“As a theological discipline, dogmatics is the scientific self-examination of the Christian Church with respect to the content of its distinctive talk about God.”
- Karl Barth, Church Dogmatics, I.1, p. 1
“The intellectual enterprise which bears the traditional title of ‘dogmatics’ takes place within the Christian Church. It is this that distinguishes it from similar intellectual undertakings, especially within the sphere of philosophy, as that is usually understood. Our immediate concern is not to ask whether this particular undertaking is legitimate, useful, or necessary. The first thing we have to say about it is that it is closely connected with the existence of the Christian Church, and that it arises only within this sphere. We study dogmatics as members of the Church, with the consciousness that we have a commission from the Church, and a service to render to the Church.”
- Emil Brunner, The Christian Doctrine of God (Dogmatics, vol. 1), p. 3
“To do theology is to actualize Christian truth, or, better, to set it forth in its actuality and to understand it afresh thereby. To that extent theology is by nature, and not merely in its pedagogical implications, historical. It has nothing whatever to do with timeless truth. Hence there can be no timeless or supratemporal theology (theologia perennis).”
- Helmut Thielicke, The Evangelical Faith, vol. 1, p. 23
What is Dogmatics?
According to Herman Bavinck:
The word dogma, from Gk. dokein (“to be of the opinion”), denotes that which is definite, that which has been decided, and is therefore fixed. …The use of the word dogma teaches us, in the first place, that a wide range of commands, decisions, truths, propositions and rules for living can be denoted by it. Nonetheless, the element that they all have in common is that dogma consistently stands for something that is established and not subject to doubt. [Reformed Dogmatics, pp. 28-29]
The term dogmatics is often used interchangeably with systematic theology or doctrine. The dogma upon which dogmatics is founded is the unique, once-for-all revelation of the Word made flesh in Jesus Christ, through whom and for whom all things were made (Colossians 1:15-20). As a “systematic theology,” this knowledge of God is given an orderly presentation, with the aid of categories or loci. Thus, systematic theology will expound upon the doctrine of God (Trinity), the knowledge of God (epistemology), the doctrine of man (anthropology), the doctrine of Christ (Christology), the atonement through Christ (soteriology), the church of Christ (ecclesiology), and the last things (eschatology). No particular topic can be isolated from the others. Especially, the existence of God as a Trinity of persons should form the interpretive grid in which to comprehend and express all other dogmatic loci. All of these loci are conceptual “places” where the teaching of the Church can be delineated for the elucidation of each part. As Christian “doctrine,” this becomes the instruction of the Church for her members. The knowledge of God is the chief end of dogmatic theology.
From the beginning of her existence, the Church has required the work of theologians to demarcate what is true and what is false. In this way, Paul the Apostle denounced those teachings that were unfaithful to the Gospel. He distinguished between the law and gospel, between works and faith, wherein the former is re-situated, re-contexualized in Christ. As the Church has progressed, her teachings have required further demarcations in order to remain faithful to Jesus Christ. Thus, the Church has been responsible for proper distinctions in the person of Christ: his humanity and deity, his relation to the Father, and his sending of the Holy Spirit. Likewise, the Church has been responsible for rightly proclaiming the work of Christ: his fulfillment of Israel’s covenant and reconciling the faithful, both Jew and Gentile.
Western Dogmatic Theology
In the West, the Church has been divided between Roman Catholics and Evangelical Protestants for the last five centuries. The Catholic dogmatic tradition has its principal exponent in St. Thomas Aquinas (13th century), especially with his Summa Theologica. The Council of Trent and the subsequent Roman Catechism (16th century) are both heavily influenced by Thomas, thus giving much (but not all) of his formulations a normative place in Catholic dogmatics. The Protestant dogmatic tradition can largely be divided between Lutherans and Calvinists (=Reformed). Luther’s exegetical work and occasional treatises are at the core of his scholarly influence and ecclesial importance. During this period, the greatest systematic articulation of the Protestant faith was John Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion (final edition, 1559).
Dogmatics After Calvin: Recommendations
Reformed Dogmatics, Heinrich Heppe, editor
The Doctrinal Theology of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, Heinrich Schmid, editor
Commentary on the Heidelberg Catechism, Zacharias Ursinus (1534-1583, Reformed)
Institutes of Elenctic Theology, Francis Turretin (1623-1687, Reformed)
A History of the Work of Redemption, Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758, Reformed)
Symbolism, Johann Adam Möhler (1796-1838, Catholic)
An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine, John Henry Newman (1801-1890, Catholic)
A System of Christian Doctrine, Isaak A. Dorner (1809-1884, Lutheran)
The Person and Place of Jesus Christ, P. T. Forsyth (1848-1921, Congregationalist)
Reformed Dogmatics, Herman Bavinck (1854-1921, Reformed)
The Christian Religion in its Doctrinal Expression, E. Y. Mullins (1860-1928, Baptist)
Church Dogmatics, Karl Barth (1886-1968, Reformed)
Dogmatics, Emil Brunner (1889-1966, Reformed)
Foundations of Dogmatics, Otto Weber (1902-1966, Reformed)
Studies in Dogmatics, G. C. Berkouwer (1903-1996, Reformed)
The Glory of the Lord, Hans Urs von Balthasar (1905-1988, Catholic)
The Evangelical Faith, Helmut Thielicke (1908-1986, Lutheran)
The Christian Doctrine of God, T. F. Torrance (1913-2007, Reformed)
Transformation and Convergence in the Frame of Knowledge, T. F. Torrance
Systematic Theology Today
John Webster, University of Aberdeen
Word and Church (2001), Holy Scripture: A Dogmatic Sketch (2003), Holiness (2003), Karl Barth (2004), Confessing God (2005)
Kevin Vanhoozer, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School
Is There a Meaning in This Text? (1998), First Theology (2002), The Drama of Doctrine (2005), Remythologizing Theology (2010)
Michael Horton, Westminster Seminary California
Covenant and Eschatology (2002), Lord and Servant (2005), Covenant and Salvation (2007), People and Place (2008), The Christian Faith (2011)
Oliver Crisp, Fuller Theological Seminary
Divinity and Humanity: The Incarnation Reconsidered (2007), God Incarnate: Explorations in Christology (2009), Retrieving Doctrine: Essays in Reformed Theology (2011), Revisioning Christology (2011)
Other notable systematic theologians today include Kathryn Tanner (Yale Divinity School), Bruce McCormack and George Hunsinger (Princeton Theological Seminary), Francesca Murphy (Notre Dame), Gilles Emery (Université de Fribourg), and Matthew Levering (University of Dayton).
The Canon in Protestant Dogmatics
I did a series of posts on the issue of authority and the biblical canon: click here.
