What's the Point of Theology?

Alister McGrath invariably combines enormous scholarship with an accessible and engaging style. -- Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury Brilliant and lucid as ever, Alister McGrath makes a compelling case that because theology sustains the vision that is at the heart of Christian faith, the church needs its leaders to be not just efficient church-builders, but wise thinkers and teachers, schooled in the rich tradition of Christian theology. -- Graham Tomlin, Bishop of Kensington on 'What's the Point of Theology?'

Alister E. McGrath (DPhil and DD, University of Oxford; Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts) is professor of theology, ministry, and education, and head of the Centre for Theology, Religion, and Culture at King's College, London. He is the author and editor of numerous books, including the award-winning The Passionate Intellect: ChristianFaith and the Discipleship of the Mind. A former atheist, he is respectful yet critical of the new atheist movement and regularly engages in debate and dialogue with its leaders.

Part 1 THEOLOGY: SOME OPENING REFLECTIONS 1 Discovering theology: seeing things in a new way 7 Theology as a new way of seeing things 11 Imagining the new world of faith 15 Charles Taylor: imagining a new (but real) world 18 2 Theology as a big picture 23 Christian doctrines: isolated or interconnected? 24 The big picture: weaving things together 26 Understanding theological disagreement 28 Finding the best big picture 30 Dorothy L. Sayers on the Incarnation 33 Mapping the landscape of faith 36 3 Theology: five criticisms 40 Theology is vacuous nonsense, which isnt worth studying 40 Theology is irrelevant for most ordinary Christians 43 Theology has no place in the life of the Church 46 Theology seems detached from the Bible 48 Theology is a Western invention 50 Part 2 WHY THEOLOGY MATTERS:WISDOM, WELLBEING AND WONDER 4 Wisdom: discovering the depths of faith 57 Karl Popper: the three worlds 57 Growing in wisdom: a New Testament foundation 59 The wisdom of the Christian past: an antidote to superficiality 64 Going deeper: mapping the Christian vision of salvation 69 Making connections: theology and a wider vision of life 74 Faith: being realistic about what we can know 77 The darkness of faith: coping with uncertainty 80 5 Wellbeing: discerning value and meaning 84 Theology and wellbeing: the neglected importance of meaning 86 Connectedness: discovering a coherent world 90 Faith: inhabiting a Christian vision of reality 91 The importance of the Incarnation 93 Transforming our existence: mapping the Incarnation 95 Mattering: Christianity and human value 98 The hearts desire: finding fulfilment 103 6 Wonder: expanding our vision of life 107 Wh4y wonder matters 109 Attentiveness: seeing and respecting nature as Gods creation 111 The intellectual appeal of faith 115 Speaking about God: preserving the mystery 118 The failed quest for certainty: Tom Halk on faith and mystery 121 The Trinity: wrestling with mystery 122 Glimpsing glory: theology, worship and spirituality 126 7 Conclusion: why theology matters 130 On theological education 132 Theology and the life of faith 133 Whats the point of theology? 135 Taking things further 138 Questions for reflection 141 Notes 144