Books by Peter Toon

The dogma of the Holy Trinity is the fundamental and primary Christian doctrine. It has been held by orthodox Christians that to loose or diminish this doctrine is to begin to descend a slippery slope, leading to the loss of Christianity itself. Yet at the level of the local church, there may be discerned a general feeling that the Trinity is both difficult to understand and unimportant; that to have faith in Jesus and to love one's neighbor is what Christianity is all about. Despite the recital of creeds, or the use of the trinitarian formula in 'The Grace', most Christians appear in practice not to integrate their experience and knowledge of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Here eleven men from five countries combine to present a report and analysis of the way in which the doctrine of the Trinity has been, and is being, discussed in recent theology and by distinguished theologians. They all write from within a commitment to orthodoxy but they recognize that in our modern day we need to find new and attractive ways of presenting and expounding this ancient truth.

Modern theology is a maze of conflicting beliefs. In fact, the shape of contemporary theology has changed so much in this century--and especially since the 1960s-- that it''s hard to make sense of it all. Of not only what the various belief systems mean, but how we came to be where we are within those systems.In The End of Liberal Theology, respected theological lecturer and author Peter Toon introduces evangelicals to modern forms of doctrine and theology--both Protestant and Roman Catholic. He does so by discussing the basics of orthodoxy, by speaking to the various points of accommodation that have resulted in new forms of theology, and by dissecting liberalism and its effect on evangelicalism. This book is thus a ""family tree"" of modern theology, showing how the various contemporary forms, and those that preceded them, are related to each other.With its comprehensive analysis, The End of Liberal Theology is destined to be a yardstick by which critical evaluations of current doctrines--both old and new, liberal and conservative--will be made.

What is the kingdom of God? When will it (or did it) come? What does it have to do with the Old Testament Israel? With the Christian Church? With present-day society? These and many other questions are brilliantly addressed in God's Kingdom for Today.As in his other books, Peter Toon uses an extensive knowledge of the Scriptures to construct a thoroughly biblical approach, which is then applied to daily life. The result is a truly significant study.Among the topics discussed are the kingdom of God in the Old Testament, with special emphasis on God as King of Israel, and Jesus' teaching on the subject, pointing out that He not only taught about the kingdom, He personified it. Toon also focuses upon the practical implications of the kingdom, especially as it bears upon the related topics of the church, personal ethics, and social responsibility. A proper understanding of God's kingdom is central to the Christian faith. God's Kingdom for Today brings much-needed clarity to this often misunderstood subject.Reverend Dr. Peter Toon (1939-2009) received his DPhil from Oxford. He was ordained a priest in the Church of England. He taught theology in both England and America, and was also a visiting professor and guest lecturer at a variety of seminaries and universities in Asia, Europe, and Australia. Dr. Toon was a parish priest and a recent past-president of the Prayer Book Society of the USA.

What is the true nature of the church? What should it be doing? Are God's intentions for it today any different than they were 500--or 1900--years ago?In this highly readable, yet scholarly book, Peter Toon looks at these vital questions from a solidly biblical perspective, with careful discussion of more than twenty-five New Testament images of the church.Throughout the book, Toon focuses on four basic actions of the church--looking back (church history), looking up (worship), looking forward (to our eternal home), and looking around (mission). God's Church for Today paints a convincing--and convicting--portrait of the church. It will enable believers to gain a fuller understanding of what it means to belong to that glorious company, God's church.""Dr. Toon does a fine job of demonstrating that discipleship means churchmanship, and that belonging to God's church is a great and glorious thing. His enthusiasm in infectious.""J.I. Packer, author of Knowing GodReverend Dr. Peter Toon (1939-2009) received his DPhil from Oxford. He was ordained a priest in the Church of England. He taught theology in both England and America, and was also a visiting professor and guest lecturer at a variety of seminaries and universities in Asia, Europe, and Australia. Dr. Toon was a parish priest and a recent past-president of the Prayer Book Society of the USA.

That the man who has been called ""the greatest British theologian of all time"" should have no adequately researched biography of his life and times would be incredible if it were not a fact.But as Dr. Toon, an able historian who specializes in the Puritan era, shows in this book, John Owen was even more than just a great theologian. He exercised a profound influence on youth as Dean of Christ Church, and Vice Chancellor in the University of Oxford; he was also a statesman of no mean order, whose wisdom often prevented excesses into which his contemporaries would have fallen in their untampered zeal; but above all, he was a spiritual shepherd with a true pastor's heart who delighted in nothing so much as to feed the flock of God. Dr. Toon, who has been engaged for over four years on almost continuous research, has produced a volume full of new information as well as an assessment of the tremendous influence of this outstanding leader. The current worldwide interest in the Puritan period underlines the timeliness and importance of this new work. John Owen achieved national recognition when at the comparatively early age of thirty he preached before the House of Commons at St. Margaret's, Westminster. Yet his achievements would eventually be recorded in higher archives than any mere earthly ones, for he was to become a revered and redoubtable servant of the King of kings. Like many other renowned servants of God, John Owen cared little for personal aggrandizement and by his own command not one of his diaries has been preserved; and since the extant letters in which he lays bare his soul are very few, his biographer is hard put to find those personal touches which have helped to establish biography as an important part of English literature. Nevertheless this carefully researched study has been produced to help meet the need for a fuller life of this remarkable man.Reverend Dr. Peter Toon (1939-2009) received his DPhil from Oxford. He was ordained a priest in the Church of England. He taught theology in both England and America, and was also a visiting professor and guest lecturer at a variety of seminaries and universities in Asia, Europe, and Australia. Dr. Toon was a parish priest and a recent past-president of the Prayer Book Society of the USA.

During the past three years Peter Toon published articles dealing with various facets of Calvinistic theology in the Age of Reason. These articles were by-products of research he was conducting at London University into the origins of a logical, arid form of Calvinism (hyper-Calvinism) found among Congregationalists and Baptists in the first half of the 18th century. His thesis was completed in March 1967, and with some modifications is now published as a book. Though his study has particular relevance to Strict Baptist, who have become the custodians of hyper-Calvinism, it is also a contribution to our knowledge of the 18th century Nonconformity as well as the history of the development of Reformed doctrine. In the Preface Dr. J. I. Packer states: ""The story is a cautionary tale with timely lessons for those who seek a revival of Reformed Christianity today.""The Reverend Dr. Peter Toon (1939-2009) was born in Yorkshire, England, and educated in Hemsworth Grammar School, Yorkshire, Cliff College, Derbyshire, and King's College, University of London. He was ordained a priest in the Church of England in 1973, and taught theology in both England and America, and was also a visiting professor and guest lecturer at a variety of seminaries and universities in Asia, Europe, and Australia.

The Christian faith is based ultimately on Scripture, and most denominations also base their system of doctrine on Scripture. This system is set forth in creeds, confessions of faith, and articles of religion. In this important book Peter Toon discusses the development of doctrine in the church--that is, the attempt to answer questions concerning the nature of doctrine and its relationship to the church. Toon examines the thought of those who have studied and written about the development of doctrine from the nineteenth century to the present. John Henry Newman, Robert Rainey, James Orr, and Karl Rahner are among those whose work is considered here.Toon concludes that we need a way of understanding development that does justice to the unique place of Scripture, to the reality of human society in which the Bible is studied, to the historical situation in which Christians form doctrine, and to the explication of doctrine in precise intellectual terms.""Future studies of the development of Christian doctrine will have to regard Dr. Toon''s splendid book as their indispensable starting point."" --Ronald Nash, Western Kentucky UniversityThe Reverend Dr. Peter Toon, (1939-2009), received his D.Phil. from Oxford. He was ordained a priest in the Church of England. He taught theology in both England and America, and was also a visiting professor and guest lecturer at a variety of seminaries and universities in Asia, Europe, and Australia. Dr. Toon was a parish priest and a recent past-president of the Prayer Book Society of the USA.

In the sixteenth century the Western Church was rent asunder by the quarrel over justification. Today scholars from churches on both sides of the controversy are carefully rethinking the question. Dr. Toon shows how contemporary biblical scholarship and exegesis are attempting to resolve the thorny question of justification without compromising the integrity of either side. Provocative and far-reaching in its analysis and conclusions, Justification and Sanctification gives the student an invaluable introduction while providing the scholar a fresh look at the issue.The Reverend Dr. Peter Toon, (1939-2009), received his D.Phil. from Oxford. He was ordained a priest in the Church of England. He taught theology in both England and America, and was also a visiting professor and guest lecturer at a variety of seminaries and universities in Asia, Europe, and Australia. Dr. Toon was a parish priest and a recent past-president of the Prayer Book Society of the USA.

There are many Christian denominations in North America. Each one claims to be a part of the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church of God. Each one seeks to be loyal to Jesus of Nazareth as Savior and Lord. Yet each one is different from the others. For example, most of us are aware of the great difference between the Roman Catholic Church and the Southern Baptist Convention of churches. But only those who are closely involved know the subtle differences between one kind of Baptist group and another. This book is not about differences between denominations. It is about the Episcopal Church USA. The Episcopal Church is a member of the family of Anglican Churches whose mother Church is that centered on Canterbury, England. This book is not a history of the Episcopal Church or a statement of its doctrines. Rather, it is the presentation of an attractive and compelling way of understanding the distinctive claim that can and should be made for the Episcopal Church. In one sentence, the claim is that the Episcopal Church is called to be both evangelical and catholic. In other words, the call of God to the Episcopal Church in these times, when the one Church of God is sadly divided, is that it should be simultaneously evangelical and catholic. This doesn't not mean that she is to be evangelical in her preaching and catholic in her liturgy. It is not a matter of being sometimes evangelical and sometimes catholic. The Church is called to be catholic and evangelical all the time in all that she is and does.

An important study of the origins of millennialism in English theology, with particular reference to the Puritan movement of the 17th century. A clever discussion on the key elements of millennialism, particularly interesting when comparing them with the recent millennium phenomenon.

Who is the God of the Bible? From both within the church and outside her walls the orthodox doctrine of the Holy Trinity, declared in Scripture and passed down in ecumenical creeds and local confessions of faith, is under attack. The emerging absence of a Trinitarian mind-set so prevalent in the church today has enormous implications for the future of the Christian faith. Concerned to counter contemporary attacks on the doctrine of God, Peter Toon here demonstrates the existence and priority of a Trinitarian pattern in Scripture and defends the essential role of the Trinity in Christian belief, faith, and practice.?