Tagged Again

Well, I've been tagged again. This time Monty tagged me with ten books that have influenced me in a major way. For me it seems nearly impossible to narrow the list down to ten - so I'm going to cheat a little bit. I'm going to list ten authors that have had a major influence on my life and thinking - and a few of the books that have been a part of that influence. Here goes:

1) Colin E. Gunton - His work began a theological revolution in me. In effect, I experienced a metanoia (a literal change of mind) that has influenced my entire theological reflection and articulation. Some of his books that have shaped me are: Enlightenment & Alienation; The Actuality of Atonement; Father, Son & Holy Spirit; The Triune Creator; Theology through the Theologians. Everything that I have read by Gunton I've found immensely valuable and thought provoking.

2) T. F. Torrance - The new journey that Gunton opened up to me has lead me to T. F. Torrance. I'm making preparations to pursue a PhD and my research will focus on Torrance's work. Needless to say, he's had a huge impact on me. The important works I've investigated so far: The Mediation of Christ; Theological Science; God & Rationality and related works: T. F. Torrance by Alister E. McGrath; How to Read T. F. Torrance by Elmer M. Colyer; Science, Faith and Society by Michael Polanyi; Personal Knowledge: Towards a Post-Critical Philosophy by Michael Polanyi.

3) Karl Barth - Torrance has forced me to read more and more Barth and one cannot walk away from Barth unchanged. Barth's works that have influenced me thus far: The Epistle to the Romans; Dogmatics in Outline; The Call to Discipleship; I'm slowly working on the 14 volume Church Dogmatics and related work: Karl Barth's Theological Exegesis by Richard E. Burnett.

4) St. Athanasius - T. A. Noble, theology professor at NTS, introduced me to the work of Athanasius. I love reading about this patristic theologian and of all the early Christians (apart from the New Testament writers) he's had the biggest influence on me. On the Incarnation of the Word is the work to which I keep returning. Torrance has a few good articles on Athanasius and most accounts of Christian history tell some of his story - I primarily rely on Justo Gonzalez A History of Christian Thought and The Story of Christianity but Jaroslav Pelikan and Kenneth Scott Latourette are good resources as well.

5) St. Augustine - Is another early Christian thinker that has influenced me in some very positive ways, but also in reaction against aspects of his theological articulation. Various works like: Confessions; De Libero Arbitrio; Morals of the Catholic Church; On the Trinity; On Christian Teaching; and related works like: Augustine A Very Short Introduction by Henry Chadwick; The Richness of Augustine by Mark Ellingsen.

6) C. S. Lewis - Has been an influential voice in my life for some time. Mere Christianity was my first encounter with some in depth theological thinking. I've also listened to: The Chronicles of Narnia (I usually read through them every couple of years); Till We Have Faces; The Screwtape Letters; The Dark Tower; Surprised by Joy; and his various poems.

7) N. T. Wright - Continues to be a major influence in my life. Books like: What St. Paul Really Said; The Challenge of Jesus; The Resurrection of the Son of God are part of that influence, but I also like to read his articles and sermons.

8) Charles Dickens - I simply love reading Dickens and I don't know why. It is a family tradition that my wife and I read A Christmas Carol every year around Christmas (none of the modern renditions can really compare). A Tale of Two Cities is probably my favorite, but I enjoy most of his novels.

9) Elie Wiesel - Night, I read this book in undergrad and it was a powerful experience. It is a personal account of the evil experienced in a Nazi death camp which forces one to the very heart of theodicy.

10) Fyodor Dostoevsky - The Brothers Karamazov, I worked through this novel a few summers ago and have never regretted it. I enjoyed the entire story and it forced me to expand my thinking.

I really couldn't stop at ten so I want to offer a few honorable mentions:

11) Walter Brueggemann - The Prophetic Imagination; Old Testament Theology; and his various commentaries and articles.

12) Henri Nouwen - The Wounded Healer; Here and Now.

13) Ludwig Wittgenstein - Ifluenced my early philosophical thinking: Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus; On Certainty; The Blue and Brown Books; Lectures & Conversations; Philosophical Investigations; and related works: Wittgenstein A Very Short Introduction by A. C. Grayling; Ludwig Wittgenstein the Duty of Genius by Ray Monk.

14) Lesslie Newbigin - Foolishness to the Greeks and The Gospel in a Pluralist Society

15) Ronald Sider - Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger; Just Generosity; The Scandal of the Evangelical Conscience.

There are so many others that I could list, but I better stop at 15. I would love to hear your top books or authors - let me know who has influenced you. Until next time - Blessings in Christ ~ RLS