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Relating God and the Self
Religion is not only about understanding the world - it is just as much about how to develop and shape the self’s experience of itself. Because the religious self is shaped by our symbols of God - and symbols of God are also shaped by the self, theology and philosophy of religion cannot ignore this interplay, or the psychological dimension, when they discuss what symbols of God are adequate and not. By discussing critically different ways the symbol of God functions in the formation of the self, the book develops a nuanced and original approach to the interplay between God and the self. It suggests that play is actually an important metaphor in order to develop a dynamic understanding of religion’s way of relating God and the Self. This approach challenges understandings of religion focussing only its cognitive claims, as well as those who emphasize doctrinal orthodoxy as the most important element in religion.
Religious Pluralism and Pragmatist Theology
Inspired by pragmatism, this book addresses religious plurality with the aim of bringing forth how it may be approached constructively by Christian theology. Accordingly, not doctrine, but practices are focussed in its analyses of interreligious topics. Henriksen argues that engagement with the diversity of religious traditions should be grounded in openness towards the other, and resistance against making others similar to oneself. Accordingly, the book presents a theological approach where interaction between religious practitioners is considered a benefit and a necessity for the positive future of religious traditions. It will be of interest to anyone who is interested in the understanding of religious pluralism from the point of view of Christian theology.
Theological Anthropology in the Anthropocene
The Anthropocene presents theology, and especially theological anthropology, with unprecedented challenges. There are no immediately available resources in the theological tradition that reflect directly on such experiences. Accordingly, the situation calls for contextually based theological reflection of what it means to be human under such circumstances. This book discusses the main elements in theological anthropology in light of the fundamental points: a) that theological anthropology needs to be articulated with reference to, and informed by, the concrete historical circumstances in which humanity presently finds itself, and b) that the notion of the Anthropocene can be used as a heuristic tool to describe important traits and conditions that call for a response by humanity, and which entail the need for a renewal of what a Christian self-understanding means. Jan-Olav Henriksen explores what such a response entails from the point of view of contemporary theological anthropology and discusses selected topics that can contribute to a contextually based position.
Jesus as Healer
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Religion as Orientation and Transformation
Religions are not primarily expressed in people's heads and their thoughts, but in what they do. People use religious symbols in order to orientate or change themselves. In this way, religion is related to all realms of human life. Jan-Olav Henriksen shows that only against this backdrop can we understand the role of religions in human life. Book jacket.
Christianity as Distinct Practices
Jan-Olav Henriksen reconstructs and analyzes Christianity as a cluster of practices that manifest a distinct historically and contextually shaped mode of being in the world. Henriksen suggests that these practices imply a complicated relationship between the tradition in which they originate, the community that emerges from and is constituted by that tradition, and the individuals who appropriate the tradition that these communities mediate through their practices. Thus, to think of Christianity simply in terms of belief is misleading and represents an underdetermination of its distinct character. Henriksen further argues this relationship needs to be described primarily as practices aimed at orientation and transformation. His analysis points to Christianity's similarity to other religions in regard to the functional or pragmatic dimensions it displays. Examining facets such as prayer, the use of scripture, preaching and doctrine, Henriksen emphasizes that the element that makes a practice distinctively Christian is how it relates to and is informed by the Jesus story.
Desire, Gift, and Recognition
A major work in the philosophy of religion, this book interprets the Jesus story in terms of postmodern philosophy - particularly using Jacques Derrida?s categories of "desire," "gift," and "recognition." Author Jan-Olav Henriksen also attempts to reformulate Christology without resorting to such metaphysical concepts as substance, transcendence, etc. While not denying traditional doctrines, Henriksen explicates the meaning of Jesus' life and death in ways that engage contemporary philosophy and challenge contemporary (academic) Christians to rethink the basics of their faith; and he outlines the possibility of a "post-metaphysical Christology." / Henriksen s book is a clearly reasoned guide not only to the argument that Christology still has something to say to contemporary believers but also to ways in which theologians must learn to reconnect to everyday human experience.
Jesus as Healer
Healings and miracles play a prominent role in the New Testament accounts of Jesus' life and ministry. In the Western Christian tradition, however, Jesus' works of healing tend to be downplayed and understood as little more than a demonstration of his divine power. In this book Jan-Olav Henriksen and Karl Olav Sandnes draw on both contemporary systematic theology and New Testament scholarship to challenge and investigate the reasons for that oversight. They constructively consider what it can mean for Christian theology today to understand Jesus as a healer, to embrace fully the embodied character of the Christian faith, and to recognize the many ways in which God can still be seen to have a healing presence in the world.
Life, Love, and Hope
Taking both knowledge of evolution and belief in God as Creator into account, Henriksen's Life, Love, and Hope articulates a vision for understanding the relationship between God and human experience in contemporary terms. Henriksen maintains that evolutionary theory does not account for all that can and must be said about human life and experience. Conversely, he also argues that any belief in God as Creator can be informed and deepened by knowledge of evolution.--Publisher's website.
Resurrection
Christian faith depends upon the resurrection of Jesus, but the claim about Jesus' resurrection is, nevertheless, disputed. This book, written by a New Testament scholar and a systematic theologian in conjunction, develops the conditions for the claim. It carefully analyzes the relevant texts and their possible interpretations and engages with New Testament scholarship in order to show nuances and different trajectories in the material. The picture emerging is that the New Testament authors themselves tried to come to terms with how to understand the claim that Jesus had been resurrected from the dead. But the book does not stop there: by also asking for the experiential content that gave rise to the belief in the resurrection. Sandnes and Henriksen argue that there is no such thing as an experience of the resurrection reported in the New Testament--only experiences of an empty tomb and appearance of Jesus, interpreted as Jesus resurrected. Hence, resurrection emerges as an interpretative category for post-Easter experiences, and is only understandable in light of the full content of Jesus' ministry and its context.
