Justin Stratis explores the meaning of the biblical phrase 'God is love' through an examination of two quintessentially modern Protestant theologians: Friedrich Schleiermacher and Karl Barth. This book contains both a detailed engagement with Schleiermacher's untranslated lectures on Dialektik and their relation to his more well-known work, as well as a new assessment of Barth's doctrine of God which both respects his radical innovations and yet places him within the stream of traditional, catholic trinitarianism. After considering the complexities of theological predication, and comparing several classical and contemporary approaches to the implication of 'love', Stratis presents and ultimately commends the distinct approaches of Schleiermacher and Barth for their tendency to treat divine love as a 'conclusion' to the doctrine of God, rather than as a conceptual starting point. In contrast to many contemporary approaches, Stratis concludes with the suggestion that God's love is best conceived as his being toward fellowship, rather than as the eminent instance of loving fellowship understood according to human experiences of love.

Paying tribute to John Webster's theological works, this volume examines select cardinal Christian doctrines that have been imperative to Webster's research, with essays contributed by eminent systematic theologians, theological ethicists, and biblical scholars from a wide range of Christian traditions. The areas of discussion include the nature and method of theology, Scripture and its interpretation, Christology and the doctrine of the Trinity, moral theology, and the reading and use of theological dialogue partners. These contributors appraise, extend and apply different aspects of the conception of "theological theology". The volume argues that, if theology should in fact be thoroughly theological, it means that theological discourse gains little by conforming to the canons of inquiry that govern other disciplines. By analyzing aspects such as the location of the Church's doctrine, the sinlessness of Christ and the interpretation of scripture, this book posits that theology should rather focus its attention on its own unique subject, God and all things in relation to God, and should follow procedures that allow it to access and bear witness to these realities.

The areas of discussion include the nature and method of theology, Scripture and its interpretation, Christology and the doctrine of the Trinity, moral theology, and the reading and use of theological dialogue partners. The essays are written by eminent systematic theologians, theological ethicists, and biblical scholars from a wide range of Christian traditions. The contributors to this volume appraise, extend and apply different aspects of the conception of theological theology. That theology should in fact be thoroughly theological means that theological discourse gains little by conforming to the canons of inquiry that govern other disciplines; it should rather focus its attention on its own unique subject, God and all things in relation to God, and should follow procedures that allow it to access and bear witness to these realities.

Justin Stratis explores the meaning of the biblical phrase 'God is love' through an examination of two quintessentially modern Protestant theologians: Friedrich Schleiermacher and Karl Barth. This book contains both a detailed engagement with Schleiermacher's untranslated lectures on Dialektik and their relation to his more well-known work, as well as a new assessment of Barth's doctrine of God which both respects his radical innovations and yet places him within the stream of traditional, catholic trinitarianism. After considering the complexities of theological predication, and comparing several classical and contemporary approaches to the implication of 'love', Stratis presents and ultimately commends the distinct approaches of Schleiermacher and Barth for their tendency to treat divine love as a 'conclusion' to the doctrine of God, rather than as a conceptual starting point. In contrast to many contemporary approaches, Stratis concludes with the suggestion that God's love is best conceived as his being toward fellowship, rather than as the eminent instance of loving fellowship understood according to human experiences of love.