Reconstructing Theology: The Contribution of Francis Schüssler Fiorenza
Francis Schüssler Fiorenza is one of the pivotal contemporary Roman Catholics working in systematic theology. Terence Bateman provides an overview of Fiorenza’s theological biography and explicates the major contours of Fiorenza’s vital contributions to theological method, foundational, systematic and constructive theology, and the practical function of religion in society and politics. As Bateman argues, Fiorenza’s vision is one of unrivaled clarity and coherence; even more, it follows a path of the shifting patterns in theology over the past half century, thus shedding light upon the internal constitution of recent Catholic and Protestant theology.
- Format Paperback
- ISBN 9781451472110
- eBook ISBN 9781451479942
- Pages 224
- Dimensions 6 x 9
- Publication Date February 1, 2014
Endorsements
"Doing Christian theology today amidst a swirl of discourses and cultural contexts is difficult work. Who better than Francis Schüssler Fiorenza to provide a deep, coherent, insightful vision that orients theology and its contributions to the world and to the church? And Terence Bateman's book is an excellent advocate for this vision. His clear grasp of Fiorenza's project lets him unpack with ease the intricacies of its hermeneutical reconstruction of theological method and ecclesial identity. Along the way, he underlines Fiorenza’s positive contributions to the church’s understanding of itself in the midst of ever-more-plural political and cultural contexts. Read Bateman's book for a challenging look at some of the smartest contemporary theology around."
—Anthony J. Godzieba
Villanova University
"Reconstructing Theology is an important and groundbreaking study that performs a great service for the wider theological community in providing arguably the most substantial and incisive study of the work of Harvard University’s Francis Schüssler Fiorenza to date. This volume takes its reader on a journey through the formation and critical development of Fiorenza’s theological method and vision, and pays especial attention to the role of hermeneutics in shaping that vision. But the volume then offers much more: it seeks to explore how that method and vision can be applied to questions of vital importance for the theological community today. Like its subject, who helped bridge discourse between German and American theology in so many fruitful ways, this study will prove an important resource text in courses in the great theological departments of continental Europe, North America, and beyond."
—Gerard Mannion
Georgetown University
—Anthony J. Godzieba
Villanova University
"Reconstructing Theology is an important and groundbreaking study that performs a great service for the wider theological community in providing arguably the most substantial and incisive study of the work of Harvard University’s Francis Schüssler Fiorenza to date. This volume takes its reader on a journey through the formation and critical development of Fiorenza’s theological method and vision, and pays especial attention to the role of hermeneutics in shaping that vision. But the volume then offers much more: it seeks to explore how that method and vision can be applied to questions of vital importance for the theological community today. Like its subject, who helped bridge discourse between German and American theology in so many fruitful ways, this study will prove an important resource text in courses in the great theological departments of continental Europe, North America, and beyond."
—Gerard Mannion
Georgetown University