Abstract

Reprinted from the winter, 1966 issue of Religion in Life this little book contains essays by Nels Ferré, Charles Hartshorne, John Dillenberger, James C. Livingston, and Joseph Haroutunian. Ferré's article explores the strengths and weaknesses of Tillich's attitude toward the transcendent. He holds that much of Tillich's quarrel with traditionalistic theology was really a quarrel with substance metaphysics. Hartshorne examines Tillich's language especially his ascribing nontheological meaning to theological terms. Hartshorne insists that where terms like 'shepherd' and 'father' are obviously symbolic, terms like 'absolute', 'relative', 'infinite', 'finite', 'contingent', 'necessary', 'omnipotent', etc. have no useful symbolic meaning but can only be understood literally. In this light he explores Tillich refusal to assert the "existence" of God. Dillenberger uses the fact that Tillich sees religion as the ultimate concern that "informs the heart of a culture" to show that for Tillich, theology cannot be done in isolation; there can only be theology of culture. Therefore, much of Tillich's work can be seen as building a theory of culture. Livingston writes on Tillich's christology and historical research. Haroutunian ends the book with a discussion of Tillich's dealings with the questions of being, finitude, and anxiety.--S. O. H.