Freedom to Become a Christian

A Kierkegaardian Account of Human Transformation in Relationship with God

AvAndrew B. Torrance

Häftad, Engelska, 2018

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Beskrivning

The Kierkegaardian account of becoming a Christian has come to be perceived in radically egocentric terms. Torrance challenges this perception by demonstrating that Kierkegaard was devoted to the idea of Christian conversion as a transformative process of becoming. This process is grounded in an active relationship initiated by the eternal God who has established kinship with us in time. Torrance focuses on 'becoming a Christian' as a particular theological theme that deserves further attention — how 'becoming a Christian' or Christian transformation should be construed in relation to God's initiating and active relationship to the person. Torrance's account of Kierkegaard on human transformation demonstrates in striking ways Kierkegaard's relevance to current issues in systematic theology and philosophical theology around the nature of Christian conversion, particularly how conversion might be re-conceptualized in strong divinely-relational and transformative rather than in progressive self-developmental terms. This study also considers how Kierkegaard was able to negotiate his emphasis on the God-relationship with his emphasis on the importance of individual reflection, decision and action in the Christian life.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum:2018-07-26
Mått:156 x 234 x undefined mm
Vikt:327 g
Format:Häftad
Språk:Engelska
Antal sidor:232
Förlag:Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
ISBN:9780567683540

Utforska kategorier

Religion: allmänt inom Filosofi och religion
Kristendom inom Filosofi och religion

Mer om författaren

Andrew Torrance is a Research Fellow in the School of Divinity, University of St Andrews, UK, and Project Leader for a major Templeton grant.

Recensioner i media

What is at the center of Kierkegaard’s diverse writings? Kierkegaard claimed that his whole authorship pertained to the issue of becoming a Christian, and Torrance (School of Divinity, Univ. of St. Andrews, UK) takes him at his word. He focuses on two of Kierkegaard’s questions: How does a human become a Christian? What is God’s relation to a human in the process of becoming a Christian? Conversion, in Torrance’s reading of Kierkegaard, is a process over time and cannot be reduced to a temporal instant, even if it begins at a specific time. According to Torrance, Kierkegaard holds that “as [a human] stands before the God who is love, she becomes transformed by this love, and thereby receives the freedom to love, which, up until that point, was an impossibility.” This may fit with a Lutheran theology of the bondage of the will, but some will seek a cooperative approach in which a human must freely and sympathetically cooperate with the divine love on offer for there to be conversion and transformation before God. The issue concerns how much human agency figures in conversion and transformation. Torrance develops his interpretation with considerable historical and thematic detail. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above.

Innehållsförteckning

Acknowledgements Abbreviations Introduction Chapter One: The Communication of the Christian Truth Chapter Two: The Possibility of Reconciliation Chapter Three: The Orientation of a Life Lived in Relationship with God Chapter Four: Christian Practice in Relationship with GodChapter Five: The Freedom to Become a Christian in Relationship with God Conclusion BibliographyIndex