(Part 2) Top products from r/theology

Write your story, but don't expect much. (Low expectations lead to pleasant surprises.) Religion is a very emotional topic for most people. Logic - usually - need not apply to the conversation.

I can empathize with you. My stepfather is wonderful. He has loved me and cared for me in ways beyond measure. And, he is not-quite-ultra-conservative in his beliefs. He has gay friends and is OK with gay marriage, but as for the rest, he has consumed the Fox News water. He thinks all Muslims should be banned from the US. He thinks Trump is a great businessman and would make a great president. He wants the military to solve all the world's problems. He thinks more guns = more safety.

I can quote more New Testament scripture than my dad can, but that doesn't matter. Also, prooftext as evidence is usually not the best from a source like the Bible. The book is so self-contradictory. The Gospel of Matthew says both "lay down your burdens" and "pick up your cross." Well, which one is it?!?

Instead, look into composed theologies.

• Theology of Peace by Paul Tillich
  
• Living Justice and Peace by Jerry Windley-Daoust
  
• Not in God's Name by Jonathan Sacks
  
  I will also warn you, that this could backfire. I have said these things to my dad before, only to get responses like, "I want peace, too, but Muslims don't," and "I just want to keep my family safe. If that means bombing (Syria/Iran/N. Korea), then that's what we have to do." Sigh.

For a good textbook overview, McGrath has a great book called Historical Theology

He also has a book exclusively about justification, since you mentioned that above. I read these as a teenager, and they proved to be great starting points.

Otherwise, check out the sidebar to r/christianity for online reading of classic authors. Read some basic treatises like Augustine's Nature and Grace, Luther's on the Freedom of a Christian, and Introduction to Romans.

I'll always plug my man Gerhard Forde, too :) Books like Where God Meets Man and On Being a Theologian of the Cross are short, accessible books with a perspective that I think is very helpful in approaching the "problems" of God and faith. Justification is his main theme.

Also, just curious, what's your username about?

The book Barth for Armchair Theologians is actually a good place to start if you want introductory. But Evangelical Theology by Barth is not bad either. He also wrote a book called 'Dogmatics in Outline' which is a condensed version of his famous and very long work 'Church Dogmatics'. This book is good too.

The book by George Hunsinger 'How to Read Karl Barth' is pretty good for showing themes to look for in Barth's work.

But what is probably most helpful to learn about Barth is the role he played in the shift away from Liberal theology (Schleiermacher, Ritschl, von Harnack etc). This history helps to place Barth and understand his significance. His Romans commentary written near the beginning of the 20th century was called 'a bomb dropped on the playground of the theologians'.

He rejected liberal theology's anthropocentric focus, and put the focus back on God. He also developed a trinitarian focus when this was no longer in style.

He is not a conservative in the mould of evangelical conservatism like Carl Henry or other popular conservative evangelicals of today. He is probably better described as the forerunner of the stream of theology known today as 'postliberalism'. This has Hans Frei and George Lindbeck as its founders.

Good luck to you as you learn more. Barth is an incredible figure.

This is more biblical study than process or systematic theology but it is the ONLY book at all that takes both the science and the bible and works with them in a real way.

Any other attempt leans either biblicaly or scientifically and this author's goal was to be as true to both fields as he could. Great book and I got to hear the author speak at my seminary and really enjoyed chatting with him.

As an engineer turned seminarian I was very interested in it at the time.

I would say no. There is no Biblical support for the fact that he can (or can't) listen to prayers. However, even if he can hear your prayers, there isn't really much that he could do about it as God is infinitely more powerful than Satan.

If you want an interesting take on the subject, you should check out the Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. It's been a while since I've read them, and I don't remember if Lewis asserts demons can hear prayers or not, but it is a fascinating and wonderful look at demons and what they do.

A couple standard works I recommend:

• Atheism: A Philopshical Justification by Michael Martin One of the most robust works of philsophical atheism I've come across.
  
  
• An Ethics for Today by Richard Rorty Another solid work of modern philsophcial atheism.
  
  
• Doubt: A History by Jennifer Michael Hecht A history of atheism.
  
  
• The Essence of Christianity by Ludwig Feuerbach The intellectual ancestor of modern atheism.
  
  
• Arguing About Gods by Graham Oppy Probably my second favourite work of philosophical atheism (if I can say favourite in regards to the opposition belief)
  

As someone else mentioned, start a study into Theology with an introductory text in Hermeneutics. This where so many people go wrong and misinterpret the text, drawing false and erroneous conclusions. The way you interpret the text will determine what you draw out of it.

Hermeneutics: Principles and Processes of Biblical Interpretation was the first Hermeneutics text I worked through, and I highly recommend it. It's highly unbiased, and the end of each chapter is packed with problems to think through.

Once you're done there, if you have access to iTunes University or the [Reformed Theological Seminary (RTS)](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details id=com.subsplash.thechurchapp.reformedtheologicalseminary2&hl=en_US&referrer=utm_source%3Dgoogle%26utm_medium%3Dorganic%26utm_term%3Drts+mobile+app&pcampaignid=APPU_1_vSLpW7CiCMbCzwL3vK-wDw) app for Android, find Robert Cara's lectures in Advanced Biblical Exegesis under "Old and New Testament" and listen to them (they're free).

When you get to looking at a Systematic Theology to work through, I recommend staying away from Wayne Grudem. He's really popular among Evangelicals, but I'm personally not a fan of him. There's better Systematic Theologies out there. I highly recommend Louis Berkhof's Systematic Theology or Classic Christianity by Thomas Oden.

I haven't seen it mentioned in what I have read. You might get a better answer elsewhere. One of the best books I read on Serpent Symbology, made mention of Glykon, but didn't make a connection between that and the Genesis story. But, you may find it of interest: http://www.amazon.com/The-Good-Evil-Serpent-Christianized/dp/0300140827

Inheriting Abraham by Jon Levenson is a very readable look at some of these ideas. Maybe not exactly what you're looking for, but it's a great book.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0691155690/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_d0S8AbTNEZDWH

Stories from Ancient Caanan by Michael Coogan is an excellent book detailing Ancient Caananite mythology. Baal is talked about a lot in this book, along with many other dieties found in Caananite religion.

Actually, thanks for asking this question. I was just thinking about picking this book back up and doing a study similar to yours.

IIRC it was The story of Christianity Vol 1

I know certainly that I learned it in the class wherein this was the primary textbook.

Get a copy of Strunk & White's Elements of Style and read through it and learn it.

I don't think that I have a book that covers the major writings but I do know of one that covers the major religions. https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/0745953182/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Here's the link!

https://www.amazon.com/Without-God-Science-Morality-Meaning-ebook/dp/B07WK8CQX5/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=