The Patristic Doctrine of Redemption: A Study of the Development of Doctrine during the First Five Centuries

by H.E.W. Turner

This work is based upon a series of lectures which were given at 'Scholae Cancellariae', Lincoln, during Passion Week, 1949, on the invitation of the Warden, the Reverend Canon C. K. Sansbury. It is a laudable custom of the College during Passion Week each year to invite an outside lecturer to lecture upon some subject connected with the Passion of our Lord. The doctrine of Redemption among the early Fathers has never received the attention by scholars which it deserves. The reasons for this neglect are many and various. Scholars primarily concerned with the doctrine of the Atonement normally tend to hurry over the early centuries and to begin a serious discussion with the teaching of St. Anselm and of Peter Abelard, at whose hands the doctrine first begins to take a definite shape. Others select from the patristic material the passages and allusions which fit best into their own preferred doctrinal mould, without paying adequate attention to complementary patterns of thought which possess equal significance. Others again, because of the number and complexity of the issues involved, tend to leave the subject on one side, on the ground that the thinking of the Fathers is not sufficiently clear-cut and precise for anyone except the expert. This little book is offered to the ordinary reader interested in theology in the hope that it may convince him that the early Christian centuries did think honestly and interestingly about the central experience of their religion; to the theological student as a guide to a dark place; and to the expert as a reminder of a serious gap in theological bibliography and as a challenge to go into the land and possess it. from the Preface by H. E. W. Turner

124 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2004

About the author

Henry Ernest William Turner, priest and theologian: born 14 January 1907; ordained deacon 1931, priest 1932; Fellow, Chaplain and Tutor, Lincoln College, Oxford 1935-50; Canon Residentiary, Durham Cathedral 1950-73, Treasurer 1956-73, Sub-Dean 1959-73, Acting Dean 1973; Lightfoot Professor of Divinity, Durham University 1950-58, Van Mildert Professor of Divinity 1958-73 (Emeritus); DD 1955; married 1936 Constance Parker (two sons); died 14 December 1995.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/peo...

Reviews

[Pete Aldin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some of the most unnecessarily opaque prose I've ever read. Almost unreadable.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is a ton of information packed into this little book. Turner's strength is proving the variety and texture in the patristic doctrine of redemption. He highlights four dimensions of redemption in the early church, and explores even within those four the variety of ways the each is understood.
If you have ever been tempted to think that the patristic doctrine of redemption was flat or one dimensional (ala Aulen) this book is a helpful corrective. In his own words "We like our doctrinal concepts clear-cut, even at the expense of a certain shallowness." He puts on display the "richness" that "defeats our lesser clarity."
Having said that, this book is quite old, and is heavily stepped in theological conversation of its own time. It is not easy sledding at all, but at just over 100 pages, very much worth it.