Description
Book SynopsisTraditional theological perspectives on the human person are being challenged by contemporary cultural, political and scientific developments. Bringing together Roman Catholic theologians from different sub-disciplines, this collection of essays engages with and responds to the resulting tensions in theological anthropology, with a special focus on the themes of nature, self and relationality.
Trade Review"In a time when the natural sciences are raising new questions about the very notion of a fixed human nature, theology is required to think more deeply about the meaning and implications of the classical claims of Christian faith, particularly the Incarnation. These welcome exploratory essays in theological anthropology by significant contemporary scholars will help theologians and students sort out the issues and join a very important conversation." -- -Paul Crowley Santa Clara University "In Questioning the Human, international known scholars explore crucial issues on the relation of human nature to sciences, ethics, and morality in a way that clearly shows how contemporary thought reflects on the human self and the human body in a world that is both diverse and commodified. These essays explore central questions that a Twenty-First Century theological anthropology needs to take into account. An exciting, probing, and informative volume." -- -Francis Schuessler-Fiorenza Stillman Professor of Roman Catholic Theological Studies "The Christian notion of the Human involves both the biblical notion of the Imago Dei and philosophical understandings of natural law. How those concepts are to be understood, defended, and nuanced in the face of modernity and postmodernity is the subject of these rich and varied essays. This exploration of Christian anthropology, fifty years after the capacious vision of Gaudium et Spes, should be gratefully received and meticulously studied. -- -Lawrence Cunningham John A. O'Brien Professor of Theology (Emeritus), The University of Note Dame "Theological anthropology, the project of articulating what it is and what it means to be human in relation to the transcendent God, stands at a crossroads in the second decade of the 21st century. Powerful forces shaping contemporary life-science and technology, the workings of the global economy, re-configurations of social and political power, regionally, locally, and globally-seem to render that project deeply problematic in terms of both its substance and its methods. The discourse of theological inquiry, moreover, has itself been pluralized, nor only in consequence of these encompassing cultural challenges, but also as a result of a renewed self-critical awareness of theology's own deep embedding in socio-cultural and historical particularity. The essays in this volume offer incisive diagnoses of these challenges and promising strategies to address them. They provide a solid basis for confidence in the continuing importance of a renewed theological anthropology for the living faith of the Catholic Church in its concrete engagements with the full range of the workings of the world." -- -Rev. Philip J. Rossi S.J. Marquette University
Table of ContentsExploring New Questions for Theological Anthropology Lieven Boeve, Yves De Maeseneer, and Ellen Van Stichel Part I: Human Nature and Science 1. Theological Anthropology, Science and Human Flourishing Stephen Pope 2. The Concept of Natural Law in the Postmodern Context Henri-Jerome Gagey 3. Personalism and the Natural Roots of Morality Johan De Tavernier 4. In God's Image and Likeness: From Reason to Revelation in Humans and Other Animals Celia Deane-Drummond Part II: Christ and the Disputed Self 5. Neuroscience, Self and Jesus Christ Oliver Davies 6. Incarnation in the Age of the Buffered, Commodified Self Anthony J. Godzieba 7. The Gifted Self: The Challenges of French Thought Robyn Horner Part III: Relating in a Fallen World 8. Difference, Body and Race Michelle Gonzalez 9. Public Theology: A Feminist View of Political Subjectivity and Praxis Rosemary P. Carbine 10. Desire, Mimetic Theory and Original Sin Wilhelm Guggenberger Turtles All The Way Down? Pressing Questions for Theological Anthropology in the Twenty-first Century Ellen Van Stichel and David G. Kirchhoffer Notes List of Contributors Index
