Publisher
Peter Lang
This book examines a little-known facet of Karl Barth's theology: his account of the practical or self-involving character of faith. Joseph L. Mangina helps to dispel the myth of Barth as an enemy of the human subject by guiding the reader through key texts from the Church Dogmatics. Examining such themes as religious experience, sin, emotion, and moral agency, Mangina shows that Barth is not merely a skilled dogmatic theologian, but a thoughtful and sensitive interpreter of the Christian life.
Review:
"Joseph L. Mangina has quite simply written the best book we have on Barth's account of the Christian life. His analysis of the self-involving character of Barth's theology not only is a wonderful defense of his position but, just as important, helps us better understand Barth's whole project. The book should be read not only by those seeking a better understanding of Barth but by anyone concerned with the challenge to provide a constructive account of the Christian life." (Stanley M. Hauerwas, Gilbert T. Rowe Professor of Theological Ethics, Duke University).
"Joseph L. Mangina effectively dismantles the stereotype that Karl Barth stresses the objective givenness of God's self-disclosure so hard that he leaves no room for talk of personal experience of grace. It turns out that integral to Barth's theology are imaginative, subtle, and moving portrayals of what Jonathan Edwards called the 'religious affections'. Mangina's perceptive case studies also manage to show, rather than tell, just how Barth's revolutionary 'theological method' works in actual practice. This gracefully written book proves that close readings of texts need not be tedious and that rigorous discussion of Barth need be neither boring nor verbose!" (David H. Kelsey, Luther Weigle Professor of Theology, Yale University)
Review:
"Joseph L. Mangina has quite simply written the best book we have on Barth's account of the Christian life. His analysis of the self-involving character of Barth's theology not only is a wonderful defense of his position but, just as important, helps us better understand Barth's whole project. The book should be read not only by those seeking a better understanding of Barth but by anyone concerned with the challenge to provide a constructive account of the Christian life." (Stanley M. Hauerwas, Gilbert T. Rowe Professor of Theological Ethics, Duke University).
"Joseph L. Mangina effectively dismantles the stereotype that Karl Barth stresses the objective givenness of God's self-disclosure so hard that he leaves no room for talk of personal experience of grace. It turns out that integral to Barth's theology are imaginative, subtle, and moving portrayals of what Jonathan Edwards called the 'religious affections'. Mangina's perceptive case studies also manage to show, rather than tell, just how Barth's revolutionary 'theological method' works in actual practice. This gracefully written book proves that close readings of texts need not be tedious and that rigorous discussion of Barth need be neither boring nor verbose!" (David H. Kelsey, Luther Weigle Professor of Theology, Yale University)
Joseph Mangina, Karl Barth on the Christian Life The Practical Knowledge of God Series: Issues in Systematic Theology Vol. 8. (New York: Peter Lang 2001).
