Who do you say that I am?Facing some contemporary challenges in Christology

Traditional view

Christ is the eternal Son of God. In His incarnation as Jesus Christ he was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. Jesus perfectly revealed and did the will of God, taking upon Himself the demands and necessities of human nature and identifying Himself completely with mankind yet without sin. He honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and in His death on the cross He made provision for the redemption of men from sin. He was raised from the dead with a glorified body and appeared to His disciples as the person who was with them before His crucifixion. He ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where He is the One Mediator, partaking of the nature of God and of man, and in whose Person is effected the reconciliation between God and man. He will return in power and glory to judge the world and to consummate His redemptive mission. He now dwells in all believers as the living and ever present Lord

OVERVIEW OF THE 3 CHALLENGES

#1: Diversity: •Early Christianity was very diverse. • It did not care about right belief as much.

2nd challenge: legendary development view

Early view: simple & basic Later views: Expansive & more complex

CHALLENGE #3

Religious Pluralism

1st developed: Walter Bauer Expanded by many: Ehrman

Diversity thesis

Diversity thesisA lot of diversity in early

Christianity – examples:

Ebionites Jesus = ordinary human being

Marcionites Jesus = God / appeared to be human

Gnostics Jesus is different than the Christ

Proto-orthodox Jesus = fully God and fully human

Diversity thesisBauer:

◦Such diversity was ok for the “earliest” forms of Christianity.

◦Distinction between ORTHODOXY & HERESY arose much later: Orthodoxy: (lit: “right belief”) essential beliefs

that are central to Christianity. Heresy: rejection of the core and central

doctrines of the Christian faith.

◦Post-NT evidence indicates that the “earliest” forms of Christianity consisted of views that later Christians would call “heterodox.”

Response to the diversity thesis: #1: Early and later NT docs show

concern for “right belief” (orthodoxy). ◦After AD 70:

Revelation (chaps 2-3) 1 & II John

◦Before AD 70: Hebrews 13:9; 2 Peter 2: 1; Galatians 1: 6-9; Colossians 2:8; Acts 20: 28-31

◦Problem with Bauer’s approach: he ignored much data of the NT, which, from a historical methodological point of view, is irresponsible

Diversity thesisBauer’s methodological problem: “As we

turn to our task, the New Testament seems to be both too unproductive and too much disputed to be able to serve as a point of departure…It is advisable, therefore, first of all to interrogate other sources concerning the relationship of orthodoxy and heresy, so that, with the insights that may be gained there, we may try to determine the time and place of their origins” (Heresy and Orthodoxy, xxv)

Response to diversity thesis#2: his conclusions are

overdrawn:◦Existence of diversity does not entail

lack of concern for unity and/or truth.

◦Bock on early varieties of Christianity#3: Historical evidence indicates

that in many places “orthodox” forms existed before “heretical” forms of Christianity.

ComparisonIgnatius of Antioch Book of Revelation

Historical context:•Late 1st century/ early 2nd •Martyred ca. 110-115

Written toward the end of Domitian’s reign (81-96); possibly 95-96.

•letter to church of Philadelphia•Reference to Judaizers in the church

•Addresses church of Philadelphia (3: 7-13)•No reference to Judaizers

•Letter to Smyrna•Reference to the threat of Docetism

•Addresses church of Smyrna (2: 8-11)•No reference to Docetism

2nd Challenge: legendary development

Early Christian

communities

Oral stories

Legendary developme

nt

Legendary development: An example of this type of

argument: James Dunn, Christology in the Making (1980)◦High Christology = hellenized

Christology ◦Paul only advocates an Adam-

christology in which Jesus’ humanity is emphasized. (Phil 2)

◦Move to claim Jesus was divine takes place not in Jewish framework but hellenistic one

Response: Evidence for high & early Christology is very goodThe various Christological hymns:

◦ Phil 2: 5-11◦ Col. 1: 15-20

A high Christology in the earliest Gospels, such as Mark◦ Jesus does things only God can do: thus he

baptizes people with the Holy Spirit. Compare Ezek 36: 24-28; Joel 2: 26-32 with Mark 1:8

◦ He has authority to forgive sins: Mark 2:3, 5-12◦ Lord of the Sabbath: Mark 2:28◦ Authority over demons and nature: the demonic

realm: Mark 1: 23-27; 3: 11-12;; 5: 2-8; nature: 4: 36-41

High Christology in Mark◦Jesus is the divine son of Man (Mark

14: 61-62 compare to Dan 7: 13-14)◦Jesus will judge the nations: Mark

8:38; 13: 26-27.

#3: Religious Pluralism Basic claim:

◦All religions are legitimate responses to the Divine Ultimate.

◦Jesus’ exclusivity is rejected. ◦Motivation: tolerance of diversity of

religious views.

Hick’s religious pluralism

God

Islam

Buddhism

Judaism

Christianity

Christ

Islam?

Judaism?

Buddhism?

Hick’s Religious pluralism“But they [i.e., the world’s

religions] seem to constitute more or less equally authentic human awareness of and responses to the Ultimate, the Real, the final ground and source of everything” (SPW, 45)

Hick’s Religious pluralism“…God is thought of and

experienced through the conceptual ‘lens’ of our own tradition. For each tradition functions as a kind of mental ‘lens’ – consisting of concepts, stories (both historical and mythical”, religious practices, artistic styles, forms of life – through which we perceive the divine”

Hick’s Religious pluralism“But if we define salvation as an actual

human change, a gradual transformation from natural self-centeredness…to a radically new orientation centered in God and manifested in the ‘fruit of the Spirit,’ then it seems clear that salvation is taking place within all of the world religions…”

Different understandings of salvation “are all forms of the same fundamental human transformation from self-centeredness to a recentering in the ultimately real”

Hick’s Religious pluralismWhat about Jesus?

◦Acknowledges that if Jesus Christ is truly God incarnate and died for the sins of humanity then it follows that Christianity is the one true religion

◦But he believes that the above claim about JC is a later development by Christians and do not represent what Jesus believed about himself

Evaluation of Hick’s pluralismChristianity has to give up its

distinctive claims to accommodate pluralism.

The variety of world religions make incompatible truth claims.

Because of such diversity, it’s impossible to reduce religious claims to a single idea or theme that all have in common.