Studies in Doctrine

By Alister E. McGrath

Book Overview

In recent years, Alister McGrath has gained prominence as one of evangelicalism's preeminent theologians. A brilliant scholar and communicator, he combines the clarity of thought of a scientist (he... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0310213266
• ISBN13: 9780310213260
• Release Date: July 1997
• Publisher: Zondervan Academic
• Length: 480 Pages
• Weight: 1.76 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.3" x 1.2" x 6.3"

Customer Reviews

Good Introductions

Prof. Alister McGrath is a moderately conservative theologian and an ordained minister in the Church of England. He has written a large number of works, some of which are quite technical and others which are more introductory in nature. The best thing about his introductory writings is that they don't presuppose a knowledge of the subject, but at the same time they aren't simplistic. This work is a collection of four smaller introductory works by Prof. McGrath: (1) UNDERSTANDING DOCTRINE; (2) UNDERSTANDING THE TRINITY; (3) UNDERSTANDING JESUS; and (4) JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH. I think UNDERSTANDING DOCTRINE is the best because it makes a persuasive case for why doctrine -- and not just feelings -- matter.One problem I have with this work, like some of Prof. McGrath's works, is that he frequently discusses Karl Barth (1886-1968) the well-known Swiss Reformed theologian. Barth was the principal player within the school known as "neo-orthodoxy." To some he is a towering writer of a more or less Evangelical bent, to others he is something of a modernist. Some traditional Calvinists, such as Gordon Clark and Cornelius Van Til, wrote works criticizing Barth from the Calvinist perspective. I'm not competent to say how faithful Barth was to the Reformed tradition, but Prof. McGrath owes it to his readers to point out that there is quite a controversy about this. Unfortunately he doesn't. (See, e.g., McGrath, HISTORICAL THEOLOGY, 238-39.) For a discussion of Barth from an admirer of Van Til, see John Frame: CORNELIUS VAN TIL: AN ANALYSIS OF HIS THOUGHT, 353-69.This book isn't a "mini" systematic theology. There are all sorts of important topics that Prof. McGrath doesn't discuss (such as ecclesiology and eschatology). Nonetheless, taken as a whole, it is a good introduction to Christianity from a Protestant perspective.