Athanasius and His Legacy
Trinitarian-Incarnational Soteriology and Its Reception
- Theology
- Publisher: Fortress Press (Augsburg Fortress)
- Published: 2017
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Publisher's Description
Athanasius was a fiery and controversial bishop from Egypt, driven from his see no less than five times. Yet, his work served as a keystone to the settlement of the central disputes of the fourth century, from the Trinitarian and christological debates at Nicaea to the formulation of the divinity of the Holy Spirit. In this volume, Thomas G. Weinandy, OFM, Cap., and Daniel A. Keating introduce readers to this key thinker and carefully illuminate Athanasius’s crucial text Against the Arians, unfolding the Trinitarian and incarnational framework of Athanasius’s paramount concern: soteriology. The authors provide, in the second part, a robust map of the reception and influence of Athanasius’s thought—from its immediate impact on the late fourth and fifth centuries (in the Cappadocians and Cyril) to its significance for the Eastern and Western Christian traditions and its reception in contemporary thought. Herein, Athanasius is presented for today’s readers as one of the chief architects of Christian doctrine and one of the most significant thinkers for the reclamation of the Trinitarian and christological theological tradition.
Endorsements (3)
“Weinandy and Keating have written a targeted book on Athanasius, limited to three topics: theology (Trinity, Incarnation and Soteriology) and reception — Athanasius’s afterlife, where he was variously exalted, neglected, misquoted (the “Athanasian Creed”), revered as the father of orthodoxy (J. H. Newman), despised as the arch-heretic (Isaac Newton), and, in modern times, interpreted by some as a saint and by others as a thug. The book is highly recommended, for its clarity and the breadth of its scope.”
“Athanasius the great Alexandrian theologian of the fourth century AD, staunch opponent of Arius and defender of Nicaea, will always fascinate. Weinandy and Keating have produced a clear, succinct, measured and extremely helpful guide not only to the thought of one of early Christianity's major figures, but also to the scholarly debates that have raged around his corpus for the past 150 years. This little book will be of immense help to students and to interested readers everywhere.”
“It is indeed a daunting task to render a balanced account of both the foundational contribution that Athanasius has made to the Christian tradition and of the intense controversy that he has provoked from his own time to ours. This book wonderfully manages this task through an exemplary combination of theological acuity and historical sensitivity. It is an excellent guide to Athanasius's theology and its continuing and vital significance.”
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