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Rating: 
Summary: A Seminal Work that No One Has Read
Review: I cannot believe that this is the first Amazon review of this book. Even Fr. David Zampino has not given it his attention. In this book, Bishop Newbigin lays out the beginnings of what would become known as "convergence theology" -- a sort of Grand Unified Theory of Christianity that seeks to unite the truth of divergent Christian theologies into a workable, holistic practice. Newbigin was no stranger to this work, as he was essentially led down this path when he formed the Church of South India, which merged several formerly competing denominations into a more honest reflection of the Body of Christ. He identifies three streams of Christian practice: the Catholic, the Evangelical, and the Pentecostal, and notes that they actually complement each other. This principle is vital to the Christian Church through the ages, but it seems to be lost in the "church growth" free-for-all we seem to be experiencing today. This book is well worth reading just for his wonderful exegesis of the Book of Romans. However, realize that this is an early work (which loses the fifth star). Newbigin took a historical view of the "three streams", so the rest of his life was devoted to trying to foster unity between the historical denominations. This is evident in the role he took in forming the World Council of Churches. I believe that the real problems are more theological in nature, and that a thorough re-evaluation of each denomination's core beliefs must take place. One cannot simply glue a Catholic congregation to a Baptist congregation and to a Pentacostal congregation and claim "unity". Each congregation must be able to operate in each stream. Yes, this means a lot of tearing down before building up. But, without the fullness of God in the entirety of the Church, how can we claim to be the unified Body of Christ?
Rating:
Summary: A Seminal Work that No One Has Read
Review: I cannot believe that this is the first Amazon review of this book. Even Fr. David Zampino has not given it his attention. In this book, Bishop Newbigin lays out the beginnings of what would become known as "convergence theology" -- a sort of Grand Unified Theory of Christianity that seeks to unite the truth of divergent Christian theologies into a workable, holistic practice. Newbigin was no stranger to this work, as he was essentially led down this path when he formed the Church of South India, which merged several formerly competing denominations into a more honest reflection of the Body of Christ. He identifies three streams of Christian practice: the Catholic, the Evangelical, and the Pentecostal, and notes that they actually complement each other. This principle is vital to the Christian Church through the ages, but it seems to be lost in the "church growth" free-for-all we seem to be experiencing today. This book is well worth reading just for his wonderful exegesis of the Book of Romans. However, realize that this is an early work (which loses the fifth star). Newbigin took a historical view of the "three streams", so the rest of his life was devoted to trying to foster unity between the historical denominations. This is evident in the role he took in forming the World Council of Churches. I believe that the real problems are more theological in nature, and that a thorough re-evaluation of each denomination's core beliefs must take place. One cannot simply glue a Catholic congregation to a Baptist congregation and to a Pentacostal congregation and claim "unity". Each congregation must be able to operate in each stream. Yes, this means a lot of tearing down before building up. But, without the fullness of God in the entirety of the Church, how can we claim to be the unified Body of Christ?
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