Tammy’s Reviews > Historical Theology: An Introduction to the History of Christian Thought > Status Update

The second century was apologetics: a reasoned defense of faith to counter the Greek philosophers. Pulling away from Judaism stripped off some protection. Apologetics helped explain Christianity but did not deter persecution. Theology did not emerge until persecution ended. In the first century, Christianity spread throughout the empire with a foothold of Rome. It was not legally recognized but not forbidden.

Four difficulties in studying the patrists are: some issues important in their time do not interest us; philosophical ideas of the day (Platonism) seem confusing; in this age of flux there was great doctrinal diversity (like today); the divide between West (Latin speakers) and East (Greek speakers) causes confusion. First century issues were sorting out Jewish and Christian practices.

Love connects to suffering because we wonder if God can fully love if he does not empathize with suffering. Jesus wept, so I say yes, but modern theologians still discuss this. Historical theology makes us aware of arguments and heresies of the past, so we don't repeat the errors of the past. Historical theology informs systemic theology. Today has a resurgence in reading Chiristian classics which gives us new eyes.

It helps us identify what’s already been discussed, the strenghts and weaknesses of how it was approached, and know the landmarks of Christian thought. It also serves to correct our thinking. We can learn why certain doctrines became important when they did and understand how theology adapted to a particular time. He illustrates the idea of God not suffering came from Greek ideas about perfection and God.

Another question is whether God can suffer and that is an interesting question in light of Jesus suffering on the cross. The issue is the spirit of the study: if the sole purpose is looking for error, then that is not a posture of humility. Looking for ideas (spirit of the age) is very helpful because they yield fruit. Nothing is new under the season and the minds of the past wrestle with the questions we ask.

They examined the work of early patristic writers as well as scholars in the Middle Ages. The Enlightenment triggered another examination because they believed dogma that developed because of the culture of those eras may be incorrect (which is why we have chaos today). They reject essentials of Christian belief as dogma--the incarnation for example--because they believe it came from Greek philosophy.

Historical theology also informs systematic theology because it addresses when and why theological doctrine settled. When these issues crop up now, it is because we do not realize the issue has already been decided. It also reveals how God’s saving work appeared in each age which is encouraging. The Reformation triggered the emergence of historical theology because people were trying to support their ideas.

Church history and historical theology overlap because church history naturally includes the big theological debates of the day. To understand historical theology one must understand what was happening in the church and the culture at the time. For example, the medieval church had access to the Latin Vulgate, not the original Greek manuscripts. Publishing the NT in Greek was a spark to the Reformation.

The Spanish intermarried with the natives a lot which led to mixing of relgious and cultural practices. Finally, the efforts of the USSR and Cuba to foment a color revolution and import Marxism into Latin American influenced liberation theology. In the US, secular culture has an influence: liberalism and conservatism affecting denominations differently, depending upon which political movement aligns the most.