Understanding Pannenberg

Wolfhart Pannenberg has forever changed the face of twentieth-century theology. His book on Christology constituted a turning-point away from Bultmann’s existentialist theology, and convincingly vindicated belief in the bodily resurrection of Jesus and its importance for theology. His numerous other works, especially his Systematic Theology, Theological Anthropology, and Theology and the Philosophy of Science, show both depth of learning and an unsurpassed and enviable range of interests. This book aims to explain the vast scope of Pannenberg’s thought, his understanding of the sovereignty and majesty of the God as the God of all reality (not only Israel and the church), who also revealed himself in Jesus Christ. Jesus is not simply the pre-resurrection Jesus of many Gospel narratives, but the raised and exalted Christ of the whole New Testament. Pannenberg shines a light on the centrality of futurity, and of the whole of reality in God’s purposes. Meaning becomes clear in the light of the whole, as his hermeneutics explains. He expounds the role of God as Trinity and the Holy Spirit. His vision of God and the whole world is breath-taking, and often heartening and practical.

Wolfhart Pannenberg has forever changed the face of twentieth-century theology. His book on Christology constituted a turning-point away from Bultmann's existentialist theology, and convincingly vindicated belief in the bodily resurrection of Jesus and its importance for theology. His numerous other works, especially his Systematic Theology, Theological Anthropology, and Theology and the Philosophy of Science, show both depth of learning and an unsurpassed and enviable range of interests. This book aims to explain the vast scope of Pannenberg's thought, his understanding of the sovereignty and majesty of the God as the God of all reality (not only Israel and the church), who also revealed himself in Jesus Christ. Jesus is not simply the pre-resurrection Jesus of many Gospel narratives, but the raised and exalted Christ of the whole New Testament. Pannenberg shines a light on the centrality of futurity, and of the whole of reality in God's purposes. Meaning becomes clear in the light of the whole, as his hermeneutics explains. He expounds the role of God as Trinity and the Holy Spirit. His vision of God and the whole world is breath-taking, and often heartening and practical.

This book treats Pannenberg's stated ambition to write 'a theology more thoroughly Trinitarian than any I know of'. It evaluates it by answering two questions: What does Pannenberg mean by his theology being thoroughly Trinitarian? How far has his subsequent work, especially Systematic Theology, been successful in realizing his stated goal?

Pannenberg on Evil, Love and God examines a much-neglected aspect of the theological thought of one of the most original contemporary German theologians, Wolfhart Pannenberg: his theological and philosophical understanding of evil and its relationship to the love of God. The book seeks to correct a widely held misconception that in his theology, Pannenberg has neglected the darker side of the world, concentrating instead on an optimistic picture of the future. This book argues that questions of evil hold a central place throughout Pannenberg’s writing and seeks to draw out the implications of his wrestling with these issues. The Introduction sets the scene by considering the nature of the question of evil and argues that a theological response must be made as part of a global view of the world and not in isolation from other themes. The succeeding chapters develop this theme through a reading of Pannenberg’s theology.

Scripture has always played an important role in Christian theology. This study provides an issue oriented overview of the concepts of Scripture in Protestant theology from the 16th century Reformation onward. It then sets forth the concepts of Scripture in the theologies of two contemporary systematic theologians: W. Pannenberg and D. G. Bloesch. It analyzes, compares and evaluates the theological and anthropological presuppositions that have influenced their concept of Scripture. Despite fundamentally different starting points and other significant distinctions Pannenberg and Bloesch reveal surprising similarities. This seems to suggest that for both the concept of Scripture is determined ultimately by presuppositions that are derived and shaped extra scripturam".

This book brings into conversation Western and Orthodox hermeneutical schools: one represented by Hans-Georg Gadamer and his followers, while the other school is less focused around one person and yet displays common distinct features. The main question of the book is how we can mediate not only the content of understanding of who we are in relation to each other, to the world in which we live, and to God, but also comprehend the process of understanding across various historical periods. The strengths and weaknesses of both positions are presented, and it is shown how these two hermeneutical approaches can enrich each other. The book argues that preserving both positions, and indicating how they complement each other, helps show the limits of encountering the transcendent reality that can be testified to by human language without being reduced to it as such.

How deep has Pannenberg's influence been on American theology? Which particular ideas or themes from his work have been most pervasive to Ameri­can thinkers, and which have encountered the greatest resistance? What implications does his work have beyond explicitly theo­logical contexts--e.g., for philosophy, ethics, environmental concerns, political ac­tion, and the natural sciences? What new forms have his ideas taken as they have been adapted to fit the very different context of American theology? The authors of the twelve critiques in this vol­ume represent a broad cross section of American thought on religion. The essays cover virtually all of the major areas in which Pannenberg has published. An intro­ductory survey provides a comprehensive overview of the critical literature on Pannenberg from the early 1960s to 1986. Together, the essays represent an ac­curate barometer of the influence Pannenberg has had in America, as well as the sorts of reservations that the English-speaking world brings to his work. It has now been many years since Pannenberg's first visit to the United States. At that time the discussion with Pannenberg fo­cused on the radically historical character of his proposal for theology, centering around revelation and resurrection. In the meantime, Pannenberg's thought has ex­panded almost encyclopedically into most of the major disciplines studied in a modern university. Without doubt the most comprehensive theologian at work today, his place in the history of twentieth-century theol­ogy is well assured.