Great Christian Thinkers

by Hans Küng

s/t: Paul, Origen, Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, Schleiermacher, Barth
Solidly researched, informative description and evaluation of seven monumental Christian thinkers groupedand related incisively by a brilliant contemporary theological mind. A treat not to be missed.--National Catholic Reporter
As insightful as it is penetrating. The essays can indeed serve as introductions in and of themselves, each with a short biigraphy, a delineation of the theological positions held, and a concluding assessment of what lies ahead.--Anglican Theological Review

Genres: Religion, Theology, Philosophy, Nonfiction, History, Spirituality

236 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1386

About the author

Hans Küng was a Swiss Catholic priest, controversial theologian, and prolific author. Since 1995 he had been President of the Foundation for a Global Ethic (Stiftung Weltethos). Küng is "a Catholic priest in good standing," but the Vatican has rescinded his authority to teach Catholic theology. Though he had to leave the Catholic faculty, he remained at the University of Tübingen as a professor of Ecumenical Theology and served as Emeritus Professor since 1996. In spite of not being allowed to teach Catholic theology, neither his bishop nor the Holy See had revoked his priestly faculties.

Reviews

[Maryam · Rating 4 out of 5]

بحث شلایرماخر را خیلی پسندیدم

[Kyle Barton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a hard book for me. I don't think it was a bad book by any means, so don't misunderstand the 3 star-rating. It just felt advanced. The uninitiated reader isn't left with much sure ground to proceed on in certain spots. This is because Kung engages critically with each theologian. Kung's writing here is dense and for someone not well-versed in the writings of these seven "great Christian thinkers" you will feel over your head at times, or at least not sure whether to bite hook, line, and sinker into Kung's analysis. I read this contemporaneously with the matching chapters in Roger Olson's, The Story of Christian Theology. I did that mainly to provide counterpoint. Olson is a lot more easy to read and certainly more objective. Kung's writing here is far from indifferent or detached. His aim is not merely to provide a congenial, impartial summary. Each chapter basically breaks down into two parts: description and criticism (this is Kung's own description, p. 12). Certainly Kung excels at critical reflection and seems to always aim at provoking thought rather than accepting the status quo. So the analysis is penetrating at times. I didn't agree with all the conclusions Kung reaches but I did enjoy Kung's use of paradigm evaluation, i.e. how he considers these great Christian thinkers as the initiators of paradigm changes in theology. Specific highlights were the comparisons between Origin and Augustine, and Augustine and Aquinas (however, the 2 chapters in Paradigm Change in Theology by Kannengiesser and Pfurtner on Origin and Augustine, and Aquinas and Luther were more thorough).

[Patrick]

I don't normally think of myself as a big Hans Kung fan, but I actually rather enjoyed this book. Unfortunately, you can't just take Kung's word on what these great thinkers taught and believed. Kung's own beliefs (liberal catholicism) seems to taint his views and descriptions of all these people, but it's still worth reading if you can sift through all that. Just keep in mind it's worth also seeing what other authors have said about these various christian thinkers. :-)

[Brad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent high-level survey of the development of Christian thought as seen through the philosophies of seminal theologians. Highlights the beneficial and troubling additions each of the heavy-hitters brought to the way we think (or fail to think) about Jesus.

[فؤاد · Rating 3 out of 5]

آخرین کتابی که در نظر داشتم برای آشنایی ابتدایی با مسیحیت بخونم. از این به بعد مسیحیت رو بیشتر با دوره های گریت کورسز ادامه میدم.

[Chet Duke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really enjoyable, deep survey of some of the major thinkers in Christian history. I was disappointed by much of the content on Barth, and I thought Kung's content on Schleiermacher was wanting; nevertheless, I will gladly recommend this to other students of Christian history/systematic theology.

[Mike Suter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the sections on Paul through Luther particularly interesting. Understanding the theology of those men, when Catholicism was so dominant in politics and culture, is essential to understanding the medieval era.
In the more modern era, Kung gets increasingly technical in his terminology, to the point of being impenetrable at times. The translation from German in some cases was also grammatically imperfect and confusing. Nonetheless, Kung has an insider view of modern theology which few others can match. Kung's involvement with the ecumenical movement (eg, World Council of Churches) clearly influences his assessments of recent theologians. His discussion of attempts at rapprochement between the Catholic and Protestant churches is interesting. His willingness to constructively criticize the Catholic church (of which he is a part), particularly papal infallibility and the role of women in the church, reinforces his credibility as a thinking Christian.

[Susetyo Priyojati · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uaaaaah.... Akhirnya selesai juga baca buku ini. Meskipun masih belum tau apa itu exegesis, hehehe...

[Lea Dürig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interessanter Überblick von 5 grossen Theologen. Es lohnt sich, diese ökumenische Kirchengeschichte zu lesen und davon neue Impulse und Ideen zu gewinnen.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great resource!

[нєνєℓ ¢ανα · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good stuff!