Selected Works of Tillich (Volume 1 and 2) -- 20th Century Thought Library

Author: Tillich
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-01-01
Features: The readers can already access the content of each work in this "Selected Works"; however, understanding them may be an endless process. In this long river of understanding, my own understanding is just a small scoop. Therefore, here I do not want to (perhaps cannot, and also do not need to) comment on each work individually, but only want to briefly introduce some editorial considerations and related backgrounds, and then provide a brief overview of Tillich's life and certain themes in his thought, hoping to offer some assistance to the readers' reading. First, it should be noted that the works included in this "Selected Works" are basically presented in their entirety without any (except for the "Systematic Theology," which is not complete with all five volumes, but the three included volumes, except for the "Introduction," have also not been). This approach of breaking the "excerpts" convention is determined by the characteristics of these writings. One of Tillich's major features in expressing his thoughts is the rigor of logic and the completeness of the system. His writings are not accumulations of impromptu, fragmented thoughts, but rather a meticulous progression of rational thinking. The absence of any single link would not only disrupt the perfection of the work, which is like an artistic creation, but could also prevent readers from keeping up with the pace of his thinking, thus hindering their understanding of its complete, geometric-like meaning. The arrangement of this "Selected Works" is a hybrid of chronological order and categorization by form, meaning that the selected works are divided into three major categories (short writings, lectures or sermons, and major works), and within each category, the works are arranged by chronological order (with some also arranged by publication date). This approach is both to preserve the internal logic of some famous serial works (i.e., the second and third sections of this selected works) and to maintain the continuity required for understanding them, as well as to facilitate readers' reading and retrieval. After all, for example, arranging them purely by chronological order and inserting several short works and some sermons between the second and third parts of the "Systematic Theology" would look quite awkward.