Anglican theologian reading ideas?

Discussion in 'The Commons' started by Isodore, Aug 22, 2018.

  1. Isodore

    Isodore New Member

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    What are some good seminal books to read?

    In my old Anglican church we did a class on apologetics by Tim Keller. Not impressed. It was like church was run by Presbotanglicans. Not interested in any Neo-Calvinist thinkers or Rick Warren stuff. Of course John Milton gets a pass.

    My reading mostly has been some general church history, CS Lewis and Wikipedia and 39 Articles. Some classics like Dante in uni.
     
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  2. Will_

    Will_ Member

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    You might find The Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity by Richard Hooker to be of interest as he is a foundational Anglican writer. Perhaps also Richard Field, D.D., who wrote The Church. The first of these, Hooker's work, has been reprinted fairly recently, and Field's book can be found on Google Books.

    If you are looking for something with an Anglo-Catholic viewpoint, Francis Hall's Dogmatic Theology is hard to beat.
     
  3. Stalwart

    Stalwart Well-Known Member Anglican

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    To me Hooker is very hard to read which makes him more suitable for professional theologians. Richard Field taught some idiosyncratic ideas and, again, is more for hardcore theologians.

    Since someone else has raised a similar question about book recommendations, I'll just repost from what I said there.

    The one book I would recommend above all others is John Jewel's Apology. It was written 400 years ago in the 1560s, and reads as fresh as if it were written yesterday.

    Next you might enjoy Anthony Sparrow's commentary on the Book of Common Prayer, the liturgies, calendar, feasts, and fasts of Anglicanism; from the 1600s:

    Next you could work on some devotional books to nourish spiritual health. The most famous books historically are:
     
    Last edited: Aug 22, 2018
  4. Will_

    Will_ Member

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    I don't find Hooker that hard to read myself - at least he is worth the effort. But thanks for the link to the previous discussion. That thread is an excellent resource.

    Will
     
  5. Shane R

    Shane R Well-Known Member

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    George Herbert.
     
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  6. Tiffy

    Tiffy Well-Known Member

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    It depends on which area of study you wish to gain deeper insight I suppose.

    Fundamentalists seem to avoid studies of the parables of Jesus Christ, because they tend to be so doctrinally 'open endedly metaphorical' and seem to lack the 'plain speakingly definite certainty' that literalists crave, (too many slippery, possible alternative meanings, etc).

    So just to get a fresh perspective and a re-evaluation of understandings or misunderstandings which might date back to one's childhood days in Sunday School, this book by an Episcopal priest is, in my opinion, well worth becoming acquainted with. In my opinion it could awaken insights one might have obtained in a personal interview with Jesus.

    Kingdom, Grace, Judgment by Robert Farrar Capon. (Paradox, Outrage, and vindication in the Parables of Jesus). ISBN 0-8028-3949-5, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. Grand Rapids/Cambridge.
     
  7. Toma

    Toma Well-Known Member Anglican

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    I'm not sure what N.T. Wright thinks of presbyteral & episcopal policy, but as an evangelical perhaps he might say a few things that would annoy you. Regardless, he is the preeminent Anglican theologian of today, alongside perhaps J.I. Packer, if one can call a devotional writer a theologian.