Review:
Reviewed in French--Revue d'Histoire et de Philosophie Religieuses ."..a good book for a dedicated reading group who might wrestle with a chapter at a time together..." Jennifer Smith, Methodist Recorder, September 2009. Reviewed in French--, 'Those ancient Christians were people passionate about God and our relationship with the divine'. That statement by the author is true for his own passion about Christian doctrine and early church history. Piotr Ashwin-Siejkowski writes for students, parishioners, and a wider group of readers; accordingly he provides an introduction to the theology of the Apostles' Creed and its terminology, supported by notes to introductory articles and a glossary to help beginners. The book could be the basis of church classes for members or catechetical instruction (as the creed was in its origin) in preparation for baptism or confirmation. It is not a history of the creed but a commentary on its contents. The author reminds us that Christianity has an intellectual content and is much more than an emotional adherence to Jesus. His abundant references to second and third-century Christian authors result in a systematic summary of basic Christian theology. The author sets the 'proto-orthodox' thinkers over against pagan, Jewish, and heretical views on each topic. It is helpful to put the affirmations of the Apostles' Creed in contrast to alternative theologies of the time and to see the confession in comparison to early orthodox affirmations, but the author goes further in offering a way of seeing the contemporary relevance of the creed. Readers may disagree on particular points, but they can learn from the author's wide acquaintance with early Christian writings.' - Everett Ferguson, Abilene Christian University, Abilene, Texas, USA--Sanford Lakoff 'Although not the oldest, the Apostles Creed is the most accessible of the ancient Christian creeds. Piotr Ashwin-Siejkowski, a parish priest who teaches early Christian doctrine at the University of Chichester, offers his readers a sympathetic and critically informed account of this creed, and of the faith claims that it makes. By explaining the sometimes perplexing doctrinal debates out of which these statements of faith emerged, and by introducing the wider and often alien historical contexts in which they arose, he reminds his readers of the differences between the ancient and contemporary worlds, and raises questions about how best these ancient theological claims should be appropriated and articulated today.' - Andrew Gregory, University College, Oxford, UK.--Sanford Lakoff 'This is a valuable book on a creed that has been rather neglected by scholars in the latter half of the twentieth century. Its value lies particularly in the way it seeks to illuminate its earliest context, namely the first three centuries. Although the author admits the relative lateness of the emergence of the Creed (8th century), he rightly argues that its core goes back much earlier, to the Old Roman Creed of the third century, and thus his approach seems eminently defensible. He examines each clause of the Creed in a separate chapter, considering the context, pagan, Jewish and alternative Christian. Here he is able to make good use of twentieth century discoveries of and recent scholarship on ancient manuscripts such as the Nag Hammadi library, to reveal the variety of early Christianity and present alternative theological views, such as those of the so-called 'Gnostics', in a much fuller and satisfactory way than earlier treatments. Thus there are valuable and nuanced treatments of various early perspectives on e.g. the Holy Spirit and Mary and on Jesus's descent into hell and ascension and on the resurrection of the flesh. The theological analysis and reflection are of a high order, while presented in a way that is accessible to lay people. This is aided by a useful Glossary of theologians, early Christian documents and theological terms. The author's concluding reflections on the continuing relevance of the creeds, particularly his appeal to approach them as icons rather than idols, are very pertinent but ought to have been developed at greater length and in greater depth. There's useful section on internet resources and the Select Bibliography is just that, if one could argue with it.' - Alastair H.B. Logan, University of Exeter, UK--Sanford Lakoff "Ashwin-Siejkowski's rigorous study of early Christian theology reminds us just how much of Christian belief was in place by the end of the third century. It reacquaints us with the liveliest period of Christian thought." The Revd Dr Andrew Davidson, Church Times, January 2010. Reviewed in French--Sanford Lakoff 'I must confess that a book about the Apostles' Creed is not one that would appear on my list of 'must-read' books. To be honest, I cannot understand why this ancient creed continues to excite interest or have a place in modern liturgy. Not that I've always felt this way. Every Sunday in church as a child, I sat next to an elderly woman who always stood to attention when it came to reciting the Apostles' Creed. For her, it was an unquestionable statement of fact and, moved by her respect for it, that's how I accepted it as well. Today the recitation of this Creed, removed completely as it is from the context and culture in which it was formulated, leaves me cold. Far from opening a window on to God, its continued use in the Church has baffled and exasperated me. It was with great relief and a sense of liberation that I read the Introduction to Ashwin-Siejkowski's book. I was not being asked to approach this ancient relic of a Creed 'on my knees', but critically and with the purpose of understanding the issues and arguments through which it came to birth. Ashwin-Siejkowski makes it clear that the language of the Creed is of analogy, and that the images used were never intended to be taken literally. Speaking of how language is used to communicate an understanding of God, he writes, "Each language facilitates the encounter of a specific generation with God, but as language is rooted in particular sets of symbols and idioms, it may alienate other generations from the core of Revelation." In these words my own sense of alienation in relation to the Apostles Creed was expressed with the result that I felt the book might well have something to say to me as well as to those, like the friend of my childhood, who hold the Creed in the highest regards. The major work of the book is to take each statement of belief from the Creed and to look at the theological debates and questions that lay behind it. Readers looking for clearly expressed detail will not be disappointed by
About the Author:
The Revd Dr Piotr Ashwin-Siejkowski is a priest of the Church of England and Assistant Lecturer for Patristics at the University of Chichester, UK. He is the translator and editor of the Polish edition of the works of Clement of Alexandria and Porphyry of Tyre.
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