The Analogy of Faith: The Quest for God's Speakability (Strategic Initiatives in Evangelical Theology), by Archie J. Spencer
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The Analogy of Faith: The Quest for God's Speakability (Strategic Initiatives in Evangelical Theology), by Archie J. Spencer
Ebook PDF The Analogy of Faith: The Quest for God's Speakability (Strategic Initiatives in Evangelical Theology), by Archie J. Spencer
If God is transcendent, how can human beings speak meaningfully about him? For centuries philosophers and theologians have asked whether and how it is possible to talk about God. The shared answer to this question goes by the name of "analogy," which recognizes both similarity and difference between the divine being and human language. In the twentieth century, Karl Barth, Erich Przywara, Hans Urs von Balthasar and Eberhard Jüngel explored this question in new and controversial ways that continue to shape contemporary debates in theology. In The Analogy of Faith: The Quest for God's Speakability, Archie Spencer examines the problem of analogy in its ancient, medieval and modern forms. He argues for a Christological version of Barth’s analogy of faith, informed by Jüngel's analogy of advent, as the way forward for Protestant theology in answering the problem of God's speakability.
The Analogy of Faith: The Quest for God's Speakability (Strategic Initiatives in Evangelical Theology), by Archie J. Spencer - Amazon Sales Rank: #2068938 in Books
- Published on: 2015-10-18
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 9.00" h x 1.20" w x 6.00" l,
- Binding: Paperback
- 445 pages
The Analogy of Faith: The Quest for God's Speakability (Strategic Initiatives in Evangelical Theology), by Archie J. Spencer Review "A question which we don't often stop to think about in theological discussions is whether or not it is, in principle, possible to speak of the divine. Archie Spencer's book, The Analogy of Faith, asks just this question and offers an in-depth analysis of various approaches alongside proposing a model for speaking about God. . . . It is a deep work that demands much reflection and consideration. It is the kind of seminal writing to which one will constantly return as one thinks about the topic discussed. I can say that I learned a great deal from the book, and had my mind stretched as it hasn't been stretched in some time. I recommend it highly." (J.W. Wartick, "Always Have a Reason", November 25, 2015)"In this engaging volume, Archie J. Spencer explores the controverted issue at the heart of the enterprise of theology―the issue of analogy. The book offers not only a discerning conversation with Augustine and Aquinas on analogy, attending to both their philosophical predecessors and their complex reception histories, but also a thoughtful interaction with more recent work on analogy from Karl Barth and Eberhard Jüngel. The result of this series of studies, as well as of the related exegetical labors, is Spencer's own constructive proposal, setting forth a new, resolutely Christocentric understanding of analogy along the three complementary dimensions of participation, performance and parable. This is rigorous and generative Christian dogmatics of an impressive order and deserves to be widely attended." (Paul T. Nimmo, University of Aberdeen)"The question of analogy leads to the heart of the very possibility of theology. Spencer invites his readers to consider afresh the long tradition of reflection on analogy with a view to a contemporary restatement of both the classical problem and its possible evangelical solution. Drawing upon Barth and Jüngel in particular, he argues convincingly that faithful talk of God can and must be graciously suspended from the living and eloquent reality of Jesus Christ. Spencer here makes a substantive contribution to a fundamental debate in Christian theology." (Philip G. Ziegler, University of Aberdeen)"Years of careful research stand behind this book, which is distinguished by its strong thesis, bold argumentation and close reading of sources ranging across the entire history of theology. Scholars interested in the doctrine of analogy, or the relationship between Christology and theological method, will find much of value here, as will those interested in Thomas Aquinas, Karl Barth, Eberhard Jüngel, or the relationship between Protestant and Catholic theology." (Keith L. Johnson, Wheaton College)"Spencer's provocative thesis maintains that Augustine's undue reliance on the Neoplatonic tradition led most of the subsequent Christian tradition astray. Boethius, Pseudo-Dionysius, Anselm, Peter Lombard, Bonaventure, Thomas Aquinas, as well as the later Thomist tradition, all were beguiled by a totalizing metaphysical epistemology that was alien to God's self-revelation in Christ. Spencer's penetrating critique, along with his clarion call for an alternative, Christological analogy of faith, is truly deserving of the intense discussion it is bound to evoke." (Hans Boersma, J. I. Packer Professor of Theology, Regent College)
About the Author Archie J. Spencer (ThD, University of Toronto School of Theology) is associate professor of theology and John H. Pickford Chair of Systematic Theology for Northwest Baptist Seminary. A scholar, speaker and theologian, he has spoken and taught at institutions all over the world such as Wycliffe College, MacMaster Divinity College, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Seattle Pacific University, Briercrest Seminary, Trinity Western University, Redeemer Pacific College, Regent College and Associated Canadian Theological Schools. Spencer is a member of the American Academy of Religion, the Karl Barth Society of North America, Society for the Study of Theology, and is a founding member of the Western Institute for Theological Studies. His research and publication interests include contemporary theology in the Western tradition and the theology of Karl Barth, Eberhard Jüngel and Dietrich Bonhoeffer. He has also served as a pastor within the Pentecostal and Baptist contexts for over fifteen years.
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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Insightful, Thought-Provoking, and Dense- A Study on Theoogy and Analogy that is Worth the Effort By J.W. Wartick A question which we don’t often stop to think about in theological discussions is whether or not it is, in principle, possible to speak of the divine. Archie Spencer’s book, The Analogy of Faith, asks just this question and offers an in-depth analysis of various approaches alongside proposing a model for speaking about God.The book is split, roughly, between analysis of various proposed models for speaking about God and a development of a Christocentric model for speaking of the divine.The analysis of Aristotle’s analogy of being in the first chapter is particularly interesting. Spencer notes that because Aristotle’s analogy depends upon the interrelatedness of things through cause, and because God is the ultimate relation of causation as the unmoved mover, his concept of analogy is ultimately almost useless. The reason is because it becomes too broad: effectively anything can be related to anything else through an analogy of relation, and then this tells us nothing about the things being related themselves. Yet even here Spencer argues that Aristotle’s concept of analogy–itself reliant upon Plato in many relevant ways–can be useful in that it relates causality and the divine ideas, thus preparing the way for Neoplatonist thinking.Following on the heals of this analysis are some fantastic insights into Augustinian and Thomistic thought about analogy as well. Thomas Aquinas is perhaps the most important thinker regarding the use of analogy in speaking about God of all time. As Spencer notes, it is impossible to adequately deal with the topic without spending significant time on Aquinas’s view of analogy. However, Spencer’s ultimate analysis is that Aquinas did not have a well-developed theory of analogy of his own. Instead, he asserts, it has been the followers and interpreters of Aquinas who made a “Thomistic” theory of analogy, based around the analogy of being. Because these theories ultimately depend on an Aristotelian foundation, they, too, are found to be ultimately inadequate. After all, if we are unable to reference God’s being in any direct way, then it is difficult to see how creatures totally unlike the divine can have an analogue of that divine. Spencer’s analysis in this section is thorough and fairly convincing.Karl Barth and Eberhard Jungel are the next thinkers addressed, and they provide a basis for Spencer’s own theory of analogy, which is Christological. I’m summarizing an extraordinarily detailed theory here, so I’m sure I’m not adequately outlining it, but the basic thought is that because God has come to us, that allows us through divine revelation of Christ to refer to God. Thus, analogy is the analogy of faith rather than an analogy of being–one in which God has condescended to allow reference to the divine being in human language, rather than one in which we are able to, by our own thinking, come to language which speaks of God.Upon reading Spencer’s analysis and arguments, I am fairly convinced that he is correct in his notion that the analogy of being is insufficient to capture the possibility of talk about God. What I do wonder, however, is whether Spencer (and most others) too quickly dismiss the possibility of univocal language about God. It seems to me that if we are to say “God is love” then we must have some sense in which that actually relates to God. To be fair, Spencer could respond by pointing to such a statement as exactly in concord with his theory, which would assert that it does relate to God because God has revealed the divine nature to us in Christ and God’s Word, thus allowing us to rightly say “God is love.” However, I think that a deeper treatment of the possibility of univocal language related to God talk would have been appreciated in a book like this. Though, admittedly, the book is already lengthy and is specifically focused on analogy, not the possibility of univocity or equivocal language.One minor complaint I have is that in the thoroughness of the book, it seems that Spencer is sometimes repetitive. He hits the same point from several different angles in the same chapter, to the point that the book can become quite dry at times. However, the subject matter itself is deeply intriguing, and his full treatment of the topic makes it hard to fault him for stating a few things more than once.Those interested in reading a dense book of philosophical theology should look no further than The Analogy of Faith by Archie Spencer. It is a deep work that demands much reflection and consideration. It is the kind of seminal writing to which one will constantly return as one thinks about the topic discussed. I can say that I learned a great deal from the book, and had my mind stretched as it hasn’t been stretched in some time. I recommend it highly.The Good+Deep analysis of key concepts related to analogy+Many avenues for further research+Workable theory which offers some resolutionThe Bad-A bit too verbose at times-Dismisses univocity a bit too quicklyDisclaimer: I received a review copy of the book from the publisher. I was not required to provide any specific kind of feedback whatsoever.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Highly Abstract and Difficult to Understand, but Still Thought-Provoking and a Good Resource By James B. Pate In The Analogy of Faith, theologian Archie J. Spencer discusses the question of whether humans can “speak meaningfully of God” (to quote from the back cover).According to Spencer, a prominent trend in the history of Christian theology has been to say that humans can understand God, on some level, because God is like humans, in certain areas, and there is something within or about humans that helps them to understand God: both have being (existence), both have wisdom, etc. As Spencer narrates, Augustine went the route of saying that humans have a soul that is like the Trinity, and that enables them to understand the Trinitarian God, on some level. Spencer contends that some of the roots of the idea of divine-human analogy go back to Greek philosophy and Neoplatonism, but he also refers to Scriptures that adherents of this view have relied on: Genesis 1:27’s statement that God created human beings in God’s image, and Paul’s statement in Romans 1:20 that aspects of God are understood by the things that are made. Spencer believes that there are many problems with the divine-human analogy: that it can conceptually bring God down to the human level, that it can conceptually elevate humans to the divine level, that nature by itself does not provide a clear portrait of God but requires the drawing of conclusions, and that a focus on nature detracts from God’s revelation through Christ. Spencer offered other reasons within his discussion, reasons that were rather abstract and philosophical.At the same time, there has been within the history of Christian theology another belief: that God is radically different from human beings, and that God is incomprehensible to them. Such a belief does not reduce God, but a concern one may have, Spencer notes, is that it can make God overly transcendent and actually be conducive to atheism. What can one do in reference to a God of whom one cannot meaningfully speak, because this God cannot be understood?Drawing on Karl Barth, Eberhard Jungel, and other theologians, Spencer believes that a solution to the theological difficulty of knowing God is to focus on the incarnation: God’s self-revelation of Godself in Jesus Christ. John 1:18 affirms that Jesus Christ has made God known. Spencer refers to other ideas as well: that God can make use of human words to make Godself known, and that God can be known through the drama of God’s acts and people’s testimony to those acts.I do not recall Spencer proposing or referring to a proper way to interpret Romans 1:20 (proper in light of his beliefs about natural theology and preference for looking to the incarnation as God’s revelation). He did, however, refer to a point that Karl Barth made in reference to Genesis 1:27: that God’s image can be defaced in human beings, but is truly manifest in the person of Jesus Christ. Barth saw Genesis 1:27 through the lens of the incarnation.Spencer’s discussion raises questions in my mind. Did Jesus Christ truly reveal God as God is, since God is above and beyond human beings? In what sense did Jesus reveal God? Did Jesus reveal what God wants us to know about him, and yet we should remember that there is so much more about God? My hunch is that Spencer would answer “yes” to the third question.Do we need to choose between natural theology and specially revealed theology? Can we have both? The believers in natural theology whom Spencer profiles did not think that we should just go with natural theology and dismiss God’s special revelation or supernatural intervention (i.e., the incarnation, Scripture, supernatural grace). Were they inconsistent to believe in natural theology and special revelation at the same time, or did they acknowledge that natural theology, though useful, is still limited and inadequate for knowing God?The asset to Spencer’s book is that is does provide a history of the concept of analogy, as it looks at Plato, Aristotle, the Neoplatonists, Augustine, and others. My problem with the book was that it was difficult to read: it was highly abstract, and Spencer could have done a better job in breaking down the concepts. I understand and appreciate that Spencer is contributing to a specific academic discussion and may not be writing for a popular audience; still, there are theological books that IVP Academic has published, including one in the Strategic Initiatives in Evangelical Theology series (of which this book was a part), that are much more lucid. And yet, Spencer’s book does give an impression of being deep, and I am tempted to revisit it sometime in the future, in hope that I will understand it better.Spencer’s discussion did make me more sensitive to the issue of natural theology and special revelation. After reading Spencer’s book, I came across a blog post by Bobby Grow about natural theology (https://growrag.wordpress.com/2015/10/16/the-three-forms-of-natural-theology-for-the-post-reformed-orthodox-and-even-evangelicals/), and I appreciated one of Grow’s points about why he (Grow) and Barth have issues with it: when we combine special revelation with natural theology, we are essentially combining special revelation with our own subjective inferences from nature, as opposed to allowing God to confront us through Christ and Scripture. Barth pointed to the Nazis as an example of how natural theology can lead to problems. I like many of Grow’s posts, but I especially appreciated this post because of the reflection that Spencer’s book inspired within me.I received a complimentary review copy of this book from Intervarsity Press, in exchange for an honest review.
0 of 2 people found the following review helpful. the reader has a great amount of experience in reading the likes of Milbank By new user I want the audience reading this review to understand the perspective from which I am writing. I am not saying the content of this book does not have merit, but I want potential readers of this book to be aware. This book is not a readable text for the general academic reader. It is HIGHLY specialized in subject matter, namely, Abstract philosophical theology with topic that revolves around the ontological metaphysics of the analogy of being and analogy of faith. Unless, the reader has a great amount of experience in reading the likes of Milbank, whose work is almost incomprehensible to most adept readers, this book will be of little interest. The is a book in which is the author and only a handful of people will benefit. It is not an introductory text by any stretch of the imagination. It is not worth the significant effort to read it unless you are research this particular subject area. This book has the wrong publisher and I cannot imagine it will sell well because of its very limited audience appeal. This is a book for a publisher like Brill of Eisenbrauns, but not Intervarsity. I am also not sure why it is a strategic initiative in evangelical theology because the subject matter is so obtuse that may only represent 1 percent of the evangelical theological readership. A book that cannot be understood by a general theological and philosophically educated audience does not represent good theology or philosophy.
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The Analogy of Faith: The Quest for God's Speakability (Strategic Initiatives in Evangelical Theology), by Archie J. Spencer
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The Analogy of Faith: The Quest for God's Speakability (Strategic Initiatives in Evangelical Theology), by Archie J. Spencer
The Analogy of Faith: The Quest for God's Speakability (Strategic Initiatives in Evangelical Theology), by Archie J. Spencer
