Greatest Theologians in our day

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Boulder257 said:
Gotta go with Pope Benedict XVI. He really is above all others for our time period. Definitely the greatest living theologian of our time.
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Ab-so-lute-ta-men-te.

And people should never confuse theologian for apologist. Not the same

History will show Ratzinger as one of the best in all of theology.
 
Phillip_Rolfes said:
I’m going to bite on this one just because I think it’s a fun thread. I don’t know about “greatest theologians,” but my favorites are:

Fr. George Maloney, S.J.
Archbishop Joseph Raya
Dr. Scott Hahn (yes, he has done a great deal of academic theology)
Metropolitan Kallistos Ware
Fr. Robert Taft, S.J. (although he is mostly known for his work in liturgical history)
Metropolitan Kallistos Ware
Joseph Jungmann
Fr. Raymond Brown, S.J.
Fr. Louis Bouyer, O.P.
Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger/Pope Benedict XVI
N.T. Wright
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Aren’t Metropolitan Kallistos Ware and Metropolitan Kallistos Ware, Eastern Orthodox clergy?

Edit: I guess the OP didn’t ask for only Catholic Theologians.
 
I read Karl Barth, Rudolf Bultmann, Jurgen Moltmann and was impressed by their scholarship and faith which shine through their work, even though i may not agree with them as a Catholic.

In the same way Hans Kung has his strengths, despite his flaws.
 
Cat said:
The reason I think traditionalist-leaning Catholics would enjoy listening to Sproul is because he is an advocate for traditional worship styles and music.
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He certainly knows his Latin too.
 
Mike30 said:
Hans Kung and Leonardo Boff are also theologians. One Jesuit and one Franciscan, and we know what they came up with.:eek:.

The title in and of itself neither means nor proves anything in the grand scheme of things.
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I see what you did there ! 😃
 
LionHeart777 said:
Aren’t Metropolitan Kallistos Ware and Metropolitan Kallistos Ware, Eastern Orthodox clergy?

Edit: I guess the OP didn’t ask for only Catholic Theologians.
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Metropolitan Kallistos is indeed Orthodox. I see in my original post I had his name on there twice. I meant to add Fr. Alexander Schmemann instead Met. Kallistos a second time. 😛
 
codefro said:
Ya… I don’t consider Scott Hahn much of a theologian… I agree with the take that he is more an apologist.
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Would “scripture scholar” be the better term for Dr. Hahn?
I have benefited greatly from his books and tapes.
 
Also, Pope (emeritus) Benedict XVI, besides being a great theologian, can explain theology to us little people. That is a great gift in itself!
 
codefro said:
Who are some of the greatest theologians alive on Earth today? Now, the easiest no-brainer to this is of course Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. Yet, who else?
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For me, Pope Benedict XVI and Blessed John Paul II.

Scott Hahn is does an excellent job explaining theology for those who convert to Catholicism.

I am sure he would not consider himself in the same league as Pope Benedict XVI and Blessed John Paul ll.
 
bcuster said:
Would “scripture scholar” be the better term for Dr. Hahn?
I have benefited greatly from his books and tapes.
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Yes, I agree, we’ve benefited from his books and tapes, and when he came to our parish to speak, there was standing room only, and they had to “send out” to other parishes to have enough Hosts to distribute Holy Communion to the massive crowds, and even then, they had to break the Hosts into tiny pieces.

I’ll post these again. Here are some of the titles bestowed upon Dr. Hahn:

He’s has been awarded the Father Michael Scanlan, TOR, Chair of Biblical Theology

He’s the founder and president of the Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology.

From 2005 to 2011, he held the Pope Benedict XVI Chair of Biblical Theology and Liturgical Proclamation at St. Vincent Seminary in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.

Is there some reason why people are unwilling to accept these titles and want to call him something other than a “theologian?” What am I missing here? Is there a definition of “theologian” that all cradle Catholics know, and I’ve missed it, perhaps because I’m a convert? I would really appreciate it if someone would please fill me in. Thanks.
 
Cat said:
Yes, I agree, we’ve benefited from his books and tapes, and when he came to our parish to speak, there was standing room only, and they had to “send out” to other parishes to have enough Hosts to distribute Holy Communion to the massive crowds, and even then, they had to break the Hosts into tiny pieces.

I’ll post these again. Here are some of the titles bestowed upon Dr. Hahn:

He’s has been awarded the Father Michael Scanlan, TOR, Chair of Biblical Theology

He’s the founder and president of the Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology.

From 2005 to 2011, he held the Pope Benedict XVI Chair of Biblical Theology and Liturgical Proclamation at St. Vincent Seminary in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.

Is there some reason why people are unwilling to accept these titles and want to call him something other than a “theologian?” What am I missing here? Is there a definition of “theologian” that all cradle Catholics know, and I’ve missed it, perhaps because I’m a convert? I would really appreciate it if someone would please fill me in. Thanks.
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Possibly because he synthesizes the theological knowledge that already exists rather than exploring and shedding new light on the subject.

So he’s a wonderful teacher, but not necessarily a theologian along the lines of a Balthasar.
 
triumphguy said:
Possibly because he synthesizes the theological knowledge that already exists rather than exploring and shedding new light on the subject.

So he’s a wonderful teacher, but not necessarily a theologian along the lines of a Balthasar.
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So all the people who earn advanced degrees in theology cannot refer to themselves as “theologians” unless they come up with something “new?”

And I’m not so sure that I agree that Dr. Hahn hasn’t “explored and shed new light on the subject.” He is a theologian to the Protestant Christians. As wonderful as all these other Catholic theologians are who have been listed in this thread so far, frankly, most of them would be utterly ignored by Protestants. Dr. Hahn will actually be read and listened to by Protestants, not only because he was once “as they are,” but because he explains Catholic theology in a compelling way that makes sense to Protestants and helps them to become interested in the Catholic Church.

I would say that he has “translated,” so to speak, the Catholic Church into “Protestantese” without taking anything away from Catholicism. He has made the Catholic Church and Her theology “new” to Protestants. I think that earns him the title, “theologian.”
 
Cat said:
So all the people who earn advanced degrees in theology cannot refer to themselves as “theologians” unless they come up with something “new?”

And I’m not so sure that I agree that Dr. Hahn hasn’t “explored and shed new light on the subject.” He is a theologian to the Protestant Christians. As wonderful as all these other Catholic theologians are who have been listed in this thread so far, frankly, most of them would be utterly ignored by Protestants. Dr. Hahn will actually be read and listened to by Protestants, not only because he was once “as they are,” but because he explains Catholic theology in a compelling way that makes sense to Protestants and helps them to become interested in the Catholic Church.

I would say that he has “translated,” so to speak, the Catholic Church into “Protestantese” without taking anything away from Catholicism. He has made the Catholic Church and Her theology “new” to Protestants. I think that earns him the title, “theologian.”
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But that isn’t really theology itself, it’s apologetics and catechetics.
 
Cat said:
So all the people who earn advanced degrees in theology cannot refer to themselves as “theologians” unless they come up with something “new?”

And I’m not so sure that I agree that Dr. Hahn hasn’t “explored and shed new light on the subject.” He is a theologian to the Protestant Christians. As wonderful as all these other Catholic theologians are who have been listed in this thread so far, frankly, most of them would be utterly ignored by Protestants. Dr. Hahn will actually be read and listened to by Protestants, not only because he was once “as they are,” but because he explains Catholic theology in a compelling way that makes sense to Protestants and helps them to become interested in the Catholic Church.

I would say that he has “translated,” so to speak, the Catholic Church into “Protestantese” without taking anything away from Catholicism. He has made the Catholic Church and Her theology “new” to Protestants. I think that earns him the title, “theologian.”
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Dr. Hahn’s books are apologetics. They are flimsy for theology. Theology isn’t about the lowest common denominator and being able to explain things to anyone. First of all, theology is about practice. It is a vision of God, which only comes through practice of the faith, and isn’t obtained by advanced degrees. “He who prays truely is a theologian, and he who is a theologian prays truely.” That mantra of patristic theology is the essence of what it is to be a theologian. Theology doesn’t attempt to be popular, or to be understood by every layman. It isn’t afraid to speak, from the depths of spirituality, about Christ and his teachings.
 
Phillip_Rolfes said:
I’m going to bite on this one just because I think it’s a fun thread. I don’t know about “greatest theologians,” but my favorites are:

Fr. George Maloney, S.J.
Archbishop Joseph Raya
Dr. Scott Hahn (yes, he has done a great deal of academic theology)
Metropolitan Kallistos Ware
Fr. Robert Taft, S.J. (although he is mostly known for his work in liturgical history)
Fr. Alexander Schmemann
Joseph Jungmann
Fr. Raymond Brown, S.J.
Fr. Louis Bouyer, O.P.
Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger/Pope Benedict XVI
N.T. Wright
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I second Schmemann, P. Benedict, de Lubac, Rainer, vand on Balthazar.
 
Cat said:
So all the people who earn advanced degrees in theology cannot refer to themselves as “theologians” unless they come up with something “new?”

And I’m not so sure that I agree that Dr. Hahn hasn’t “explored and shed new light on the subject.” He is a theologian to the Protestant Christians. As wonderful as all these other Catholic theologians are who have been listed in this thread so far, frankly, most of them would be utterly ignored by Protestants. Dr. Hahn will actually be read and listened to by Protestants, not only because he was once “as they are,” but because he explains Catholic theology in a compelling way that makes sense to Protestants and helps them to become interested in the Catholic Church.

I would say that he has “translated,” so to speak, the Catholic Church into “Protestantese” without taking anything away from Catholicism. He has made the Catholic Church and Her theology “new” to Protestants. I think that earns him the title, “theologian.”
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OK he’s a theologian:p

I’m not going to fight over a name.

I’d rank him far higher as an apologist than as a theologian though:D
 
Cat said:
As wonderful as all these other Catholic theologians are who have been listed in this thread so far, frankly, most of them would be utterly ignored by Protestants. Dr. Hahn will actually be read and listened to by Protestants, not only because he was once “as they are,” but because he explains Catholic theology in a compelling way that makes sense to Protestants and helps them to become interested in the Catholic Church.
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In which, case, the title of the thread (or the subject) should be greatest ex-Protestant theologians of our day, or Greatest Theologians for Future Catholics.

I don’t think he reaches a lot of Catholics, especially cradle Catholics, who have other resources. His “theology” is thin, for those with deeper reading habits, catechesis, or training. Hahn still acts/speaks as if he’s still learning the Faith. He was on Catholic Answers Radio this week, and it was the same thing as always from him: being fascinated by his own thinking when he was a Protestant.

Except the problem is that he was not responding to callers or to the host asking such questions. The host kept referring to Catholic theology, as did the callers. Nobody asked for the story of his life, yet, like some other apologists, he spends half the time dwelling in Protestantism — which would be appropriate if the show were about that, but this show wasn’t specifically about that. And when there is a show specifically attracting non-Catholics, which there often is (including this week, I think), that’s the time to go into personal history.

I obviously could be wrong about the listenership: Maybe the majority of Catholic Answers Live listeners are Protestant, but I kind of doubt it. They do get a varied audience, including atheists and Protestants, but it would be hard to believe that most of their audience is non-Catholic.
 
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