Alister McGrath, Christian Theology: An Introduction

Chapter 13

The Doctrine of Salvation in Christ

Wiley-Blackwell 2010

Christian Approaches to Salvation

• Salvation is linked with Jesus Christ– The cross is constitutive of salvation

• Irenaeus– The cross is illustrative of salvation

• John Macquarrie, Principles of Christian Theology• Maurice F. Wiles, Remaking of Christian Doctrine • Colin Gunton’s critique

• Salvation is shaped by Jesus Christ– The Christian life takes the form of the believer’s sustained attempt to

imitate Christ– The Christian life is a process of “being conformed to Christ”

• The eschatological dimension of salvation– Paul: justification, sanctification, salvation– Past, present, and future elements

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The Foundations of Salvation: The Cross of Christ

• Theories of the atonement --> soteriology• The cross as a sacrifice

– Letter to the Hebrews– Athanasius– Augustine of Hippo– Hugh of St. Victor

• Threefold office of Christ (prophet, priest, king)– Protestant theologians

• François Turrettini• John Pearson

– Enlightenment• John Locke• Deist Thomas Chubb• Joseph Butler• Horace Bushnell Wiley-Blackwell 2010

• The cross as a victory– Christ the victor (Christus victor)– Death as a ransom

• Origen• Gregory the Great• Rufinus of Aquileia• The harrowing of hell (1 Peter 3:18-22)

– Enlightenment: approach criticized– Rational criticism of belief in the resurrection of Christ– Existence of Satan and evil forces dismissed as premodern

superstition– Renewal: Gustaf Aulén, Christus Victor– Rudolf Bultmann’s demythologization

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• The cross and forgiveness of sin– Anselm of Canterbury, Why God Became Man

• God created humanity in a state of original righteousness, with the goal of bringing humanity to a state of eternal blessedness

• The state of eternal blessedness is contingent on obedience, which humanity cannot achieve because of sin

• The situation can only be remedied if satisfaction is made for sin• Only God, not humanity, is capable of providing this satisfaction• A “God-man” possesses both the ability (as God) and the obligation (as a human

being) to pay the required satisfaction

– Thomas Aquinas • Significance of the love shown by Christ in dying on the cross (Abelard)• Inherent worth of Christ’s death is grounded in his divinity

– Sixteenth century• Representation• Participation• Substitution

– Enlightenment critiques– Criticisms of the “history of dogma” movement

• Recovery: P.T. Forsyth, The Justification of God• Karl Barth, “The Judge Judged in Our Place”Wiley-Blackwell 2010

• The cross as a demonstration of God’s love– Augustine, Clement– Peter Abelard (1079-1142)– Juana de la Cruz (1481-1534)– Enlightenment degree Christology

• The cross has no transcendent reference or value• The person who died on the cross was a human being• The only theologically valid interpretation of the cross is its demonstration

of the love of God toward us– F.D.E. Schleiermacher

• The religious value of Christ’s death• Urbildlichkeit (the quality of being an ideal)• Vorbildlichkeit (the quality of being able to evoke a given ideal in others)

– Exemplarist approach• Hastings Rashdall (1858-1924)• Weak understanding of human sin

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• Violence and the cross: the theory of René Girard– Anthropological approach to religion– Destructive violence is at the heart of the sacred– Mimetic desire– The scapegoat– Jesus as scapegoat --> lamb of God

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“Can a Male Savior Save Women?” Feminists on Atonement

• Rosemary Radford Ruether• Radical feminists• Critique of the mode of redemption

– Sado-masochism in Anselm’s substitionary atonement– Divine child abuse

• Cross as a symbol of injustice• Denny J. Weaver, The Nonviolent Atonement

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Models of Salvation in Christ:Classical and Contemporary

• Contextualization– A receptor-oriented gospel

• Some Pauline images of salvation– Adoption– Justification– Redemption– Salvation

• Deification: being made divine– “God became human, in order that humans might become God”

(Athanasius)– Incarnation and salvation– Characteristic emphasis in eastern Christianity– Becoming God (theosis) and becoming like God (homoiosis theoi)Wiley-Blackwell 2010

• Righteousness in the sight of God– Martin Luther– C.S. Lewis– Charles Wesley, “And Can It Be?”

• Personal holiness– John Wesley

• Notion of perfection– American Methodism

• Phoebe Worrall Palmer (1807-74)• Authentic human existence

– Existentialism• Rudolf Bultmann• Paul Tillich

• Political liberation– Latin American liberation theology

• Leonardo Boff• Oscar Romero

• Spiritual freedom Wiley-Blackwell 2010

The Appropriation of Salvation in Christ

• The institutionalization of salvation: the church– Cyprian of Carthage

• “Outside the church, there is no salvation”– Church architecture

• The privatization of salvation: personal faith– Pietism– Philip Jakob Spener’s Pious Wishes (Pia Desideria)– Nikolaus Ludwig Graf von Zinzendorf– John and Charles Wesley– Fanny J. Cosby

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The Scope of Salvation in Christ• Two central affirmations

– God wishes all people to be saved– Salvation is possible only in and through Christ

• Universalism: all will be saved– Origen

• “restorationist” soteriology– John A. T. Robinson

• Only believers will be saved– Augustine– John Calvin– Faith, but not explicitly Christian

• John Wesley• C. S. Lewis

• Particular redemption: only the elect will be saved– Limited atonement– predestination Wiley-Blackwell 2010