Theological Anthropology (Semester A and B)

Module Description:

This module studies what it means to be human from the perspective of theology. The study begins within the horizon of Jewish experience as articulated especially in the early chapters of the book of Genesis and chapters in Exodus which narrate the gift of Covenant. Within these chapters the themes of the human reality as the Imago Dei as well as  the theme of deep seated human alienation are studied. In this context the concept of revelation is introduced and examined. Different theological approaches to the concept of revelation – or models of revelation – are explored. The important document of the Second Vatican Council (‘Dei Verbum’) is studied. Its ecumenical importance is examined. In a way that is both new and continuous Christian thought takes up these themes of sinfulness and salvation. The broad outlines of Christian thought in this area are introduced.

Early Irish iconography, including the great High Crosses, will be studied as a distinctive treatment of these themes. In the Western tradition grace became a key concept in the articulation of the interplay of divine and human in history. This module studies its deployment through the centuries, alongside contemporary re-workings. This vocabulary has roots in the Hebrew Scriptures as these express the Jewish experience of the encounter with God. Then in some Pauline epistles the concept of grace became an important resource for early Christians who find that their lives’ significance is implicated in the significance of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.

Subsequently the vocabulary of grace is redeployed, but also re-fashioned, argued over, refined. Among many others there are breakthrough theologies of grace articulated by Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, Trent. Perspectives on graced desire and graced bodiliness will be seen as foundational to Catholic thinking on sexuality, justice, and the dignity of human life. The module will also give attention to the different and distinctive vocabularies that developed in the Eastern tradition around themes of sanctification and deification. The module will explore, in summary form, other important narratives of human alienation, including Freud, Marx and Lacan. In this regard it will debate whether there are resources in theological anthropology for an understanding of human nature which have been lost in modern culture.

Indicative Bibliography:

Alison, J., The Joy of being Wrong (New York: Crossroads, 1998).
Davis, S.J, Kendell, D. and O’Collins, G., The Redemption (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004).
Duffy, S.J., The Dynamics of Grace Perspectives in Theological Anthropology (Collegeville: The Liturgical Press, 1993).
Dulles, A., Models of Revelation (New York: Doubleday, 1985).
Eagleton T., Reason, Faith and Revolution: Reflections on the God Debate (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2009).
Grey, M., Redeeming the dream: feminism, redemption and Christian Tradition (London: SPCK, 1989).
Edel, D., The Celtic West and Europe (Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2001).
Harbison, P., The High Crosses of Ireland, 3 vols. (Bonn: R. Habelt, 1992).
McCabe, H., God Still Matters (London: Continuum, 2002).
Murray J. C, The Problem of God (Yale: Yale University Press, 1964).
Pannenberg, W., Anthropology in Theological Perspective (Philadelphia: Westminister Press, 1985).
Zahl, P., Grace in practice (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007).

Learning Outcomes:

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:

• Contrast and compare different models of revelation within theology.
• Explain the ecumenical importance of the document ‘Dei Verbum’.
• Describe and discuss the importance of the Jewish heritage in Christian tradition.
• Recognise the distinctive theological elements in the storytelling of the early Irish crosses.
• Explain the importance of the concept of grace in Christian humanism
• Evaluate the different approaches to the theology of grace in the writings of St Paul, Augustine, Aquinas, and Luther
• Compare and contrast the Christian humanism in its main outline with those of Marx, Freud and Lacan.
• Give an account of the distinctive emphasis in Eastern Orthodoxy on the theology of grace.

Methods of Assessment and Student Workload:

Annual examination and essay.