The thesis of this book is that virtue ethics is key to understanding Trinitarian progressive sanctification. The thesis is supported by four reasons why virtue ethics is key to understanding Trinitarian progressive sanctification: (1) the Trinity, virtue ethics, and sanctification are historically and conceptually interconnected in the tradition and Scripture, (2) virtue ethics based on metaphysical realism is the most biblically consistent ethical framework for Trinitarian progressive sanctification, (3) Jesus’ active roles as a teacher and example of virtue play an important part in Trinitarian sanctification, and (4) Jesus’ priestly heavenly intercession aimed at manifesting virtue in believers is crucial to understanding how the Trinity progressively sanctifies believers. The active roles of Jesus in sanctification, ordered by the Triune premise, indicate that the Trinity sanctifies such that: (1) the value having its source from the Father, is revealed through the teaching of the Son to motivate believers, who are empowered to be motivated by the Spirit, (2) the character that is from the Father is revealed through the Son’s example that is to be imitated by the believer through habituation and reciprocity, by the Spirit’s leading, and (3) believers are led by the Spirit’s intercession into prayer (Rom 8:14-16, 26-27), to be helped through the Son’s priestly intercession, in order to receive an answer from the Father, with the aim of manifesting the virtues of endurance and hope in the lives of believers.

Equipped with a rich heritage detailing the content of human character, it would seem that Christianity is ideally positioned to address a culture where morality and personal character are set adrift. Contemporary Lutheranism has struggled with the place of morality and character formation, concerns often seen as at odds with the doctrine of justification. A Case for Character argues that Christian doctrine is altogether capable of encouraging character formation while maintaining a faithful expression of justification by grace alone.

The following dissertation concerning the Trinity, as the reader ought to be informed, has been written in order to guard against the sophistries of those who disdain to begin with faith, and are deceived by a crude and perverse love of reason. Now one class of such men endeavor to transfer to things incorporeal and spiritual the ideas they have formed, whether through experience of the bodily senses, or by natural human wit and diligent quickness, or by the aid of art, from things corporeal; so as to seek to measure and conceive of the former by the latter. Aeterna Press

Word, Silence, and the Climate Emergency: God, Ekklesia, and Christian Doctrine is an exposition of Christian doctrine taking into account the current global emergency. Gorringe grounds our knowledge of God first in the revelation to the prophets and specifically in their political stance but above all in Jesus of Nazareth. God, or the NAME, Gorringe argues, is the antithesis of all the gods of projection, known in the silence of the cross and of the isolation cell. In a Triune format, the nature of God and the discourse of creation and providence are first considered before turning to the claim that “God was in Christ.” The final third of the book considers the nature and task of ekklesia, especially in the light of the global emergency which, Gorringe argues, is a confessional issue and the heart of ekklesia's present concern.

Despite the growing interest among philosophers and theologians in virtue ethics, its proponents have done little to suggest why Christians in particular find virtue ethics attractive. Joseph J. Kotva, Jr., addresses this question in The Christian Case for Virtue Ethics, showing that virtue theory offers an ethical framework that is highly compatible with Christian morality. Kotva defines virtue ethics and demonstrates its ability to voice Christian convictions about how to live the moral life. He evaluates virtue theory in light of systematic theology and Scripture, arguing that Christian ethics could be profitably linked with neo-Aristotelian virtue ethics. Ecumenical in tone, this book provides a thorough but accessible introduction to recent philosophical accounts of virtue and offers an original, explicitly Christian adaptation of these ideas. It will be of value to students and scholars of philosophy, theology, and religion, as well as to those interested in the debates surrounding virtue ethics.

This book offers the first comprehensive systematic theological reflection on arguably the most serious issue facing humanity and other creatures today. Responding to climate change is often left to scientists, policy makers and activists, but what understanding does theology have to offer? In this collection, the authors demonstrate that there is vital cultural and intellectual work for theologians to perform in responding to climate science and in commending a habitable way forward. Written from a range of denominations and traditions yet with ecumenical intent, the authors explore key Christian doctrines and engage with some of the profound issues raised by climate change. Key questions considered include: What may be said about the goodness of creation in the face of anthropogenic climate change? And how does theology handle a projected future without the human? The volume provides students and scholars with fascinating theological insight into the complexity of climate change.

Examining the theological ethics of Jonathan Edwards, William Danaher Jr. shows that Edwards's doctrine of the Trinity both was foundational to Edwards's thought and is the necessary framework for understanding the theological and moral vision expressed in his writings. This Trinitarian interpretation identifies what distinctive contribution Edwards makes to contemporary Christian ethics, particularly concerning the nature of virtue, the will, sin, evil, and love. The Columbia Series in Reformed Theology represents a joint commitment by Columbia Theological Seminary and Westminster John Knox Press to provide theological resources from the Reformed tradition for the church today. This series examines theological and ethical issues that confront church and society in our own particular time and place.