Christocentric Reformed Theology in Nineteenth-Century America
Key Writings of Emanuel V. Gerhart
- Theology
- Publisher: Wipf and Stock
- Published: 2021
FritzSearch.com earns a commission on purchases made through Bookshop.org links.
Publisher's Description
Knowledge of the ideas of the theologian Emanuel V. Gerhart is essential for understanding nineteenth-century American theology. Gerhart was one of the first to introduce a complete systematic Christocentric theological system to Americans. His Institutes of the Christian Religion developed the ideas of European theologians and promoted the effort to systematize Mercersburg theology. Gerhart embraced German idealism rather than Scottish philosophy in his scholarship. As a mediating theologian, he attempted to reconcile historical Christianity with modern culture. His lectures, essays, and texts addressed the religious challenges and intellectual issues of his day from a Christocentric perspective. Together they were a major contribution to the Mercersburg Movement in particular and American theology in general from the antebellum period to the progressive era. His publications were devoted to a range of disciplines that included education, philosophy, and theology. This volume portrays Gerhart's core theological ideas as found in his main texts and offers introductory commentaries and gives the historical background for his intellectual contributions.
Endorsements (3)
“Finally, Gerhart gets due recognition. This is a judicial and thoughtful selection from a theologian who helped introduce historical and organic development to a religious scene awash in individualistic piety. His peers honored him; this volume shows why.”
“This welcome volume pulls together into one place the essential writings of Emanuel Gerhart, a key figure in the development and synthesis of Mercersburg theology. Known for his distinguished career as a university president and church leader, Gerhart also produced, among other writings, a massive two-volume Institutes of the Christian Religion in which, like Schaff and Nevin, he opposed both liberal and revivalist forms of Protestantism for their subjectivistic rationalism.”
“For anyone wondering about the Mercersburg theology after John Williamson Nevin and Philip Schaff, the writings of Emanuel Gerhart will be invaluable. Annette Aubert has selected a rich sampling of Gerhart’s work and supplied insightful editorial guidance along the way. Although Gerhart’s ideas are largely unknown today, his writings are still valuable for those intrigued by the ethnic diversity of Reformed Protestantism in the US and contemporary Protestant efforts at ressourcement theology.”
See something wrong on this page? Report a problem