Customer Reviews (1)

A Must Read!
Doing some research I ran across a footnote on John Webster. The work looked interesting so I picked it up from the library. It was impossible to put down and I found myself wanting to make notations in the margin, so I bought my own copy. The essays on the Incarnation, Conscience, Ethics and Reconciliation are excellent. Webster writes, in my estimation, with a great deal of clarity. Theological tomes are generally not known for their readability-this work may be the exception. ... Read more

Book Description
It is arguable that one of the most serious obstacles to a proper appreciation of Barth's magnum opus is an inadequate grasp of the fact that the Church Dogmatics is a work of moral theology as well as of systematics. A failure to take this point seriously often lies behind critiques of Barth's theology generally, when he is accused of being abstracted from the world of human history and action. By reinterpreting Barth's work as an ethical dogmatics, Webster shows that such readings are all too often abortive from the beginning. ... Read more

Book Description
This volume offers John Webster's two great Jacobean tragedies, The White Devil and The Duchess of Malfi, together with his brilliant tragicomedy, The Devil's Law-Case, and the comedy written with William Rowley, A Cure for a Cuckold.Webster is a radically and creatively experimental dramatist. His tragedies deploy shifting dramatic perspectives which counteract and challenge conventional moral judgements, while the predominantly gentler tone of his comedies and tragicomedies responds inventively to contemporary changes in dramatic taste and fashion.All four plays display the provocative intelligence of a profoundly original playwright.Under the General Editorship of Michael Cordner of the University of York, the texts of the plays have been newly edited and are presented with modernized spelling and punctuation.In addition, there is detailed annotation, a glossary, and a critical introduction which traces Webster's artistic development, defends him against charges of over-indulgence in violence, and explores his sophisticated staging and scenic forms. ... Read more

Book Description
Design of Pulse Oximeters describes the hardware and software needed to make a pulse oximeter, and includes the equations, methods, and software required for them to function effectively. The book begins with a brief description of how oxygen is delivered to the tissue, historical methods for measuring oxygenation, and the invention of the pulse oximeter in the early 1980s. Subsequent chapters explain oxygen saturation display and how to use an LED, provide a survey of light sensors, and review probes and cables. The book closes with an assessment of techniques that may be used to analyze pulse oximeter performance and a brief overview of pulse oximetry applications. The book contains useful worked examples, several worked equations, flow charts, and examples of algorithms used to calculate oxygen saturation. It also includes a glossary of terms, instructional objectives by chapter, and references to further reading. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Good introduction to the field
It's a good book for students explaining the basic concepts. A modern pulse oximeter has complex signal processing algorithms implemented, which make it robust against motion artifacts.
This is not covered in the book.

book contents rapid review
it sounds to be a good reference for students studing and researchingabout pulse oximeter. may be good reference for pulse oximeter designers!(it depend to how the level of complete contents or text would be) ... Read more

Book Description
Karl Barth has been called the most important Protestant theologian since Schleiermacher.His lifetime of work produced a huge and complex body of writings.This posthumous publication of much of his work has invited fresh and attentive interpretations of his thought.

The book draws together these readings to provide a clear and authoritative introduction to the main themes of Barth's theology. The closing chapter with its focus on Barth's relationship to modernity, postmodernity, and the tasks of theology will be especially useful to students. ... Read more

Book Description
This reader brings together texts which articulate or debate with the mode of theology most commonly identified as 'post-liberal'. ... Read more

Book Description
This is the first of two volumes to appear in The Cambridge Edition of the Works of John Webster, beginning with the plays The White Devil and The Duchess of Malfi. While both of these plays are available in modernized versions, the Cambridge edition incorporates the most recent editorial scholarship, including valuable information on Webster's biography, new critical methods, and textual theory. The edition also presents previously unpublished material, such as a fragment of an otherwise lost play and a hitherto unknown poem, in addition to a brief biography of Webster, a history of the Webster canon, and each play's reception history. The following volume will include the other plays as well as the poems and prose. ... Read more

Book Description
John Webster argues that, whereas any understanding of scripture must be subject to appropriate textual and historical interrogation, it is also necessary to acknowledge the special character of scriptural writing. His book strongly reaffirms that the triune God is at the core of a scripture-based Christianity. Written with intellectual enthusiasm by a theologian who understands the currents of modern secular thought, the volume develops a constructive position on biblical authority. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

read this book on-line
Since I needed to read this book before it arrived (I live overseas), I paid extra to read it full text online.It is not a smooth process.Slow and sometimes the pages do not load right away.Must be a better way.I think I would enjoy the book more in print and after discussing it in class, I plan to go back to it now.

Brilliant, engaging, and inspired
This little book is not a light read. Webster writes at a high level of discourse and assumes the reader is familiar with theological terms and developments. As a masters level student, I read this at the tail end of my first year and still felt I was only grazing the surface. Webster is particular with his word usage, serving the purpose of delivering a very punctual, direct message.He uses terms that require industry specific familiarity, nearly to the scholar's level.It is not enough to look up the unfamiliar words in a dictionary, as the words are nuanced according to current-day use.
That said, John Webster was certainly targeting his scholarly peers with this book. It is fascinating and brilliant. He addresses the both the liberal and fundamentalist position over scripture as arrogant and overstepping the authority given to the church by God. The main thrust is that the church should come before God on its knees in humility, instead of "lording" over the Scriptures. The church should not act like God, thus "limiting" God. It should not claim to know things it can not know. The church should not worship its own authority, but allow God to continually make and rebreak it, to continue to allow God's truth to speak... Jesus upholds the church, just as he upholds the individual believer. The church never "arrives", never has it all figured out. God's revelation has not stopped. The Scriptures are not God's Word without the Holy Spirit. Otherwise, it is just a book. The Holy Spirit is required for truth from the Scriptures to be grasped. This is because God's revelation is being continually revealed to us. The Scriptures are living and breathing and powerful because of the HS. We should be open to God's leading. We can not read the Bible and force our interpretation on the Bible. Instead, we should approach it with humility before God and wait for him to reveal it to us. We should maintain our understanding of it in humility. Neither the individual nor the church is ever an authority over the Scriptures. The Scriptures are in continued authority over the church, and with the HS will reshape the church over and over, perserving truth. This is much like how walking with God is a faith proposition. To try to define it and box it up, or to create a list of rules and say "this is walking with God" is to miss the point. The church must do the very same thing with regard to the scriptures.

Above head-height
I really should downgrade the original 2-star rating as per my former comment below. But I'll leave it.

I quit trying to read this book. I have offered it to a Pastor friend of mine with the challenge of reading AND understanding what it is that Webster is attempting to say. And I say, 'happy trails'. Not me. Waste of my money and time.

My 2-star rating was simply a preliminary to approach my comment.

Although I am only 20 or so pages into this book I am already disconcerted. I have had to re-read passages to attempt to grasp Webster's point.

What is the point of phrasing a book in such a way that it is severely restrictive in readership. Already, before even touching on content, the application is narrowed, for not many can go there. It requires a highfalutin vocabulary, probably available only to graduate and post-graduate theological/philosophical minds.

I have read 'theological' books for some time, and enjoy (and am quite interested in, from a 'what's going on?' perspective) the current discussions on interpreting Scripture. Webster's approach, according to the write-up, was particularly attractive to me, as I stand squarely on the Divine source and His intention to be understood at all levels.

I will wade through this one for that reason. But .. wow!

Brilliant!
Hurray!At last a robustly trinitarian and systematic account of Scripture!Webster lays out succinctly, and with refreshing clarity, a doctrine of Scripture in terms of the doctrines of God (chapter 1), the church (chapter 2), and salvation (chapter 3), and then turns, in the final chapter, to a consideration of the role of Scripture in the task of theology.Rejecting critical detachment from his subject, refusing distraction by debates in modern hermeneutics, and setting aside even such pertinent issues as Scripture's relation to tradition and proclamation, Webster has written an urgent and focused account of the nature of Scripture and its role in the economy of grace.

Chapter 1, `Revelation, sanctification and inspiration'.Webster argues that a doctrine of Holy Scripture must be based on a prior account of divine communicative activity; everything to be said about Holy Scripture must be `subservient to the self-presentation of the triune God' (6).Webster then describes this self-presentation in terms of revelation, sanctification, and inspiration.Revelation is `the life-giving and loving presence of the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Spirit's power among the worshipping and witnessing community' (12).`The "sanctification" of Scripture (its "holiness") and its "inspiration" (its proceeding from God) are aspects of the process whereby God employs creaturely reality in his service' (8-9).Speaking of Scripture in terms of these three particular aspects of divine communicative activity preserves the priority of divine action, what Webster calls `proper dogmatic order'.Particularly helpful are Webster's explanation of his choice of the term `sanctification' to depict God's use of Scripture, along with his critique of descriptions of Scripture as divine accommodation, as analogous to the hypostatic union, as testimony, as a means of grace, and as taking `servant form' (Berkouwer).

Chapter 2, `Scripture, church and canon'.Where God is communicatively present, says Webster, there also is the church.The church, therefore, is rightly described as the `creature of the word', and so a doctrine of Scripture must also address Scripture's relationship to the church.According to Webster, `The definitive act of the church is faithful hearing of the gospel of salvation announced by the risen Christ in the Spirit's power through the service of Holy Scripture' (44).Webster then offers suggestive sketches of the visibility and apostolicity of the church, Scripture's authority within the church (`its Spirit-bestowed capacity to quicken the church to truthful speech and righteous action' (52)), and the church's act of canonisation.

Chapter 3, `Reading in the economy of grace'.What then does God's communicative presence, within the communion of the church, achieve in the individual reader of Scripture?In this deeply moving, even devotional, chapter, interwoven with seasoned advice from the likes of Calov, Calvin, Bonhoeffer, and Zwingli, Webster portrays the act of reading Scripture as `an instance of the fundamental pattern of all Christian existence, which is dying and rising with Jesus Christ through the purging and quickening power of the Holy Spirit.Reading Scripture is thus best understood as an aspect of mortification and vivification: to read Scripture is to be slain and made alive' (88).

Chapter 4, `Scripture, theology and the theological school'.The `Current Issues in Theology' series to which this book belongs is intended for `upper-undergraduates and graduate students of theology, as well as...Christian teachers and church professionals'.It is appropriate, then, that the one particular, non-dogmatic issue Webster chooses to address is the role of Scripture in the theological tasks of formulating doctrine, catechesis, and training church leaders.Taking his cue this time from Ursinus, Webster argues that theology, in all its tasks, is `a simple sketch or outline of the different parts of Christian teaching with an eye to their scope and interrelations.There is no organising principle,...and no interest in defence or apologetic commendation: the aim is simple summary description' (113).Theology, therefore, is `not a set of improvements on Scripture', but is rather `most properly an invitation to read and reread Scripture, to hear and be caught up by Scripture's challenge to a repentant, non-manipulative heeding of God's Word' (130).Webster then concludes this extraordinary account of Scripture with Calvin's `Jeremiah' prayer and a poignant appeal from Augustine's sermons on the Gospel of John. ... Read more

Book Description
A world-renowned theologian here offers a succinct account of a central yet neglected theme in Christian teaching — the holiness of God.

Integrating biblical studies, theology, and practical application, John Webster provides a thoroughgoing trinitarian understanding of God's holiness with highly relevant results. According to Webster, God's holiness is known not in his simple transcendence but in his gracious and free relationship to his people. Such holiness finds an echo in the holiness of the Christian community, especially in worship and witness, and in the life of the individual disciple.

Profound yet readily accessible to a wide range of readers, Webster's "Holiness" offers an ideal entry into reflection on the Christian God. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Holiness Re-Engaged
If you believe that holiness is a vital part of Christian theology, but are tired of the narrow, mechanistic and moralistic theologies of holiness propounded by Packer, Piper, Sproul and other calvinist ilk, then this is the book for you.Webster has here offered an excelent theological treatment of holiness that is trinitarian and biblical.

Webster offers his "trinitarian dogmatics of holiness" (p. 1) in four parts, the first focusing on theology as a holy interprise, the second on the holiness of God, then the holiness of the church and finally, the holiness of the Christian.

The first chapter shines as a splendid reflection on how doing theology should be conceived.Webster shows that theology, when exercised in epistemological humility (what Webster calls "holy reason"), in conversation with the Scriptures, in prayerful dependence on the Holy Spirit and in the service of the people of God, is itself a holy activity.

Webster then moves on to what, is I think, the best chapter in the entire book, the holiness of God.Here Webster rises far above standard reformed accounts of holiness to show how God's holiness is at it's core a relational concept (p. 43-44).God is the holy One "in our midst" (p.44cf. Isa. 12:6), not apart from us.God's holiness, when understood trinitarianly and in light of the biblical narrative is rightly understood as a "fellowship-creating holiness" (p. 25).Webster argues this through an examination of the teaching on God's holiness in the Old Testament where God's holiness is proclaimed, not in his remaining seperate from his people, in his coming down to them and entering into covenant with them.This understanding of holiness is the best that I have yet read and offers a wonderful, biblical and trinitarian alternative to the standard reformed appraoch.

The last two chapters focus on the holiness of the church and the holiness of the Christian.Webster's essential argument in both is that the holiness of the Church and the Christian is not derived from an ontological participation in the Trinitarian Holiness, but rather is an alien holiness that is bestoyed on us by grace through election.While I would not want to deny what Webster affirms, that our holiness is bestoyed on us by God's grace and election, I don't think that the dichotomy he introduces between holiness by grace and holiness by participation in the Triune life is necessary or helpful.Biblically, I see these two realities as complementary.We are made holy by God's gracious election of the church as his people, however this gracious act includes being drawn into the divine life where we share in the Trinitarian unity and communion which is part of our being made holy (see Jn. 17:20-26; 2 Pet. 1:3-5).

That however is my only criticism of the book.Webster has here offered an ewxcellent contribution to theology and has brought discussions of the holiness of God into a new and wonderful key.For that we should all be thankful.Highly recommended.

A holy task
John Webster believes that theology is an office of the church.Theology is not, for Webster as for many modern theologians, a dispassionate and removed intellectual exercise; it is also not merely descriptive and emotive statements without reasonable methodology and content.Theology's task is to understand God's creation in certain contexts for certain purposes, and for that reason, it belongs to the people of God.

However, Webster sets himself apart from much of current theological processes by focusing not on the conversational/correlative or the comparative, but on the dogmatic development within the guidelines of the church and the church's text, the Bible.To this extent, some theologians and Christians in the mainline may find the text difficult and narrow.On the other hand, it is worthwhile to follow the development, as Webster describes, more intensive before it becomes extensive.(One might say here it gets deeper rather than wider.)

The main task for this short series of essays is to look at the ideas of holiness at relating to God, church, Christians, and the theological task itself.It starts off with certain presumptions which it takes as axioms and does not try to prove -- God exists, the Bible is the word of God, God's being is Trinitarian, etc.This is a fairly standard litany of orthodox Christian beliefs, so there is not a great stretch.Webster looks at the dogmatic content -- this is not metaphysics or pastoral, mystical or moralistic (although at certain points in any theology, and this is no different, there will be points that touch on these aspects).

Webster begins with a chapter on method, looking at the different aspects and relationships of Christian theology.Perhaps in his most telling statement, Webster sets the theological stage as the place where reason is called before God, rather than the other way round.Theology is communal, prayerful, and above all confessional.Webster also has at the conclusion of this chapter a litany of that which theology is not:it is not a means of grace, it is not a sacrament, etc.There is much to argue against here, in the final paragraph of this section -- he makes the statement that 'Theology is not inspired', which I would argue strongly against; not knowing his operative definitions, however, I hesitate to offer a criticism, as we might be talking at cross-purposes.

The following chapters look at content -- the holiness of God, Church, and the Christian.Using the ideas developed in the first chapter, and drawing on materialfrom the Bible and the church, Webster sets out ways to consider holiness.Holiness is a relationship with God that can be communal or individual.In his conclusion, Webster looks at different theories of identity and self, and draws the conclusion that both the church and society need conversion that is unlikely to come through any form of rational, intellectual efforts, but through prayer and the type of conversion of life more akin to monastic visions.

Those who appreciate Karl Barth will likely find things of interest and value here. There are portions of this text that go beyond 'easy' theology -- there is a presumption of a high degree of theological and philosophical sophistication (digressions about Schleiermacher's heirs going from the 'cautiously referential' to 'nominalist' and 'sceptical', among other sidelines, references and digressions, show this).This is also a topic for a narrow audience; the development of the theme is interesting and useful, but given its limitations, will likely not be useful outside formal theological circles.

Still, for this audience, it is a worthwhile development in an interesting way of a topic often overlooked. ... Read more

Book Description
This authoritative book offers challenging yet accessible accounts of the major features of Barth's theological work, especially as it has become available through the publication of his collected works, and interacts with the best of contemporary Barth scholarship. It assesses Barth's significance for contemporary constructive theology, and his place in the history of twentieth-century Christian thought. The Companion both sums up and extends recent renewed interest in Barth's theology, especially in English-speaking theology, and shows him to be once again a major voice in constructive theology. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Thought Provoking Book on Barth
Any multi-authored book on one writer/ theologian is bound to have high points and low points.However, this book is a must read.As an introduction to Barth's thought this is not for the beginner.It presupposes a fairly high amount of knowledge regarding Barth to be able to work through it.Having said this -- most of the writers do an outstanding job in interacting with Barth's thought.Webster's introduction is nicely done.Heron's conclusion and interaction with Barth's legacy is also beautiful.And then, its worth having the book just for Bruce McCormack's, George Hunsinger's, and Trevor Hart's articles on Barth.If you want to begin to understand Barth, this is a book that you must read eventually.

A Good Reference Source on Barth
Any book that attempts to summarize the thought of Barth in 300 pages is faced with an impossible task.Barth's thought was so exhaustive and trickled down into so many areas of theology and life that no summary can do complete justice to Barth.Nevertheless, this book puts forth a good effort toward that end.

Webster has assembled many of the heavy hitters in Barth scholarship to tackle various key areas of Barth's thought.Trevor Hart provides a good chapter on Barth's view of revelation.Nigel Biggar's contribution on ethics is also good.

The brewing scholarly battle between Graham Ward and Bruce McCormack concerning possible similarities between Barth and Derrida regarding language is not hinted at in the book.The reader only gets Ward's side of it, in which he argues that Barth's contention that human language is inherently incapable of describing the "wholly other" God finds a home in the later thought of Derrida.McCormack is on record saying that any similarities between Barth and Derrida are superficial, and in my view, McCormack is closer to the truth on this.However, this book does not present McCormack's position, and thus may very well give the reader the impression that Ward's position is the accepted position on this question within Barth scholarship.It is not.

In addition, one would have hoped for a more in-depth treatment regarding Barth's relationship to Kantian philosophy.Given Barth's crucial importance chronologically in coming onto the theological scene in Europe at a time when the Kantian-influenced theologies of Schleiermacher and Ritschl reigned supreme, an understanding of Barth's intense reaction against both strains strikes me as critical in putting Barth into context and assessing him within this context.While Kant is mentioned more than once in this book, it is only in skeletal form, and this is a weakness.Putting Barth into the proper historical context is absolutely essential in assessing his importance, and this book could have been better at doing that.

But overall, the contributions in here are scholarly, well documented, and informative for someone looking to gain a good working knowledge of Barth.Evangelicals need to contend with Barth responsibly, and we have been mostly neglectful in doing this.One way to do this is to read a book like this which attempts to thoughtfully interact with Barth from a mostly non-evangelical perspective.As such, I commend it to discerning evangelicals. ... Read more

Book Description
This contributed book provides the premiere reference on medical instrumentation as well as a comprehensive overview of the basic concepts of medical instrumentation illustrating the interdisciplinary nature of bioinstrumentation. This revised edition features new material on infant apnea monitors, impedance pneumography, the design of cardiac pacemakers, and disposable defibrillator electrodes and their standards. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

This book is just a big table of contents
The book scans through many topics related to Bomedical Instrumentation. It gives you just a general idea of what this is about, but if you want to get serious details about anything mentioned, you will need a second source for everything, as nothing is explained or treated in enough detail. Wikipedia is more informative than this book for many of the topics.
For example, the chapter about operational amplifiers is just a useless list of what the amps can do, but nothing really useful and complete on how to use them. The chapter about biopotentials is a bit better, though incomplete. The description of electrodes is incomplete. You just get a huge list of articles you should read to really learn something out of your time and effort.
For the amount of topics it pretends to cover and the thin detail offererd, this book seems like a big table of contents to me, not a reference at all. I don't know of a better book on Biomed Instrumentation, though. I should write one =)

Convoluted and confusing
This book is not the best as a textbook. Might be useful as a refresher or reference, but that's not what I had to use it for. It is wordy and is sometimes too detailed and sometimes not enough. It has no consistency, thanks to numerous authors. Also, the material is often outdated. Time to look for a different book.

if(you=clinical engineer){get it=true}else{think again };
Seeing it from clinical engineer eyes is different than seeing it from a biomedical engineer eyes; however, it is not as thoroughly covers topics as it seems from the author's repetition in the field.

From the clinical engineer point of view it is such an encyclopedia that will keep his job. It covers a lot of subjects and also presents a lot of information like what materials/alloys are used to build that specific electrode/sensor. Well, it doesn't justify the choice of those materials in that sensor except in some general models which might be somehow confusing! Also, as a clinical engineer, you will find a nice chapter on electrical safety which might be relevant to your career.
In the end, reading this book, I guess, is the way to success as a clinical engineer.

From a biomedical engineer point of view it lacks of any kind of details. One rather see one chapter of this book in a 1000 pages volume presented thoroughly.

From a student point of view, it depends on your professor and the course as well. As a student I see it lacks of examples. You wouldn't find it as you might think. This is not your way to make it high, your GPA! not head,of course :) !

I guess, it is made particularly for clinical engineers.

Electronic Medical Instrumentation
As a coursebook, I found 'Medical Instrumentation' to be a sound survey of electrical medical diagnostic instrumentation.The book does review electrical therapeutic medical instrumentation; however, it's coverage is not as thorough.

This is an excellent resource for engineers planning to specialize in medical device design.

A good understanding of physiology is necessary to fully utilize the Medical Instrumentation text.If you have little medical background, I recommend Review of Medical Physiology (by William Ganong) as a companion.

Could be More Simple
Explains dynamic characteristics of circuits very well. It has a ton of information - which can be too much. If you are just starting out in a course on instrumentation, I would recommend, "Principles of Bioinstrumentation" by Normann. His book is much simpler. Ideally, you should get both,..., it depends what level you are at (as a 4th year bioengineering student, I preferred the simple version...) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

The Voice: Hearing God's Voice With Clarity, Consistency And Confidence
Very clear book with tools for seriously hearing the voice of God.Highlighted excellent ways of identifying the voice of God and using this to make day-to-day decisions practical.

Ears to Hear!
I read this book in order to get additional input so as to teach the youth Suanday School....teens.I just finished John Paul Jackson's course on The Art of Hearing God and I found this book to be an excellent compliment to the course.While the course is quite pricey, this book addresses the very basics in the different ways we hear from our Lord and addresses the different things that can hinder us from hearing.This is a great book for anyone just getting started in the prophetic or for anyone that wants to be more intimate with Him!

Life Changing Revelation!
Knowing that *I* was made to hear the voice of God was a life changing revelation for me!I have been religious in attending church for many years, and it was only until I came to know and hear the voice of God did I realize that He *wants* a personal relationship with His children - ME! Before that, I thought of God as some distant entity that got credit for creating the universe.I didn't really think about His involvement in our lives today.I never even read my bible all those years.

I have now gone from a religous experience in church to a personal relationship with my Lord and Saviour.This has changed my life!

John Webster's writing style is exciting and easy to read, and I highly recommend this book!

Excellent Book
The Voice is a well written guide to hearing God's voice.It is a simple read that is rich in content.This book should be read more than one time to appreciate all its knowledge.The author expounds on many sound Biblical truths to convince all that we are created to hear the voice of God.If you are interested in increasing communication with God, this is the book for you.I highly recommend it. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An excellent guide to Barth's theological ethics
Webster continues the task taken up in his previous effort, Barth's Ethics of Reconciliation, which examined Barth's mature ethical writings. Here, he expands the defence of his thesis that Barth's relativizing of human moralconsciousness before the Word of God does not at all compromise, but ratherproperly establishes, the true place of human action. He offers a revisionof previous efforts at Barth interpretation (similar to Bruce McCormack'swork) through a more exhaustive and systematic study, utilizing neglectedor previously unavailable texts such as Barth's Muenster Ethics and TheChristian Life, as well as the early ethical writings not addressed inWebster's last study in Barthian ethics. It is an important contribution toBarth scholarship and to theological ethics upon which further efforts willbe built. ... Read more

Book Description
This new edition of the universally acclaimed textbook on fungal biology has been completely re-written, to take account of recent progress in the taxonomy, cell and molecular biology, biochemistry, pathology and ecology of the fungi. Features of taxonomic relevance are integrated with natural functions, including their relevance to human affairs. Special emphasis is placed on the biology and control of human and plant pathogens, providing a vital link between fundamental and applied mycology. The emphasis throughout is on whole-organism biology from an integrated, multidisciplinary perspective. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An Excellent Collection of Dogmatic Essays
John Webster is known best for his scholarly work on Karl Barth, including Barth's Doctrine of Reconciliation, Barth's Moral Theology, and (most recently) Barth's Earlier Theology.However, ever since his collection Word and Church appeared in 2002, followed by Holiness and Holy Scripture in 2003, Webster has been coming into his own as a dogmatic theologian worthy of other people's scholarly attention.His latest collection of essays is no exception, and should solidify Webster's reputation as one of the foremost theologians in the world today.For those who follow Webster's work, this book's appearance is especially exciting.It was scheduled for release in August of 2005, but was delayed for unknown reasons.

A word is in order about the contents of the book.Almost all of the early descriptions of the book made reference to the fact that Confessing God would include an article about the ressourcement theologian Yves Congar.For those who were looking forward to this essay, you should drop one star from this review.The essay is not included, for reasons which are not entirely clear.If this is a serious letdown for anyone, the article by Webster on Congar is entitled "Purity and Plenitude: Evangelical Reflections on Congar's _Tradition and Traditions_" and it can be found in the International Journal of Systematic Theology 7:4 (vol:issue) which appeared in October 2005.I suspect that the delay of this essay collection is partly due to questions about what would finally be included.The contents of the book in its final form are tightly organized and form a coherent and consistent whole; an essay about Congar would simply feel out of place.

The essays (and the subheadings) included in the collection are as follows:

Theology
1. Theological Theology
2. On the Clarity of Holy Scripture
3. Confession and Confessions

Dogmatics
4. The Immensity and Ubiquity of God
5. The Holiness and Love of God
6. Prolegomena to Christology: Four Theses

Church and Christian Life
7. On Evangelical Ecclesiology
8. Hope
9. Evangelical Freedom

Those who are avid readers of Webster's work will probably recognize at least a few, if not most, of these essays.In fact, all but two are published elsewhere; those two being "The Immensity and Ubiquity of God" and "Prolegomena to Christology."A couple of the essays stretch back before Word and Church, and one wonders whether Webster honestly was waiting for another book in which to publish them or whether he simply needed to fill some space in this collection.Either way, Confessing God is a great book, and unless someone already owns all of the essays in some other form, it is well worth the cost.This is my final verdict on the book, however if anyone is interested in hearing more about the actual theological content, read further.

Webster's most important contribution to contemporary theology is to keep Karl Barth's theological legacy alive and well in our 21st century context.But that is an oversimplification.Webster does not merely repeat Barth; he interprets what Barth discovered in relation to new issues and challenges.Nowhere is this more apparent than in the pivotal two-part essay "On Evangelical Ecclesiology," which is published in another book of essays entitled The Community of the Word: Toward an Evangelical Ecclesiology, edited by Mark Husbands and Daniel Treier, both of whom were professors of mine at Wheaton College (and hosted the conference at which Webster's paper was presented).I will reflect on this one essay as a way of introducing Webster's theology as a whole.

Webster's two keynote speeches, now collected in a single essay, are an attempt, first, to define what an evangelical ecclesiology should look like, and second, to defend Barth's ecclesiology from those who critique it as inherently negative regarding human activity and community.Webster accomplishes this in dialogue with "communion ecclesiology," represented primarily by de Lubac.Along the way he also interacts with Robert Jenson, Dietrich Bonhoeffer (on the church's visibility), and John Calvin.Webster begins his ecclesiology with the perfection of God, which flows from his conviction that "a doctrine of the church is only as good as the doctrine of God which underlies it."By beginning with God's perfection, Webster wants to ensure that evangelical theology asserts the "completeness of the divine work.Like God's life, God's acts are self-derived and therefore self-directed and self-fulfilling" (157).In the theological reflections which follow, Webster defines the church as the visible community that attests to the invisible, complete and unique divine work of the triune God as a "creature of the word."

Webster repeatedly returns to some common themes in most of his writings, which place him squarely in a path that goes back first to Eberhard Jüngel (a few of whose works are available in English in large part because of Webster's efforts), then to Karl Barth, and finally back to Martin Luther and John Calvin.Webster also shares a lot in common with the late Colin Gunton (particularly in regard to the doctrine of the Trinity), and Gunton himself is a product of reading and studying Barth.Like Karl Barth, Webster argues for the freedom of God as the one who stands over against sinful humanity, who is utterly unique and cannot be possessed or controlled or encompassed by anything created.God as the Creator stands over the creation as the Lord, the giver of life, the One who alone is truly gracious and loving.In all of the major events in the drama of God's relation to the world, God "acts alone."Thus, in his essay on ecclesiology, Webster writes: "At the heart of [the church's] polity is an event and presence which cannot be assimilated, of which the community is no extension, and in which it may not participate.That event and presence is the perfect being and work of the community's Lord, the Holy One in its midst" (169).

Webster clearly follows Jüngel's (Lutheran) theology in many respects by arguing for the primacy of God's reconciling work in Christ above all else.Webster, like Barth and Jüngel and the magisterial Reformers, begins not with some abstract understanding of God (conceived in metaphysical terms, for example), but with the unique person and work of Jesus Christ.In other words, though he does not speak of this as much as Jüngel, Webster begins his theology with the doctrine of reconciliation, i.e., the doctrine of justification by faith.Because he begins with justification, Webster argues against understanding the God-human relation in terms of participation, which has its roots in the idea of a union with Christ.Instead, he replaces a view of the church as a participatory community with the concept of fellowship, in which God and humanity are ontologically separate entities who are brought into fellowship through the Spirit by the reconciling work of the Son.

Webster, it should be noted, does not order his dogmatic work around the one principle of justification, as Jüngel does.Webster follows Barth more closely by focusing on the theme of the perfection of God: God's work is complete in itself, and the Christian is one who responds to this work.With this theme as the ordering principle, Webster discusses a number of other dogmatic topics, both in this collection of essays and in his other constructive works.In an e-mail he sent to me, Webster recommended that I read the works of Augustine, Thomas, and Calvin, and this broad theological focus is reflected in his own writings, in which he takes up into theological consideration a wide range of divine attributes and doctrinal concerns.Webster does not abandon classical attributes like God's ubiquity and immensity, but instead takes over this ancient tradition by recasting these doctrines in light of a rigorous Christology.He writes: "The Word becomes flesh and dwells among creatures; thereby he appropriates to himself creaturely conditions, including spatiality.Yet no less than in the act of creation, the act of incarnation is an act of divine self-movement, a becoming or condescension which does not entail the abandonment or restriction of God's immensity" (96).Webster is keen to give the ancient theological traditions new life, rather than allow certain doctrines to be lost in the sea of irrelevance.He does this by focusing, as Barth did in the Church Dogmatics, all of theology around the gospel of God as revealed in Jesus Christ.In doing this, Webster is decidedly evangelical.He elevates the incarnate Word as the origin of theology and the church.

In conclusion, Webster contends in almost all of his writings that Christian theology must assert the qualitative difference between Creator and creature.God and humanity are defined in terms reminiscent of the early Barth, though he goes beyond this.Webster has no intention of losing the relationality between God and creature, but he contends that the concept of "relation" has become somewhat of a panacea.One might say that this is Webster's role in contemporary theology: to rigorously examine fundamental doctrines about God, humanity, and the church in order to prevent theology from lapsing into clichés and easy solutions.Webster is not against relationality-the influence of Jüngel would prevent this-but Webster is never content with a theology that does not critically explore each doctrinal area, even one as seemingly positive as relationality.This consistently critical perspective bears similarities to Jüngel's own polemical stance which refuses to compromise in areas of theological importance (cf. Webster's introduction to Jüngel's recent work _Justification: The Heart of the Christian Faith_).Webster may agree with many facets of contemporary theological programs, including communion ecclesiology; but if anything threatens to obscure the uniqueness and alien character of God's reconciling work in Christ, he will not fail to present a strong theological critique.(Hence, Webster's disdain for Radical Orthodoxy, which lacks any coherent Christology.)Those who disagree with Webster's emphasis on the qualitative difference between God and humanity and the prior, unique work of Jesus Christ will no doubt find most of his writings suspect. ... Read more

Book Description
This book is the first introduction in any language to the work of Eberhard Jüngel, who increasingly is recognised as one of the leading contemporary Protestant German theologians. It furnishes a comprehensive survey of his work as New Testament scholar, systematic theologian and philosopher, focusing particularly on his discussions of theological and religious language, the role of Christology, the doctrines of God and man, and questions of natural theology. Some initial evaluations of Jüngel's theology are offered in the light of other current traditions of theology and philosophy, both English and German. ... Read more