Saving and Secular Faith: An Invitation to Systematic Theology

What does it mean to live by faith? Answers are more elusive than ever. Beginning with a rich discussion of the Reformation legacy, historian-theologian B.A. Gerrish responds that if we release our thinking from sectarian, partisan lenses, we find that faith denotes a multitude of impulsestrust, doubt, fidelity, and confidenceand is a fundamental human posture. It undergirds not only "saving" faith but also "secular" varieties in other religious traditionsand even outside religions. We all literally live by faith in every phase of our lives. Gerrish's prolegomenon to theology goes on to ask what then is the use of belief? How, in fact, do we come to faith? And how are religious and secular faith related, especially in relation to Jesus Christ?Gerrish opens up the notion of faith to encompass the "discovery of personal meaning in one's existence" and the theological drive to articulate the deepest drives of the human self.

B. A. Gerrish is Distinguished Professor of Theology at union Theological Seminary, Virginia, and John Nuveen Professor of Historical Theology Emeritus at the Divinity School, University of Chicago. Among his many influential publications are A Prince of the Church(1984), and Grace and Gratitude(1993), both from Fortress Press.