Top Ten Theologians

My take at listing the top ten greatest theologians of all time.

[IamMe-ki]

10, Bernard of Clairvaux
9, John Chrysostom
8, Jerome/Hieronymus
7, Thomas Aquinus
6, William Perkins
5, Anselm of Canterbury
4, Martin Luther
3, Athanasius of Alexandria
2, John Calvin
1, Augustine of Hippo

[agapedeng]

I was raised in a Christian home and loosely followed along with what I was taught but never truly delving into theology. Now I’m on a journey to learn more about the truth and thought I should begin with the greatest or most influential theologians of all time — so thank you for this video! That, and the comments it has spawned gives me a plenty-big reading list.

[craigmad-doganderson]

What a fantastic list! As a new novice to church history and Reformed theology I found this list brilliant as some of these men I had simply never heard of before. Thanks so much!

[carolinetrace]

As the list continued on I became more and more impressed. I think overall you hit this out of the park.

[kentstanley]

Great list. Great video. Thank you for sharing.

[MariusVanWoerden]

Charles Spurgeon was the Greatest Theologian of his time. The Holy Spirit worked Mightily in the Hearts of the people. He was a blessing to so many.

[stephenmelnichuk]

My doctoral dissertation was entitled "Discovering the Theology of Jacob Arminius" This means, of course, I would eliminate Perkins, Calvin, et al. Augustine wavered on his view of justification by faith. Apart from his "City of God" (a good read), I believe he derived a great deal of his theology from his early fascination with Manichaean with its evil and good perspectives. Your unbiased list would include Arminius!!!

[jeff]

10. Richard Sibbes
9. John Flavel
8. Cornelius Van Til
7. Francis Turretin
6. Wilhelmus a Brakel
5. R.C. Sproul
4.Jonathan Edwards
3.John Calvin
2.John Owen
1. Herman Bavinck

[StarGeezerTim]

I have to admit, I was genuinely shocked (and pleasantly so) when I saw your list. For the most part, I'd agree with the vast majority of your list. Here's my list (not really ranked necessarily, especially toward to bottom of the list, although I do have to put the "Three A's" right at the top):

1. Athanasius
2. Augustine
3. Aquinas
4. John Henry Newman
5. C.S. Lewis (some may argue if he was a theologian in the strict sense, but I've found his works invaluable over the years)
6. Ambrose
7. Eusebius (again, not so much a theologian as a historian, but his writings are vital for documenting that era in the church)
8. Peter Kreeft (more of a philosopher if we're splitting hairs, but I've come this far)
9. Dietrich Bonhoeffer
10. Irenaeus

Honorable mention to Nicolas of Myra for laying the smackdown on Arius of Alexandria during the first Nicene Council. I don't advocate violence, but in this instance, ol' Arry needed a good slap for the damage he was doing to people's faith.

[helpmaboabb]

It would be very helpful to start with what a theologian is and does, and who tells them they're good at it. My first argument on this - that it's chiefly creative writing - was with a Passionist nun 55 years ago and I haven't changed my mind yet.

[patrickc]

Favorite non living:
-JC Ryle
-John Owen
-AW Tozer
-Martyn Lloyd Jones
-Martin Luther
-John Flavel

Favorite living:
-Voddie Baucham
-Paul Washer
-John MacArthur
-Alistair Begg
-Conrad Mbewe
-Sinclair Ferguson
-Steve Lawson
-Al Mohler
-Joel Beeke
-Jeff Durbin
-Nate Pickowicz

[KingKong-fjdk]

Why wouldn't Paul be the greatest theologian?

[philtheo]

My favorite living theologian is John Frame.

[cheerjim]

Would of have liked to seen Luther and Calvin 1 & 2, but but I still agree with a great list.

[Bigdave]

Interesting list Automatically my mind would go to favorite vers greatest. I am a little surprised that Johnathon Edward's name was excluded.Ive read through his writings many times and his teaching on Freedom Of The Will is especially noteworthy. I also would argue for the inclusion of James Arminius. Whereas im a Calvinist, but it was incredibly influential.

[mr.retrohale]

I'm new to learning about this but what's the difference between a Theologian and a Preacher or are all Preachers basically Theologist?

[BurningHearts]

What about Jonathan Edwards? Any top ten list without JE is way off the mark. I do agree with most of your picks though. Another good one, though probably not a top ten, is Herman Bavinck. His four volume Reformed Dogmatics is outstanding, and he has many other great works. He’s not as well known as the other theologians you mentioned, but a great one nonetheless.

[deanbobar]

I love this list. Learned a lot about theologians I already love.

I would disagree with your assessment about Anselm with regard to the atonement. He absolutely returned an emphasis on the substitutionary nature of the atonement. However, I would say that the Christian East doesn’t have an unbiblical view but a different set of theological emphases.

For me, the atonement in the Scriptures are more like a kaleidoscope of beautiful meaning than Scripture having ONE major view. I know it’s a disputed topic. Interestingly, no early Church creed ever defined this matter.

[budervin]

I think I would have included Erasmus.

Great list. I would place the Apostle Paul at #1.