In this book, Douglas Dales examines the autobiographical passages in St Paul’s letters, notably II Corinthians, in the light of the continuing spiritual experience and language of the church, to ascertain the saint’s own experience of entering into the dying and rising of Christ. He seeks to show how the roots of all that is distinctive about his theology spring from this seminal experience. This book addresses the question of what makes a church a place where this experience of living through dying may be realised. This book takes us back to the heart of the mystery which has been worked out in so many different circumstances. It tells us the mystery of Christ and the cross, above all, as expounded in the writings of Saint Paul. It also looks at other early Christian writers. The first chapters concentrate upon Saint Paul’s experience of the cross, the remaining four form a bridge between that time and this, with other writers - New Testament, patristic, St. John of the Cross and others - being referred to when appropriate.
Living Through Dying presents the reader with a personal and devotional interpretation of the texts which will appeal to student, clergy and general Christian reader alike. Douglas Dales is the Chaplain and Head of Religious Studies at Marlborough College in Wiltshire. His Dunstan: Saint and Statesman was published by The Lutterworth Press in 1988 and is still available at #16.95, hardcover (ISBN 0 7188 2704 X).