Lex Crucis Soteriology and the Stages of Meaning

What is the true story of God and humankind, and how does that story become a saving story? These are pivotal questions that constitute the narratives Christians tell about themselves, their values, and how the Christian life is to be lived. In shaping those stories into a coherent, intelligible framework that provides comprehensive meaning, soteriologythe doctrine of redemptiondeveloped as a keystone to Christian consciousness. This study investigates that development of the soteriological tradition, from its beginning in the early church to medieval, Reformation, and modern accounts.