The formidable Hans Kung continues in this book his survey of Christian belief. Here is a scintillating assessment of seven great Christian thinkers. Whereas Paul made Christianity a world religion, Origen synthesized it with the spirit of antiquity. Augustine birthed Western Latin theology, and Thomas Aquinas created a theology attuned to university science and the papal court. Martin Luther's return to the gospel, according to Kung, was the classical instance of a paradigm shift. Friedrich Schleiermacher set in motion modern theology, and Karl Barth followed with the lineaments of a postmodern theology. Hans Kung ends the book with his own ideas on the need for a critical ecumenical theology.