Edward Schillebeeckx (1914-2009) is a key figure in modern theology. As one of the editors of Concilium (with Karl Rahner) he was the advisor of the Dutch bishops at the Second Vatican Council and has been said to have influenced much of the content of the Council's documents. As a theologian, even when his orthodoxy was called into question before the Magisterium, he always sought to balance between tradition and renewal.

This introduction guides the reader through some of Schillebeeckx's key ideas. Stephan van Erp shows how Schillebeeckx linked history and tradition to new experiences and to the spirit of his own time and how, in doing so, Schillebeeckx innovated our understanding of Christ, faith and the Church. While the cultural and political situation of his time played an important part in the development of his theological ideas, he managed to connect developments in science and culture with his theology and with the life of people in the Church.