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This Thesis Has Been Submitted in Fulfilment of the Requirements for a Postgraduate Degree (E.G This thesis has been submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for a postgraduate degree (e.g. PhD, MPhil, DClinPsychol) at the University of Edinburgh. Please note the following terms and conditions of use: This work is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, which are retained by the thesis author, unless otherwise stated. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author. When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. PERSON, PERSONHOOD AND THE HUMANITY OF CHRIST: CHRISTOCENTRIC ANTHROPOLOGY AND ETHICS IN THOMAS F. TORRANCE BY HAKBONG KIM A THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY NEW COLLEGE, SCHOOL OF DIVINITY THE UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH 2019 LAY SUMMARY In the utilisation of wide-ranging theological, philosophical and scientific epistemologies, Torrance deals with and develops horizontal and practical considerations and implications through his Christocentric anthropology and ethics. Although the numerous studies on Torrance have revealed little about the practical implications and foci in Torrance’s theology, he nevertheless profoundly articulates his thoughts about human existence as persons in relation, the onto-relationality of trinitarian personhood as the ontological foundation of the human person and personhood, and the humanity of Christ as the key to personalisation or humanisation and its resulting new moral life, order and relations. In his anthropology and ethics Torrance not only precisely reveals the epistemic and ontological significance of Christ in the human knowledge of and participation in God, but also the way in which our ‘dehumanisation’ was/is healed and restored in the humanity of Christ. Importantly, this line of thought offers a corrective to the social trinitarians who draw heavily upon the personal and relational attributes of the Trinity without sufficient Christological reasoning with regard to our inability to know the triune God and participate in his communion. Therefore, the deficiency in social trinitarian logic can benefit from considering the Christocentric reasoning in Torrance’s anthropology and ethics. DECLARATION I, Hakbong Kim, hereby declare that this thesis has been composed by myself, that this thesis is a result of my own research, and that no part of this thesis has been submitted to any other university for a degree or qualification. Signature: 2019 CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS…………………………………………………………………i ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………………………………ii INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………1 Chapter 1 The conception of the human being in Torrance: persons in relation…………6 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Torrance’s understanding of human being as persons in relation: an historical overview 1.2.1 The Greek, the Roman and the Hebrew views of humanity 1.2.2 The concept of person: tensions between the personal/relational and the impersonal/non–relational 1.3 Torrance’s theological concept of human being: the relational imago Dei 1.3.1 Imago Dei in the biblical tradition 1.3.2 Imago Dei in the Christian tradition 1.4 Torrance’s scientific and philosophical concept of human being: the personal agent and person in relation 1.4.1 Personal knowledge: Michael Polanyi 1.4.2 Persons in relation: John Macmurray 1.5 Critical appreciation of Torrance’s concept of person 1.6 Conclusion Chapter 2 Trinitarian personhood: the ontological ground of the human person and personhood…………………………………………………………………………………45 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Onto–relational understanding of the divine persons 2.2.1 Homoousion 2.2.2 Perichoresis 2.3 Practicality of trinitarian personhood 2.3.1 Dialogue with Jürgen Moltmann: political and social 2.3.2 Dialogue with John Zizioulas: The ontology of person 2.4 Critical appreciation of Torrance’s Christocentric approach to trinitarian personhood in relation to social trinitarianism 2.5 Conclusion Chapter 3 The humanity of Christ: the onto-relational restoration of the human person and personhood……………………………………………………………………………80 3.1 Introduction 3.2 The ontological and epistemological significance of Christ’s humanity 3.2.1 Ontological and epistemological significance of the humanity of Christ for knowledge of God (revelation) 3.2.2 Soteriological significance of the humanity of Christ for reconciliation 3.3 The nature of the humanity of Christ 3.3.1 The fallen humanity 3.3.2 The vicarious humanity 3.3.3 The new humanity 3.4 The human person and personhood in the new humanity of Christ 3.4.1 Transformation of humanity in the new humanity of Christ 3.4.2 Critical appreciation of the ‘soteriological suspension of ethics’ 3.5 New humanity and anthropological and ethical issues 3.5.1 Gender egalitarianism: women in ministry 3.5.2 Man–woman relations in Christian marriage (sexual ethics) 3.5.3 Abortion (medical ethics) 3.5.4 The priestly role of man in creation and ecology (environmental ethics) 3.6 Conclusion Chapter 4 The sacramental and diaconal action of the church: the personal and relational outworking of Christ’s new humanity……………………………………………………130 4.1 Introduction 4.2 The church as the outworking of the new humanity of Christ 4.3 The sacramental and diaconal action of the church 4.3.1 Baptism 4.3.2 The Eucharist 4.3.3 The sacraments and their practical implications 4.4 Torrance’s Christocentric ecclesiology and its corrective to the ecclesiology of social trinitarianism 4.5 Conclusion CONCLUSION……………………………………………………………………………164 BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………………………171 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to the many people who have helped and supported this study. Professor David Fergusson, my supervisor, encouraged my undeveloped theological thoughts and provided useful insights to improve the overall contents and directions of this study. He posed challenging questions from the beginning of this thesis so that I could consider how my research questions and arguments could be developed in a more critical and systematic way. This thesis, with its various critical and constructive discussions, is due to his gentle and careful guidance in my work and life. Dr Robert Walker, my secondary supervisor, has supported and inspired me. He carefully went through my work and offered valuable and insightful feedback. As one of the leading Torrancian scholars, his supervision improved my knowledge and reading of Torrance’s theology as a whole. I would also like to convey my gratitude and appreciation to Prof Eun Woo Lee of the Presbyterian University and Theological Seminary (PUTS), Dr Tae In Kim, Rev Ye Sik Kim of the Yesim Church and Rev Hyung Cheon Rim of the Jamsil Church in Korea, Dr Alexander Chow and Dr James Eglinton of New College, University of Edinburgh, Dr Jennifer Floether, Torrance Study Service and the Korean Students’ Association at New College in Edinburgh, all of whom provided useful insights and unselfish help that benefitted my thesis, for which I am very grateful. The prayers and encouragement of my family have sustained me in this doctoral work. I could not have finished this study without the prayers and support of my mother Myung Ok Lee, my parents-in-law Joong Hyun Cho and Hye Ok Kim, my sister Hyang Min Kim, my brothers-in-law Young Joo Cho and Ki Bum Kim, my nephew and nieces Joo Yong Kim, Yun Ji Kim and Sae Lim Kim. My loving wife Ara Cho and beloved children Do Hyun Kim and Ru Ah Kim have been the very impetus of this study and given strength each day to the process of completing this doctoral thesis. Finally, and most importantly: I praise God who did not ignore my prayer or withdraw his unfailing love from me. (Psalm 66:22) i ABSTRACT This thesis explores and presents Torrance’s Christocentric view of anthropology and ethics in an integrated and systematic way. It reveals and argues, contrary to most scholarship, that Torrance does in fact address and develop horizontal and practical considerations and implications in his anthropology and ethics. In the utilisation of wide-ranging theological, philosophical and scientific knowledge and epistemologies, Torrance profoundly articulates his thoughts about human existence as persons in relation, the onto-relationality of trinitarian personhood as the ontological foundation of the human person and personhood, and the humanity of Christ as the linchpin for personalisation or humanisation and its resulting new moral life, order and relations that have a reconciling and transforming impact on human social existence. This thesis argues that Torrance’s Christocentric focus in his anthropology and ethics should be considered as a corrective to the Christological deficiencies of social trinitarianism. When social trinitarians draw heavily upon the ontology of persons, the personal and relational attributes of the divine persons and their perichoretic communion for ethical visions in social, political and ecclesial realms, there is an inadequacy of Christological reasoning with regard to our inability to know the triune God and participate in his communion. By contrast, Torrance not only articulates the epistemic and ontological significance of Christ in human knowledge of and participation in God, but also the way in which our ‘dehumanisation’ was/is personalised
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