Hermeneutics of Providence: Theology, Race, and Divine Action in History by Matthew R. Jantzen Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ Luke Bretherton, Supervisor ___________________________ J. Kameron Carter ___________________________ James Chappel ___________________________ Stanley Hauerwas ___________________________ Willie James Jennings Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Theology in the Divinity School of Duke University 2017 ABSTRACT Hermeneutics of Providence: Theology, Race, and Divine Action in History by Matthew R. Jantzen Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ Luke Bretherton, Supervisor ___________________________ J. Kameron Carter ___________________________ James Chappel ___________________________ Stanley Hauerwas ___________________________ Willie James Jennings An abstract of a dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Theology in the Divinity School of Duke University 2017 Copyright by Matthew R. Jantzen 2017 Abstract This dissertation explores the implications of the doctrine of providence for Christian life in the context of racialized modernity, offering a constructive theological response to two interrelated questions. First, how should Christians relate the doctrine of divine providence to the task of political judgment? That is, how should doctrinal accounts of the nature and shape of God’s ongoing activity in history between creation and eschaton inform attempts to come to specific judgments about what God is doing in and through particular historical events? Second, how has whiteness insinuated itself into and distorted Christian attempts to discern the movement of God in history? In short, the dissertation engages divine providence not simply as a doctrine, but as a hermeneutic—a theological lens through which to actively interpret the world in relationship to God— and, more specifically, as a hermeneutic with a problematic history of identifying God’s providential action with the interests and activities of white Christian peoples. In dialogue with the writings of G.W.F. Hegel, Karl Barth, and James Cone, the dissertation examines the role played by the doctrine of providence in both theological justifications (Hegel) and critiques (Barth, Cone) of modern theories about European progress, the superiority of Western civilization, and white racial supremacy. I argue that Hegel articulates his problematic vision of providence through an operation of Christological displacement, wherein the figure of European man replaces Jesus Christ as the human subject in relationship to whom world history and global humanity find order, meaning, and purpose. I then turn to Barth and Cone, interpreting their writings on providence and divine action as critiques of the theological problem on display in Hegel. iv Through analysis of this conversation within modern Protestant theology about providence, politics, and race, I outline a set of conditions for contemporary theological reflection on these matters. These include commitments to the centrality of the incarnation of Jesus Christ for conceptualizing providence, to the creatureliness of human beings, and to the active work of the Holy Spirit. I also argue that contemporary engagements with the doctrine must address two problems which neither Hegel, Barth, nor Cone sufficiently resolve: the persistent masculinity of Christian accounts of providence and a competitive construal of the Spirit-Son relationship. The final chapter formulates a constructive hermeneutic of providence in light of these conditions. I develop an account of divine providence as the two-fold work of the Holy Spirit in (1) making Jesus Christ present to creation between ascension and eschaton and (2) enabling human creaturely participation in Christ’s providential presence. Building on themes in womanist theology and contemporary pneumatology, I suggest that the work of the Spirit manifests in three characteristic activities in particular: the Spirit gives life to ordinary, overlooked, and oppressed material bodies; the Spirit joins, drawing those who would normally be strangers and enemies into intimate relationships; the Spirit anticipates the end of time in the midst of the present. By way of conclusion, I suggest how this hermeneutic of providence might help to shape particular judgments about where, how, and in whom the Spirit is making Christ present in the specific context of Durham, North Carolina in the second decade of the twenty-first century in light of the resurgence of thinly veiled white supremacist politics and the rapid gentrification of historic black communities facilitated by urban revitalization initiatives. v For Amy In Memory of Allen Verhey (1945-2014) Contents Abstract .............................................................................................................................. iv Abbreviations .................................................................................................................... xii Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................ xiii Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1 The Problem of Providence: Whiteness and Divine Action in History .......... 18 1.1 The Wound of Providence ................................................................................... 21 1.1.1 Diagnosing the Wound: The Dominant Account ........................................ 23 1.1.2 An Alternative Diagnosis ............................................................................ 27 1.1.3 Excursus: On the Insufficiency of The Traditional Remedies .................... 30 1.1.3.1 Providence and Creation: Preserving the Order of Things ................ 31 1.1.3.2 Providence and Eschatology: Divinizing Human Political Activity .. 35 1.2 A Practical Providence: Doctrine, Ethics, and Politics ........................................ 40 1.2.1 Providence and Ethics: Discernment, Judgment, and Action ..................... 41 1.2.2 Providence and Politics ............................................................................... 46 1.3 Providence, History, and Theological Method .................................................... 50 1.3.1 Why history? ................................................................................................ 52 1.3.2 Which history? ............................................................................................ 55 1.4 Conclusion ........................................................................................................... 61 Chapter 2 G.W.F. Hegel: Divine Providence in Time, Space, and Race ......................... 64 2.1 An Unfamiliar Crossroads: Hegel, Theology, and Global Humanity .................. 74 2.1.1 Hegel and Theology .................................................................................... 74 2.1.2 Hegel and Global Humanity ....................................................................... 78 vii 2.2 “The Absolute, Rational, Final Purpose of the World”: Divine Providence in the Lectures on the Philosophy of World History ............................................................. 86 2.2.1 Providence and the General Concept of World History ............................. 87 2.2.2 Divine Providence as the Actualization of Spirit in History ....................... 96 2.2.2.1 Revelation: The General Definition of Spirit ..................................... 97 2.2.2.2 Reconciliation: The Means of Spirit’s Actualization ......................... 99 2.2.2.3 Consummation: The Material of Spirit’s Actualization ................... 102 2.3 Reading Providence in Time, Space, and Race: World History and Global Humanity in Hegel’s Lectures .................................................................................. 106 2.3.1 The Temporal, Spatial and Anthropological Dimensions of World History ............................................................................................................................. 108 2.3.2 Narrating World History: Hegel on Geography and Anthropology ......... 112 2.4 Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 120 Chapter 3 Karl Barth: Divine Providence Between East and West ............................... 128 3.1 The World and Work of Karl Barth: An Intertextual Approach to the Church Dogmatics ................................................................................................................. 138 3.1.1 The Political Ramifications of the Church Dogmatics: An Interpretive Dilemma .............................................................................................................. 140 3.1.2 Addressing the Dilemma: Two Insufficient Methodological Responses . 144 3.1.3 An Alternative Proposal: The Intertextual Approach ............................... 152 3.2 The World of Karl Barth, 1948-1949: Barth Between East and West ............... 157 3.2.1 1946: “The Christian Message in Europe Today” .................................... 160 3.2.2 1948: The Hungarian Voyage and the World Council of Churches ......... 165 3.2.3 1949: “The Church Between East and West” ........................................... 175 3.3 The Work of Karl Barth, 1948-1949: Divine Providence, World History, and