The Practice of Theology: A Reader

This text aims to expose students to the history of Christian thought, which is a central part of the discipline of theology. The rationale behind it is that students should not complete an introductory course without having been exposed to a wide variety of competing approaches and having gained some broad knowledge of the tradition, rather than studying methodological concerns only. The extracts are accompanied by commentary and annotation. They are divided into themed chapters, and ordered chronologically within chapters. Figures from different periods of history are included within each chapter, in order to represent the breadth of theological traditions, while texts are also included which represent some form of ongoing debate, in order to meet pedagogical needs. Commentary on each text outlines the historical situation of the author and the literary context of the extract, while each chapter offers an introductory essay highlighting the central debates and concerns in that area and indicating how the texts illustrate and illuminate these.