ABSTRACT
There are three different ways of using the word ‘modern’ in relation to theology. First, modern theology can mean the theology done in a definable period of history, say from the seventeenth century to the end of the twentieth century. Second, the word ‘modern’ can be understood to refer to a phase of intellectual and/or societal development; understood this way modern theology means theology that deals with characteristically modern questions and themes in characteristically modern ways. Third, modern theology can simply mean contemporary theology, the theology we are doing now in contrast, say, to Patristic theology or medieval theology. Each of these three understandings of ‘modern theology’ might give rise to related but different accounts of what is involved in the study and practice of modern theology. A small number of theologians confine themselves strictly to one of these three understandings; but more often than not two or more of them are mingled together. In this chapter I want to pay attention to each of these three possible under-
standings of ‘modern theology’ without privileging one approach over another. My first step will be to flesh out some of the difficulties in defining what is meant by the terms ‘modern’ and ‘modern theology’ and look at how three recent textbooks have tackled these definitional challenges. Next, I will explore modern theology historically as an era in the history of theological ideas before concluding with some suggestions about how theologians today might work with the ‘modern’ theological themes and questions that we have inherited.
