Matthew Levering brings his customary high level of research and insight to an entangled and prickly topic...a clearly thought-out consideration of an important, practical subject that will serve its readers well.

Mark McDowell, Themelios

Natural law theory is controversial today because it presumes that there is a stable 'human nature' that is subject to a 'law.' How do we know that 'human nature' is stable and not ever-evolving? How can we expect 'law' not to constrict human freedom and potential? Furthermore if there is a 'law,' there must be a lawgiver. Matthew Levering argues that natural law theory makes sense only within a broader worldview, and that the Bible sketches both such a persuasive worldview and an account of natural law that offers an exciting portrait of the moral life. To establish the relevance of biblical readings to the wider philosophical debate on natural law, this study offers an overview of modern natural law theories from Cicero to Nietzsche, which reverse the biblical portrait by placing human beings at the center of the moral universe. Whereas the biblical portrait of natural law is other-directed, ordered to self-giving love, the modern accounts turn inward upon the self. Drawing on the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas, Levering employs theological and philosophical investigation to achieve a contemporary doctrine of natural law that accords with the biblical witness to a loving Creator who draws human beings to share in the divine life. This book provides both an introduction to natural law theory and a compelling challenge to re-think current biblical scholarship on the topic.
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An introduction to natural law theory and a challenge to re-think current biblical scholarship on the topic. Levering establishes the relevance of a biblical worldview to the contemporary pursuit of a moral life and locates his argument in the context of the philosophical development of natural law theory from Cicero to Nietzsche.
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Introduction ; 1. The Bible and Natural Law ; 2. Anthropocentric Natural Law ; 3. Natural Law and Natural Inclinations ; 4. Natural Law and the Order of Charity ; Conclusion
Surveys the topic of natural law in Jewish and Christian Scriptures to illustrate how natural law theory arises within a worldview Serves as an introductory text in the history of natural law theory from Cicero to Nietzsche Offers a distinctive interpretation of Thomas Aquinas's natural law doctrine Extensive bibliographic material demonstrating the breadth of the field
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Matthew Levering is Associate Professor of Theology at Ave Maria University, and he has also held the Myser Fellowship at the Center for Ethics and Culture at the University of Notre Dame. He is co-editor of the theological quarterly Nova et Vetera. He co-edited Vatican II: Renewal within Tradition (Oxford, forthcoming), and he has authored books treating a wide variety of systematic theological topics, including Christ's Fulfillment of Torah and Temple, Scripture and Metaphysics: Aquinas and the Renewal of Trinitarian Theology, Sacrifice and Community, Participatory Biblical Exegesis (forthcoming), and Hierarchy and Holiness (forthcoming).
Les mer
Surveys the topic of natural law in Jewish and Christian Scriptures to illustrate how natural law theory arises within a worldview Serves as an introductory text in the history of natural law theory from Cicero to Nietzsche Offers a distinctive interpretation of Thomas Aquinas's natural law doctrine Extensive bibliographic material demonstrating the breadth of the field
Les mer

Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9780199535293
Publisert
2008
Utgiver
Oxford University Press
Vekt
459 gr
Høyde
222 mm
Bredde
145 mm
Dybde
22 mm
Aldersnivå
UU, UP, 05
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Innbundet
Antall sider
270

Forfatter

Biografisk notat

Matthew Levering is Associate Professor of Theology at Ave Maria University, and he has also held the Myser Fellowship at the Center for Ethics and Culture at the University of Notre Dame. He is co-editor of the theological quarterly Nova et Vetera. He co-edited Vatican II: Renewal within Tradition (Oxford, forthcoming), and he has authored books treating a wide variety of systematic theological topics, including Christ's Fulfillment of Torah and Temple, Scripture and Metaphysics: Aquinas and the Renewal of Trinitarian Theology, Sacrifice and Community, Participatory Biblical Exegesis (forthcoming), and Hierarchy and Holiness (forthcoming).