The burden of this book is the author's concern that anyone embarking on theological study should have a solid devotional life and spiritual maturity that will make such study both profitable to him and useful for the life of the church. Too often young theologians get caught up in debates that have little to do with the Christian life. They may go off into an academic world of their own, leaving others with the impression that theology is of little importance in the real world. Sometimes they lose the faith they had to begin with because they have not maintained the right balance between knowing what other people have said about God and knowing him personally.

To confront these dangers head on, Dr Kapic tells his readers what theology is all about-it is the study of God with the intention that we should know him better and enjoy him more. We are pilgrims on a journey into deeper understanding and have to prepare ourselves spiritually for the task that lies before us. Dr Kapic begins by setting out the theme of the book, which is that life and theology are inseparable. Our rational faculties must be used to deepen our faith, not to overturn it by clever arguments that get us nowhere in the end. Prayer and humility in approaching the subject are in many ways even more important than technical competence in the discipline itself.

Furthermore, we have to realise that we are part of a tradition that stretches back to the NT and beyond. If what we say does not fit in with that tradition, it is probably wrong, and we must be on our guard against the urge to pursue novelty for its own sake. Finally, a good theologian must have a deep knowledge and love of Scripture, which is the means God uses to speak to his people. If we are not hearing his voice in the text, then all our study of it is a waste of time.

Dr Kapic is not saying anything new, as he himself insists. He constantly draws on the great saints and theologians of the past in order to illustrate and support the points he is making. What he is doing is bringing that ancient message to a new generation, which needs to hear it afresh. Occasionally, we must admit that he demands more from his readers than they will be able to provide. For example, he makes a distinction between 'archetypal' and 'ectypal' theology, which is certain to baffle not only beginners but almost anyone who is not well-read in seventeenth-century Reformed dogmatics. Here and there he needs to come down a notch or two in order to connect with where the general public is at, but that does not detract from the overall usefulness of the book. New theologians can learn a lot from it, and if it challenges them in some places, then so much the better.

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