CS/TS 650Theological Foundations of Christian Spirituality

Spirituality Types (Martha Ainsworth)

Theology TypesDeveloped by Justo Gonzalez

Justo Gonzalez’s Theology Types

• Bevans and Schroeder’s work is based on the prior thesis of Justo Gonzalez (in Christian Thought Revisited, 1999), where he outlines three theology types:• Type A – Key Word: “Law”• Type B – Key Word: “Truth”• Type C – Key Word: “History”

Constants in Context A Theology of Mission for TodayStephen B. BevansRoger P. Schroeder

The Six Constants of Mission (Constants in Context, Chapter 2)

Gonzalez’s Theology Types

Type A – “Law”Type B – “Truth”Type C – “History”

Type D – “Holiness” (not in Gonzalez)

Constants of Mission

1) Christology2) Ecclesiology3) Eschatology4) Salvation5) Anthropology6) Culture

Characterizations of Each TypeOrigin – Not where a particular type necessarily originated,

but rather the cultural center or locale in which the earliest identifiable articulation of a specific type is expressed

Culture – The milieu or setting which helped to shape or form the characteristic language of a type

Characterizations of Each TypeKey Figure – The historical figure (theologian)

who most aptly exemplifies a particular type in its earliest expression

Key Word – The term that best summarizes or encapsulates the character of a particular theological type

Trajectory – A discernable line of intellectual/missional descent inspired by a particular theological type in history

Type A Theology

Mission as Saving Souls and Extending the Church (Constants in Context, pp. 36-49)

Type A TheologyOrigin – CarthageCulture – RomanKey Figure – TertullianKey Word – “Law”Trajectory – Western orthodox traditions including Medieval

scholasticism, Reformation thought, and Fundamentalism.

Origin and Culture

Roman Carthage

Tertullian (AD 170-215)

Tertullian• First major Christian theologian to write in Latin• Probably educated as a lawyer• Credited for coining the term “Trinity”• Exemplifies the understanding of Christian life that became

dominant in the Western church

Type A Key Word: Law“In Tertullian’s writings, God is described as a lawgiver and

judge, creation is conceived as wholly complete and ordered, and sin is described as going against this order and breaking divine law. Human beings are born into this world as sinners, having inherited sinfulness from first parents who originally broke God’s law and disrupted the world’s order…

Key Word: Law

“Jesus is depicted as the new Moses and the gospel a new law, which is a new law of repentance. If men and women submit to that law in baptism, they will be saved, and so avoid God’s punishment, provided they obey the laws of God’s church and the prescriptions of Holy Scripture” (Constants in Context, p. 38).

Type A TrajectoryAugustineAnselmAquinasLutherCalvinConservative Theology (including Fundamentalism as an

extreme)

Type B Theology

Mission as Discovery of Truth (Constants in Context, pp. 49-61)

Type B TheologyOrigin – Alexandria (Egypt)Culture – Hellenistic (Greek)Key Figure – OrigenKey Word – TruthTrajectory – Eastern Orthodox theology; the liberal

theological traditions in the West.

Origin and Culture

Alexandria, Egypt

Alexander the Great (4th century BC)

Origen of Alexandria (AD 185-254)

Origen• Student of Clement and his successor as the head of the

famous catechetical school in Alexandria• Prolific writer who wrote commentaries on nearly every

biblical book. His most famous work was On First Principles.• Steeped in Neo-Platonic thought.

Type B Key Word: Truth

“What is central to the perspective of Type B theology…is…the conviction that human reason can indeed come into contact – in partial but nevertheless authentic ways – with ineffable Truth” (Constants in Context, p. 50).

Key Word: Truth

“For Type B theology, human experience – particularly as enhanced through the power of philosophical reason – can serve ‘as a basic hermeneutical tool to understand the meaning of Scripture and the nature of Christianity’” (Constants in Context, p. 51).

Type B TrajectoryPeter Abelard (scholastic)Julian of Norwich (mystic)Soren Kierkegaard (existentialist)Friedrich Schleiermacher (Protestant liberalism)Paul Tillich (20th century)

Type C Theology

Mission as Commitment to Liberation and Transformation (Constants in Context, pp. 61-72)

Type C TheologyOrigin – AntiochCulture – Near EasternKey Figure – IrenaeusKey Word – History Trajectory – Popular movements; mendicant orders

(Medieval); early Reformation; modern liberation theologies in the west

Origin and Culture

Antioch of Syria

The School of Antioch• Less Romanized than Carthage; less Hellenized than

Alexandria• Theology less legalistic and less abstract; more concrete,

based on events of history• Emphasized literal approach to Scripture; and human nature

of Christ

Irenaeus (AD 130-202)

Irenaeus• Early representative of Near Eastern theology• Heir to rich sub-apostolic approach that was based neither on

law or philosophy, but on actually witnessed events• Developed a theological tradition rooted in the notion that all

things take place within time and are guided towards God’s future

Type C Key Word: History

“…history in Type C theology was part of God’s plan from the beginning and not a result of a fall from some eternal state of perfection or contemplation. God created men and women in the image of God but with the task of growing into God’s full likeness. As such, they were created imperfect but were perfectible…

Key Word: History

“Adam and Eve had made a mistake in the Garden of Eden. By disobeying God they had, as it were, exceeded their grasp, and so fell into the servitude of the devil. But, despite sin, God as Father and Shepherd continues mercifully to lead and guide humanity throughout history…

Key Word: History

“God sent Jesus to free humanity from Satan’s clutches and so to make possible continued growth, until at the End all will be recapitulated in him” (Constants in Context, p. 62).

Type C TrajectoryMissionary work of Nestorian Church in China and IndiaSt. Francis of Assisi (Franciscan Order)Early LutherKarl Barth / Dietrich BonhoefferLiberation theologies

Type D Theology – A Proposal• Not one of Gonzalez’s three types:• Type A – Law• Type B – Truth• Type C – History

Type D TheologyOrigin – Western European (England)Culture – Pietistic Protestant (English)Key Figure – John WesleyKey Word – Holiness Trajectory – Methodism, Evangelicalism, Quietism (Quakers),

First & Second Great Awakenings, Revivalism, Holiness Movement, Pentecostalism, Charismatic Movement

NOTE: Other starting points and key figures could have been chosen for this theology type, most notably Gerard Groote and the Brethren of the Common Life (14th century) and Count Nicolas Zinzendorf and the Moravians (18th century)

Type D Key Word: Holiness• Holiness as “mission” is concerned with a Christian faith that is

personal, practical, and revivalistic• Moral renovation• “Personal relationship with Jesus”• Concerned with the “salvation of souls,” not merely in the sense

of a “saving set of beliefs,” but a heartfelt faith that changes or transforms one’s character – a true sanctification.

John Wesley (1703-1791)

Aldersgate Experience

“In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society in Aldersgate Street, where one was reading Luther's preface to the Epistle to the Romans. About a quarter before nine, while the leader was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ alone for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death.”

Wesley’s Journal entry (May 24, 1738)

Spirituality Types (Martha Ainsworth)

Theology & Spirituality

Our Theological Loci• Scripture• The Trinity• Christology (Doctrine of Christ)• Pneumatology (Doctrine of the Spirit)• Sacraments• Ecclesiology (Doctrine of the Church)• Eschatology (The Kingdom of God)

The Theology Types & our Theological Loci: ScriptureType A - Law Type B- Truth Type C - History Type D - Holiness

Canon- fixed, cannot add or subtract

Canon-closed as a matter of historical contingency

Canon-closed as a matter of historical contingency

Canon-fixed, cannot add or subtract

Allegorical (originally)Literal

Allegorical/Figurative

Literal/Typological

Literal

Regulative Mythopoeic/Legend

Narrative/Evocation

Renovative

Salvation through “right belief”

Salvation through “finding truth”

Salvation “in” and “of” history

Salvation through personal change

The Theology Types & our Theological Loci: TrinityType A - Law Type B - Truth Type C - History Type D - Holiness

Economic Trinity Ontological Trinity Both Economic Trinity

Soteriological roles of each Person (Atonement)

Ontological relation of each Person of the Divine Mystery

Roles of each Person in Salvation History(Kingdom)

Soteriological roles of each Person(Atonement)

Salvation considered in terms of the execution of the Divine decree of election

Salvation considered in terms of a participation in the Divine mystery

Salvation considered in terms of the realization of the Kingdom of God

Salvation considered in terms of a personal relationship (saving decision)

Heterodoxy: Sabellianism, Filioquism

Heterodoxy: Subordinationism

Heterodoxy: Subordinationism

Heterodoxy: Sabellianism, Filioquism

The Theology Types & our Theological Loci: ChristologyType A - Law Type B - Truth Type C - History Type D - Holiness

High Christology – emphasis on divinity

High or Low Low Christology – emphasis on humanity

High Christology – emphasis on divinity

Redemption – Satisfaction Theory

Redemption – Exemplar Theory (Moral)

Redemption – Ransom Theory (Liberation)

Redemption – Satisfaction (for sins), Moral (for sanctification)

Salvation – Exclusive

Salvation – Inclusive/Pluralist

Salvation – Inclusive/moderate Pluralist

Salvation – Exclusive

Heterodoxy – Docetic

Heterodoxy – Monophysite, Arian

Heterodoxy – Nestorian

Heterodoxy – Docetic

High or Low Christology?

High – Focus on Christ as Divine Son of God.

Descriptive term: Lordship

(Types A, B, D)

Low – Focus on Christ as Son of Man.

Descriptive term: Incarnational

(Types B and C)

Models of Redemption Satisfaction – Christ’s death satisfies God’s Justice (Type A, D) Exemplar – Christ’s death demonstrates the extent of God’s

love (Type B, D) Liberation (Ransom) – Christ’s death frees God’s Image-bearer

(humanity) from slavery to Satan (Type C)

Models of Salvation

Exclusive – A Christology that confesses Jesus alone as Savior (Type A, D)

Inclusive – A Christology that holds out the possibility that God’s grace in Christ may be implicitly present or offered in other ways (Types B or C)

Pluralist – A Christology which holds that Jesus is merely one of many ways to salvation (Types B or C)

The Theology Types and our Theological Loci: Holy SpiritType A – Law Type B – Truth Type C – History Type D – Holiness

Economic Trinity Ontological Trinity Both Economic Trinity

Filioque – Spirit proceeds from the Father & the Son

Reject Filioque – Spirit proceeds from Father only

Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son

Filioque – Spirit proceeds from the Father & the Son

Concern: co-equality of the Father & Son

Concern: maintain proper monarchy of the Father

Concern: maintain proper roles of the Three Persons

Concern: co-equality of the Father & Son

Unity of Godhead Full Deity of Three Persons

Full disclosure of the Divine in history

Unity of Godhead

Holy Spirit – principle of Love; rationale for elective grace(monergistic)

Holy Spirit – movement/activity com-municates energies of God(synergistic)

Holy Spirit – movement/activity defines the kingdom of God (monergistic or synergistic)

Holy Spirit – principle of Love; rationale for moral renovation; charismata(synergistic)

Theology Types & Theological Loci: Sacraments & ChurchType A - Law Type B - Truth Type C - History Type D - Holiness

“Institution of Grace”

“Community of the Spirit”

“Community of the Spirit”

“Institution of Grace”

“Herald of Grace” “Herald of Grace”

“Community of the Covenant”

“Community of the Covenant”

“Community of True Believers”

“Community of True Believers”

“Community of the Kingdom”

“Community of the Kingdom”

Theology Types & Theological Loci: EschatologyPre-Mill A-Mill Post-Mill

Strong Type A; Type D Found in all typologies, but favors Type B

Strong Type C; Type A

Before Parousia After Parousia After Parousia

Literal thousand years Metaphor – 1000 years Metaphor – 1000 years

Golden Age of Christ’s Rule

Christ’s kingdom is exclusively internal

Christ’s kingdom is internal and external

First & Second Resurrections – physical

First Resurrection – regenerationSecond Resurrection - physical

First Resurrection – reign of saints with ChristSecond Resurrection - physical

Most consistent with:“Christ against Culture”“Christ and Culture in Paradox”

Most consistent with:“Christ of Culture”“Christ and Culture in Paradox”

Most consistent with:“Christ of Culture”“Christ above Culture”“Christ Transforming Culture”

Spirituality Types (Martha Ainsworth)