Philosophical Theantropy as the Principle of Religious Ecumenism
ABSTRACT: One universal constituent element of human consciousness is belief in the existence of a divine reality that is experienced by persons as the most intimate and essential part of human life. Belief in transcendent reality, which is an immanent part of human nature, constitutes an awe-inspiring mystery (mysterium fascinans et tremens) — that is, a theantropy. Strictly speaking, ‘theantropy’ is a theological term which is used to express the "union of the divine and human natures in Christ" (as defined by Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary). The novum of my understanding of theantropy consists in the application of the concept to the phenomenological experience of the religious consciousness of humanity. Henceforth, I designate theantropy to mean an ontic union and an inherent disposition of the ‘human’ and ‘divine’ constituents in/of every human being. I will examine and reflect on theantropy as the philosophical principle of religious ecumenism as well as compare various solutions of theantropy not only with regard to a particular system of beliefs, but as it is experienced in each and every human being by following Augustine’s principle: "In interiorem hominem redi: ibi habitat Deus" (or in "intimor intimo meo").
In each and every human being, there is a specific polarization between the human and the divine dimensions, which one can call theantropy. In the strict sense 'theantropy' is a theological term, and is employed to express "the union of the divine and human natures in Christ." The novum of this author's understanding of the term 'theantropy' consists of the application of this concept to the phenomenological experience of religious consciousness of man. Henceforth, in this paper, 'theantropy' means "an ontic union and an inherent disposition of the 'human' and the 'divine' constituents in/of each and every human being."
Theantropy so understood, can be described as a perpetual striving of man for unity with the 'Inner-Word' of human soul for establishing one spiritual oikoumenÈ of all people into one divine community of believers (Cf I Pe.:2,5; Eph.:2,19; I Tim.:3.15; He.:3,6; etc.). Referring to the Gospel of St. John, St. Augustine writes:
I implore you to love with me and, by believing, to run with me; let us long for our heavenly country , let us sigh for our heavenly home, let us truly feel that here we are strangers. What shall we then see? Let the gospel tell us: 'In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.
The issue presented in this paper is how one can aim to reduce the amounts released, and what the best ways to solve this problem are. This has been long debated amongst scientists, businessmen, Industry-owners, and politicians amongst many other eminent figures in society. The four major approaches to reducing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere include: subsidies of alternative energy, cap and trade, carbon taxes, and command and control regulation. We will examine and compare the effectiveness of two of these methods: The carb...
Revelations of Divine Love is a 14th century masterpiece written by Julian of Norwich. This book is an account of St. Julian’s sixteen different mystical revelations in which she had encountered at a time of great suffering and illness. St. Julian focussed on the many “mysteries of Christianity.” Through her many revelations she encountered God’s vast love, the existence of evil, God’s heart for creation, the father and mother-heart of God, and the need to obey her Father in Heaven. Amongst these revelations the most powerful was the revelation of God’s love and character. Revelations of Divine Love is a wonderful source of revelation to connect a reader to the Father.
...es have found that often police misconduct is learned behavior from in his organization. Police culture is defined and broken down by artifacts. Artifacts like learning police jargon, how to talk on their radio, how to write a report. I think a counter act to this problem is more community policing. Officers should volunteer a little time reach back out to the community, getting to know the people of the community will help how people view police culture and actually help the culture also. I don’t want to be a cop so I feel this information is not relevant to my field of chose.
Christianity falls under the category of Theism, which is the belief in only one personal god. Christian worldview believes that God sent humanity His only son so that we can learn about God and how He wants us to act. Jesus is crucified later in His life on a cross, which relieved us from losing a relationship with God due to our sins. When analyzing the Christian worldview, we learn that God came to earth in human form as Jesus Christ to experience life with humanity and restore earth back to harmony. In this paper I will discuss God, Jesus, and humanity individually, how restoration will occur, and finally, analyze and reflect on the Christian worldview.
From the Catholic observation point, the Church presents two parts: One representing its divine nature as the untarnished body of Christ, and one direc...
The four fundamental claims of the Catholic Intellectual Tradition, Human beings exist in a relation to a triune God, God’s presence in the world is mediated through nature and reality, faith and reason are compatible, the dignity of the human being is inviolable and therefore the commitment to justice for the common good is necessary. However, the great books in the Catholic Intellectual tradition show that they represent these fundamental claims in a broad distinctive way. This essay will show that these readings better represent one of the fundamental claims, human beings exist in a relation with a triune God, from the view point of three great books from the bible, Genesis, Exodus and the Gospel of Matthew. The Bible clearly supports the
“Before new chiefs can set a path for a new vision, they must have a clear understanding of the past. A police department’s organizational culture is a deeply ingrained, personal aspect of its functioning that must not be trivialized. Years of hard work and dedication by scores of individuals went into the creation of that culture, and it must be respected. However, if the culture is no longer in step with the expectations of the community, then changes must be made. Changes for the future must be carefully crafted to achieve the desired goal without disregarding the past. New chiefs can best accomplish this task by first listening to the variety of individuals that represent the stakeholders for their departments. Gaining input is important to obtaining an understanding of the values and expecta...
The main idea in the first chapter “The Great Questions” is that how important of religious, and the author use two sample experiences, which ordinary and extraordinary human experiences are. Portier pointed out four main aspects for extraordinary experiences, those are Birth, Death, Love, and Evil. Because of these four parts, the god creates human being and religious becomes meaning to us. In this chapter, we can learn that religious have power, and they will develop sustainably in the future. Portier still concerned that human life is a mystery. And Portier proposed a context called tradition, and he said that “I want to use it to refer to the sea of historical connections in which individuals swim.” (Portier, William L. Tradition and Incarnation: Foundations of Christian Theology. New York: Paulist Press, 1994. P19). Religious are one of meaningful parts in our life, and they will become an important position in the different culture.
There are several aspects to consider when exploring the Christian worldview. There are many facets or denominations and they each have their own distinct beliefs and practices, but they all share the same fundamental beliefs. In this Paper we will explore the character of God, His creation, humanity and its nature, Jesus’ significance to the world, and the restoration of humanity, as well as my beliefs and the way that I interact with Christianity and my personal worldview.
St. Augustine is a man with a rational mind. As a philosopher, scholar, and teacher of rhetoric, he is trained in and practices the art of logical thought and coherent reasoning. The pursuits of his life guide him to seek concrete answers to specific questions. Religion, the practice of which relies primarily on faith—occasionally blind faith—presents itself as unable to be penetrated by any sort of scientific study or inquiry. Yet, like a true scientist and philosopher, one of the first questions St. Augustine poses in his Confessions is: “What, then, is the God I worship” (23)? For a long time, Augustine searches for knowledge about God as a physical body, a particular entity—almost as if the Lord were merely a human being, given the divine right to become the active figurehead of the Christian religion.
This paper will outline specific points in Saint Augustine’s Confessions that highlight religious views following the fall of Rome. Though Augustines views on religion may not reflect that of most people in his time period, it still gives valuable insight into how many, namely Neoplatonists,, viewed God and his teachings.
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Corley, Lemke and Lovejoy (2002) agree with the importance of the two contexts defining theological hermeneutics as, the process of thinking about God, thinking after the event of revelation in the...
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