Original Sin: Illuminating The Riddle (New Studies in Biblical Theology) - Softcover

Blocher, Henri

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0851115144 ISBN 13: 9780851115146

Publisher: Apollos, 1997

Synopsis

<p>The twentieth century witnessed human cruelty on a scale never before imagined. Paradoxically, in recent years the doctrine of original sin has suffered neglect and ridicule.<br>In this philosophically sophisticated treatment of the biblical evidence for original sin, Henri Blocher offers a robust response. Interacting with the best theological thinking on the subject, he shows that while the nature of original sin is a mystery - a riddle even - only belief in it makes sense of evil and wrong-doing.<br>After a general survey of the biblical evidence, Professor Blocher moves on to discuss the two key texts. First, he considers the relation of the Eden story of Genesis 2 - 3 to modern scientific, literary and theological thinking. Then he offers a new and ground-breaking interpretation of Romans 5, where the apostle Paul discusses Christ and Adam. From this exegetical foundation, he goes on to show how the doctrine of original sin makes sense of the paradoxes of human existence. In the final chapter, he discusses the intellectual difficulties that some feel remain with the doctrine itself.</p>

About this title

Review

"Blocher's short and pungent book addresses the central issues [of original sin] in an imaginative and constructive way. . . . Much wisdom is compressed into these pages along with a gentleness of touch that belies the weightiness of the subject."--The Expository Times

"Henri Blocher . . . is able to think through the interlocking contributions of historical theology, biblical theology and systematic theology, and come to fresh conclusions in the light of Scripture, without overturning all that is valuable from the past. . . . This is a book to be read and thought through with great care."--D. A. Carson (from the series preface)

About the Author

In October 2003, Henri Blocher was appointed to the Guenther H. Knoedler Chair of Theology at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois. Since 1965 he has served as professor of systematic theology at the Faculte Libre de Theologie Evangelique in Vaux-sur-Seine near Paris, France. A leading evangelical theologian and statesman, Blocher was a member of the Lausanne Committee on World Evangelization (1975-1980), served the World Evangelical Fellowship/Alliance in a number of capacities, and taught in schools in Europe, Australia, Africa, Canada and the US. He is currently president of the Fellowship of European Evangelical Theologians. Blocher studied at a number of institutions including the Sorbonne, London Bible College, Gordon Divinity School, and Faculte Libre de Theologie Protestant of Paris. He has written six books, four of which have appeared in English, and several dozen articles. His English publications includeOriginal Sin: Illuminating the Riddle, Evil and the Cross: Christian Thought and the Problem of Evil and In the Beginning: The Opening chapters of Genesis.

Edition details

• Publisher: Apollos
• Publication date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0851115144
• ISBN 13: 9780851115146
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 192