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Kenosis and Identities: Pneumatological Pointers

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Kenosis and Identities: Pneumatological Pointers Kenosis and Identities: Pneumatological pointers by JACQUES NIGRINI Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF THEOLOGY in the subject SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA PROMOTER : PROFESSOR E VAN NIEKERK NOVEMBER 2006 i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Journeys in life lead one to meet many people who have an influence on one’s life. I herewith pay respect to those people who influenced me to become my own person, Coram Deo, who led me to discover ’’Vita est Adoratio”. I do humbly pay my respect to them. Hannes and Elsa Nigrini, my parents, tutors and fellow sojourners - thank you for love and hope – loving me so that I learned how to see the footprints of God and fellow human beings and discover how to valuate the physical-organic cosmos. Thank you for the effort that has been put into making this a reality. To my brother, Morné Nigrini and his wife Jeanette, thank you for many prayers and words of encouragement. All my Alma Maters, lecturers and friends and students – it was and remains a privilege to be associated with you. Thank you for all the prayers and words of encouragement, and for agreeing to disagree. Prof WJ Hattingh who believes in me - thank you. May our respective dreams come true. My mentor, Professor E van Niekerk - Ras, thank you for the many pointers, clues and cues of grace and patience you shared with me in formulating my theory of faith even when we experienced a so-called cul-de-sac. Surely it will not be in vain. Susan for supported trust and continuous encouragement. Anne Lombard for constant motivation and prayers. This phase or episode in my life is dedicated to all my fellows in life, but especially to me. I am worth it – and what a journey it was. I have discovered from my grandmother, Susan Marais that sometimes you have to dance in red. God Triune, you who have many names - for your faith, encouragement and organic inspiration, thank you for life and my journeys. All glory belongs to you, and the works of your hands do proclaim it. ii DECLARATION I declare that Kenosis and Identity: Pneumatological Pointers is my own work and that all sources that I have used or quoted have been indicated and acknowledged by means of complete references. Jacques Nigrini 6803025174080 Date: 14 December 2006 iii ABSTRACT In the thesis a methodology of understanding and explicating Christian faith consistent with the mystery of the simultaneous close connection and radical difference of God, human beings and the physical-organic cosmos environment is been mapped out. The theanthropocosmic principle as an expression of the mystery functions as the heuristic key in opening up the notion of kenosis (and incarnation) of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit within the scope of the enduring interaction of <God…human beings…physical- organic cosmos>. The Spirit in the kenotic sense of the word connects and differentiates the overall processes of being and becoming, here and there, now and then of the mystery of the ‘presences’ of God, human beings and the natural cosmic world in being there (Dasein), being thus and thus (Sosein) and being dynamically actual (Aktsein). God acts in terms of the Spirit’s operational kenotic presence within the margins of the creatureliness of people and the natural cosmic world as the kenotic clothing of God. A dynamic interpretation of the integral and differential character of being and becoming suggests that making sense of the dynamics of the formation of identities and identification is an ever ongoing endeavour. It implies a continuous process of negotiation whilst experiencing various continuums, remaining open-ended in an ever- increasing sense of wonder and mystery of “exitus a Deo-reditus in Deum”. Keywords: Kenosis, identity, incarnation, pointer, clue, sense making view, consensual negotiation, Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit, Spirit, Dasein, Sosein, Aktsein, Christology, Christcentric, Pneumatology, Pneumacentric, creation, reconciliation, renewal, fulfilment, Being, being there, being thus and thus, being actual, Commonwealth or Kingdom of God, W Heisenberg, M Büber, D Bonhoeffer, E van Niekerk, Hans Küng, Existentialism, twosome, threesome, foursome, theology, anthropology, cosmology, logos, trinity. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1: Perhaps it is true! 1.1 Dilemma: Problem or mystery? 1 1.2 All embracing commitment to God, humanity and the natural world 4 1.3 A perspective of faith as one amongst many 7 1.4 Telling of stories…and dancing 9 1.5 Faith and Experience 12 1.6 The field and statement of the thesis 14 1.7 Intersecting continuums 18 1.8 Pentecostalism and ecumenical experience 20 1.9 The grand acts of God as widest and deepest background of the study 21 1.10 Contrariness of 20th century Pentecostal trajectories 22 1.11 Provisional markers en route 25 Chapter 2: A faith theoretical approach 2.1 A faith theoretical approach in Faith Studies 27 2.1.1 <connectedness and difference of God…being human…natural cosmos> 27 2.1.2 <theoretical reflexive patterning of faith…non-theoretical everyday faith 29 experience> 2.1.3 <kenotic regularities…identity differences> in events, movements and 32 processes 2.2 Integral and differential reflexion of systems and patterns? 32 2.3 Time’s arrow 35 2.3.1 Time and epistemology 35 2.3.2 Arrow of time: towards making sense of events and happenings 35 2.4 Chaos in order and order in chaos 39 2.4.1 Chaos theory 39 2.4.2 Closed systems glide toward equilibrium, stall out and stop there 40 2.5 Bohr, Heisenberg and the uncertainty principle 41 2.6 Small and smaller micro particles and big and bigger macro entities 44 2.7 A wholesome radical, integral and differential approach 46 Chapter 3: Twosomes, threesomes or foursomes 3.1 Whence the problem? 49 3.2 Whitehead and the relationality of processes 51 v 3.3 Heidegger, Being and the everyday world 53 3.4 Heidegger: the-being-thereness of existence in the everyday world 57 3.5 The mystery expressed in twosomes, threesomes and foursomes? 60 3.5.1 The threesome of Dasein, Sosein and Aktsein 61 3.5.2 Edmund Husserl and the threesome of Aktsein, Sosein and Dasein 63 3.5.3 Clues from existential phenomenology 64 Chapter 4: Reflection on threesomes and twosomes 4.1 Reflection on threesomes (and twosomes) in history 66 4.1.1 Joachim of Fiore 67 4.1.2 Modernity 70 4.2 Reflexion on twosomes (and threesomes) in history 71 4.2.1 Earlier history 72 4.2.2 The Middle Ages 74 4.2.2.1 John Duns Scotus 75 4.2.2.2 Anselm of Canterbury 76 4.2.2.3 William of Occam 80 4.2.2.4 Peter Abelard 83 4.2.2.5 Thomas Aquinas 86 Chapter 5: A theory of faith and sense making approaches 5.1 Theology or a Theory of faith? 87 5.1.1 The modest role and place of faith 87 5.1.2 Alphabets of motion and faith 89 5.1.3 Collating skills training and knowledge with motion and reflexion of alphabets 91 5.1.4 Fiducial alphabets as dynamic faith patterns 92 5.2 Sense making views as God-human-and-world views 94 5.2.1 Sense making views (SMVs) and God-human-and-world views (G-H-W-Vs) 94 5.2.2 A sense making God-human-and-world view emerges through a long and 95 complex history 5.2.2.1 God-human-and-nature views and approaches 95 5.2.2.2 Sense making views, approaches or orientations 96 5.3 Operational characteristics of sense making God, human and world views 98 and approaches 5.3.1 First characteristic 98 5.3.2 Second characteristic 100 5.3.3 Third characteristic 101 5.3.4 Fourth characteristic 102 vi 5.3.5 Fifth characteristic 104 5.3.6 Sixth characteristic 104 5.3.7 Seventh characteristic 106 Chapter 6: A Spirit-directed approach 6.1 A Spirit-directed approach 108 6.2 Intertwined movements of Word → Spirit and Spirit → Word 109 6.3 Notions of the Holy Spirit in the past 113 6.3.1 Patristic and Medieval Theology 113 6.3.2 The Reformation 117 6.3.3 The Modern Period 122 6.4 Current notions of the Holy Spirit 123 6.4.1 Introductory comments 123 6.4.2 M Clark: the Spirit’s role in creation 130 6.4.3 AA van Ruler: Christ intermezzo between Creation and the Renewal work of 132 the Spirit 6.4.4 W Heisenberg: uncertainty principle and the drawing of circles 134 6.4.5 G MacDonald: daring imagination and imaginative likenesses 136 Chapter 7: Inclusive Spirit-directedness of the First Fruit 7.1 Pneuma-directed theology of the First Fruit 141 7.2 Pentecost affirmation and vindication of Creation, Crucifixion-Resurrection 148 and Fulfilment in the future 7.3 One-sided Pentecostal perspectives 153 7.3.1 One-sided emphasis: resurrected Christ or renewing Spirit? 153 7.3.2 One-sided notion of Christcentric fulfilling future 154 7.3.3 One-sided notion of purity and perfection 156 7.3.4 One-sided notion of theologia crucis 157 7.4 Spirit-direction of <God… human beings… physical-organic cosmic world> 159 embedded in Dasein, Sosein and Aktsein 7.4.1 The intradivine, intrahuman and intranatural coherence 159 7.4.2 Presence of the Spirit 161 7.4.3 Christ- and Spirit-directed faith reflexive approach 163 Chapter8: Kenosis, Incarnation and Reflection 8.1 Pneumacentric and Christcentric sense making negotiation 168 8.2 Kenosis, incarnation and reflexion 169 vii 8.3 A Pneuma- and Christ-directed theory of faith 173 8.4 Kenosis hymn: Situatedness 177 8.5 Reflexion and Christology 179 8.6 Christological aspects of kenosis and incarnation 184 8.7 Aspects of the economy of kenosis 187 8.8 Continuous awareness of creation, reconciliation, renewal and fulfilment 189 8.9 <God… humanity… natural cosmic world> 191 8.10 Time and context 193 8.11 Provisional approximation of kenosis and incarnation 196 Chapter 9: Triads and threesomes in humans
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