Barth Meets McDonalds Drive Through // Dogmatics in a Week

Ben Myers is blogging one sentence capsules of each volume of Church Dogmatics.  Here is a quotation from his opening post Church Dogmatics in a Week:

In the coming days, I’ll be posting a single-sentence summary of each of the 13 books that make up the Church Dogmatics, along with a quote from each book. Naturally, my tongue is in my cheek when I describe this as a “summary,” since Barth, more than any other theologian, resists even the most elaborate attempts at systematic summary. His thought can never be summarised or reduced to a set of propositions, because it is in a constant state of movement, dialectic, and life. When we try to summarise Barth, we necessarily lose all that is most interesting and most vital in his thought—just as we would lose everything that matters if we tried to “summarise” one of Shakespeare’s plays.

This endeavor might draw vigorous smoke from Karl's pipe, but it is a fun project-- especially from someone who has actually read the Dogmatics in their entirety.  See his progress thus far:
Church Dogmatics I/1

Church Dogmatics I/2
Church Dogmatics II/1
Church Dogmatics II/2
Church Dogmatics III/1
Church Dogmatics III/2

If one sentence isn't enough for you, I recommend Geoffrey Bromiley's excellent book, An Introduction to the Theology of Karl Barth.  This book features some of the best summaries of the Dogmatics that I have seen; avoids the tangents of other similar works; and is written by someone who certainly knew Barth's thought.

Comments

[Mike Daling]

Does Bromiley say why the heck he doesn't translate the Latin in the Dogmatics? I anxiously await the Dogmatics with the Latin translated and the words of Karl in red.

[Ben Myers]

Thanks -- I'm glad you're enjoying the series. I like your description of it as "Barth meets McDonald's drive through"!