Theological Territories - by David Bentley Hart (Paperback)

About the Book

"In Theological Territories, David Bentley Hart, one of America's most eminent contemporary writers on religion, reflects on the state of theology "at the borders" of other fields of discourse-metaphysics, philosophy of mind, science, the arts, ethics, and biblical hermeneutics in particular. The book advances many of Hart's larger theological projects, developing and deepening numerous dimensions of his previous work. Theological Territories constitutes something of a manifesto regarding the manner in which theology should engage other fields of concern and scholarship. The essays are divided into five sections on the nature of theology, the relations between theology and science, the connections between gospel and culture, literary representations of and engagements with transcendence, and the New Testament. Hart responds to influential books, theologians, philosophers, and poets, including Rowan Williams, Jean-Luc Marion, Tomâaés Halâik, Sergei Bulgakov, Jennifer Newsome Martin, and David Jones, among others. The twenty-six chapters are drawn from live addresses delivered in various settings. Most of the material has never been printed before, and those parts that have appear here in expanded form. Throughout, these essays show how Hart's mind works with the academic veneer of more formal pieces stripped away. The book will appeal to both academic and non-academic readers interested in the place of theology in the modern world"--

Book Synopsis

Publishers Weekly Best Book in Religion 2020

Foreword Review's INDIES Book of the Year Award, Religion

In Theological Territories, David Bentley Hart, one of America's most eminent contemporary writers on religion, reflects on the state of theology "at the borders" of other fields of discourse--metaphysics, philosophy of mind, science, the arts, ethics, and biblical hermeneutics in particular. The book advances many of Hart's larger theological projects, developing and deepening numerous dimensions of his previous work. Theological Territories constitutes something of a manifesto regarding the manner in which theology should engage other fields of concern and scholarship.

The essays are divided into five sections on the nature of theology, the relations between theology and science, the connections between gospel and culture, literary representations of and engagements with transcendence, and the New Testament. Hart responds to influential books, theologians, philosophers, and poets, including Rowan Williams, Jean-Luc Marion, Tomás Halík, Sergei Bulgakov, Jennifer Newsome Martin, and David Jones, among others. The twenty-six chapters are drawn from live addresses delivered in various settings. Most of the material has never been printed before, and those parts that have appear here in expanded form. Throughout, these essays show how Hart's mind works with the academic veneer of more formal pieces stripped away. The book will appeal to both academic and non-academic readers interested in the place of theology in the modern world.

Review Quotes

"In this scintillating compilation of essays based on lectures--most published here for the first time--Eastern Orthodox scholar and cultural commentator Hart . . . examines the intersection of theology with other academic fields, including ethics, science, literature, and biblical hermeneutics. Whether conversing with theologian Rowan Williams on the healing purpose of tragedy, or meditating on 'the Problem of Evil' as laid out by Dostoyevsky, Hart's witty, erudite writing proves unsettling and invigorating." --Publishers Weekly

"Theological Territories is an extremely diverse and yet substantial addition to David Bentley Hart's increasingly formidable body of theological writings, scarcely rivaled by anyone else within American theology. . . . Hart makes and develops several highly crucial arguments with great erudition, argumentative rigor, imaginative insight, and enormous panache. --John Milbank, author of The Politics of Virtue

"David Bentley Hart is among the most interesting and intellectually lively living theologians.Theological Territories shows, with vigor, what it's like to think like a theologian." --Paul J. Griffiths, author of Christian Flesh

"The author of Theological Territories doesn't have much use for the way theology is usually expounded--in our present society as well as other times and places. . . . [Hart's] interests are wide and his reading is vast but his focus is on thinking--rethinking--about God." --Shepherd Express

"Theological Territories is a fine salmagundi that touches on most of Hart's bêtes noires--the idiocy of New Atheism, the incoherence of scientific naturalism, the monstrosity of capital punishment, the sheer wrongheadedness of a hundred other things, such as capitalism and bad stagings of Wagner. The man is a gadfly, bless him." --BookForum

About the Author

David Bentley Hart is a religious studies scholar and a philosopher, writer, and cultural commentator. He is the author and translator of fifteen books, including That All Shall Be Saved: Heaven, Hell, and Universal Salvation.