Schleiermacher on Christian Consciousness of God's Work in History

This work is a fresh, unusually lucid approach to Christian theology and interfaith dialogue from India. Its basic aim is to examine ""the Christian consciousness of God''s work in history""--redemption history within the entire history of the world. It uses Christian Faith by Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834) as its main text, so as to view this theme ""in a reversed order from the way it is presented there."" This approach, which centers on God''s ""new creation"" in Christ, leads to an incisive understanding of Christianity''s relation to other modes of faith. Throughout, Dr. Kunnuthara compares the thought of another Indian Christian leader steeped in Hindu thought, Pandippedi Chenchiah (1886-1959), to enable renewed interfaith dialogue across a wide spectrum.""Abraham Kunnuthara has written a well conceived and creative book, offering a reading of the Christian Faith that presents its theology ''in reverse''--beginning not from the Introduction but from the theme of redemption in Christ as presented later in Part Two. This strategy opens novel access to the Christological and historical character of Schleiermacher''s dogmatics, insofar as it highlights the point that Christian consciousness of God''s work in history is identical with God''s work in Jesus. The book is an insightful achievement. I will recommend it to students as a solid resource for engaging Schleiermacher.""--Thomas E. Reynolds, author of The Broken Whole: Philosophical Steps Toward a Theology of Global Solidarity ""Kunnuthara innovatively and skillfully crosses boundaries in order to profoundly illuminate Christian experience of divine providence. He creatively works between Indian and Western Christianity, between academic and practical theological discourses, and between doctrinal and experiential starting points. This carefully written book convincingly demonstrates the power of cross-cultural examination of doctrines to enlarge and to refine Christian faith''s self-understanding.""--Catherine L. Kelsey, Dean of the Chapel and Spiritual Life, Iliff School of Theology and author of Thinking About Christ with Schleiermacher and Schleiermacher''s Preaching, Dogmatics, and Biblical Criticism""As the advisor of Kunnuthara''s research, I am happy to commend his work as an Indian professor who is involved in East-West dialogue. He examines Schleiermacher as a bridge to understanding other ways of faith. Using Chenchiah as well, he enables dialogue that is necessary in the contemporary world.""--Lanier Burns, Dallas Theological SeminaryAbraham Varghese Kunnuthara is an East-West trained theologian from the Marthoma Church in South India. He teaches at the Union Biblical Seminary in Pune, Maharashtra, India, a major graduate school serving many smaller denominations there, including those of the lower castes.