Offering not only state-of-the-art introductions from Biblical, historical, and constructive theologians, this volume also fosters an inter-disciplinary and cross-confessional conversation, reclaiming the idea of election as a central notion for any retelling of the biblical narrative.
Several essays explore the variety of ways in which election is spoken about in the Scripture, drawing on research from the last twenty years that offers a more sophisticated framework than the traditionally theological categories of “elect” and “reject”. The historical part of the volume covers new analyses of Medieval and post-Reformation Catholic and Protestant debates on predestination, while the book’s constructive part contributes to contemporary conversations on the relationship between Trinity, Christology, and election, the development of a post-supersessionist understanding of Israel’s chosenness, as well as voices from contextual struggles in South America, Palestine, and South Africa.
Table of Contents:
Notes on Contributors
Preface
“To Be God to You and to Your Offspring after You”: An Introduction to the Doctrine of Election
Edwin Chr. van Driel (Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, USA)
PART I: Biblical Materials
1 “Israel My Servant, Jacob Whom I Have Chosen”: Election Theology in the Hebrew Bible
Joel S. Kaminsky (Smith College, USA)
2 Called to Serve? Abraham, Israel, and the Functionality of Election in the Hebrew Bible
Bradford A. Anderson (Dublin City University, Ireland)
3 Election, Israel, and the Nations in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Prophetic Books
Daniel C. Timmer (Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, USA)
4 Election in the Gospel of John
Edward W. Klink III (Hope Evangelical Free Church. USA; Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, USA)
5 Election according to Paul
Tommy Givens (Fuller Theological Seminary, USA)
PART II: Historical and Contemporary Trajectories
6 Election as Foreknowledge from Justin Martyr to Jerome
Thomas P. Scheck (Naples Classical Academy, USA)
7 “But the Elect Have Obtained It”: Augustine on Election, Free Will, and Grace
Nico den Bok (ETF Leuven, Belgium; The Protestant Church in the Netherlands)
8 Election in Thomas Aquinas
Harm Goris (Tilburg University, the Netherlands)
9 Late Medieval Developments in the Doctrine of Election
Ueli Zahnd (University of Geneva, Switzerland)
10 Election in Martin Luther’s “Body of Biblical Teaching”
Robert A. Kolb (Concordia Theological Seminary, USA)
11 Election in John Calvin
Kenneth J. Woo (Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, USA)
12 Election in Scholastic Reformed Theology
Dolf te Velde (Theological University Kampen, The Netherlands; ETF Leuven, Belgium)
13 Election in Arminius
Keith D. Stanglin (Harding School of Theology, USA; Center for Christian Studies, USA)
14 Post-Reformation Thomism: The Case of Juan Vicente de Astorga
R. J. Matava (Christendom College, USA)
15 Election in the Jesuit Tradition Around the Time of De Auxiliis Controversy
Petr Dvorák (Czech Academy of Sciences, Czech Republic)
16 Jonathan Edwards on Election
Philip J. Fisk (ETF Leuven, Belgium)
17 Election in Karl Barth
Christophe Chalamet (University of Geneva)
18 The Grace of Freedom and Freedom for Grace: A Roman Catholic Theology of Election
Thomas Joseph White, OP (Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, Italy)
19 The Understanding of Election through “Preferential Option for the Poor” in Liberation Theology
Patricia Cuyatti Chavez (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, USA; Lutheran School of Theology, USA)
20 Election in Palestinian Theology
Mitri Raheb (Dar al-Kalima University, Palestine)
PART III: Constructive Proposals
21 “All Things Have Been Created for Him”: On Christ, Election, and Creation
Edwin Chr. van Driel (Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, USA)
22 The Inner Logic of Creation: Christ, Election, and a “Supra” View of All Things
Marc Cortez (Wheaton College, USA)
23 Universal Election: A Sketch
Robin A. Parry (Worcester Cathedral, UK)
24 The Election of Israel
Katherine Sonderegger (Virginia Theological Seminary, USA)
25 Election and Church
Amy Plantinga Pauw (Louisville Presbyterian Seminary, USA)
26 The Non-elect Bear the Salvation of the Elect: The Living History of Election
John G. Flett (Pilgrim Theological College, Australia)
27 On Election and Hope?: Conflicting Stories from Twentieth-Century South Africa
Dirk J. Smit (Princeton Theological Seminary, USA)
28 Election and Human Agency
Taylor W. Cyr (Samford University, USA)and Leigh Vicens (Augustana University, USA)
29 Election and Spirituality
Hans Boersma (Nashotah House Theological Seminary, USA)
Index
About the Author :
Edwin Chr. van Driel is the Directors’ Bicentennial Professor of Theology at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, USA.
Review :
The concept of divine election has often been dismissed in the modern world as inappropriate or meaningless. Nonetheless, it is integral to many core issues in the Bible and Christian theology, not least the character of divine grace, the relationship between community and individual, and the nature of the relationship between Christians and Jews. The wide-ranging essays in this important collection are eloquent testimony to the rediscovery of election for the vitality of theology.
Election is how God chooses: What could be more theological, more revealing, more interesting than this?
This is a wide-ranging collection of essays from contributors representing a variety of perspectives. It offers a distillation of some of the most significant biblical and historical scholarship on election, and opens up many avenues for further constructive work and debate. This will be a valuable volume for anyone interested in pursuing the many complex questions raised by various approaches to the doctrine of election.
Edwin van Driel has assembled an excellent roster of theological writers who present a wide variety of views on an important biblical topic: election … This important book helps us think deeply and find new ways of understanding and acting.
