Background
Kaufman, Gordon Dester was born on June 22, 1925 in Newton, Kansas, United States. Son of Edmund George and Hazel (Dester) Kaufman.
(From Introduction: "Even as Anabaptist historiography has...)
From Introduction: "Even as Anabaptist historiography has moved from a single Zurich hearth theory of origin to a recognition of multiple roots, including not only lower Rhine, Moravian, and Central German soil, but also mysticism, spiritualism, and socioeconomic revolutionary roots, among others, so the interpretations of these movements have likewise been enlarged, changed, and challenged by scholars ranging from the so-called 'Mennonite line' with its purported apologetic intention to the claimers and disclaimers of socialist and Marxist historians. The range of both historiography and interpretation of theological meaning has been wide, with the options posed at times complementing each other and at times contradictory in their thrust, but withal stimulating and fruitful. The essays collected in this volume are a part of this spectrum of interpretation of the legacy of sixteenth-century Anabaptism and its relevance for contemporary personal, ecclesial, and especially social issues. They are benign published not only as significant theological contributions in their own right, but also in the hope that their ready availability will contribute to and stimulate further dialogue about the meaning and relevance of truths for which men and women of a long gone age were willing to suffer and die. Reformation leaders in the sixteenth century believed that honest debate could lead to the discerning of new truth. The many Anabaptist debates, though usually one-sided because the very lives of the debaters were at stake, testify to the fact that the Anabaptists too looked for new truth to be discovered through intense 'dialogue'. On the surface, dialogue about the issues raised in this volume seems less existential than the dialogue they experienced. And yet, if truth is immortal (Hubmaier), to enter into this dialogue can have implications far beyond personal growth and theological understanding, touching the very existence and future of mankind."
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0873030249/?tag=2022091-20
( The possibility of a nuclear holocaust has brought huma...)
The possibility of a nuclear holocaust has brought humankind into a radically new, unprecedented, and unanticipated religious situation. Gordon D. Kaufman offers a cogent and original analysis of this predicament, outlining specific proposals for reconceiving the central concerns and symbols of Christian faith. He begins with an account of a visit to Peace Park in the rebuilt city of Hiroshima. Reflecting upon this experience, Kaufman foresees that further use of nuclear weapons will result not in rebuilding but in annihilation of the human enterprise.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0664246281/?tag=2022091-20
( In this challenging work, Gordon Kaufman asserts that t...)
In this challenging work, Gordon Kaufman asserts that the prime task of theology is the imaginative construction of the doctrine of God. Kaufman maintains that both the absoluteness of the divinity and our own necessity demand that we construct the doctrine of God critically and in a manner appropriate to our own time and place. In thorough examinations of God and theology, Christ and christology, and of the ultimate foundations of religious thought, he shows how this construction can be accomplished faithfully and in full realization of our own humanity.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0664243932/?tag=2022091-20
(The possibility of a nuclear holocaust has brought humank...)
The possibility of a nuclear holocaust has brought humankind into a radically new, unprecedented, and unanticipated religious situation. Gordon D. Kaufman offers a cogent and original analysis of this predicament, outlining specific proposals for reconceiving the central concerns and symbols of Christian faith. He begins with an account of a visit to Peace Park in the rebuilt city of Hiroshima. Re...
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FDVU8EO/?tag=2022091-20
("The most recent stage of Kaufman's thinking, as it is em...)
"The most recent stage of Kaufman's thinking, as it is embodied in this book, has attained an admirable simplicity, power, and relevance to the needs of our day. He calls us to embody the creativity that came vividly to expression in Jesus and in the historical trajectory of his influence. Kaufman frees his Christian theology from every trace of mythological and supernaturalist thinking without diminishing its importance for today's world." John B. Cobb Jr. Ingraham Professor of Theology Emeritus Claremont Graduate University The lively interest today in the historical figure of Jesus is rarely matched by theological advances in understanding his person and significance for our own time and worldview. Gordon Kaufman takes up this challenge in this bold, speculative work. Despite the fabled difficulties of traditional Christological terms, Kaufman seeks to re-envision the symbol of Jesus within the contemporary scientific worldview. Building on his notion of God as simply creativity, he here locates the meaning of Jesus' salvific story within an evolving universe and a threatened planet. Outside the dualistic categories of the biblical worldview, he finds, the enormously creative and influential figure of the historic Jesus can have a vital role in the emergence and development of the cosmos and human history. Within that role, he argues, Jesus, his relation to God, and his centrality to Christian faith become clearer and our own lives and actions take on a new meaning. Gordon D. Kaufman is Professor of Theology Emeritus at Harvard Divinity School. His many important theological works include his Essay on Theological Method (1975, 3rd edition 1995), Theology for a Nuclear Age (1985), In Face of Mystery (1993), God-Mystery-Diversity (Fortress Press, 1996), and In the beginning . . .Creativity (Fortress Press, 2004).
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0800696344/?tag=2022091-20
(This book, first published in 1979, contains Gordon Kaufm...)
This book, first published in 1979, contains Gordon Kaufman's initial attempt to articulate his conviction that theology is, and always has been, an activity of what he calls the "imaginative construction" of a comprehensive and coherent picture of humanity in the world under God. While Kaufman's 1993 work,In Face of Mystery, qualifies and deepens the programmatic proposals offered in An Essay on Theological Method, the earlier book nevertheless remains a sound and accessible statement on theological method by one of America's most distinguished theologians. The Third Edition includes an extensive new Preface by the author, and an appendix on "The Three Moments of Theological Construction."
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0788501356/?tag=2022091-20
( In the symbolic world of Christianity, which millions h...)
In the symbolic world of Christianity, which millions have inhabited for centuries, is there room for modern and postmodern life--for today's real world of cultural relativism and religious pluralism, of scientific knowledge and historical understanding? In Face of Mystery draws these two worlds together in a full-scale reconception of Christian theology. Theology, Gordon Kaufman suggests, is an imaginative construction, the creation of a symbolic world for ordering life. As it has been constructed, so it can be reconstructed, and Kaufman does so in a way that clarifies both the historic roots and the present-day applications of Christian symbolism. He works with a "biohistorical" interpretation of human life, one that portrays humanity as a product of biological evolution and historical development. While taking account of cultural and religious pluralism, and while providing criteria for making comparative assessments and judgements, this interpretation of human historical exitence also situates human begins--with their capacities for freedom and creativity--within the ecological wed that sustains all life. Human beings, Kaufman argues, have created religious symbolism as a necessary part of their attempt to orient themselves in the world. He shows how Christianity, as a system of symbols, has figured in this effort, and he carefully examines the separate elements of the Christian perspective-- foremost among them, God. How does the concept of God, as an ultimate point of reference, enhance our understanding of today's world; and how does the symbol "Christ" qualify this concept? The answer Kaufman proposes clarify the changing relevance of the symbolic world of Christianity. Firmly embeddd in physical and social science and in the tradition of American pragmatism, this thorough reconception of a Christian worldview offers insight into the most basic questions confronting humanity today--questions of value, meaning, and self-identity.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0674445767/?tag=2022091-20
Kaufman, Gordon Dester was born on June 22, 1925 in Newton, Kansas, United States. Son of Edmund George and Hazel (Dester) Kaufman.
AB with highest distinction, Bethel College, Kansas, 1947. Doctor of Humane Letters (honorary), Bethel College, Kansas, 1973. Master of Arts in Sociology, Northwestern University, 1948.
Bachelor's Degree magna cum laude, Yale University, 1951. Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophical Theology, Yale University, 1955. Doctor of Humane Letters (honorary), Carleton College, 2007.
Assistant professor religion, Pomona College, 1953-1958; associate professor theology, Vanderbilt University, 1958-1963; professor theology, Harvard University Division School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1963-1995; Edward MallincKrodt Junior professor division, Harvard University Division School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1969-1995; professor emeritus, Harvard University Division School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, since 1995. Visiting professor United Theological College, Bangalore, India, 1976-1977, Doshisha U., Kyoto, Japan, 1983, U. South Africa, Pretoria, 1984. Visiting lecturer University of Oxford, 1986, Chinese U. Hong Kong, 1991.
(From Introduction: "Even as Anabaptist historiography has...)
( In the symbolic world of Christianity, which millions h...)
(This book, first published in 1979, contains Gordon Kaufm...)
("The most recent stage of Kaufman's thinking, as it is em...)
( The possibility of a nuclear holocaust has brought huma...)
( In this challenging work, Gordon Kaufman asserts that t...)
(The possibility of a nuclear holocaust has brought humank...)
(Relativism Knowledge And Faith, by Kaufman, Gordon D.)
(Book by Kaufman, Gordon D.)
Member American Academy Religion (president 1981-1982), American Theological Society (president 1979-1980).
Married Dorothy Wedel, June 11, 1947. Children: David W., Gretchen E., Anne Louisa, Edmund G. World War II.