Arianism Revisited - by Brendan Wolfe & Mattias Gassman & Oliver Langworthy Paperback

About the Book

The purpose of this book is fourfold: to render accessible the complex doctrinal views of Arianism; to bridge a rupture in scholarly approaches to Arianism; to present the controversy in its full ethnic, linguistic, and chronological scope; and to assess the controversy theologically and indicate what Christians may gain from studying it today.

Book Synopsis

The volume gives a broad overview of ancient non-Nicene theologies; surveys key councils and events from before Nicaea until the final demise of institutional non-Nicene Christianity in 589; and lays out both the historical background and the theological underpinnings of the thought of Arius himself and of his allies and their successors, down to the repudiation of non-Nicene Christianity by the Germanic kingdoms. This content is organized around the contexts in which "Arian" thought is encountered, differentiating doctrines across time and space while also demonstrating both intellectual and personal continuity.

Review Quotes

Students of the imbroglio known as the Arian controversy will be glad to have this lucid, comprehensive, and dispassionate survey of the diverse opinions that Christians of the fourth century held concerning the relation of God the Son to God the Father. The authors do not lose sight of the political and pragmatic factors which influenced theological formulations, and they offer shrewd reflections on the strengths and weaknesses of the party labels which have been devised to guide Christians through the intellectual hubbub of this era. The chapters on Gothic theology and the doctrine of the Holy Spirit ensure that this compact volume will serve the needs of both students and researchers more fully than any other history of the Council of Nicaea and its aftermath. --Mark Edwards, professor of early Christian studies, Oxford University

This book provides a good, concise summary of the heresies known as "Arianism." It offers a helpful overview of the lines of development of the other, "heretical" side and is particularly recommended for students to read. Fortunately, later debates about the Holy Spirit and corresponding Latin and Gothic sources are integrated in a fitting manner. --Uta Heil, professor of church history, University of Vienna

Armed with the gifts of scholarly precision and dispassion, the authors offer us the best single treatment of fourth-century Arian theology in its various forms. The reader meets formidable learning expertly distilled and delicately worn. Arianism Revisited is a model of lucid, even-keeled scholarship that deserves to be required reading for scholar and student alike. --Alexis Torrance, Archbishop Demetrios Associate Professor of Byzantine Theology, University of Notre Dame

This text is a very welcome addition to literature concerned with that pivotal period in the development of Christian thought--the fourth century. The authors provide a reliable, clear, and up-to-date introduction to the theologies of those who did not embrace the Nicene Creed and the interpretations of that text that formed the basis of later Christian orthodoxy. There is nothing currently in print that accomplishes this task so elegantly. --Lewis Ayres, professor of Catholic and historical theology, Durham University, and McDonald Agape Distinguished Chair in Early Christian Theology, Pontifical University of St. Thomas (Angelicum)