Peter Leithart on Athanasius: A Book Review
August 16, 2011
Peter Leithart, Athanasius (Baker Academic).
The last decade or so has seen the production a number of fine monographs on Athanasius by scholars such as Khaled Anatolios and Thomas Weinandy. To that list can now be added this volume by Peter Leithart. As with all of Leithart's work, it is as provocative in style as it is in substance and makes an excellent addition to the growing body of accessible but thoughtful scholarship on this early church father.
The volume itself represents the launch of a new series, Foundations of Theological Exegesis and Christian Spirituality which is under the General Editorship of Hans Boersma and Matthew Levering. If this volume is typical, then this series is an exciting venture.
Leithart adopts an essentially synthetic approach to his subject. Thus, he does not address some of the issues which are of interest to historians. For example, he does not engage in extensive discussion of the dating of On the Incarnation; nor does he wrestle with the precise function of Nicaea's homoousian both in the church and in Athanasius' own though prior to the late 340s. Further, the whole `Athanasius against the world' legend, one of J H Newman's greatest yet most flawed historical and doctrinal constructs, is not really addressed. Such historical sacrifices, however, do allow him to present a coherent account of Athanasius's thought, though my comments here should not be read as implying historical naivete on Leithart's part. Indeed, given the way in which recent scholarship has gone out of its way to make Arianism so complex and variegated as to bring into question the very usefulness of the term, Leithart does well to hold Athanasius' thought together while yet still acknowledging the complexity of the polemical situation in which he worked.
The work consists of five chapters: a defence of the use of metaphysics in theology; a discussion of key terms and concepts; a chapter on the doctrine of God; a chapter on Christology and creation; and two chapters on Christology and soteriology. In a pleasing literary touch, Leithart begins and ends the book with Augustine-type prayers.
As the first volume in a series devoted to theological interpretation, it is perhaps fitting that Leithart defines this mode of discourse early on in the work. On page 28, he declares:
Thus, in beginning and ending with Augustine-type prayers, Leithart proposes his own book as an example of theological interpretation, in much the same way as he argues Athanasius too belongs to this category. Such an approach is surely a breath of fresh air, as long, of course, as traditional questions of truth, which were so central to Athanasius' debates with the Arians, do not become sidelined.
A number of points are of particular note. Leithart successfully takes to task R P C Hanson's influential interpretation of Athanasius as having a `space suit Christology.' Hanson's claim has the function of setting Athanasius' thought in close continuity to that of his ally, Apollinaris, and thus of raising questions about the connection of Athanasius to the later Christological direction of the church as reflected in late fourth and fifth century discussion. Whilst avoiding anachronism, Leithart demonstrates that Athanasius' thinking was much richer than that of Apollinaris and that he can lay legitimate claim to standing within the tradition that culminates in Chalcedon.
Leithart also uses Athanasius to demonstrate the inadequacy of modern social Trinitarianism by showing that the eisegesis of modern egalitarianism into Athanasian Trinitarianism is entirely misplaced, fundamentally missing the asymmetry of the intra-Trinitarian relationships. In a similar context, he also takes critics of classical theism to task for dismissing an immutable God as being a static God. The Trinitarian God is, as he points out, `by nature generative, productive, fruitful, and fecund. The Father is eternally Father, having begotten the eternal Son in an eternal begetting.' (p. 84) If ever there was an argument for the need to understand God as by definition Trinitarian, this is surely it; and in making this point, Leithart reminds the reader of what an amazing theological resource Athanasius remains.
Similarly, Leithart offers a robust defence of divine impassibility. Here, he focuses on the cross, raising the obvious question of whether Athanasius' account of God is capable of making sense of the cross. Interacting with Hegel, Robert Jenson and Jurgen Moltman, and drawing (as he does throughout the work) on the fine scholarship of the Orthodox theologian, John Behr, Leithart makes a good case for saying that God in Christ takes on suffering for us and that this is real - but it is real in the person, not the divine nature. Reformed Christology thus finds clear precedent in the work of Athanasius and has little to fear from modern, post-Hegelian critique.
On the whole, Leithart avoids those areas which have made him a figure of some controversy in Presbyterian circles, although there is a brief interaction with the work of Michael Horton on nature and grace. To me, this was fascinating but seemed somewhat tangential to the whole.
I had the pleasure last year of hearing Dr Leithart give a paper on Athanasius at a scholarly conference at the University of Aberdeen. This book lives up to the promise of that foretaste. Leithart has here made a fine contribution to the field of Athanasian studies. I intend to list this book in the bibliography of my Ancient Church course at Westminster, for those students who want to press deeper into the issues of patristic theology and the importance of Trinitarianism. He has certainly set the bar high for subsequent volumes in this series.
The last decade or so has seen the production a number of fine monographs on Athanasius by scholars such as Khaled Anatolios and Thomas Weinandy. To that list can now be added this volume by Peter Leithart. As with all of Leithart's work, it is as provocative in style as it is in substance and makes an excellent addition to the growing body of accessible but thoughtful scholarship on this early church father.
The volume itself represents the launch of a new series, Foundations of Theological Exegesis and Christian Spirituality which is under the General Editorship of Hans Boersma and Matthew Levering. If this volume is typical, then this series is an exciting venture.
Leithart adopts an essentially synthetic approach to his subject. Thus, he does not address some of the issues which are of interest to historians. For example, he does not engage in extensive discussion of the dating of On the Incarnation; nor does he wrestle with the precise function of Nicaea's homoousian both in the church and in Athanasius' own though prior to the late 340s. Further, the whole `Athanasius against the world' legend, one of J H Newman's greatest yet most flawed historical and doctrinal constructs, is not really addressed. Such historical sacrifices, however, do allow him to present a coherent account of Athanasius's thought, though my comments here should not be read as implying historical naivete on Leithart's part. Indeed, given the way in which recent scholarship has gone out of its way to make Arianism so complex and variegated as to bring into question the very usefulness of the term, Leithart does well to hold Athanasius' thought together while yet still acknowledging the complexity of the polemical situation in which he worked.
The work consists of five chapters: a defence of the use of metaphysics in theology; a discussion of key terms and concepts; a chapter on the doctrine of God; a chapter on Christology and creation; and two chapters on Christology and soteriology. In a pleasing literary touch, Leithart begins and ends the book with Augustine-type prayers.
As the first volume in a series devoted to theological interpretation, it is perhaps fitting that Leithart defines this mode of discourse early on in the work. On page 28, he declares:
Theological interpretation of Scripture...involves respect for premodern interpretation, attention to the doctrinal tradition of the church, recognition that Bible scholarship takes place within the church and exists for the edification of the church, and acknowledgment that interpretation is not a clinical scientific enterprise but a form of piety and properly preceded and followed by prayer, praise, and worship. (p. 28)
Thus, in beginning and ending with Augustine-type prayers, Leithart proposes his own book as an example of theological interpretation, in much the same way as he argues Athanasius too belongs to this category. Such an approach is surely a breath of fresh air, as long, of course, as traditional questions of truth, which were so central to Athanasius' debates with the Arians, do not become sidelined.
A number of points are of particular note. Leithart successfully takes to task R P C Hanson's influential interpretation of Athanasius as having a `space suit Christology.' Hanson's claim has the function of setting Athanasius' thought in close continuity to that of his ally, Apollinaris, and thus of raising questions about the connection of Athanasius to the later Christological direction of the church as reflected in late fourth and fifth century discussion. Whilst avoiding anachronism, Leithart demonstrates that Athanasius' thinking was much richer than that of Apollinaris and that he can lay legitimate claim to standing within the tradition that culminates in Chalcedon.
Leithart also uses Athanasius to demonstrate the inadequacy of modern social Trinitarianism by showing that the eisegesis of modern egalitarianism into Athanasian Trinitarianism is entirely misplaced, fundamentally missing the asymmetry of the intra-Trinitarian relationships. In a similar context, he also takes critics of classical theism to task for dismissing an immutable God as being a static God. The Trinitarian God is, as he points out, `by nature generative, productive, fruitful, and fecund. The Father is eternally Father, having begotten the eternal Son in an eternal begetting.' (p. 84) If ever there was an argument for the need to understand God as by definition Trinitarian, this is surely it; and in making this point, Leithart reminds the reader of what an amazing theological resource Athanasius remains.
Similarly, Leithart offers a robust defence of divine impassibility. Here, he focuses on the cross, raising the obvious question of whether Athanasius' account of God is capable of making sense of the cross. Interacting with Hegel, Robert Jenson and Jurgen Moltman, and drawing (as he does throughout the work) on the fine scholarship of the Orthodox theologian, John Behr, Leithart makes a good case for saying that God in Christ takes on suffering for us and that this is real - but it is real in the person, not the divine nature. Reformed Christology thus finds clear precedent in the work of Athanasius and has little to fear from modern, post-Hegelian critique.
On the whole, Leithart avoids those areas which have made him a figure of some controversy in Presbyterian circles, although there is a brief interaction with the work of Michael Horton on nature and grace. To me, this was fascinating but seemed somewhat tangential to the whole.
I had the pleasure last year of hearing Dr Leithart give a paper on Athanasius at a scholarly conference at the University of Aberdeen. This book lives up to the promise of that foretaste. Leithart has here made a fine contribution to the field of Athanasian studies. I intend to list this book in the bibliography of my Ancient Church course at Westminster, for those students who want to press deeper into the issues of patristic theology and the importance of Trinitarianism. He has certainly set the bar high for subsequent volumes in this series.
