Trinitarian Self and Salvation: An Evangelical Engagement with Rahner's Rule

Synopsis: In 1967 Karl Rahner famously wrote: The economic Trinity is the immanent Trinity and vice versa. From that time onwards Rahners Rule has become the norm for conceiving the relationship between the Trinity in the economy of salvation and Gods eternal inner life. Evangelical theologians currently employ Rahners Rule in a variety of ways. One of the most popular is the Strict Realist Reading whereby trinitarian relationships in salvation history are taken to mirror eternal relationships within God. This book brings this norm into conversation with the witness of Scripture in order to assess its viability. In doing so it highlights troubling issues that arise from the application of the Strict Realist Reading of Rahners Rule to the narrative of Luke-Acts. This book suggests that the Strict Realist Reading can be shown to be a questionable basis for our doctrine of Gods inner life. Endorsements: Based on Luke-Acts Scott Harrower has mounted an exegetical challenge to the strict realist reading of Rahners rule that evangelicals would be foolish to avoid. The biblical accent does not fall on the imitation of the Trinitys inner life but on the imitation of Christ in the economy of salvation. The onus is now on those who champion the rule or something like it in its strict form to meet the challenge. --Dr. Graham A. Cole Anglican Professor of Divinity at Beeson Divinity School Samford University Author of Do Historical Matters Matter to Faith? (2012) The book leverages its investigation of Luke-Acts to lodge a protest against a widespread highly influential but seldom critically examined movement in modern Trinitarian methodology. . . . I commend this book as an excellent piece of research theology the kind of solid work that captures the theological moment advances the next few steps into new territory and indicates where future progress lies. --Fred Sanders from the foreword Associate Professor in the Torrey Honors Institute Biola University Author of The Deep Things of God (2010) Rahners Rule has exercised massive influence over recent theology. To this point it has not-quite surprisingly-been subjected to adequate biblical scrutiny. In this insightful work Scott Harrower takes important steps to provide such scrutiny. The result is a book that will repay careful study and even those who are not fully persuaded by all the arguments will benefit from engagement with it. --Thomas H. McCall Associate Professor of Biblical and Systematic Theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School Author of Which Trinity? Whose Monotheism? (2010) Author Biography: Rev. Dr. Scott Harrower is Assistant Professor of Theology and History at the Melbourne School of Theology in Australia. He has authored various articles in theology and historical theology.