Christology for Today

Question 1

What is Schleiermacher’s view on the incarnation?

Answer 1

• (underlying framework of God-consciousness and absolute dependence on God)
• In Jesus, the feeling of absolute dependence became a constantly potent God-consciousness that “was a real being of God in him.”
  🡪 Christ has absolutely powerful God-consciousness = existence of God in Him
  🡪 Jesus’ perfect and potent God-consciousness = the grounds of his sinlessness

Question 2

What is Hegel’s view on the incarnation?

Answer 2

• (underlying framework: Thesis, antithesis, synthesis. In order for the being of God to be fully realized, God must come to know himself in an “other”— which is himself)
• Incarnation crucial for God’s being, in order for God to be fully God, he needs to be incarnate as a finite being
  The second “person” of the Trinity is a human being.

Question 3

What is Ritschl’s view on the incarnation?

Answer 3

• (underlying framework: Jesus as inaugurating the kingdom of God)
• Jesus’ earthly ministry was his proclamation of the kingdom of God and organization of humanity through action inspired by love

Question 4

What is kenotic Christology and what are some difficulties regarding kenotic Christologies?

Answer 4

Kenotic Christology = the self-limiting of Son in assuming human nature. Temporary or permanent loss of divine attributes

Difficulties:
• Compromises divinity by denying divine simplicity.
• Cannot have a full personal divinity with kenotic Christology
• Jesus’ humanity is addition to deity, not replacement - fully human and divine
• Compromise humanity with absence of human will
• Monothelitism: locate will in person
• Circumscribe divine person of Son to his human body and singular consciousness
• Faculty of will and self-determination are important to a nature

Question 5

What were the different views on kryptic Christology?

Answer 5

• kryptic Christology = veiling of the Son’s glory by a ‘hiding’ of his divine nature
• [Hidden] Andrew Loke – divine nature hidden but accessible via divine pre-consciousness
• [Quiet] John Owen – divine nature is quiescent, and all actions carried out by Jesus are done through the mediation of the Spirit
• [Invisible] Mcfarland – the divine nature is inherently invisible. When we perceive Jesus of Nazareth, we see Jesus’ humanity because we cannot see the divine. Divine energy experienced as Jesus does human things divinely and divine things humanly in his actions.

Question 6

How did Barth perceive Christology?

Answer 6

• (underlying framework Jesus Christ is the subject and object of election; he is both the electing God and elected man)
• The reality of Jesus Christ is identical with the incarnation
• Jesus is eternally begotten – the eternal Son cannot be thought of abstracted from the person of Jesus Christ 🡪 always the logos incarnandus

Criticism:
• Make incarnation necessary and eternal to the divine being of God
• Make incarnation a union of two persons with their respective histories (Netorianism), by rendering natures in terms of event and history