The Way of the Kenotic Christ: The Christology of Jürgen Moltmann

By Samuel J. Youngs

Despite his vast importance to twentieth-century theology, Jurgen Moltmann's Christology has yet to receive the same level of in-depth exploration as other topics in his thought. Samuel Youngs addresses this lacuna, providing the first exhaustive analysis of Moltmann's doctrine of Christ, including its key developments and controversial elements.

Youngs argues that Moltmann's doctrine of Christ is best understood as a unique variation of kenotic Christology. This vision of Christ encapsulates not only a series of vibrant ethical and eschatological points, but also serves Moltmann's overarching theological goal of empowering a church that lives and ministers "under the cross."

Part I highlights key facets of Moltmann's theological method before unfolding the range of diverse themes that characterize his Christology. Part II explores Moltmann's use of the "kenosis hymn" of Philippians 2, before interrogating Moltmann's relationship to christological tradition. Part III engages in an original systematization of Moltmann's Christology, centered on the theme of manifold, relational kenosis.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cascade Books
• Release date: Oct 25, 2019
• ISBN: 9781532661921

Samuel J. Youngs

Samuel J. Youngs is Associate Professor of Christan Studies at Bryan College, Adjunct Professor of Church History and Theology at Richmont Graduate University, and Academic Dean of the Mission School of Ministry (missionschoolofministry.com). He lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee, with his wife and three children.

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The Way of the Kenotic Christ

The Christology of Jürgen Moltmann

Samuel J. Youngs

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Acknowledgments

It has been said that theology is biography, and this sentiment, whatever its other merits, distills the humbling truth that every endeavor to speak about God is molded by the life experiences of the one who attempts the speaking. My teachers, colleagues, friends, and family have all shaped me fundamentally, and thus they are all, in their own way, my coauthors.

My theological journey began, as most of ours do, in my home and among my parents. They have both shaped me in innumerable ways—my likes and dislikes, my outlooks and attitudes. From my mother, Kelly, I learned the supreme worth of pursuing faithful truth without dogmatism. From my father, Dale, I was tutored in the value of hard work and dedication to the tasks that God has set before us. Without them I would not be a theologian.

I learned to take my first theological steps when I was shown that an academic mind need not be separate from a generous, joyous heart, and also when I realized that good thinking emerges from well-posed and fearless questions. The former I was taught by Raymond Hundley, my first professor of religion and theology, whose broad erudition was matched only by his care for students and sense of humor. The latter I was taught by Ben Williams, a true friend and mentor, whose encouragements to my passions and challenges to my assumptions are gifts that have kept on giving for quite a long time now. Without these men, I might still be a theologian, but certainly one less brave and less inquisitive.

I adopted my theological posture from my two most influential seminary professors: Adonis Vidu and Patrick Smith. Adonis showed me the deep and unavoidable interface between theology, culture, and philosophy, and this has colored my scholarship and teaching ever since. Pat modeled as a teacher and exhibited as a friend the inestimable virtue of circumspection; his genuine humility and appetite for nuance opened wide the vistas of dialogue and exploration. Without Adonis and Pat, I might still be a theologian, but not one who values looking deeply and seeking the many sides of every issue.

Much gratitude is justly owed to my two doctoral supervisors. Paul Janz has, through years of invigorating conversation, tireless editing, and incisive commentary, taken the molten rawness of my theological excitement and funneled it through the fissures of rigor, academic charity, and acuity of expression. Paul is a rare mentor, unafraid of providing censure where needed and only granting praise when truly warranted. Oliver Davies has lent much to my critical investigations, not only through his boundless energy and insight, but in his deep conviction that theology’s momentum must always be a constructive one in the midst of humanity’s cultural shifts and discoveries. While I may still be a theologian without Paul and Oliver, my thinking would be much impoverished and its horizons far more limited.

There are innumerable other voices that have contributed to my theological growth, academic pursuits, and the formation of the ideas in this book. Jeremy Liddell and Jonathan Xavier are my oldest friends, and they have borne the cross of having a theologically exuberant (and often longwinded) friend with forbearance and good humor. My pastors, past and present—Glenn Gardner, the late Paul Harshbarger, Bruce Quackenbush, Patrick Gray, Chris Sorensen, Ben Ferguson—as well as my parents-in-law, Phil and Susy Downer, have all ministered to me in various, significant ways and have encouraged me to apply my academic vocation in the service of Christ’s church.

Through heartfelt conversations that have been both life-giving and stimulating, Joey Schlabs, Paul Downer, Dr. Jud Davis, and many of my students (Jeremy Eastwood, the late Christopher Nitzband, Aaron Pendergress, and Dakota Thacker, among others) have helped forge the principal ideas and insights that animate this book. And of course I am grateful to Jürgen Moltmann, my closest theological companion of the past half-decade and the subject of this book, for his personal story of darkness overcome and his fertile theology of Christ-centered hope. By all of these I have been shaped, and to all of these I owe much gratitude.

But the most praise flows most assuredly to my wife Anna. There is no one else who has endured my theological permutations with more grace and genuine understanding. There is no one else who has encouraged and supported me more fruitfully. There is no one else who has chastened my rationality by more beautifully enflaming my heart with love for Jesus Christ and those he came to save. And there is no one else who has, quite simply, taught me more about theology and the Christian life, for our marriage and the parenting of our children have shown me in clearest daylight things of God I only knew as shadows before. Without Anna, I might be a theologian, but only one who lives and thinks at a tragic distance from the world. Without her, I would be a theologian who speaks of false things, rather than real things.

Table of Contents

Title Page

Acknowledgments

Abbreviations

Introduction

Part I: Moltmann’s Theological Method and Christological Thematics

Chapter 1: Distinctives of Moltmann’s Theological Approach

The Christological Center of Moltmann’s Theology

Situating Moltmann’s Christology: Methodological Considerations

Conclusion: Christological Preliminaries

Chapter 2: Themes in Moltmann’s Christology

Moltmann’s Messianic/Promise Christology

Moltmann’s Solidarity/Firstborn Christology

Moltmann’s Pneumatological/Developmental Christology

Conclusion: Looking Toward Moltmann’s Kenotic Christology

Part II: Locating Christological Kenosis in Moltmann

Chapter 3: Moltmann’s Hermeneutics of the Kenosis Hymn

Philippians 2:5–8 and Its Christological Interpretations

Exploring Moltmann’s View

Conclusion: From Kenotic Hymn to Kenotic Christ

Chapter 4: Moltmann’s Commitments

Christology, Context, and Creed

Conflicting Interpretations of Moltmann and Chalcedon

Kenosis as Key to Moltmann’s Incarnational Thought

Conclusion: Toward the Kenotic Life of Christ

Part III: The Life of Christ in Kenotic Key

Chapter 5: The Way of the Kenotic Christ (I)

Kenotic Mission: The Will of the Father

Kenotic Efficacy: The Power of the Spirit

Conclusion: Messiah-in-Process

Chapter 6: The Way of the Kenotic Christ (II)

Kenotic Identity: The Community of the Poor

Kenotic Embodiment: The Frailty of the Flesh

Conclusion: An Empathetic and Suffering Christ

Chapter 7: Following the Way of the Kenotic Christ

Summarizing the Christology: The Whole Self-Emptying

The Christology’s Horizon: Constructive Trajectories

Conclusion: The Kenotic Christ in Moltmann’s Thought

Bibliography

Abbreviations

Standard English translations of Moltmann’s major works, having been completed in the original author’s lifetime and typically finalized with his approval, are readily referenced and quoted throughout this book. Bibliographic information and corresponding abbreviations for the relevant English editions are provided here. The German originals have also been utilized throughout the study and at certain points the German text is brought into the English quotations in order to help clarify or further specify Moltmann’s intended meaning or his unique deployment of theological terminology. When such citations are made, they are from the corresponding German editions below.

ABP A Broad Place: An Autobiography, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2009.

= Weiter Raum: Eine Lebensgeschichte, Gütersloh: Gütersloher Verlagshaus, 2006.

CG The Crucified God, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993.

= Der gekreuzigte Gott: Das Kreuz Christi als Grund und Kritik christlicher Theologie, München: Chr. Kaiser, 1972.

CoG The Coming of God, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2000.

= Das Kommen Gottes: Christliche Eschatologie, München: Chr. Kaiser, 1996.

CPS The Church in the Power of the Spirit, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993.

= Kirche in der Kraft des Geistes, München: Chr. Kaiser Verlag, 1975.

EG Experiences of God, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2007.

= Gotteserfahrungen: Hoffnung, Angst, Mystik, München: Chr. Kaiser, 1979.

ET Experiences in Theology, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2000.

= Erfahrungen theologischen Denkens, Gütersloh: Chr. Kaiser Verlag / Gütersloher Verlaghaus, 2000.

EthH Ethics of Hope, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2012.

= Ethik Der Hoffnung, Gütersloh: Gütersloher Verlagshaus, 2010.

FC Future of Creation: Collected Essays, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2007.

= Zukunft der Schöpfung: Gesammelte Aufsätze, München, Chr. Kaiser, 1977.

GC God in Creation, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993.

= Gott in der Schöpfung: Ökologische Schöpfungslehre, München: Chr. Kaiser, 1985.

GSS God for a Secular Society: The Public Relevance of Theology, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1999.

= Gott im Projekt der modernen Welt: Beiträge zur öffentlichen Relevanz der Theologie, Gütersloh: Chr. Kaiser / Gütersloher Verlagshaus, 1997.

HG Humanity in God, New York: The Pilgrim Press, 1983.

HTG History and the Triune God, trans. by John Bowden, London: SCM Press, 1991.

= In der Geschichte des dreieinigen Gottes: Beiträge zur trinitarischen Theologie, München: Chr. Kaiser, 1991.

IEB In the End, the Beginning: The Life of Hope, trans. Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004.

= Im Ende—der Anfang, Gütersloh: Chr. Kaiser / Gütersloher Verlagshaus, 2004.

JCTW Jesus Christ for Today’s World, trans. Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1994.

= Wer ist Christus für uns heute?, München: Chr. Kaiser, 1994.

PL The Passion for Life: A Messianic Lifestyle, trans. by Douglas Meeks, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2007 ed.

= Neuer Lebensstil. Schritte zur Gemeinde, München: Chr. Kaiser, 1977.

SoL The Source of Life: The Holy Spirit and the Theology of Life, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1997.

= Die Quelle des Lebens: Der Heilige Geist und die Theologie des Lebens, Gütersloh: Chr. Kaiser/Götersloher Verlagshaus, 1997.

SpL The Spirit of Life, transs. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2001.

= Der Geist des Lebens: Eine ganzheitliche Pneumatologie (München: Chr. Kaiser, 1991.

SRA Sun of Righteousness, Arise! God’s Future for Humanity and the Earth, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2010.

= Sein Name ist Gerechtigkeit: Neue Beiträge zur christlichen Gotteslehre, Gütersloh: Gütersloher Verlagshaus, 2009.

SW Science and Wisdom, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2003.

= Wissenschaft und Weisheit: Zum Gesprüch zwischen Naturwissenschaft und Theologie, Gütersloh: Chr. Kaiser / Gütersloher Verlagshaus, 2002.

TH Theology of Hope, trans. by James W. Leitch, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993.

= Theologie der Hoffnung. München: Chr. Kaiser, 1965.

TK The Trinity and the Kingdom, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993.

= Trinität und Reich Gottes: Zur Gotteslehre, München: Chr. Kaiser, 1980.

WJC The Way of Jesus Christ, trans. by Margaret Kohl, Minneapolis, Fortress Press, 1993.

= Der Weg Jesu Christi: Christologie in messianischen Dimensionen, München: Chr. Kaiser, 1989.

Introduction

The Christological Lacuna in Moltmann Studies

Jürgen Moltmann is one of the most important Protestant voices of the twentieth century. He shares space in the theological firmament with the likes of Niebuhr, Pannenberg, and Rahner, and his global (rather than merely Western) impact exceeds all of them. Over thirty years ago, in 1985, Miroslav Volf noted that more than 130 dissertations had been written on Moltmann’s theology, standing as a striking testimony to both the fecundity and attractiveness of his thought.¹ In a more recent festschrift for Moltmann, Volf and Michael Welker put the number of dissertations on Moltmann at over two hundred and claim that Moltmann has shaped the international theological conversation in the twentieth century more than any other Protestant theologian since Karl Barth, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and Paul Tillich.² The extent of Moltmann’s influence beyond his native Germany only serves to illustrate the expanse of his theological endeavors,³ an expanse that has dealt with both age-old doctrinal axioms and emergent challenges to Christian faith. His contributions concerning eschatology and trinitarian theology have received the fullest attention in secondary scholarship,⁴ but these areas have been complemented by robust interaction with Moltmann’s ethics (spurred in no small part by his long-awaited Ethics of Hope⁵), as well as his ecological, cosmological, and anthropological ideas.⁶

However, if one examines the topical range of major secondary works on Moltmann’s thought, one thing emerges quite strikingly: no work in English is wholly dedicated to expounding or interacting with his Christology. Many studies touch on his Christology in some way, but none offer more than a few scattered sections, or perhaps one focused chapter, on whichever isolated aspect of the Christology they have deemed most pertinent to the other theological locus that they are investigating. Any robust, detailed analysis that attempts to sum the varied contours and themes of Moltmann’s christological thought is conspicuously absent in contemporary engagement with his thought.⁷ The prominence of this lacuna is exacerbated not only by the fact that the longest writings in both his original trilogy and his six-volume Contributions to Systematic Theology are, in fact, devoted to Christology,⁸ but also by the fact that Moltmann, throughout his career, has unflinchingly asserted that his theology is christological in foundation and implication, a fact not always recognized by those who comment on his thought.⁹

Moreover, and pivotally, the uniquely kenotic trajectory of Moltmann’s Christology has been overlooked. This neglect has typically assumed one of two forms: either a single aspect of Moltmann’s Christology is focused on in isolation, with little exploration of kenosis or other dimensions of his Christology, or kenosis is discussed as an overarching cosmological or trinitarian theme in Moltmann’s theology, but without much discussion of its specifically christological expression or ramifications.

The need for these lacunae to be thoroughly addressed forms the principal motivation for this book. I aim (1) to present a far more detailed elucidation and systematization of Moltmann’s doctrine of Christ than it has yet received and (2) to constructively argue for a kenotic reading of that Christology, highlighting ways in which the theme of kenosis centers Moltmann’s christological thought and also casts light on its broader doctrinal and practical implications.

Chapter 1 initiates the study. Before engaging in an exposition of his christological content as such, I thoroughly analyze Moltmann’s theological methodology (which is unique in and of itself) in order to equip and orient our exploration of his Christology’s myriad themes and developments.

In chapter 2, I turn my attention to systematizing what I call Moltmann’s christological thematics. This terminology highlights the fact that, although Moltmann’s Christology is spread across several major and minor works emerging in the course of decades of theological development, it bears within it several arrangements of tightly related themes that mutually inform one another. Therefore, in order to have a sense of the Christology’s full orbit (which will be necessary for us to argue for its essentially kenotic character), a synchronic analysis of its varied expressions, as well as a synthesis of them, will be important.

Chapter 3 engages the topic of christological kenosis in arguably the most direct way possible: by exploring Moltmann’s relation to, and application of, the kenosis hymn found in Phil 2. Through a multi-layered analysis of past and contemporary interpretive approaches, I contextualize, define, and distinguish Moltmann’s own approach, revealing a unique understanding of kenosis that varies from a great many other kenotic approaches to Christology.

Chapter 4 proceeds to analyze Moltmann’s Christology at its most basal (and perhaps most controversial) level: his standing as regards the Chalcedonian Definition and two natures Christology. Since most discussions of christological kenosis hinge importantly on these issues, this portion of the study serves to beneficially reveal the sometimes obscure christological motivations and intuitions of Moltmann, building on key points about his method and his hermeneutics that have been established in the foregoing chapters.

Chapters 5 and 6 proceed to delineate Moltmann’s doctrine of Christ by exploring what will be shown to be its true orienting center: the kenosis of Christ. Stated briefly, I argue in these chapters that kenosis in Moltmann’s thought is a deeply relational reality that defines Christ’s existence and activity across four major, defining relationships: relation to the Father; relation to the Spirit; relations with social realities; and relation with Jesus’ flesh itself.

The book’s final chapter culminates in an integrated, systematized articulation of Moltmann’s Christology that is multifaceted, biblical, and correlational, but also deeply and pervasively kenotic. A final and brief section highlights the horizons of Moltmann’s kenotic Christology, pointing toward ecclesial and practical issues where it may be helpfully applied.

Before leaving this Introduction, a few comments are needed concerning Moltmann as a source of academic theology. Anyone who has taken the time to read and understand Moltmann recognizes that his thinking is characterized by thematic arrangement and present-day challenges rather than systematic exposition. This has frustrated some commentators, but it is fully consistent with Moltmann’s theological and methodological suppositions.¹⁰ My approach has been to concentrate my primary research on Moltmann’s major published books and on the essays that appear in book-form collections, as these are the sources that represent his most consistent and robust exposition of his ideas. Moreover, my argumentation does not consist in describing Moltmann’s christological development in a diachronic fashion, but rather in allowing his various mature statements to throw mutual light upon each other in synchronic reciprocity. This approach is justified since, even though there are certainly phases to Moltmann’s career, as far as his Christology goes there has been very little recanting of earlier positions on his part; rather, there has been a continuous expansion and clarification of his christological reflections along thematic lines.¹¹

Furthermore, concerning my treatment of Moltmann, I have taken up the task of systematizing and integrating various—and sometimes latent—themes or ideas that are disseminated throughout his major works. This means that my account of his thought will occasionally make connections, or present systematizations, that he himself does not espouse explicitly (though they will be shown to be fundamentally rooted in his work and implied in his positions). This has been standard practice in constructive interactions with Moltmann’s thought, and he himself has not objected to it.¹² Also, given that secondary literature on Moltmann, as mentioned above, is presently quite vast in scope, I have judiciously focused on the range of interlocutors who have concertedly focused on areas of his theology that are most pertinent to an exposition of his Christology.

Finally, then, a closing note on the tone of this study, especially as regards the work of Moltmann. Despite the general admiration for Moltmann among many theologians, he has also, interestingly, been subjected to a fair degree of sharp suspicion and theological censure in the course of his career, with the accusations ranging from crypto-atheist, to unbridled Hegelian, to obvious tri-theist, to sponsor of abusive theology, to participant in slipshod doctrinal rumination that lacks proper analytical discipline.¹³ Such appellations have led, on occasion, to certain distortionary analyses and unfounded associations in secondary treatments of his work. Where these have been encountered in the course of research, and where possible in the progress of argumentation, they have been carefully highlighted and charitably challenged.

However, criticisms of Moltmann are far from being universally delinquent, and many of them raise legitimate issues. Thus, where it is both topically relevant and logistically possible, I have sought to acknowledge certain deficiencies in either his method or in his doctrinal elucidations. That said, it should be remembered that the underlying disposition of this work is critically constructive. It affirms the positive, creative, and doctrinal value of kenotic thinking in Christology and the contributions