Product Description

Voted a 2000 Book of the Year by Christianity Today!Winner of a year 2000 ECPA Gold Medallion Award!History is made up of stories--narratives that recount the events, movements, ideas and lives that have shaped religions and nations. Theologian Roger Olson believes that the history of Christian theology should be told as such a story, one replete with thick plots, exciting twists, interesting people and fascinating ideas.In this panoramic work of historical theology Olson vividly recounts the deeds and words of the cultists and apostolic fathers of the second century, the clash between the theological schools of Alexandria and Antioch, the epochal division between East and West, the revolutionary advent of the Reformation and much more, right on up to the dazzling, sometimes dismaying fallout that has continued to shake Christians through the twentieth century. Through it all Olson detects and traces a common thread: a concern for salvation--God's redemptive activity in forgiving and transforming sinful human beings.Evenhanded, refreshingly readable, impressive in its breadth and depth, The Story of Christian Theology is poised to become a standard historical theology text.

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Product Details

Publisher	IVP Academic
ISBN	0830815058
Format	Hardcover
Author	Roger E. Olson
EAN	9780830815050
Label	IVP Academic
Edition	First Edition
Dewey Decimal Number	230.09
Studio	IVP Academic
Number Of Pages	652
Title	The Story of Christian Theology: Twenty Centuries of Tradition & Reform
Publication Date	1999-04
Manufacturer	IVP Academic

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Customer Reviews

Read this one

Review by JV, 2010-08-07

I am reading this now for a class and continually find it to be inspirational. Does a great job of grabbing the heart of theological movements while delivering the facts needed.

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Highly recommended

Review by John S. Harris, 2010-06-01

Compared to my other sources on church history, this book in fewer number of pages demonstrates excellently the evolution of christian thought and theology. You won't need a cup of coffee to read it at all, nor is it a watered soupy version of history either.

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Now I finally have a much better understand of theology

Review by Jeffrey Van Wagoner, 2009-07-06

I have always had a fascination with Christian theology and history. What could be better than a book on the history of Christian theology? It turns out that this book exceeded my expectations. What had been a confused and fuzzy understanding of theology has now crystallized into a much clearer view of the big picture. This helps to confirm my belief that the best way to understand any subject is by learning its history.

Olsen's writing style is clear, concise and very interesting. I like how he is able to summarize vast quantities of information and ideas in such a short amount of space. I'm not saying this book is short, it is still over 600 pages long, but it could have been much longer.

Olsen has obvious leanings on which doctrines he supports, and those that he doesn't. I didn't find his biases distracting, and it is always nice to know which way an author is leaning. I thought he did a reasonable job presenting the variety of worldviews within Christianity in a fair manner.

I personally have the most experience studying early Christianity and I still learned a lot from this book. My weakest area of understanding was in modern theology and this gave me a good view at least to the year 2000. I'll probably need to get some advice on a good book to update me on current theology.

I highly recommend this book for anyone interested understanding the history and diversity of Christianity.

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The Story Didn't End in the First Century

Review by E. Harvey, 2009-01-24

Where do we get our theology as Christians? The obvious answer is the Bible. However, our interpretation of the Bible is not only colored by our cultural contexts, but also by the 2000 years of church history between Christ's earthly life and where we are now.

Trouble is, many Christians, like myself, grew up with no knowledge of church history, the creeds, or the church fathers. I had a vague idea about the Reformation but very little concept of why it was so important. I was content, sitting there in my little generic, unaffiliated Bible church, to think I had a grasp on 'orthodox' theology.

How wrong I was. After reading this book, I realized how we are just another small page in the story of Christian theology. What a glorious discovery to be reconnected with those in the family of faith who formulated the foundations on which we stand today. If only I had met them sooner.

A little caveat-- I'm a young, stay-at-home mom who is not in seminary, and I still managed to get through this 600+ page book. It is very readable and understandable, even with no prior knowledge of church history. It has transformed my thinking, and I recommend this book as important reading for every Christian.

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Religous Intellectual History!

Review by Shirt Wearer, 2008-12-08

Those interested in the latest social history of Christianity should, of course, consult the work of Justo González, but Roger Olson has written a remarkably readable, candid, sophisticated story of Christian theology.

He deftly surveys the quarrels that constitute the intellectual history of Christianity through twenty centuries with many of its most significant heroes and villains, as well as its twists and turns.

Olson mangles the myth of a single biblical, orthodox, historic, trinitarian Christianity. His is a truly remarkable intellectual history of Christianity.

Olson makes no effort to disguise or downplay the turn to the intellectual resources of pagan philosophy in the setting out and defense of postapostolic Christian theology.

His story revolves around the conflict between what he identifies as the earlier "synergism" of eastern or oriental Christians and the "monergism" found in Augustine's theological formulation in the fourth century, which keeps turning up in later writers, especially in the speculation of the great Protestant reformers and some of their disciples.

Olson gives special attention to Augustine, whose views are reflected in those of the great reformers and are clearly noticeable in current versions of conservative Protestant theology.

His endnotes, though brief, provide a good introduction to the most significant primary and secondary literature. This is an intellectual history that should be of special interest to most readers.

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