Description: Hope is the leitmotiv of Jürgen Moltmann's theology. Not
merely one aspect of his project, hope is the whole of it, the supreme
doctrine interpenetrating all others. Indeed, hope is his method. The
present study is both historical and developmental while also being
analytical and interrogative. This chronological exploration seeks to
show the nature, composition, and development of Moltmann's doctrine of
hope, as the distinctive doctrine of his theology, implicating all
others. Part I establishes Moltmann's doctrine of hope as grounded in
God's faithfulness in the cross and resurrection. Part II investigates
major doctrines in his project in light of this ground. This design
seeks to take advantage of the chronological approach while also
integrating the best elements of a topical approach. Endorsements: ""One
of the most significant theological texts of the second-half of the
twentieth century, Theology of Hope remains amongst the most enduring in
Jürgen Moltmann's output. In this clear and incisive study, Ryan Neal
shows how the theme of hope shapes Moltmann's subsequent work across the
field of Christian doctrine. A perceptive study, this will make a
valuable contribution to our understanding of Moltmann's theology.""
--David Fergusson Professor of Divinity University of Edinburgh ""In the
1960s the so-called theologies of hope rolled in to become one of the
most noteworthy and influential waves of the late twentieth-century
European theology, taking seriously a claim made four decades earlier by
Karl Barth, that all theology is eschatology. Contrary to much of the
commentary on his work, the oeuvre of the German theologian Jürgen
Moltmann continued to be shaped by many of the concerns about hope and
theological insights he developed during this earlier period, and Neal's
valuable book convincingly demonstrates that this is the case. This is
an important, critical, and excellently researched study of a perennial
theological issue in the fruitful reflections of one of the most
important modern theologians."" --John C. McDowell Morpeth Professor of
Theology University of Newcastle, Australia About the Contributor(s):
Ryan A. Neal is Assistant Professor of Religion at Anderson University,
South Carolina.
