Includes bibliographical references and index.

Part 1. The early Barth: roots and controversies -- Chapter 1. The early Barth and his critics -- I. Barth's commentary on Roman: diverging perspectives -- A. First encounter with Bultmann -- B. The historical critics must be more critical suit me (Barth) -- C. The infinite qualitative distinction...God is in heaven, and you are on earth (Kierkegaard) -- II. Searching for theological roots: from pastor to professor -- A. Acquiring the necessary foundations -- B. A committed reformed theologian -- C. A trusted friend and new encounters-Eduard Thurneysen, Friedrich Gogarten, Rudolf Bultman, Paul Tilich -- D. The need and promise of Christian preaching -- E. Theological ancestry: toward a theology of the word of God -- III. Christological concentration: the confession of Jesus Christ as the one word of God as divisive in church and theology -- A. The rejection of all natural theology -- Chapter 2. Theologians in conflict: Harnack and Barth -- I. The first encounter: Harnack's diligent student -- II. The second encounter: a parting of the ways -- III. The third encounter: the Harnack-Barth correspondence -- A. On scientific interpretation of the Bible -- B. Experience of God compared with faith -- C. The God--world relationship -- D. Barth--a new Marcion?-Barth and Marcion compared -- E. Sin and grace -- F. The knowledge of Jesus Christ and the gospel-The historical Jesus or the Christ of the Kerygma? -- G. Primitive Christianity as eschatological: dispute on overbeck -- H. On the nature of revelation and the gospel -- I. Conclusion: the gap that divides us -- Chapter 3. Theological foundation: the resurrection of the dead -- I. Barth's perspective on first Corinthians -- A. First Corinthians XV: The resurrection chapter -- II. Theological and methodological considerations -- A. The limitations of language of the resurrection of the dead -- B. The comprehensive significance of language of the resurrection - 1. The doctrine of "last things", 2. Biblical representation of "last things", 3. The end as origin -- C. The existential meaning of language of the resurrection -- D. The critical function of language of the resurrection -- E. The praxis of the truth of the resurrection -- III. Barth's exposition of first Corinthians XV -- A. The resurrection gospel as the foundation of the church - The historicity of the resurrection, The resurrection and history: Barth's view, He appeared also to me -- B. The resurrection as the meaning of faith - The resurrection of Jesus Christ as the vindication of God, The resurrection of the dead as the basis of faith, the resurrection of Jesus Christ as the basis of hope -- C. The resurrection as truth-How are the dead raised?, Bodily resurrection -- D. The resurrection as reality -- IV. Bultmann's review of Barth's the resurrection of the dead: the second encounter -- A. Some agreements and questions on first Corinthians -- B. Some disagreements and questions on First Corinthians -- C. Agreements and disagreements on First Corinthians XV --

Part 2. Toward a doctrine of reconciliation: the Barth-Bultmann debate -- Chapter IV. The cross and resurrection: the Barth-Bultmann debate -- I. Bultmann's offensive: Demythologizing the New Testament -- A. Existential interpretation -- B. The saving event of the cross -- C. The resurrection as the expression of the saving significance of the cross -- II. Barth's counter offensive: assessing Bultmann -- A. Defining Bultmann's dogmatic presuppositions - The resurrection and existential interpretation, The resurrection and historical research, The resurrection and faith, the Resurrection and the modern world view, the resurrection and the mythical world view -- B. Assessing Bultmann's dogmatic presuppositions -- The resurrection and historical research -- The resurrection and existential interpretation -- The resurrection and faith -- The resurrection and the modern world view -- The resurrection and the mythical world view -- C. Barth's presuppositions in interpreting Jesus' Easter history -- Problems in interpreting the Easter history -- The language of myth and saga -- Beyond "Historicism" in interpretation D. Barth's interpretation of Jesus' Easter history: "Jesus, Lord of time" -- Jesus in his time: the contemporary of all human belongs -- Jesus, Lord of time: Raised from the dead -- Jesus, Lord of time: he appeared in the mode of God -- Jesus, Lord of time: the risen Kyrios -- Jesus, Lord of time: his empty tomb and ascension -- III. Barth in Basel: "church dogmatics...this primary task -- A. Rapprochement with Bultmann? -- B. Teaching and students, colleagues and faculty affairs -- IV. Barth against the stream -- again: controversies -- A. Ecumenical confrontation: Barth and the world council of churches at Amsterdam -- B. Reinhold Niebuhr vs. Barth: Aftermath of Amsterdam -- Continental vs. Anglo-Saxon theology -- Chapter V. Barth and Bultmann: the continuing debate and final encounters -- I. The widening debate on demythologization -- A. The growing ecclesiastical debate -- B. Barth contra Bultmann: intensified debate -- II. Bultmann answers Barth: the problem of hermeneutics -- A. Divergent approaches compared -- III. Barth's reply: Rudolf Bultmann-an attempt to understand him -- A. The placement of Bultmann in the history of theology -- Bultmann: a modern rationalist? -- Bultmann: a modern apologist? -- Bultmann: a scientific historian? -- Bultmann: a proponent of a new philosophy? -- Bultmann: a Lutheran? -- Bultmann: a theologian in the enlightenment tradition -- B. Bultmann's theological agenda -- Bultmann's intention -- Translating the New Testament message -- The content of the Kerygma -- C. Barth's critique of Bultmann's Kerygma -- Bultmann's subjectivism -- On inauthentic existence -- On authentic existence -- On the transition from the Old life to the new life -- Soteriology absorbs Christology -- D. Cross and resurrection: center of the Christ event and the Kerygma -- The cross -- The resurrection -- E. Bultmann's demythologizing -- Barth's further questions -- F. Bultmann's existential interpretation -- Barth's questions -- G. Summation: Bultmann has foresaken our road -- H. Appendix: the end of the road? -- IV. The final correspondence: the whale and the elephant -- A. Bultmann's reply: the issues which divide us -- On the view of reality -- On existential interpretation -- On sin, salvation and the Christ event -- On hermeneutics and demythologizing -- On philosophy, theology and the modern world view -- On the pre-understanding and other issues -- Signing off: I have not seen any answer from you -- B. The whale and the elephant - an aborted dialogue -- Barth's final reflections -- Peaceful thoughts and best wishes --

Part 3. The cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ: foundations of Barth's doctrine o reconciliation in the church dogmatics -- Chapter VI. Revelation as the history of reconciliation -- I. Revelation and history: the view of Karl Barth -- A. Revelation as a predicate of history: the neo-protestant reversal -- B. Revelation in the school of salvation-history: Barth's critique -- II. Jesus Christ: midpoint of the covenant history of revelation -- A. The old testament covenant history: prophecy and expectation of Christ -- B. The new testament covenant history: witness and recollection of Christ -- C. Jesus Christ: midpoint and fulfillment of covenant and world history -- Fulfilled time in Jesus Christ and the dimensions of time -- Marks of the fulfillment of time in Jesus Christ -- III. Covenant history and world history -- A. Covenant history and creation -- B. The providence of God and the goal of world history -- IV. The doctrine of reconciliation in the church dogmatics -- A. The significance of the doctrine of reconciliation in the church dogmatics -- B. The place of the doctrine of reconciliation in the church dogmatics -- C. The structure of the doctrine of reconciliation in the church dogmatics -- Chapter VII. Jesus Christ, the Lord as servant: the obedience of the son of God -- I. The condescension of the son of God -- A. The atonement as history -- B. Jesus Christ: the actualization of atonement -- C. The apostolic witness to the deity of Jesus Christ -- Jesus - qualitatively other -- The witness of the new testament traditions to the deity of Jesus Christ -- The definition of the deity of Jesus Christ: his suffering and cross -- Beyond the God of theism -- The Old testament: the prefigurement of Christ's condescension -- II. The son's self-abasement as God's humiliation -- A. Incarnation and humiliation -- Kenotic theories -- B. The obedience of the son of God: the son's humiliation on the cross -- Beyond subordinationism and modalism -- Condescension and cross in correspondence to God's triunity -- Chapter VIII. The judge in our place: the suffering and death of the son of God -- I. The cross of Jesus Christ: the basis of reconciliation -- Jesus' history as a passion narrative -- The objective reconciliation in Jesus Christ -- II. Jesus Christ: the reconciler on the cross for us -- A. Jesus Christ, the judge wo takes our place as judge -- B. Jesus Christ, the judge "Judged" in our place -- C. The judge "put to death" in our place -- D. The judge who does "right" in our place -- Chapter IX. The resurrection of the crucified: the awakening, appearances and ascension of the son f God -- I. The awakening of Jesus: the revelation of the reconciler -- II. The raising of Jesus: the validation of the act of reconciliation effected through the cross -- III. The resurrection: the revelation of the royal man exalted on the cross -- IV. The resurrection of the crucified: an actual event in history -- Chapter X. Jesus Christ, crucified and risen: the unity of his cross and resurrection -- I. The positive connection between the cross and resurrection -- A. The differentiated connection of cross and resurrection -- B. The differentiated connection of cross and resurrection: its teleology -- C. The connection of cross and resurrection: summary theses -- Chapter XI. Conclusion: cross and resurrection in the theology of Karl Barth -- The unity of the person and the work of Jesus Christ in the reconciliation effected on the cross -- The identity of the person effecting reconciliation on the cross -- Dimensions of the reconciling work of Jesus Christ on the cross -- The raising of Jesus as the validation of the act of reconciliation on the cross -- The resurrection as the revelation of the royal man exalted on the cross -- The resurrection of the crucified as an actual event in history -- Summary theses on the resurrection of Jesus -- The crucified and risen Jesus Christ as the axiom of Christology -- The differentiated connection of cross and resurrection -- Cross and resurrection and humiliation and exaltation -- Barth's Christological thinking : the existential unity of the son of God and Jesus of Nazareth.