Abundantly More

The Theological Promise of the Arts in a Reductionist World

Overview

Late modern culture has been marred by reductionism, which shrinks and flattens our vision of ourselves and the world. Renowned theologian Jeremy Begbie believes that the arts by their nature push against reductionism, helping us understand and experience more deeply the infinite richness of God's love and of the world God has made.

In Abundantly More, Begbie analyzes and critiques reductionism and its effects. He then shows how the arts can resist reductive impulses by opening us to an unlimited abundance of meaning. Finally, he suggests how engaging the arts in light of a trinitarian imagination (which itself cuts against reductionism) offers a unique way of witnessing to and sharing in the life and purposes of God.

Theologians, artists, and any who are interested in how these fields intersect will find rich resources here and discover the crucial role the arts can play in keeping our culture open to the possibility of God.

Author

Jeremy S. Begbie

Jeremy S. Begbie (PhD, University of Aberdeen) is Thomas A. Langford Distinguished Research Professor of Theology at Duke Divinity School in Durham, North Carolina. He served as honorary professor of theology at the University of St. Andrews; Associate Principal of Ridley Hall, Cambridge; and as an affiliated lecturer in the Faculty of Divinity at the University of Cambridge. A professionally trained musician, Begbie has lectured widely in the UK, the US, and worldwide, and is the author of a range of articles and books, including Theology, Music and Time; Music, Modernity, and God; and the award-winning Resounding Truth: Christian Wisdom in the World of Music.