The Debate over Inclusive God-Language
Donald G. Bloesch
199 W 8th Ave, Suite 3
Eugene, OR 97401
The Battle for the Trinity
The Debate over Inclusive God-Language
By Bloesch, Donald G.
Copyright© by Bloesch, Donald G.
ISBN 13: 978-1-57910-692-8
Publication date 7/11/2001
Previously published by Vine Books, Servant Publications, 1985
David and Peter Bloesch
Abbreviations for Scriptural References
RSV—Revised Standard Version
KJV—King James Version
NKJV—New King James Version
NIV—New International Version
Theologians and Philosophers behind Feminism
Religious Language and the Knowledge of God
3. God in Biblical Perspective
Significance of the Biblical Symbols
The Problem of Inclusive Language
6. Parallels with the German Christians
Who Were the German Christians?
Biblical-Cultural Synthesis in America
7. The Growing Church Conflict
Religious and Philosophical Language
Bibliography of Publications by Donald Bloesch
Donald Bloesch has paid feminist theologians the compliment, in this book, of taking them seriously. That is not at all a tribute to be scoffed at these days, for there are many theologians and biblical scholars in the church who pay little attention to such feminists, and that is a slight that may have serious consequences for the life of the church in the United States.
There have appeared, in the past ten years, numerous works by feminist theologians, which are not only reflections of developments taking place in the church but which have also had considerable influence on some of these developments. Feminism has affected the liturgy and worship of the church, its governing bodies, its witness, its doctrine, and its sacred literature. The women’s movement can continue to be dismissed as a fad, only at the peril of the life of many members now in the church, and Donald Bloesch has realized that. He has read the feminist theological literature, and in this book, he critiques and challenges it. One can only hope that other equally dedicated theologians and biblical scholars will do the same.
There can be no doubt that several feminist theologians are in the process of laying the foundations for a new faith and a new church that are, at best, only loosely related to apostolic Christianity. Bloesch believes that feminist resymbolization of Christianity is leading to a new form of Gnosticism and of ancient Near Eastern goddess and fertility religion. I am ...
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About The Battle for the Trinity: The Debate over Inclusive God-LanguageIn The Battle for the Trinity, Donald G. Bloesch tackles the controversial issues surrounding the language we use to describe God, and how these are among most divisive issues facing the church in the twentieth century. Should God be addressed as Father, Mother, or Parent? Should Jesus be referred to primarily as the Son of God or the Child of God? Did God really reveal himself definitively in the person of his Son Jesus Christ? Bloesch contends that how we speak about God embodies the very core of Christianity and how we ultimately understand the biblical and historical meaning of the Trinity. The debates surrounding the doctrine of God are many, and Bloesch urges the church to respond to the concerns of women that the sacred carries both masculine and feminine dimensions. Bloesch emphasizes that the God of the Bible is not described in masculine terms exclusively, and we err in our failure to recognize it. If Christianity is to remain “genuinely Christian,” these controversial issues must be dealt with in such a manner that will preserve the full historical and biblical understanding of the Trinity. |
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