Details
By examining the ideas of key writers down the ages, whose ecclesiastical or intellectual power has allowed their insights to become embedded in the mainstream traditions of the Christian churches, Butler seeks to answer one central question: Why is it that people across the ages have claimed to have seen so many different and sometimes contradictory faces of the Christian God? Or more specifically: If there is one true God, and if He is known to those who believe in him through the revelation of Himself in history, why hasn’t a consistent and unified understanding of Him emerged in the witness and testimony of those who claim to have seen his face?
In the best of scholarly traditions, Butler presents his work as a clear account of his own quest for an answer; but although suggesting possibilities, he leaves others to come to their own judgements using the evidence available. Written in a clear and attractive style, this is a book for anyone without any prior knowledge of history, theology or philosophy, be they atheists, Christians looking to explore their faith, students or simply anyone interested in the history of religion.
Table of Contents
Introduction
1. The origins of the gods
2. The God of Israel
3. The God of Laws and Psalms
4. The Jewish Messiah
5. The God of the Damascus Road
6. The Word made flesh
7. The God of dogma and heresy
8. The God of creeds
9. The God of selective grace
10. The God of the medieval scholastics
11. The God of reason and revelation
12. The God of the reformers
13. The God of predestination
14. The God of prevenient grace
15. The God of the gaps
16. The God for enlightened times
17. The God who warms the heart
18. The God who was no longer there
19. The God for the liberals
20. The God for the fundamentalists
21. The God of neo-orthodoxy
22. The God of silence and suffering
23. The God for the twentieth century
24. The God of the past and the God of the future
Reviews & Quotes
"“This beautifully written book tells the fascinating story of the evolving portrait of the Christian God from Abraham to the present day. It is an illuminating read for those who feel the need to cross their fingers whenever they say the Nicene Creed—and for many who don’t!”"
Rt Rev. Richard Llewellin, Former Bishop at Lambeth
(2013)
""I read this in one sitting. I found it utterly compelling. Firstly, it was so approachable - honest, succint, racy. And also because it was so focused on the reader's need to make sense of often contradictory images or doctrines about God. So the author runs through history and wrestles with ideas about God in a way that any searching person of the twenty first century will find useful. I loved it and hope many others do too.""
The Revd Dr. Leslie Griffiths, The Lord Griffiths of Burry Port
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