The forms and shapes of the Christian churches in the last millennia have indeed been varied. La Due applies the scheme he applied to Jesus, the Trinity, and eschatology to the Church in this new historical overview of ecclesiology. He opens with a short description of the various models of the church found in the New Testament and follows that up with a review of what early Christian theologians such as Augustine had to say about the Church. La Due proceeds to examine the medieval papcy and the impetus it had for the Protestant Reformation, and he analyzes the ideas about the church held by Martin Luther, John Calvin, and the English Reformation. He then moves into the nineteenth century and twentieth centuries, offering overviews of theologians including Schleiermacher, Tillich, Hans Kung, Karl Rahner, Jurgen Moltmann, and Rosemary Ruether.

Author Biography

William J. La Due taught canon law at Catholic University, and is the author of The Trinity Guide to the Trinity and Jesus Among the Theologians. He lives in Tucson, Arizona.