Book Review: A Little Book for New Theologians

Regular readers may well have noticed that I am fond of both books and thinking/reading theologically, and so todays book review is a highlight as it directly relates to both. Following, in some ways, in the footsteps of Helmut Thielicke's "A Little Exercise for Young Theologians", Kapic's book aims to be a "concise introduction to the study of theology". Having studied theology for one degree,  about to embark on my MA, and working with Theology Students, I'm always glad to see small/accessible volumes on this most important of topics.

Kapic is well placed to write the book, and the endorsements from evangelical theological heavyweights such as Ferguson, Oden and George confirm that. Its an attractive little book, coming in at a reasonable and readable 120-ish pages. Kapic divides his work into two parts, 'Why Study Theology?' and 'Characteristics of Faithful Theology and Theologians'. The three chapters in the opening part are some of the best treatments of the topic, and make this something I'm sure to recommend. Kapic writes on 'Entering the Conversation', 'To Know and Enjoy God', and 'Theology as Pilgrimage'. This latter seems to sit in something of a welcome trend in recent evangelical theology, echoing the subtitle of one of my favourite big books of recent years, Michael Horton's "The Christian Faith: A Systematic Theology for Pilgrims on the way", that seems to be yearning after the old Christian ideas of pilgrimage.

The second part of the book opens with an incredibly interesting chapter, 'The Inseparability of Life and Theology'. Here the author notes that a separation of the two is a relatively recent innovation, and is something to be both wary and conscious of. Given the common question of Christian theology undergraduates is the devotional/academic balance of Scripture, I found this a helpful chapter. Other chapters here include 'Faithful Reason', 'Prayer and Study', 'Humility and Repentance', 'Suffering, Justice and Knowing God', 'Tradition and Community', and 'Love of Scripture'. The breadth and depth of theological study are carefully, calmly and wisely introduced by Kapic in this second part of the book.

This is one of those books that - especially for its small size - proved very fruitful for quotes and page-turning...

I would thoroughly recommend this book to two groups of people. The first are those, as hinted at above, about to start, or just starting, to study theology. Whether at university or bible college, distance learning or in-church/movement leadership course, this book would be a helpful introduction to a new course of study. The second group are those, and they are relatively common in my experience of the Christian world, who are wary of theology, distrustful of theologians, or unsure of what role the intellect plays in the Christian life. For these - whether at one end of the Charismatic spectrum or a more fundamentalist anti-intellectualism, this book offers a Spirit-filled, grace-soaked and biblically based understanding of what it means to study theology. I would heartily recommend this book to both types of people!

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If this has whet your appetite, I'd love to point you in the direction of my 'Book Reviews' Page, where there are over one hundred reviews of books on all sorts of topics... If you are about to head off and start studying Theology at a university in the UK, then check out Theology Network - we are here to help, and the website is packed with useful goodies.