Rediscovering the Triune God

My Take
This is an excellent example of the work of the late Stanley Grenz. Rediscovering the Triune God is complete with all the helpful insight and generous spirit Grenz is well known for. This work demonstrates an overall breadth of knowledge and an acute sense of the pulse of contemporary theology. Like much of Grenz' work, what he lacks in rhetorical power or nuance he more than makes up for in research. Not a fun or easy read, but an excellent place to begin an informed discussion of trinitarian theology.

Summary
The book is split into five chapters and an epilogue. Grenz moves the reader briskly through a history of trinitarian theology before the 20th century in chapter one, focuses in on Barth and Rahner in chapter 2, and then moves into more contemporary theologians in 3-5. On the whole, the structure of the book is methodical and makes good organizational sense, but it leaves the book feeling a bit like an extended syllabus on the Trinity. On the whole though this is a broad stroked treatment of a number of key figures in theology and the import they continue to play.

Reflection
This is one of those books that I can only recommend with a huge disclaimer, if you are not a theology nerd you will hate this book. If on the other hand you have some background with the material and want a way to fill in some of the blanks in your own reading, and want a systematic overview or large map of the theological landscape, then this book is quite good. As I read through this book, I was time and again struck by two alternate thoughts: 1. It is amazing to read someone who devoted so much of his life to a particular field. Grenz never accidentally stumbles onto this material. He is clearly a skilled and generous thinker, teacher and reader. I know this not simply from this book, but also from taking classes with some of his previous students, who share these same marks of academic integrity. Grenz is the epitome of an envagelical scholar who actually does the work, which is far to rare. 2. Grenz for all his brillance, generosity, insight, and ability (not to mention his genuine humility as a person) is almost unreadable. I keep running into this problem with his work. He is clearly passionate and encyclopedic in his knowledge, but this does not translate well to his writing. It sort of makes me wish he had found a friend who was a gifted writer who could help make his work more accessible (in fact he did do this from time to time but I can't speak to the results). In the end what you get with Rediscovering the Triune God is an excellent theological history/ manual which will hopefully spur on creative, faithful thinking and preaching on the Holy Trinity.