. Webster's goal: a Christologically derived ethics, where ethics is thus reflective of (and contextualized within) redemption, instead of being "Christianized Stoic commonplaces." The whole purpose then: what makes Christian Ethics to be "Christian," instead of just "Ethics?" In interacting with historicist trends (as a protest against total historicism in theology), Webster returns to the point that the history of Christ's life is meaningful and determinative for ethics (as opposed to meaningless). This is a dense essay. I think that the main point is that Christ brings about the situation/context of redemption (or "redeemed life"), from which Christian Ethics follows. So Christ's work (in history) brings about a new reality (being) from which ethics follows (action), which is distinctively Christian. There's a lot more there. It was the principal "exegetical" essay in this volume, and much better than the one in the first volume (although the exegetical portion still faced its own difficulties).
Chapter 3: The Dignity of Creatures
This essay finishes up the principles. I think it might be the best essay in the book, and possibly the best in the entire 3 volumes. Creatures have dignity...precisely "as creatures," and to claim that they need to displace God in order to have dignity, is actually to reject (and destroy) their dignity.
Chapter 4: Mercy
Mercy is a virtue, but also an affection. The mercy of Christ is created in us as a new reality of the redeemed life, and must be enacted in our experience. Because God's mercy creates the society of the church, mercy characterizes the social practice of the church. Mercy is not simply an attitude, but bursts forth to action. It recognizes the universality of need, addresses that need, and addresses that need universally (not just within bonds of affection - or rather, it extends the bonds of affection universally).
Chapter 5: Sorrow
Sorrow is an affection which is the reaction to fallenness. Sorrow is an inner movement, but it is a response to something external. That which it responds to is evil. It is not just a perception of that evil, but a "flight from" evil. Thus, sorrow is good in that it contributes protectively to goodness. The purpose of sorrow is to direct us to the goodness of God (who overcomes the evil). It only does so, when it is rightly ordered (emotion must not be eliminated, but rather ordered properly).
Chapter 6: Courage
Courage on the other hand, is more strictly a "moral virtue" properly speaking. This essay begins my 3rd division of the book. Webster outlines the role of virtues in redeemed life. Significantly following Aquinas, courage is steadfast direction towards the good. Thus, it dispels fear. But, it can do this properly, or in a corrupted manner. An example: fear of death. Courage does not displace or eliminate love of life, but properly situates life as a subordinate end to fellowship with God (which cannot be overcome by death). Especially helpful: Webster's description of the perversions of courage.
Chapter 7: Mortification and Vivification
Far from just a repeat of secular virtues which are Christianized, the energy of the Christian moral life is provided by specifically Christian virtues: notably mortification and vivification as ongoing works of God in the Christian. All Christian virtue is from God, not from the self. Interesting in this essay is Webster's perspective on the role of baptism in the Christian life. While baptism (regeneration) is the start/source of redeemed life, its form is self-denial. This is not "self-cultivation" but rather "yielding to God."
Chapter 8: Sins of Speech
Turning briefly (but not entirely) from virtue, and starting to direct into the intellectual virtues, Webster gives a discussion of sin. First he gives attention to the nature of human speech (creaturely, directed, irrevocable), and from the nature of speech to the qualities of good speech (integrity, accuracy, edifying, moderated, religious). Sin cannot make us not creatures, and it cannot make speech not speech. But it does corrupt by either misdirecting the nature of speech, or eliminating the qualities of good speech. He concludes by discussing mortification and vivification applied to speech. I think this might be the only extended treatment of sin in Webster's 3 volume set of essays, making sin a minor theme in his theology (appearing at times softened or neglected due to the academic register of his writing).
Chapter 9: Intellectual Life
God's intellect grounds creaturely intellect. But created intellect is discursive: it takes time. It has the task of governing the body, emotions, and will. Interestingly, "curiosity" is a vice, not a virtue. Rather, studiousness is the virtue which opposes curiosity. Curiosity is entangled with pride - one might call it the intellectual form of gluttony and promiscuity. So what does redeemed intellectual life look like? Gratitude, docility, and diligence in growing the virtues. Most notably, a regenerate intellect relates all things back to God.
Chapter 10: Theology in the University
There are overlaps between this essay and Webster's earlier "The Culture of Theology." After recapitulating in brief the substance of "theological theology" from the end of volume 1, he tackles the relationship between theology and the secular (or modern) university. How does theology have a place within the reality of our present social context? Theology must resist secularization/naturalization from the university, because only as itself can it help promote the flourishing of intellectual life within the university. To do this, it must also acknowledge the possibility of science outside of the Christian confession, otherwise it cannot contribute to the flourishing of society outside of the Christian confession.
Chapter 11: Intellectual Patience
Providentially, I started reading this essay as I was distracted from a different task. Getting a couple pages in, I was prompted to return to the task I was distracted from! The early sections lay out the context for patience as an intellectual virtues by outlining the virtuous intellect. Patience is one virtue which enables our dealing with difficulties in intellectual life. It adjusts our perception to see difficulty as within providence, as occasions for God's goodness. Rather than passivity, patience drives commitment to activity (patience is acknowledgement of our creaturely nature, that intellectual life is a process - if so, it is necessarily active in that process - the passivity which neglects or does not engage in the process is actually impatience!).
Overall thoughts: This is a wonderful book, even if there are areas where Webster is dense, weird, or seems problematic. Not only does Webster succeed in giving us a look at a theological anthropology, but he also prompts much reflection and motivation to loving Christ (and the concrete shape of what loving Christ looks like). A practical note on reading: there is much to underline / circle / etc. However, it is much more profitable if for every bit that you mark, you also write a note in the margins (rather than simply marking it). I think that Webster introduces tensions, especially obvious in chapter 10 (if theology is to contribute to the non-Christian life, does that not destroy the concept of "theological theology?"). And yet, even there, fruitful reflection abounds. Highly recommended.
A brief comment about style: Webster is extremely repetitive across the three books, and between essays. While this is irritating when read quickly, it is helpful in prompting connections and reminders when read reflectively. He also has certain words and phrases that he likes ("flourishing" comes especially to mind) which at times he seems to rely on to do the work for him. He also prefers definition above demonstration many times - asserting statements and proceeding from them in an explanatory manner, instead of showing us that they are true. All of these seem to be by-products of the fact that the books are composed of collected essays which were written independently, instead of together as an integrated whole.
In the first volume of "God Without Measure," I experienced a little disappointment as Webster's intent of "theological theology" in the section on God's Works seemed to result in mainly a repetition of theology proper, and only partially realized his intention. Here, at times the same difficulty of Webster's project is on display - but for the most part, the difficulty is overcome and Webster is much more successful at giving us a better look at "theological anthropology."
Chapter 1: Agere Sequitur Esse
Basic idea: action follows being. This chapter is the short "introduction" and lays out the principle that is throughout Webster's theology. Creaturely being is enacted, and reaches perfection, in history. Being precedes action, and action is sourced in it. For ethics: to understand ethics (action), one must attend first to human nature (being) - and specifically to human nature in a theological sense (as creaturely).
Chapter 2: Christology and Ethics
The purpose here is to trace the interrelationship between Christology and Ethics in the book of Colossians. Webster's goal: a Christologically derived ethics, where ethics is thus reflective of (and contextualized within) redemption, instead of being "Christianized Stoic commonplaces." The whole purpose then: what makes Christian Ethics to be "Christian," instead of just "Ethics?" In interacting with historicist trends (as a protest against total historicism in theology), Webster returns to the point that the history of Christ's life is meaningful and determinative for ethics (as opposed to meaningless). This is a dense essay. I think that the main point is that Christ brings about the situation/context of redemption (or "redeemed life"), from which Christian Ethics follows. So Christ's work (in history) brings about a new reality (being) from which ethics follows (action), which is distinctively Christian. There's a lot more there. It was the principal "exegetical" essay in this volume, and much better than the one in the first volume (although the exegetical portion still faced its own difficulties).
Chapter 3: The Dignity of Creatures
This essay finishes up the principles. I think it might be the best essay in the book, and possibly the best in the entire 3 volumes. Creatures have dignity...precisely "as creatures," and to claim that they need to displace God in order to have dignity, is actually to reject (and destroy) their dignity.
Chapter 4: Mercy
Mercy is a virtue, but also an affection. The mercy of Christ is created in us as a new reality of the redeemed life, and must be enacted in our experience. Because God's mercy creates the society of the church, mercy characterizes the social practice of the church. Mercy is not simply an attitude, but bursts forth to action. It recognizes the universality of need, addresses that need, and addresses that need universally (not just within bonds of affection - or rather, it extends the bonds of affection universally).
Chapter 5: Sorrow
Sorrow is an affection which is the reaction to fallenness. Sorrow is an inner movement, but it is a response to something external. That which it responds to is evil. It is not just a perception of that evil, but a "flight from" evil. Thus, sorrow is good in that it contributes protectively to goodness. The purpose of sorrow is to direct us to the goodness of God (who overcomes the evil). It only does so, when it is rightly ordered (emotion must not be eliminated, but rather ordered properly).
Chapter 6: Courage
Courage on the other hand, is more strictly a "moral virtue" properly speaking. This essay begins my 3rd division of the book. Webster outlines the role of virtues in redeemed life. Significantly following Aquinas, courage is steadfast direction towards the good. Thus, it dispels fear. But, it can do this properly, or in a corrupted manner. An example: fear of death. Courage does not displace or eliminate love of life, but properly situates life as a subordinate end to fellowship with God (which cannot be overcome by death). Especially helpful: Webster's description of the perversions of courage.
Chapter 7: Mortification and Vivification
Far from just a repeat of secular virtues which are Christianized, the energy of the Christian moral life is provided by specifically Christian virtues: notably mortification and vivification as ongoing works of God in the Christian. All Christian virtue is from God, not from the self. Interesting in this essay is Webster's perspective on the role of baptism in the Christian life. While baptism (regeneration) is the start/source of redeemed life, its form is self-denial. This is not "self-cultivation" but rather "yielding to God."
Chapter 8: Sins of Speech
Turning briefly (but not entirely) from virtue, and starting to direct into the intellectual virtues, Webster gives a discussion of sin. First he gives attention to the nature of human speech (creaturely, directed, irrevocable), and from the nature of speech to the qualities of good speech (integrity, accuracy, edifying, moderated, religious). Sin cannot make us not creatures, and it cannot make speech not speech. But it does corrupt by either misdirecting the nature of speech, or eliminating the qualities of good speech. He concludes by discussing mortification and vivification applied to speech. I think this might be the only extended treatment of sin in Webster's 3 volume set of essays, making sin a minor theme in his theology (appearing at times softened or neglected due to the academic register of his writing).
Chapter 9: Intellectual Life
God's intellect grounds creaturely intellect. But created intellect is discursive: it takes time. It has the task of governing the body, emotions, and will. Interestingly, "curiosity" is a vice, not a virtue. Rather, studiousness is the virtue which opposes curiosity. Curiosity is entangled with pride - one might call it the intellectual form of gluttony and promiscuity. So what does redeemed intellectual life look like? Gratitude, docility, and diligence in growing the virtues. Most notably, a regenerate intellect relates all things back to God.
Chapter 10: Theology in the University
There are overlaps between this essay and Webster's earlier "The Culture of Theology." After recapitulating in brief the substance of "theological theology" from the end of volume 1, he tackles the relationship between theology and the secular (or modern) university. How does theology have a place within the reality of our present social context? Theology must resist secularization/naturalization from the university, because only as itself can it help promote the flourishing of intellectual life within the university. To do this, it must also acknowledge the possibility of science outside of the Christian confession, otherwise it cannot contribute to the flourishing of society outside of the Christian confession.
Chapter 11: Intellectual Patience
Providentially, I started reading this essay as I was distracted from a different task. Getting a couple pages in, I was prompted to return to the task I was distracted from! The early sections lay out the context for patience as an intellectual virtues by outlining the virtuous intellect. Patience is one virtue which enables our dealing with difficulties in intellectual life. It adjusts our perception to see difficulty as within providence, as occasions for God's goodness. Rather than passivity, patience drives commitment to activity (patience is acknowledgement of our creaturely nature, that intellectual life is a process - if so, it is necessarily active in that process - the passivity which neglects or does not engage in the process is actually impatience!).
Overall thoughts: This is a wonderful book, even if there are areas where Webster is dense, weird, or seems problematic. Not only does Webster succeed in giving us a look at a theological anthropology, but he also prompts much reflection and motivation to loving Christ (and the concrete shape of what loving Christ looks like). A practical note on reading: there is much to underline / circle / etc. However, it is much more profitable if for every bit that you mark, you also write a note in the margins (rather than simply marking it). I think that Webster introduces tensions, especially obvious in chapter 10 (if theology is to contribute to the non-Christian life, does that not destroy the concept of "theological theology?"). And yet, even there, fruitful reflection abounds. Highly recommended.
September 1, 2021
Truly excellent essays in moral theology. Webster's methodology is always on the surface of the text, helping the reader to see how and why he makes the connections he makes. If you're interested in the relationship between dogmatics and ethics, you can't do better than starting here.
One of my favorite Webster quotes (and it's an unbelievably long list) is from his essay on "Intellectual Patience." He writes, "Patience is a *trustful* bearing of intellectual insufficiency, sheltering our intellectual lives from the malign identification of dignity and autonomy. In this way, patience liberates creatures from the ideal of entire intellectual adequacy: we know in part, but we may still know well" (185). This creaturely insufficiency is a function of our dependence. Thus, it's a wonderfully *good* thing. Patience is an embrace--maybe more strongly said, a *loving*--of our dependence upon God and others.
Making the very same point, Webster ends his essay on mercy saying this, "Need is part of the condition of creatures. We have life from God's goodness . . . We need God to be what we are; and we need others. To require help is not abnormal but the natural state of those for fellowship. It is, paradoxically, the entirely adequate person who suffers from defect; of this proud, self-sufficiency, only the gospel can heal us. The gospel does so by schooling us in the mercies of God, by setting us in fellowship with others, by calling us to give and receive mercy" (66). Here, you get metaphysics, theology proper, moral theology, and the gospel--all rolled into half a paragraph.
Perhaps, as Webster demonstrates for us, God put these things together for a good reason.
One of my favorite Webster quotes (and it's an unbelievably long list) is from his essay on "Intellectual Patience." He writes, "Patience is a *trustful* bearing of intellectual insufficiency, sheltering our intellectual lives from the malign identification of dignity and autonomy. In this way, patience liberates creatures from the ideal of entire intellectual adequacy: we know in part, but we may still know well" (185). This creaturely insufficiency is a function of our dependence. Thus, it's a wonderfully *good* thing. Patience is an embrace--maybe more strongly said, a *loving*--of our dependence upon God and others.
Making the very same point, Webster ends his essay on mercy saying this, "Need is part of the condition of creatures. We have life from God's goodness . . . We need God to be what we are; and we need others. To require help is not abnormal but the natural state of those for fellowship. It is, paradoxically, the entirely adequate person who suffers from defect; of this proud, self-sufficiency, only the gospel can heal us. The gospel does so by schooling us in the mercies of God, by setting us in fellowship with others, by calling us to give and receive mercy" (66). Here, you get metaphysics, theology proper, moral theology, and the gospel--all rolled into half a paragraph.
Perhaps, as Webster demonstrates for us, God put these things together for a good reason.
September 15, 2022
This may be one of the best books i have read in a long time. Truthfully, the writing of Webster ceases to amaze me. He is a distinct blend of theological clarity and simple understanding/explanation. While volume 1 of God without Measure is amazing this volume seems far more beneficial. He touches on subjects in a way many Christians (particularly writers) may have never thought. This volume is extremely practical in the life of the reader, and ultimately in the church. I think everyone should read it. Favorite chapters: ‘Where Christ Is’: Christology and Ethics, Dolent Gaudentque: Sorrow in the Christian Life, and Mortification and Vivification.
February 23, 2018
Really good stuff here.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews