This book, while independent and complete in itself, is a companion volume to The Doctrine of God, published three years ago. Together they cover the general field of Christian theology, and in this respect may be regarded as a single work.

Two things characterize the method here adopted. One is the frank facing of the metaphysical problems involved in theology. No effort is made to evade them by imaginary accounts of their psychological or sociological origin. These metaphysical problems have always been and still are real, and no theology is adequate that does not deal seriously with them. They do not, it is true, figure so prominently in the doctrine of redemption as they do in the doctrine of God, but they have an important place both in anthropology and Christology. What I have aimed to do has been to think them through from the modern personality standpoint. If there is anything distinctive of the present work as a whole, it is the thoroughness and, I trust, consistency with which this purpose has been carried out.

The other characteristic is the amount of attention devoted to the history of Christian thought. If the philosopher should be a “spectator of all time and of all existence,” the theologian ought in addition to that be a close observer of the whole of Christian history. It is only in the light of their development that it is possible to understand the doctrines of the church and determine whether and how far they need to be modified in order to meet the needs of the modern mind. It is only by the historical method also that we can gain an adequate insight into the continuity of Christian thought and life. Christianity is a living organism, and to be properly understood must be understood in its totality.

The fashion at present is to look askance at theology, to treat it as a rather dubious appendage to religion. And there is not a little in the history of the past to justify this attitude. There has been a great deal of poor theology, and theological differences have often been a disturbing and divisive factor in the life of the church. But the way to avoid these evils is not to abolish theology. That is quite impossible, so long as the Christian faith persists. The evils of theology can be cured only by a better theology, and in the construction of such a theology the church has a vital interest. A true “ideology” is an essential to the church as a true “pathology.” The latter, indeed, involves the former. The emotional and practical side of religion is dependent for its proper development on sound theological convictions. In a great and consistent theology the church has not only a powerful weapon of offense and defense, such as communism has in its “ideology,” but also a rich source of religious inspiration and edification.

Professor Edgar S. Brightman and Professor Earl Marlatt, to whom I am deeply indebted for generous aid in the preparation of several earlier volumes for the press, have again placed me under heavy obligations to them by carefully reading the manuscript of the present book and giving me the benefit of their critical judgment on many matters pertaining both to style and content. My special thanks are due them. I wish also to thank Miss Helen Dame and Miss Ruth Carlson for their efficient clerical assistance.

Author: Dr. Albert C. Knudson is a graduate of the University of Minnesota and of Boston University School of Theology. He studied abroad at the universities of Jena and Berlin, receiving his degree of doctor of theology from the latter institution. He joined the faculty of Boston University School of Theology in 1906, and in 1926 he became its dean. He is the author of several volumes, including Present Tendencies in Religious Thought, The Philosophy of Personalism, The Religious Teaching of the Old Testament, and The Prophetic Movement in Israel.