Theology for beginners
Lisa, one of this blog's commenters, has asked what she can read to learn more about theology. I've promised to put up some links here over the next few weeks, to good books that are not dumbed down, but also not so drowned in specialist language that you need a degree in theology to understand them.
Every subject (even the sciences, interestingly enough) are told from a point of view, and come couched in a particular ideology. Theology is no exception, and it is sometimes helpful to know what kind of "stable" the writer comes from – although equally it can blind the reader to what the writer is saying if you begin with assumptions about what the writer means. The best writers, though, are creative within their own background, and Stanley Grenz is one such writer. He certainly comes from a "stable", but his writing is original and creative enough that he is not just a "party line" writer. His Theology for the Community of God is a good introduction to theology – what it is about, what it is not, how it fits together with other disciplines, and so on. Grenz's writing is clear and he explains his terms as he goes along. He makes it clear why he believes theology is an activity for the Church, not just for the university. And his reference point is that all theology, in the end, is about building community.
If you are lucky enough to be near a theological library (church, school, university) it is probably there. If you want to buy it, a click here also helps to support this blog.
Next week I'll post another suggestion.
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Maggi has kept a blog since September 2003, writing about theology and faith, the arts and literature, and a little about life and random nonsense...
In an increasingly secularised society few people have a good working knowledge of the Bible. Yet a great deal of our culture is built on stories or ideas that come from the Bible. Literature, art, music, language and even the fabric of our society - such as our justice system - are built on Christian concepts and biblical references. The Writing on the Wall provides a fascinating introduction to the Bible's best-known, and most influential, stories. Each chapter gives some background to the text of the Bible, and shows how the stories have become enmeshed in Western culture. Adam and Eve, the ten plagues of Egypt, The Prodigal Son and Mary Magdalene all feature - along with how the Bible has influenced everyone from Shakespeare to Monty Python, and Caravaggio to Banksy. 
Giving It Up explores the Lenten idea of 'giving up', taking it beyond the traditional idea of simply abstaining from something, and suggesting instead that what we need to give up is our existing ideas about God. With a daily readings for each day of Lent, from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, it follows the heroes of the Bible who had to give up their own too-small ideas about God.
This is Maggi’s bestselling book of daily readings for each day of Advent, Christmas and Epiphany. Advent is the beginning of the Church year, and marks the anticipation of the coming Messiah. These readings explore how beginnings and endings in our own lives are illuminated by the different Gospel narratives of Christ's coming.
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I haven’t come across Adrian Mitchell’s reply before, it’s lovely… Carol Rumens has written a great one, too, though I can’t seem to find a link to it online I’m afraid.
larkin redeemed. stunning!