The T & T Clark Blog

Geoffrey Bromiley 1915-2009

We have learned with great sadness that Goeffrey Bromiley has passed away on August 7th.

Bromiley was not only a renowned church historian and historical theologian, he significantly influenced English-language Christianity over the past six decades, translating and editing—from several original languages—thousands upon thousands of pages of theological works from such notables as Karl Barth, Jacques Ellul, Helmut Thielicke, and others.

Among his many translations widely used by English-language readers are the 10-volumes of the Theologisches Wörterbuch des Neuetn Testaments (Theological Dictionary of the New Testament), edited by Gerhard Kittel; Wolfhart Pannenberg's three-volume Systematische Theology (Systematic Theology); and the Kommentar zum Römerbrief (Commentary on Romans) by Ernst Käsemann.

Geoffrey Bromiley, together with N. T. Torrance made an immesuarable contribution to the work of T&T Clark by his translating and editing of Karl Barth's Church Dogmatics, a work still used, loved and studied by many scholars world wide. 

You can find an obituary on the Fuller website here. 

Ben Myers has a piece here. 

Geoffey Bromiley's translation of the Church Dogmatics has just been published in a new Study Edition. Two of his other books are still in print with T&T Clark: Historical Theology: An Introduction and Introduction to the Theology of Karl Barth. 

     

Marilynne Robinson wins Orange Prize for Fiction 2009

I red with great joy that Marilynne Robinson was awarded the 2009 Orange Prize for Fiction in a ceremony yesterday evening at London's Royal Festival Hall (actually just a stone's throw from our offices!). This was for her new novel Home which revisits places and characters of her earlier novel Gilead. 

Well, none of them was published by us, obviously, but I must admit that I cannot think of a novel from the past four of five years that I found so deeply moving and at the same time so unashamedly theological as "Gilead". Stanley Hauerwas has dubbed it the "first Barthian novel" as you can read in Ben Myers' fine review. 

Here is what the Guardian writes about the event:     

"Fi Glover, the broadcaster who chaired this year's judging panel, admitted the decision had been straightforward and unanimous. Home, Robinson's beautifully crafted exploration of family relationships and redemption, was the easy winner from the six shortlisted books, she said. "All of the judges brought a couple of books to the table which they thought were definitely the contenders and Home was in all of our choices. We were in agreement."

I was also intrigued by this passage:

"Readers were desperate for more but Robinson did not return to fiction for 24 years, winning a Pulitzer prize for Gilead five years ago. In between she wrote a polemical book about the British nuclear industry and a book of essays on such unfashionable subjects as theology and Calvinism."

Unfashionable subjects, well...

Professor Nigel Yates

 

It is with great sadness that we report the death of Professor Nigel Yates of the University in Wales, Lapeter. Nigel was a wonderful scholar, teacher and Professor of Ecclesiastical History. I remember gratefully reading his masterly study "Buildings, Faith and Worship" on Anglican church interiors 1600 - 1900 (Oxford University Press) a couple of years ago. This book answered so many of my questions about Anglican history and liturgy that it came as a revelation to me.

When I paid a visit to Lampeter a while ago, I was privileged to meet Nigel in person and was delighted to hear that he was working on a similar book looking at the history of Scottish churches. I was very impressed with Nigel's enthusiasm, his warmth and his love he showed for the subject he was working on.

I had known about his illness for a while, not expecting his death to be so imminent. Nigel was just going through the last revisions of his forthcoming book "Preaching, Word and Sacrament". He now won't be able to hold the finished book in his hands.

Our thoughts go to his wife Paula, to his family, friends and colleagues at Lampeter. 

May light perpetual shine upon him.

Top Polish Theologian Rejects Vatican Demand to Retract Article

About a year ago, a group of English and Polish theologians started the new international online journal, Open Theology / Otwarta Teologia. One of the leading brains behind this projects is the Rev. Dr. Piotr Ashwin-Siejkowski, an Anglican Priest of London, UK, who teaches Patristics at the University of Chichester (UK) . Piotr is the author of Clement of Alexandria and a forthcoming book on the Apostles' Creed.

Fr Waclaw Hryniewicz, a former head of the Ecumenical Institute of the Catholic University of Lublin, Poland, contributed an article to the magazine in 2007. In January 2008, he received a letter from Archbishop Angelo Amato, secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, asking him to retract or change the text.

You can read the full article from the Catholic News service here. Fr Hryniewicz' article can be found here.

Press Release: Vatican Cardinal commends Continuum Book on Old Rite Mass

Parish priests and bishops “must accept” the requests of Catholics who ask for the older (Latin) form of the Mass, a senior Vatican official has said. This is “the express will” of the Pope, “legally established,” which “must be respected by ecclesiastical superiors and local ordinaries [bishops] alike,” he insisted. Hoyos continued, stating that “all seminaries” should provide training in the old form of the Mass “as a matter of course.”

Cardinal Dario Castrillón Hoyos ―the man charged with implementing Pope Benedict’s liberalisation of the Latin Mass and other rites as celebrated before the Second Vatican Council―made these remarks in a preface to the forthcoming edition of The Ceremonies of the Roman Rite Described, the standard English manual on how to celebrate the older rites, released yesterday.

Hoyos commended the book―the fifteenth edition since it was first published by the English priest Dr Adrian Fortescue in 1917―edited by the London based “distinguished liturgical scholar” Dr Alcuin Reid as “a reliable tool for the preparation and celebration of the liturgical rites” that Pope Benedict has authoritatively decreed may now freely be used. The volume is due for publication by Continuum/Burns & Oates by the end of 2008.

Alcuin Reid, speaking from London, said: “The honour that the Cardinal has accorded this book underlines the importance of the older forms of the Mass and sacraments in Pope Benedict’s overall renewal of the liturgical life of the Catholic Church.” He continued, “We’re at a critical moment in the history of the liturgy, and taking away restrictions on the celebration of the older rites enables them to contribute to, and even re-inform the quality of, Catholic worship worldwide.” Continuum’s London Publishing Director, Robin Baird-Smith, added: “We’re delighted that this title has returned to the Burns and Oates imprint, and to be publishing such an important volume at this time.”

Adrian Fortescue, J.B. O’Connell & Alcuin Reid, The Ceremonies of the Roman Rite Described will be published in October 2008 (December 2008 in the United States).

National Geographic respond to the critical Chronicle of Higher Education article on the Gospel of Judas

National Geographic have issued a response to the recently published Chronicle of Higher Education article which criticises them for their handling of the Gospel of Judas (see post of May 28). You can read it here.