Developments in biblical studies, neurosciences, and Christian philosophy of mind force theologians reconsider the traditional concept of the immortal soul. At the same time the concept itself tends to create axiological dualism between the body and the soul that in turn may lead to insufficient appreciation of the physical life in this world. A more holistic approach to the ontology of the human beings is required. The aim of this study is to analyse the function of the concept of the soul in the dualistic anthropology of John Calvin and to compare it to the holistic anthropology of Karl Barth in order to answer the question whether the transition from one to the other is possible without the loss of the functions fulfilled by the soul. The thesis thus comprises four sections. The first explores the ontological anthropology of John Calvin focusing (1) on the soul as the bearer of the image of God, (2) on the body as an important epistemological instrument, (3) on the immortality as a natural human attribute and as a result of union with Christ, (4) on the resurrection as the ultimate hope. The second section identifies the shift of the philosophical presuppositions which occurred between Calvin and Barth. The third section looks closely at Karl Barth's anthropology as it is presented in the Church Dogmatics III/2 giving attention (1) to the new anthropological method of Karl Barth, and, following from that, to his understanding of (2) the image of God, (3) body/soul relationship, (4) death. Finally, the fourth section compares the views of John Calvin and Karl Barth. The study concludes that Karl Barth provides theological concepts which help to move theological discourse from a dualistic to a holistic view of man.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:633263 |
| Date | January 2014 |
| Creators | Viazovski, Yaroslav |
| Publisher | University of Aberdeen |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://digitool.abdn.ac.uk:80/webclient/DeliveryManager?pid=218286 |
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