Generosity and the Christian Future

Based on the 1995 Henson Lectures, delivered in the University of Oxford, this study takes as its theme the Christian future, and the development of a theology of generosity in response to the challenges likely to face Christian faith in the twenty-first century. In particular, Professor Newlands wishes to explore the suggestion that Christ represents the ultimate generosity of God for humankind. This leads him to concentrate on the contribution made by Christian doctrine to public issues, and especially the relationship between Christology and human rights. The author is centrally concerned that faith should remain in the public square, and that the circle of faith should always be outward facing. The result is a liberal, pluralistic theology, which regards the generous love of God, in incarnation and reconciliation, as a powerful stimulus to imaginative Christian thought and action. In its robust portrayal of what Christianity ought properly to look like, this book--which emerges from the pen of the leading Scottish liberal theologian of his generation--will be sure to stimulate and engage a wide variety of readers.