This affordable textbook can help students build a groundwork for future theological studies and has especially compelling interstitial material to help students see the practical implications of scholarly study, but it does exhibit some shortcomings common to textbooks, such as brief overviews of some topics and limited primary source material.
The book's first three chapters address Christian thought, introducing fundamental and methodological issues in Christian theology. The first chapter lays out ways theology traditionally has been understood as a scholarly discipline, and identifies a number of significant theological subdisciplines. By also introducing the terms religion, belief, faith, and spirituality, the chapter helps readers to see how theology fits within a constellation of human activities related to engaging the divine. This section then moves on to discuss the sources for Christian theology: chapter 2 focuses on Scripture, giving a brief account of the Old and New Testaments and tracing the development of biblical scholarship. Chapter 3 reveals the book's Roman Catholic orientation by discussing three additional sources for doing theology: tradition, reason, and experience.
The next set of chapters, 4–7, addresses practice, by exploring Christian history, doctrine, organizational structure, and worship through historical and anthropological approaches. Especially noteworthy are the chapters on history and doctrine. After briefly summarizing Christian history from the biblical period (including the Old Testament period), through the patristic era, Middle Ages, and Reformation, to the modern era, the book notes that students need to understand history and context if they are to understand the “rationale behind Christian theology and formal expressions of faith” (96). The book articulates a number of useful guiding questions to help students situate Christian beliefs and behaviors according to their time and place.
The final set of chapters explores applications and practices of Christian theology in the contemporary world: Christianity and non-Christian religions, Christianity and ethics, contemporary spirituality and Christian thought, and global Christianity. Introducing how Christianity is lived out amid pluralism and in diverse settings is especially relevant for the “postaffiliated” undergraduate student population of North American higher education.
The book effectively provides readers with a clear, accessible overview of Christianity. The chapters include a good mix and appropriate level of maps, time lines, informational charts, and images. Each chapter concludes with questions for review and discussion, and resources for further exploration. The review prompts, however, tend to assess comprehension more than open discussion, which points to the book's primary task: to describe Christian thought and practice so that students have a foundation for creative, deep theological exploration—the kind of exploration they will do through engaging theological texts or in classroom discussion with their peers and teacher. The resource sections list books, websites, and—impressively—films to complement the chapter's content. Additionally, chapters frequently include sidebar text boxes, in which Weaver reveals her experience and acumen as a teacher by writing in a conversational, accessible voice and connecting the material to practical, contemporary matters. These sidebars strengthen the book's value significantly, as they helpfully invite readers into the study of Christian thought and practice.
Concerns about the book are two. First, the chapter “Christianity and Non-Christian Religions” addresses Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism—all within about fifteen pages. Weaver indicates that at best her summaries are cursory treatments of the religions. While this qualification is appreciated, the benefit of including such brief summaries of the religious traditions is not clear, particularly since no Christian theological questions are ultimately addressed in relation to them. Second, faculty who assign the book for a course that also involves writing instruction should take care to help students understand its scope and genre as a textbook. Inexperienced writers may mistake the encyclopedic rhetorical style as an appropriate model for their own writing, which will not encourage them to practice supporting their claims with reasons and evidence. This is a limitation of the textbook genre generally speaking, and not particular to Weaver's book. However, the book's lightweight size, black-and-white print, and inexpensive price tag may prevent students from clearly recognizing that it is a textbook and should be used as such.
