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Existential Dimensions of the Contemporary Impassibility Debate: A Pastoral Approach to the Question of Divine Suffering Within the Context of Conservative Evangelicalism
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TextPublication details: Johannesburg, South Africa South African Theological Seminary 2015Description: 489p PDF A4 Abstract. Table of contents. Works citedSubject(s): Dissertation note: Doctor of Philosophy in Theology (PhD) South African Theological Seminary 2015 Summary: The hegemony of passibilist theological construals since the last quarter of the twentieth century has garnered a mixed response from within the conservative evangelical sub-tradition, from outright rejection, to widespread acceptance, to various qualified (im)passibilist via media. The seismic shift from impassibilist to passibilist ways of representing the God-world relationship has been documented, as have the historical-critical and philosophical developments that contributed to the shift. However, the existential dimensions of the phenomenon have not been extensively inventoried and assessed. This project seeks to address this lacuna. Following the Loyola Institute of Ministry (LIM) practical-theological model, the work surveys the more important contemporary (post-1973) literature; proposes a typology of existential considerations (denominated devotional, psychological, ethical, apologetic and missional); critically assesses these five species of argument by means of two benchmark Biblical texts (Acts 17:24-28 and Hebrews 2:17-18) and twin core conservative evangelical theological foci (God’s transcendence and God’s relatedness) and evaluates the impact of passibilist proposals on conservative evangelicals, including scholars, leading opinion-shapers and rank-and-file believers. The hypothesis is that passibilist arguments are unsustainable Biblically and theologically, that qualified impassibilist existential arguments are more compelling than their counterparts and that an impassibilist account best meets the Biblical and theological demands of the conservative evangelical academy as well as the existential needs of rank-and-file church members. The research confirmed the hypothesis. The dissertation concludes with practical suggestions for teaching a more balanced theology of divine transcendence-relatedness that honors the Biblical witness and makes use of the conceptual resources within the inherited Tradition, including a Chalcedonian two-natures Christology and a Cyrillian communicatio idiomatum.
| Item type | Current library | Collection | Call number | URL | Status | Date due | Barcode | |
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Thesis
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South African Theological Seminary Online Resource | Electronic Holdings | Link to Resource | Available | 0000000000376 |
Doctor of Philosophy in Theology (PhD) South African Theological Seminary 2015
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