An Infinite Fountain of Light - Jonathan Edwards for the Twenty-First Century

George M. Marsden

ISBN 10: 1514006626 / ISBN 13: 9781514006627

Published by IVP Academic, US, 2023

About this Item

Christians need to pause once in a while to get their bearings. For perspective on our own times and how we got here, it helps to listen to wise guides from other eras. In An Infinite Fountain of Light, the renowned American historian George Marsden illuminates the landscape with wisdom from one such mentor: Jonathan Edwards.Drawing on his deep expertise on Edwards and American culture, Marsden explains where Edwards stood within his historical context and sets forth key points of his complex thought. By also considering Benjamin Franklin and George Whitefield, two of Edwards's most influential contemporaries, Marsden unpacks the competing cultural and religious impulses that have shaped our times. In contrast, Edwards offered us an exhilarating view of the centrality of God's beauty and love. Christians' love for God, he taught, can be the guiding love of our lives, opening us to transformative joy and orienting all our lesser loves."There is an infinite fullness of all possible good in God, a fullness of every perfection, of all excellency and beauty, and of infinite happiness," wrote Edwards. "This infinite fountain of light should, diffusing its excellent fullness, pour forth light all around."With Marsden's guidance, readers will discover how Edwards's insights can renew our own vision of the divine, of creation, and of ourselves.

Seller Inventory # LU-9781514006627

Bibliographic Details

• Title: An Infinite Fountain of Light - Jonathan Edwards for the Twenty-First Century
• Publisher: IVP Academic, US
• Publication Date: 2023
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1514006626
• ISBN 13: 9781514006627
• Binding: Hardback
• Condition: New
• Dimensions: 5.5W x 0.9H x 8.5D inches 5.5 inches width by 0.9 inches height by 8.5 inches depth
• Weight: 2400 grams

About this title

Synopsis

Christians need to pause once in a while to get their bearings. For perspective on our own times and how we got here, it helps to listen to wise guides from other eras. In An Infinite Fountain of Light, the renowned American historian George Marsden illuminates the landscape with wisdom from one such mentor: Jonathan Edwards.

Drawing on his deep expertise on Edwards and American culture, Marsden explains where Edwards stood within his historical context and sets forth key points of his complex thought. By also considering Benjamin Franklin and George Whitefield, two of Edwards's most influential contemporaries, Marsden unpacks the competing cultural and religious impulses that have shaped our times. In contrast, Edwards offered us an exhilarating view of the centrality of God's beauty and love. Christians' love for God, he taught, can be the guiding love of our lives, opening us to transformative joy and orienting all our lesser loves.

"There is an infinite fullness of all possible good in God, a fullness of every perfection, of all excellency and beauty, and of infinite happiness," wrote Edwards. "This infinite fountain of light should, diffusing its excellent fullness, pour forth light all around."

With Marsden's guidance, readers will discover how Edwards's insights can renew our own vision of the divine, of creation, and of ourselves.

About the Author

George M. Marsden (PhD, Yale University) is professor emeritus at the University of Notre Dame. His many books include Fundamentalism and American Culture, The Outrageous Idea of Christian Scholarship, and Jonathan Edwards: A Life.