Relational Theology

A few years ago I aspired to read 100 books in a year. I fell just short of the mark and if I remember correctly I read 92 books. This year I want to do more writing, but at the same time I want to be widely read. Therefore, I’m setting as my goal to read 50 books this year. To assist in both my writing and reading I’ve decided to dedicate my Monday blogs to reviews of a recently read books.

Last week I dug into Relational Theology: A Contemporary Introduction. I was already somewhat familiar with relational theology and wondered if this introductory book on the topic would simply be a refresher. It didn’t take me long to realize that although introductory in nature this book was a fresh mine of golden nuggets.

It is made up of 32 short (2-4 pages) essays by a variety of authors. I stormed through the book in a week, in retrospect that was way too fast. I have determined that the best way to read this book is to treat it as a devotional and read one chapter a day and then contemplate on what was read. I intend to reread it as such.

The greatest achievement of this book is the wide lens through which this topic is looked at. The authors range from members of the Church of the Nazarene to those with Catholic roots and Quaker backgrounds. The book has both men and women authors. Relational Theology is written by seminary deans, professors and pastors. This book is for everyone—the layman to the doctoral student—everyone will get something out of it.

I highly recommend it if you have the slightest interest in the way that God and humans are intricately involved in a relationship.

For further reading about this book from one of the editors follow this link Relational Theology