Veli-Matti Karkkainen – författare

Unique for its breadth in studying theologians not only from Europe and North America but also from Latin America, Asia, and Africa, this landmark volume introduces the doctrine of the Trinity, examining the work and thought of contemporary theologians throughout the world. Veli-Matti Karkkainen provides an overview of the biblical roots of the doctrine, discussing both the idea of plurality in God in the Old Testament and the rise of Trinitarian understandings in the New Testament. He details the historical growth of Trinitarian traditions and delves into specific theologies, both Western and non-Western. Also including both an introductory consideration of the doctrine's significance and a concluding assessment and agenda for future thought, Karkkainen's The Trinity is the broadest and most comprehensive contemporary study on the Trinity available.

Theologians from the early church to the present have written much about the Holy Spirit and Christian salvation. This extensive sourcebook of primary theological texts makes many of these writings available with a description of their context and importance. Especially valuable are more recent works emerging from theologians in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. This global perspective, coupled with the broad selection of writings from the history of theology, makes this the most complete collection of primary source material on these topics.

In recent decades the doctrine of salvation has become a key issue in international ecumenical conversations between Lutherans and Roman Catholics and also between Lutherans and Eastern Orthodox. The 1998 Joint Declaration on Justification between the Vatican and the Lutheran World Federation is a historic milestone in those efforts. Advances in ecumenical conversations have challenged the traditional opinion according to which the Lutheran view of justification by faith has been thought to be opposed to both the Eastern Orthodox doctrine of theosis (deification) and the Roman Catholic view of justification, which also includes sanctification.In One With God Kärkkäinen points out that amidst all the differences between the East and West with regard to theological orientations and the language and concepts for soteriology, there is a common motif to be found: union with God. Both the Eastern understanding of theosis and the Western idea of justification have union as the ultimate goal.Chapters are Salvation as Union," *Justification in Recent New Testament Scholarship, - *Deification in the Eastern Orthodox Tradition, - *Justification and Deification in Martin Luther's Theology, - *Deification, Union, and Sanctification in Later Protestant Theologies, - *Salvation as Union: Towards an Ecumenical Convergence, - and *One with God: In Search of a Consensual View of Salvation. -Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, D.Theol. Habil., is professor of systematic theology at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California.