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Jürgen Moltmann's View Of The Imago Dei

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In Jürgen Moltmann’s theology his discussions typically include his views of the human being. This paper will explore the question, “Does Jürgen Moltmann’s select early works seek to answer to the question what is the human being as the imago Dei?” The goal of this first section of the paper is to describe some of the various aspects of the imago Dei, which emerge within Moltmann’s early corpus. Imago Dei: Functional and Missional The human being is a frequent topic in Moltmann’s theology, although he is does not always address the imago Dei explicitly in his works. In contemporary theology, the imago Dei is typically described in terms of relational, functional or substantive approaches. In his early works Moltmann does not restrict his …show more content…

Although Moltmann discusses various aspects of humanity in his earlier works, he does not address the Genesis 1 narrative that describes the creation of humanity until The Church in the Power of the Spirit. Here, he affirms a traditional interpretation of the creation account in Genesis 1:27, that humanity is created in God’s image to rule over creation. However, for Moltmann, this rule does not make humanity like God nor equal to Him, nor does it give humans unlimited power in the earth, nor over fellow humans. The restrictions placed upon humanity by God are important to Moltmann’s theological anthropology because love towards the other in central to his view of humanity, an aspect that will be discussed later in this …show more content…

For Moltmann, the human being is in the process of becoming true humanity. Moltmann bases this view on the salvation that occurs in the present through Christ and on the future state of humanity as the new creation. Humanity does not fully become the new creation until the eschaton. However, humans have hope for this new life in the resurrection of the future. Moltmann points out that the revealing of true human nature is an important outcome of salvation through Christ. In the New Testament, the calling and mission in Christ is for all of humanity, which means that through this endeavor (a specific) human nature can be observed. Moltmann argues that there is a “true humanity” that can only be revealed as a result of salvation in Christ. It is only when the human being experiences and receives the truth in Christ that the true human nature can

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