Thomas F. Torrance

Paul Molnar is known for detailed and fair-minded reading of text by which he has established his reputation as one of the leading interpreters of Karl Barth. This volume on my father's theology exemplifies those practices of faithful reading. I believe Paul Molnar is profoundly right in identifying my father's understanding of the Trinity as the proper point of entry to his theology as a whole. My father's perception of the inner relations between the doctrine of God, of creation and the incarnation flow from this. The volume is meticulous, thorough and always clear. I thoroughly recommend it. Paul Molnar knew my father personally, talked to him, questioned him and understood him well. Iain Torrance, President of Princeton Theological Seminary and younger son of Thomas F Torrance Recent years have witnessed a resurgence of international interest in the theology of T. F. Torrance. In this landmark study, Paul Molnar offers a clear, comprehensive and perceptive account of his exposition of the trinitarian shape of the Christian faith. Providing a valuable and necessary point of reference, it deserves to be widely read by all students of Torrance's work. David Fergusson, Professor of Divinity and Principal of New College, University of Edinburgh The time is ripe for an appreciation of Torrance's constructive work as a Christian dogmatician, and Molnar's book offers its readers just that. Thoroughly informed, written with clarity and characteristic zest, and alert to Torrance's capacity to interrogate contemporary theological convention, this is a book which serves its subject well. Professor John Webster, King's College, Aberdeen No theologian in the second half of the twentieth century made a greater contribution to Nicene Christianity than T. F. Torrance. His writings will continue to be read for years to come, long after the work of some of his more illustrious contemporaries has faded away. Now Paul Molnar has produced a profound, detailed and comprehensive study, one that will surely become the definitive treatment of Torrance's trinitarian theology. For all who care about the future of generous orthodoxy in the church, this book is highly recommended. George Hunsinger, McCord Professor of Theology, Princeton Theological Seminary, USA This is a masterful treatment of Thomas F. Torrance's trinitarian theology. Paul Molnar, a premier theologian in his own right, ranges over the primary materials and growing body of secondary literature on T. F. Torrance with a scholarly scrutiny and critical judgment that both illumine the trinitarian fabric of Torrance's theology and correct numerous misreadings of Torrance in the secondary sources. Molnar's grasp of Barth's theology in particular and trinitarian theology today and throughout the history of the church in general makes him one of the few scholars writing today who fully grasps the breadth and depth of Torrance's trinitarian theology, as well as its significance for the scholarly world and the church. This is one of the most significant works, if not the most significant, on Torrance's theology published to date. It is an indispensable guide for anyone who intends to seriously engage the thought of T. F. Torrance. Elmer M. Colyer, Professor of Historical Theology, University of Dubuque Theological Seminary Dubuque, USA This book shows the inner connection of Torrance's approach to Christian dogmatics and ecumenical theology with his understanding of theology as a critical, reality-based scientific undertaking. What emerges above all from this study is the astonishing coherence of Torrance's thought on theological epistemology, method and subject-matter - a coherence that is not perhaps so apparent when one only reads some of his numerous books. As he himself never wrote out his own Christian Dogmatics, this book can give us a very good idea of what it might have looked like. Alasdair Heron, Professor of Reformed Theology, University of Erlangen, Germany 'Anyone who is inclined to offer a criticism of Torrance's theology will need first to read this magisterial and authoritative account, drawn from Torrance's powerful but rather disparate writings.' Church Times 'Molnar convincingly demonstrates that what had moved Torrance as a Christian is still of supreme relevance and significance to constructive theological work in the Church today. For history of dogma, and especially for Torrance scholarship, this book is quite simply a wonderful gift and invaluable resource to church theology.' Journal of Theological Studies '... Molnar's book remains an exceptionally cohesive and illuminating work. Without a doubt it is the most significant secondary work on Torrance's theology published to date, and should be considered an essential reference and study guide for anyone who intends to seriously wrestle with the theology of T. F. Torrance.' Scottish Bulletin of Evangelical Theology