Like the other volumes in the Oxford Handbooks series, this is a significant contribution to the academic study of its subject area, in this case, ecclesiology. The editor, Paul Avis, is an Anglican priest and theologian who has served both the church and the academy. He is widely published in the area of ecclesiology and also edits the academic journal Ecclesiology. In addition, he has committed much of his life’s work to the ecumenical movement, including a period as General Secretary of the Council for Christian Unity of the Church of England. For all these reasons, he is an ideal editor for this volume, and he has brought together a stellar cast of writers, resulting in a book that is already becoming a standard reference in ecclesiology.

After an initial essay by Professor Avis outlining the nature and content of the discipline of ecclesiology, the Handbook is divided into four parts: (1) ‘Biblical Foundations’; (2) ‘Resources from the Tradition’; (3) ‘Major Modern Ecclesiologists’; and (4) ‘Contemporary Movements in Ecclesiology’. Each part has several chapters, and each chapter ends with a reference list of the books and articles quoted, together with a useful guide to ‘Suggested Reading’.

Part 1, ‘Biblical Foundations’, features five chapters by well-known biblical scholars: R. W. L. Moberly on ‘The Ecclesiology of Israel’s Scriptures’; Loveday C. A. Alexander on ‘The Church in the Synoptic Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles’; Andrew T. Lincoln on ‘The Johannine Vision of the Church’; Edward Adams on ‘The Shape of the Pauline Churches’; and Gerald O’Collins on ‘The Church in the General Epistles’.

These chapters provide an excellent summary of ecclesiological images and themes throughout Scripture, including Moberley’s teaching on the ‘remnant’, Alexander’s emphasis on ‘eschatology’, and Adams’s analysis of ‘rituals’ and ‘meeting places’. Although dealing with the text in a scholarly and ‘technical’ manner, these chapters are also very practical and challenging, not least Lincoln’s point about Jesus’s prayer for unity in John 17 and the continued failure of the church to reach that unity.

In part 2, ‘Resources from the Tradition’, we have nine chapters: Mark Edwards on ‘Early Ecclesiology in the West’; Andrew Louth on ‘The Eastern Orthodox Tradition’; Norman Tanner on ‘Medieval Ecclesiology and the Conciliar Movement’; Dorothea Wendebourg on ‘The Church in the Magisterial Reformers’; Paul Avis on ‘Anglican Ecclesiology’; Ormond Rush on ‘Roman Catholic Ecclesiology from the Council of Trent’; Paul S. Fiddes on ‘Baptist Concepts of the Church and their Antecedents’; David M. Chapman on ‘Methodism and the Church’; and Amos Young on ‘Pentecostal Ecclesiologies’.

These chapters represent a variety of styles and objectives. Edwards and Tanner provide an analysis of the earliest periods of the church. Louth focuses on the credal four marks of the church but does not tell us much about the different strands of Orthodoxy (Russian, Greek, Constantinopolitan, Ukrainian, etc.) which might have helped to identify different ecclesiologies, although he does note that Zizoulas, one of the best-known Orthodox theologians, is at odds with some of the tradition. Wendebourg deals with the Magisterial Reformers, although the greater emphasis is on Luther, with Calvin’s ecclesiology given less space. Avis and Rush provide detailed descriptions of the Anglican and Roman Catholic views on ecclesiology, with Avis arguing that Anglicanism is both Catholic and Reformed. Fiddes provides a fascinating analysis of Baptist ecclesiology with a strong emphasis on ‘covenant’, a theme more usually identified with Calvinistic ecclesiology. Chapman’s chapter on Methodism is perhaps more critical of his tradition than the others, not least in its failure (as he sees it) to embrace more fully an ecumenical agenda. Yong’s chapter provides some helpful descriptions of various Pentecostal ecclesiologies, but his main objective is to argue for a ‘pneumatological ecclesiology’.

The major problem with part 2 is the astonishing absence of a chapter on ‘Presbyterian Ecclesiology’. With 75 million Presbyterians around the world, a large number of books published on the subject, and the serious engagement of the Presbyterian churches ecclesially and ecumenically, this is a gap that ought to be explained.

In part 3, ‘Major Modern Ecclesiologists’, we have eight chapters: Kimlyn J. Bender on ‘Karl Barth’; Gabriel Flynn on ‘Yves Congar’; Gabriel Flynn on ‘Henri de Lubac’; Richard Lennan on ‘Karl Rahner’; Theodore Dieter on ‘Joseph Ratzinger’; Paul McPartlan on ‘John Zizoulas’; Friederike Nüssel on ‘Wolfhart Pannenberg’; and Mike Higton on ‘Rowan Williams’.

It is in these chapters that the main theological analysis of ecclesiology takes place. We have Barth’s insistence that ecclesiology must be viewed theologically before turning to any sociological analysis, with a particular emphasis (as we would expect) on ecclesiology viewed from the perspective of Christology. In ‘Yves Congar’, the church is viewed as a ‘sacrament’, and he develops what he calls ‘communion ecclesiology’. His influence on Vatican II is emphasised, arguing that he was responsible for much of its theological direction. This emphasis is continued by Henri de Lubac, also a leading influence at Vatican II with his understanding of ‘total ecclesiology’ and his joy when Lumen Gentium was reworked, bringing the laity to the centre of the nature of the church. In dialogue with Eastern churches he argued that ‘the Eucharist makes the Church’. Karl Rahner also viewed the church as a sacrament, although his main contribution was to see the church as the product of grace, centred upon the revelation of God and the work of the Holy Spirit. Joseph Ratzinger, both as a theologian and later as a Pope, focussed on the church, even from the time of his doctoral dissertation on Augustine. His was a eucharistic ecclesiology, with a particular interest in the unity of the church, based on his understanding of communio and on the relationship between the universal church and the local church.

After four Roman Catholic theologians, we turn to John Zizoulas. He, too, was a leading exponent of eucharistic ecclesiology but followed a somewhat different line from the others. This was partly due to his views on the Trinity, where he emphasised the monarchy of the Father such that the unity of the Persons was not guaranteed by a common ‘substance’ but from the Person of the Father. Ecclesiology was defined as an aspect of Christology and the church as the creation of the Holy Spirit. A significant contribution to ecclesiology was his insistence on the bishop as the focus of unity. Wolfhart Pannenberg’s ecclesiology followed the lines of his Lutheran tradition while making some significant contributions as well. He viewed the disunity of the church as a major issue, especially disunity at the Table. He saw ecclesiology as an aspect of pneumatology and noted that the Spirit’s work in individual salvation and in constituting the church were the two key effects of his work. Whereas Ratzinger might argue that the ‘people of God’ is a core metaphor, Pannenberg’s focus was on the church as the ‘body of Christ’. The final theologian chosen for consideration is Rowan Williams. He taught that the love of God in Christ leads to transformation, made visible in the life of the church. The church, then, is a community but it is a community where there may be differences in doctrine and practice. Here we are drawn into his practice as Archbishop of Canterbury and his insistence on listening to one another rather than dividing. This was a core element of his ecumenical impact. Once again, we have no Presbyterian in view. One might make a strong case for the inclusion of T. F. Torrance, not least for his work in bringing Eastern theology to bear on Western theological discussions, for his publications, and for his involvement in ecumenical dialogue.

In part 4, ‘Contemporary Movements in Ecclesiology’, we have five chapters: Elaine Graham on ‘Feminist Critiques, Visions, and Models of the Church’; Neil Ormerod on ‘Social Science and Ideological Critiques of Ecclesiology’; Michelle A. Gonzalez on ‘Liberation Ecclesiologies with Special Reference to Latin America’; Simon Chan on ‘Asian Ecclesiologies’; and Stan Chu Ilo on ‘African Ecclesiologies’.

Graham highlights the work of a number of feminist and womanist theologians, arguing for a recasting of ecclesiology by throwing off patriarchal narratives and even rejecting canonical material which does not affirm or prioritise the place of women in the church. Ormerod argues that the separation of the social sciences from theological reflection is deeply damaging and that the many problems faced by the church, especially in ecumenism, cannot be solved without the contribution of, and explanatory power of, the social sciences. Gonzalez has a fascinating essay on Liberation Theology, both his historical origins and its current influence in Latin America. Perhaps the most interesting section is the analysis of the differences between the growing influence of Pentecostalism in Latin America, alongside the declining influence of Liberation Theology, and what these two schools can learn from each other. Chan’s essay is deeply stimulating. He does not focus on the debates between Asian theologians and churches but rather looks at the indigenous and locally grounded work of Christians who may not be professional theologians but certainly have a contribution to make regarding the nature of the church. He also discusses ‘churchless Christianity’, debates around distinctness or assimilation (cf. Newbiggin’s work), and the work of writers such as Watchman Nee. Chu Ilo’s chapter is perhaps the most disappointing, being too narrowly focused. The title suggests an analysis of African ecclesiologies, but his preoccupation is with Roman Catholic ecclesiologies in Africa. This means that the largest Anglican community in the world escapes with barely a mention, the Protestant work in East Africa is ignored, and Pentecostalism is only sparingly mentioned.

This Handbook has much to offer and much to provoke thinking. To bring so much together inside its covers is quite an achievement and means that it will be of immense help to those who are interested in ecclesiology. One suspects that most readers will ‘dip in’ to the chapters that interest them rather than read it through, but either approach will be rewarding.