DOCSLIB.ORG

The Person of Christ in the Seventh–Day Adventism

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Middlesex University Research Repository The Person of Christ in the Seventh–day Adventism: Doctrine–Building and E. J. Wagonner’s Potential in Developing Christological Dialogue with Eastern Christianity Nicolae Butoiu May 2018 ABSTRACT The feat of salvation and of the everlasting life had been (and still is) one of the most profound anxieties expressed by the Christian believers, which led to a consistent scrutinizing of the identity of Jesus Christ. Titled, “The Person of Christ in the Seventh–day Adventism: Doctrine–Building and E. J. Wagonner’s Potential in Developing Christological Dialogue with Eastern Christianity,” this thesis presents the historical context and the essence of the debates in which the Seventh–day Adventists adopted the belief that Jesus Christ is fully divine and eternal, and abandoned the Arian, and semi-Arian teachings of its pioneers. The thesis also demonstrates that, with a seasoned Christology in place, the Seventh–day Adventism is ready to engage a more meaningful Christological dialogue with Orthodox Christianity, for the purpose of religious coexistence, if nothing else. The adoption of the Trinitarian Christology by the Seventh–Day Adventists has been widely debated during the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth, both as matter of ecclesiastic identity, and as a quest for spiritual salvation. While some argued that by adopting a Trinitarian Christology that resembled a Catholic creed, Seventh–day Adventism endangered itself of “returning” to a creedal Catholicism. Others recognized that only a Christ who forever is the true God, and who also became truly human, can indeed save humanity from the bondage of sin, and grant everlasting life. As this thesis demonstrates, Waggoner’s arguments that favoured the Trinitarian Christology were built on the Scripture, and away from any interference of Catholicism. Beyond historical criticism, this thesis also delves into comparative dogmatics in order to demonstrate that a similar interpretation of the Scripture by the Seventh–day Adventism, and the Eastern Orthodox Christianity yielded similar Christological results with regard to the relationship between the divine nature and human nature of Jesus Christ. Last but not least, in spite of an apparent contextual disparity that might emerge from the comparison between American Protestantism and Orthodox Christianity, this thesis also demonstrates that both parties were concerned with the same questions regarding the identity of Jesus Christ, who, as described by Mark, “even the wind and the waves obey!” (Mark 4:41) ii The Person of Christ in the Seventh–day Adventism: Doctrine–Building and E. J. Wagonner’s Potential in Developing Christological Dialogue with Eastern Christianity By Nicolae Butoiu Theology Main Supervisor: Dr Damon SO Second Supervisor: Dr Jerry MOON Director of Studies: Dr David SINGH A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Middlesex University May 2018 Oxford Centre for Mission Studies DECLARATIONS This work has not previously been accepted in substance for any degree and is not being concurrently submitted in candidature for any degree. Signed (Candidate) Date 25 May 2018 STATEMENT 1 This thesis is the result of my own investigations, except where otherwise stated. Where correction services have been used, the extent and nature of the correction is clearly marked in a footnote. Other sources are acknowledged by midnotes or footnotes giving explicit references. A bibliography is appended. Signed (Candidate) Date 25 May 2018 STATEMENT 2 I hereby give consent for my thesis, if approved, to be available for photocopying by the British Library and for Inter-Library Loan, for open access to the Electronic Theses Online Service (EthoS) linked to the British Library, and for the title and summary to be made available to outside organizations. Signed (Candidate) Date 25 May 2018 DEDICATION SDG – To the Almighty God for the thirst He put in my heart; to my wife Monique and to my four daughters – Manuela, Vicky, Elena and Tina for challenging me with their two constant questions ‘How do you know is true?’ and ‘Did it happened to you?!’ i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Worshipping God is the only impulse that moves my soul while I write these words; thanking Him for all the people, experiences, and support that brought me to this landmark. He is the One who impressed Professor Deryke Belshaw and Dr. Bernard Farr to open the OCMS door to me. It is the Lord who appointed Dr. Damon So to be my main and one of a kind supervisor whose godly patience and Christian spirit at times, kept alive the flickering flame of my academic journey. Thank God for the expertise and ministry of Dr. Jerry Moon from Andrews University, US and for Dr. David Singh, my director of study, who refused to let me talk with discouragement. Thank God for all OCMS faculty—Dr. Paul Bendor- Samuel (your prayer meant immensely to me, thank you!), Dr. Tom Harvey, Dr. Tim Keene, Dr. Brainerd Prince (how can I forget your stature in my pre-viva?!), Dr. Marina Behera (you convinced me to dare!), Dr. Ben Knigton, Drs. Wonsuk and Julie Ma, Drs. Bill and Kay Prevette, Dr. Marian Simion (you taught me the science of flowing in writing, thank you!), Dr. Nelu Burcea the man who always sees a way out and a solution where it seems to be none. Thank you staff - Ralf Bates, our librarian, Nicky Clargo and Marslin Blanche, Rachel McIntyre, Miss Irim Sarwar (thank you for saving me from so many times with my registration and technicalities!), friends and research colleagues. Thank you David for keeping the building clean and thank you miss cook for so many Wednesday tasty meals. Thank you all those I forgot of, myself included, but you are not forgotten. You all were sent by God to lead and help me through. Thank you heartily. I will be back! ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Dedication ...............................................................................................................i Introduction............................................................................................................1 Chapter 1 .............................................................................................................. 16 The Foundations of Christology 17 1.1 Jesus Christ: Divine or Human? ............................................................................. 16 1.2 The Foundations of Christology ............................................................................. 16 1.2.1 The Pivotal Role of the Scripture .................................................................... 17 1.2.2 Arius and the Raise of Arianism ..................................................................... 19 1.2.3 Preconditions for Defining Trinitarian Christology ........................................ 21 1.2.4 Political Aspects and Doctrinal Unity ............................................................. 22 1.2.5 The Formulation of the Trinitarian Doctrine in the Early Church .................. 24 1.2.6 The Ecumenical Councils ............................................................................... 26 1.2.6.1 The Council of Nicaea ............................................................................. 27 1.2.6.2 The Power of homoousios (ὁμοούσιος) ................................................... 27 1.2.6.3 The First Council of Constantinople ........................................................ 28 1.2.6.4 The Niceno–Constantinopolitan Creed .................................................... 30 1.2.7 Nestorianism vs. Monophysitism .................................................................... 31 1.2.8 The Filioque Clause ........................................................................................ 33 1.2.9 The Orthodox Definition of the Trinitarian Christology ................................. 36 1.2.9.1 What the Trinity Is ................................................................................... 36 1.2.9.2 What the Trinity Is Not ............................................................................ 38 1.3 Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 39 Chapter 2 .............................................................................................................. 42 Typifying Christology at the Birth Theological Milieu of Adventism 43 2.1 The Genesis of Adventism ..................................................................................... 45 2.2 The Theological Milieu at the Birth of Adventism ................................................ 47 2.3 Four Factors of Influence ....................................................................................... 49 2.3.1 Anabaptism ..................................................................................................... 49 2.3.2 Restorationism ................................................................................................ 50 2.3.3 Methodism ...................................................................................................... 51 2.3.4 Deism .............................................................................................................. 51 2.4 The Development of Adventist Christology ........................................................... 52 2.4.1 The Christian Connexion ...............................................................................
Recommended publications
  • Continuity and Tradition: the Prominent Role of Cyrillian Christology In

    Continuity and Tradition: the Prominent Role of Cyrillian Christology In

    Jacopo Gnisci Jacopo Gnisci CONTINUITY AND TRADITION: THE PROMINENT ROLE OF CYRILLIAN CHRISTOLOGY IN FIFTEENTH AND SIXTEENTH CENTURY ETHIOPIA The Ethiopian Tewahedo Church is one of the oldest in the world. Its clergy maintains that Christianity arrived in the country during the first century AD (Yesehaq 1997: 13), as a result of the conversion of the Ethiopian Eunuch, narrated in the Acts of the Apostles (8:26-39). For most scholars, however, the history of Christianity in the region begins with the conversion of the Aksumite ruler Ezana, approximately during the first half of the fourth century AD.1 For historical and geographical reasons, throughout most of its long history the Ethiopian Church has shared strong ties with Egypt and, in particular, with the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. For instance, a conspicuous part of its literary corpus, both canonical and apocryphal, is drawn from Coptic sources (Cerulli 1961 67:70). Its liturgy and theology were also profoundly affected by the developments that took place in Alexandria (Mercer 1970).2 Furthermore, the writings of one of the most influential Alexandrian theologians, Cyril of Alexandria (c. 378-444), played a particularly significant role in shaping Ethiopian theology .3 The purpose of this paper is to highlight the enduring importance and influence of Cyril's thought on certain aspects of Ethiopian Christology from the early developments of Christianity in the country to the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Its aim, therefore, is not to offer a detailed examination of Cyril’s work, or more generally of Ethiopian Christology. Rather, its purpose is to emphasize a substantial continuity in the traditional understanding of the nature of Christ amongst Christian 1 For a more detailed introduction to the history of Ethiopian Christianity, see Kaplan (1982); Munro-Hay (2003).
  • Calvinism Vs Wesleyan Arminianism

    Calvinism Vs Wesleyan Arminianism

    The Comparison of Calvinism and Wesleyan Arminianism by Carl L. Possehl Membership Class Resource B.S., Upper Iowa University, 1968 M.C.M., Olivet Nazarene University, 1991 Pastor, Plantation Wesleyan Church 10/95 Edition When we start to investigate the difference between Calvinism and Wesleyan Arminianism, the question must be asked: "For Whom Did Christ Die?" Many Christians answer the question with these Scriptures: (Failing, 1978, pp.1-3) JOH 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (NIV) We believe that "whoever" means "any person, and ...that any person can believe, by the assisting Spirit of God." (Failing, 1978, pp.1-3) 1Timothy 2:3-4 This is good, and pleases God our Savior, (4) who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. (NIV) 2PE 3:9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. (NIV) REV 22:17 The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. (NIV) (Matthew 28:19-20 NIV) Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (20) and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
  • Developments in the Relationship Between Seventh Day Baptists and Seventh-Day Adventists, 1844•Fi1884

    Developments in the Relationship Between Seventh Day Baptists and Seventh-Day Adventists, 1844•Fi1884

    Andrews University Seminary Studies, Vol. 55, No. 2, 195–212. Copyright © 2017 Andrews University Seminary Studies. DEVELOPMENTS IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SEVENTH DAY BAPTISTS AND SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISTS, 1844–1884 Michael W. Campbell Adventist International Institute of Advanced Studies Silang, Cavite, Philippines Abstract This paper reviews the complex relationship between two Sabbatarian denominations: Seventh Day Baptists and Seventh-day Adventists. The primary point of contact was through the Seventh Day Baptist, Rachel Oaks Preston, who shared her Sabbatarian views during the heyday of the Millerite revival. Later, after the Great Disappointment, one such post-disappointment group emerged with a distinctive emphasis upon the seventh-day Sabbath. These Sabbath-keeping Adventists, organized in 1863 as the Seventh-day Adventist Church, established formal relations with Seventh Day Baptists between 1868 and 1879 through the exchange of delegates who identified both commonalities as well as differences. Their shared interest in the seventh-day Sabbath was a strong bond that, during this time, helped each group to look beyond their differences. Keywords: Seventh Day Baptists, Seventh-day Adventists, Adventists, interfaith dialogue Introduction1 Seventh Day Baptists and Seventh-day Adventists share a fundamental conviction that the seventh-day Sabbath is the true biblical Sabbath. Each tradition, although spawned two centuries apart, argues that, soon after the New Testament period, the Christian church began to worship on Sunday rather than continue to observe the Jewish Sabbath. Both groups teach that the original Sabbath was the seventh day, instituted at Creation and affirmed when God gave the Ten Commandments. Each tradition developed their view of the Sabbath during a time of chaos in which religious figures sought to return to what they believed was an earlier, purer form of Christianity.
  • Regional Conferences in the Seventh-Day Adventist

    Regional Conferences in the Seventh-Day Adventist

    Loyola University Chicago Loyola eCommons Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 2009 [Black] Regional Conferences in the Seventh-Day Adventist (SDA) Church Compared with United Methodist [Black] Central Jurisdiction/Annual Conferences with White SDA Conferences, From 1940 - 2001 Alfonzo Greene, Jr. Loyola University Chicago Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss Part of the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Greene, Jr., Alfonzo, "[Black] Regional Conferences in the Seventh-Day Adventist (SDA) Church Compared with United Methodist [Black] Central Jurisdiction/Annual Conferences with White SDA Conferences, From 1940 - 2001" (2009). Dissertations. 160. https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss/160 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Loyola eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Loyola eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. Copyright © 2009 Alfonzo Greene, Jr. LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO [BLACK] REGIONAL CONFERENCES IN THE SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH (SDA) COMPARED WITH UNITED METHODIST [BLACK] CENTRAL JURISDICTION/ANNUAL CONFERENCES WITH WHITE S.D.A. CONFERENCES, FROM 1940-2001 A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY PROGRAM IN HISTORY BY ALFONZO GREENE, JR. CHICAGO, ILLINOIS DECEMBER
  • The Puritan Roots of Seventh-Day Adventist Belief

    The Puritan Roots of Seventh-Day Adventist Belief

    BOOK REVIEWS Ball, Bryan W. The English Connection: The Puritan Roots of Seventh- day Adventist Belief. Cambridge, Eng. : James Clarke/Greenwood, S.C.: Attic Press. 1981. 252 pp. $15.95 (in England, £7.50). The English Connection is an excellent analysis of "Puritan religious thought, in its broadest sense," which Ball believes "gave to the English- speaking world all the essentials of contemporary Adventist belief" (p. 3). Although treating a complex subject in an encyclopedic fashion, it is a very well-organized and lucid work that not only allows the Puritans of the late sixteenth through early eighteenth century to speak for themselves by drawing upon numerous quotations from Puritan divines, preachers, and polemicists, but also synthesizes and interprets for the general reader the more difficult aspects of Puritan theology. After a brief survey of the history of Puritanism, the study concentrates on specific key doctrines, each discussed thematically rather than chrono- logically, in the light of specific Puritan writings and in association with related beliefs. These key beliefs are encapsulated in the book's chapter titles: "The Sufficiency of Scripture," "This Incomparable Jesus," "The Lord Our Righteousness," "The New Man," "Believer's Baptism," "A High Priest in Heaven," "Gospel Obedience," "The Seventh-Day Sab- bath," "The Whole Man," "The Return of Christ," "The Great Almanack of Prophecy," and "The World to Come." In his introduction, Ball states that his purpose is "to examine specific doctrines" that show how "in its essentials, Seventh-day Adventist belief had been preached and practised in England during the Puritan era" (p. 2). A related purpose is to disprove those who see Adventism as "deviant" and to "demonstrate Adventism's essential affinity with historic, biblical Protestantism as opposed to any superficial relationship to nineteenth-century pseudo-Christian sectarianism" (p.
  • The Seventh-Day Adventist Church – What Happened?

    The Seventh-Day Adventist Church – What Happened?

    1844, 1863, 1888, 1919, 1950, 2000, 2010 And the Seventh-day Adventist Church – What Happened? By George M. Petrjcik 8/31/10 3/2/15 Contents Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 3 How To Understand the Seventh-day Adventist Church Today ........................................ 3 Content and Focus of this Document .................................................................................. 4 How this document came to be ........................................................................................... 4 Foundational Information ................................................................................................... 6 Early Adventism and Ellen G. White ............................................................................. 8 Discussion of Appendix Illustrations ................................................................................ 11 Church Structure – Biblical or Not? ............................................................................. 11 Neal C. Wilson .................................................................................................................. 29 Adventists Respond to U.N. Appeal for World Peace ...................................................... 29 Christian Witness vs. Scriptural Witness .......................................................................... 31 Two Interpretations of Galatians 4 ..................................................................................
  • The Person of Christ in the Seventh–Day Adventism: Doctrine–Building and E

    The Person of Christ in the Seventh–Day Adventism: Doctrine–Building and E

    Middlesex University Research Repository An open access repository of Middlesex University research http://eprints.mdx.ac.uk Butoiu, Nicolae (2018) The person of Christ in the Seventh–day Adventism: doctrine–building and E. J. Wagonner’s potential in developing christological dialogue with eastern Christianity. PhD thesis, Middlesex University / Oxford Centre for Mission Studies. [Thesis] Final accepted version (with author’s formatting) This version is available at: https://eprints.mdx.ac.uk/24350/ Copyright: Middlesex University Research Repository makes the University’s research available electronically. Copyright and moral rights to this work are retained by the author and/or other copyright owners unless otherwise stated. The work is supplied on the understanding that any use for commercial gain is strictly forbidden. A copy may be downloaded for personal, non-commercial, research or study without prior permission and without charge. Works, including theses and research projects, may not be reproduced in any format or medium, or extensive quotations taken from them, or their content changed in any way, without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder(s). They may not be sold or exploited commercially in any format or medium without the prior written permission of the copyright holder(s). Full bibliographic details must be given when referring to, or quoting from full items including the author’s name, the title of the work, publication details where relevant (place, publisher, date), pag- ination, and for theses or dissertations the awarding institution, the degree type awarded, and the date of the award. If you believe that any material held in the repository infringes copyright law, please contact the Repository Team at Middlesex University via the following email address: [email protected] The item will be removed from the repository while any claim is being investigated.
  • Seventh-Day Adventism, Doctrinal Statements, and Unity

    Seventh-Day Adventism, Doctrinal Statements, and Unity

    Journal of the Adventist Theological Society, 27/1-2 (2016): 98-116. Article copyright © 2016 by Michael W. Campbell. Seventh-day Adventism, Doctrinal Statements, and Unity Michael W. Campbell Adventist International Institute of Advanced Studies Cavite, Philippines 1. Introduction “All Christians engage in confessional synthesis,” wrote theologian Carl R. Trueman.1 Some religious groups adhere to a public confession of faith as subject to public scrutiny whereas others are immune to such scrutiny. Early Seventh-day Adventists, with strong ties to the Christian Connexion, feared lest the creation of a statement of beliefs so that some at some point may disagree with that statement may at some point be excluded.2 Another danger was that statements of belief might be used to present making new discoveries from Scripture, or afterward a new truth might be stifled by appealing to the authority of an already established creed. From the perspective of early Sabbatarian Adventists, some remembered the time when during the Millerite revival that statements of belief were used to exclude them from church fellowship.3 These fears were aptly expressed during the earliest organizational developments in 1861 of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. According to denominational co-founder, James White: “making a creed is setting the stakes, and barring up the way to all future advancement. The Bible is 1 Carl R. Trueman, The Creedal Imperative (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2012), 21. 2 Bert B. Haloviak, “Heritage of Freedom,” unpublished manuscript, 2. 3 George R. Knight, A Search for Identity: The Development of Seventh-day Adventist Beliefs (Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald, 2000), 21-24.
  • Adventists and Ecumenical Conversation

    Adventists and Ecumenical Conversation

    Adventists and Ecumenical Conversation Ángel Manuel Rodríguez The Seventh-day Adventist Church does not exist in isolation from other Christian communities. Social and religious trends in the Christian world impact us; they force us to decide how we should relate to those trends and changes. The Christian concern about the unity of the church, voiced particularly through the World Council of Churches, forces us to define where we stand on this important subject. Certainly, “no Adventist can be opposed to the unity Christ Himself prayed for.”1 This article looks at the nature of Seventh-day Adventist involvement in the search for unity among Christians, as well as the doctrinal and theological parameters within which we operate in that search. It also briefly discusses the risks and benefits present in the conversations with other Christian bodies. Our hope is that the ideas expressed here will be useful to Adventist ministers who interact with non-Adventist clergy at a more personal level, as well as a help to our pastors as they answer some of the concerns that church members might have regarding these conversations. Adventist identity and ecumenical dialogues The Adventist Church has occasionally had conversations with other Christian communities and even participated with them in special activities (such as the matter of the promotion of religious liberty throughout the world). We have entered into those conversations with some apprehension, while at the same time acknowledging their need, usefulness, and importance. What are our concerns as we deal with interfaith relations and dialogues? The church has not been quiet about that question.
  • The Chalcedonian Christology of St John Damascene : Philosophical Terminology and Theological Arguments

    The Chalcedonian Christology of St John Damascene : Philosophical Terminology and Theological Arguments

    Durham E-Theses The Chalcedonian Christology of St John Damascene : philosophical terminology and theological arguments Metallidis, George How to cite: Metallidis, George (2003) The Chalcedonian Christology of St John Damascene : philosophical terminology and theological arguments, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/1085/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 UNIVERSITY OF DURHAM DEPARTMENT OF THEOLOGY GEORGE METALLIDIS The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published without his prior written consentand information derived from it should be acknowledged. The Chalcedonian Christology of St John Damascene: Philosophical Terminology and Theological Arguments PhD Thesis/FourthYear Supervisor: Prof. ANDREW LOUTH 0-I OCT2003 Durham 2003 The ChalcedonianChristology of St John Damascene To my Mother Despoina The ChalcedonianChristology of St John Damascene CONTENTS Page ABBREVIATIONS 7 ACKNOWLEDGMENT 12 INTRODUCTION 14 CHAPTER ONE TheLife of St John Damascene 1.
  • Aspects of Arminian Soteriology in Methodist-Lutheran Ecumenical Dialogues in 20Th and 21St Century

    Aspects of Arminian Soteriology in Methodist-Lutheran Ecumenical Dialogues in 20Th and 21St Century

    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Helsingin yliopiston digitaalinen arkisto ASPECTS OF ARMINIAN SOTERIOLOGY IN METHODIST-LUTHERAN ECUMENICAL DIALOGUES IN 20TH AND 21ST CENTURY Mikko Satama Master’s Thesis University of Helsinki Faculty of Theology Department of Systematic Theology Ecumenical Studies 18th January 2009 HELSINGIN YLIOPISTO − HELSINGFORS UNIVERSITET Tiedekunta/Osasto − Fakultet/Sektion Laitos − Institution Teologinen tiedekunta Systemaattisen teologian laitos Tekijä − Författare Mikko Satama Työn nimi − Arbetets title Aspects of Arminian Soteriology in Methodist-Lutheran Ecumenical Dialogues in 20th and 21st Century Oppiaine − Läroämne Ekumeniikka Työn laji − Arbetets art Aika − Datum Sivumäärä − Sidoantal Pro Gradu -tutkielma 18.1.2009 94 Tiivistelmä − Referat The aim of this thesis is to analyse the key ecumenical dialogues between Methodists and Lutherans from the perspective of Arminian soteriology and Methodist theology in general. The primary research question is defined as: “To what extent do the dialogues under analysis relate to Arminian soteriology?” By seeking an answer to this question, new knowledge is sought on the current soteriological position of the Methodist-Lutheran dialogues, the contemporary Methodist theology and the commonalities between the Lutheran and Arminian understanding of soteriology. This way the soteriological picture of the Methodist-Lutheran discussions is clarified. The dialogues under analysis were selected on the basis of versatility. Firstly, the sole world organisation level dialogue was chosen: The Church – Community of Grace. Additionally, the document World Methodist Council and the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification is analysed as a supporting document. Secondly, a document concerning the discussions between two main-line churches in the United States of America was selected: Confessing Our Faith Together.
  • “Oriental Orthodox” Monophysite Formula by W

    “Oriental Orthodox” Monophysite Formula by W

    Against the “Oriental Orthodox” Monophysite Formula By W. J. Whitman During the Nestorian controversy, St. Cyril of Alexandria used the following formula: the person of Christ is “one nature (physis) of the Word of God Incarnate.” Additionally, Cyril used the terms physis and hypostasis interchangeably. The Cyrilline Monophysites considered this terminology to be part of sacred tradition. However, the Orthodox faction believed no such thing. It is not the terminology of St. Cyril that we must believe, but the spirit of what he taught. Fr. John Romanides writes: “Thus, in order to understand the Fathers properly, we must know not only the expressions that they used, in other words, what they said and taught, but we must also know the corresponding concepts.”1 The Orthodox found it necessary to reformulate the linguistic expressions of Cyril‟s Christology in the midst of new controversies. The Monophysite faction resisted any refinement of theological terminology. After Cyril‟s time, a heretic named Eutyches adopted this same formula; but Eutyches‟ interpretation of it was diametrically opposed to Cyril‟s. Eutyches taught that the two natures (physeis) in Christ—the divinity and the humanity—were united into one nature (physis) in such a way that the humanity was virtually annihilated through absorption. The Cyrilline Monophysites, who clung to the words of Cyril, were willing to accept Eutyches as one of their own: for he used the “right” phrases and terms. It did not matter much to them that what Eutyches taught was entirely wrong. The Monophysites sided with Eutyches against the rest of Christendom at the Second Council of Ephesus in 449AD.