Game Over?: Reconsidering Eschatology

468 Pages·2017·5.822 MB·English

by  Christophe Chalamet (editor)

Game Over?
Theologische Bibliothek
Töpelmann
Herausgegeben von
Bruce McCormack, Friederike Nüssel
und Christoph Schwöbel
Band 180
Game Over?
Reconsidering Eschatology
Edited by
Christophe Chalamet, Andreas Dettwiler,
Mariel Mazzocco and Ghislain Waterlot
ISBN 978-3-11-051796-5
e-ISBN (PDF) 978-3-11-052141-2
e-ISBN (EPUB) 978-3-11-051982-2
ISSN 0563-4288
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A CIP catalog record for this book has been applied for at the Library of Congress.
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© 2017 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
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Table of Contents
Editors’ Introduction IX
Part 1: Biblical Interpretation and Reception
Stefan Beyerle
“Many of those who sleep in the land of dust shall awake!” (Dan 12:2)
Towards a Matrixof Apocalyptic Eschatology in Ancient Judaism 3
David Hamidović
De l’eschatologie et du messianisme à l’éthique sotériologique chez Philon
d’Alexandrie 21
Michael Wolter
„Game Over“ und „New Game“ in den Neutestamentlichen Eschatologien:
„Good News“ and „Bad News“ 37
Luc Bulundwe
Analyse de l’éventuelle responsabilité des disciples de Jésus dans le retard
de la parousie (2 Pierre 3,3–13) 55
Part 2: Eschatology, Modern Science, and Transhumanism
J. Wentzel van Huyssteen
From Evolutionary Anthropology to Theological Anthropology: Will a Shared
Future Emerge? 73
David Wilkinson
The Accelerating Universeand New Creation: Christian Eschatology in the
Face of Scientific Futility 97
Ron Cole-Turner
Human Evolution and Human Enhancement: The Eschatological Future of
Humanity 111
VI TableofContents
Part 3: Eschatology, the Political, Literature and Ethics
Vincent Delecroix
Eschatologie, dé-théologisation, politique 131
Lucie Doublet
L’eschatologie ou la responsabilité du temps présent
Sur le messianisme d’Emmanuel Levinas 149
Mariel Mazzocco
Avancer vers l’Aurore : La dynamique eschatologique dans l’œuvre de Jacob
Boehme 161
François Dermange
Selon quelle loi serons-nous jugés ?
Une réflexion à partir de la théologie réformée 171
Pierre Bühler
La pire tournure possible. Motifs apocalyptiques dans l’œuvre de Friedrich
Dürrenmatt – en textes et en images 187
Lexi Eikelboom
Rhythmic Eschatology: What Poetry Teaches About the Nature of
Time 203
Mathias Hassenfratz-Coffinet
Process et eschatologie : Les trois cités de Dieu 221
Janique Perrin
Traduire l’espérance : quand la fiction littéraire interpelle la
théologie 235
Anthony Feneuil
Après l’apocalypse
Remarques sur l’eschatologie au passé 247
TableofContents VII
Part 4: Constructing Theological Perspectives
Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon
“The End is Where we Start From”
Reflections on Eschatological Ontology 259
Karen Kilby
Eschatology, Suffering and the Limits of Theology 279
Christiane Tietz
The Crucial Question of Theodicy: Predestination in Martin Luther’s
Theology 293
Hans-Christoph Askani
„Amen, ja, komm Herr Jesu!“
Gedanken zum eschatologischen Charakter des christlichen
Glaubens 313
Christian Neddens
Melancholia und Caritas
Humanität im Vorletzten – Bildwelten Lars von Trier und des
Frühneuzeitlichen Luthertums 335
Henning Theißen
What Dare we Hope?
An Attempt to Conceive Newness after the End of the 20th Century 369
Elochukwu Uzukwu, C.S.Sp.
Endless Worlds, Creative Memories: Indigenous (West) African Eschatologies
Interfacing with the Future of Christianities 383
Philip G. Ziegler
Veniat regnum tuum!
Christology, Eschatology and the Christian Life 403
Contributors 421
Summaries 427
Index of Names 437
Index of Ancient Sources 445

Editors’ Introduction
This bookgathers most of the papers which were presented at an international
theological conference held at the University of Geneva (October 22–24, 2015).
TheconferencewasorganizedbytheUniversityofGeneva’sFacultyofTheology,
jointly with the Institut romand de systématique et d’éthique (IRSE),which be-
longs to this Faculty.
The projectof organizinga conference on the topic of eschatologyemerged
duringadaylongconferenceonthethoughtofJacquesEllul,asseveralmembers
ofGeneva’sTheologicalFacultybegandiscussingthequestionofthetraditional
Christian representations of “the end,” and especially its relationship to recent
developmentswithinthenaturalsciencesontheendoftheuniverse.Thegeneral
publichearsfromthenaturalsciencesthattheuniversewilleventuallydie.Jour-
nalistswhocoverthenaturalsciencesasknotwhethertheuniversewilldie,but
how that will happen.¹ How should Christian theologyconsider the narrative(s)
of the natural sciences concerning the final cataclysm towards which the uni-
verseas awholeappearstoheaded?Needlesstoday,with itsvisionofanulti-
mate judgment and redemption, in which God will wipe “every tear from their
eyes”(Rev21:4),inwhichGodwillbe“allinall”(1Cor15:28),Christiantheology
makes very different claims about the eschaton, i.e. the “end” of all things.
Hence the (somewhatcatchybut theologicallyquestionable) title of the Geneva
conferenceandofthisbook:“GameOver–goodnewsorbadnews?”Shouldwe
set out to reconcile the rather “bad” news which seems to be conveyed by sci-
encewiththe“good”newswhichisproclaimedbytheNewTestamentwitness?
Should we consider, as John Zizioulas suggests in a forthcoming work,² the
claimsmadebythenaturalsciencesas theconfirmationoftheChurchFathers’
insights into the creatureliness, and hence intrinsic finitude, of the created
order?Thissuggestionisenticing,butitrisksleadinguseitherintoasomewhat
schizophrenicexistence: Christians ought toplacetheir trust in a certainvision
ofthe “end,”but aswomenandmen ofthe 21stcenturythey mightfind itdiffi-
culttoarticulatethistrustwiththepicturemodernsciencepresentstous.Orper-
hapsschizophreniacanbeavoided,butinsuchawaythat,intheChristianview,
modernscienceonlygivesusonepartoftheequation(thefinitudeofthecreated
 Pierre Barthélémy, “ Comment l’Univers va-t-il mourir? ”, Le Monde (September 14, 2016).
http://passeurdesciences.blog.lemonde.fr/2016/09/14/comment-lunivers-va-t-il-mourir/ (consult-
edon2017/01/05).
 Cf. John Zizioulas, Remembering the Future. An Eschatological Ontology (Bloomsbury T&T
Clark).
DOI 10.1515/9783110521412-201
X Editors’Introduction
order), whereas the Christian faith adds something crucial, namely: the world
willindeedend,butGod,ascreatoroftheworld,willrenewitthroughGod’sres-
urrecting power.
Asthe tableofcontentof thepresentvolumeindicates, some ofthe papers
dotouchontherelationshipbetweentheologyandthenaturalsciences,butwe
didnotwishtoexclusivelyfocusonthisdifficult,perhapsintractable,question.
Ouraimwastogathertogetherexegetes,historiansofideas,philosophersofre-
ligion,scholarsoftheologyandliterature,ethicists,andsystematictheologians.
Wehopedtofosteraconversationacrossseveraldisciplines,evenifourcentral
goal was to enrich the current theological reflection.
The “rebirth” of eschatology within theology can be traced back to a 67
pages pamphlet published by the New Testament scholar Johannes Weiss in
1892:DiePredigtJesu vomReicheGottes(Göttingen:Vandenhoeck &Ruprecht).³
Asiswell-known,inthisworkWeissquestionedthemodern,includingAlbrecht
Ritschl’s, interpretation of Jesus’s message concerning God’s Kingdom. As a
thinker influenced by Kant and Schleiermacher, Ritschl stressedthe ethical sig-
nificanceoftheKingdom.Inhisview,“Kant[…]wasthefirsttoperceivethesu-
preme importance for ethics of the ‘Kingdom of God’ as an association of men
[sic] bound together by laws of virtue.”⁴ For Jesus himself, the Kingdom of
God was “the moral end of the religious fellowship He had to found.” Jesus
didnotunderstandbyit“thecommonexerciseofworship,buttheorganization
of humanity through action inspired by love.”⁵ And so, to Ritschl,who had to
defend himself againstcriticswhoperceived Pelagian overtonesin his thought,
theKingdomwasboth“ourtasktorealize,”aswellas“thehighestgoodwhich
Goddestinesforusasoursupramundanegoal.”⁶TheKingdommaybewhatwe
arecalledtofulfill,butthisdoesn’tmeantheKingdomhaslostitstranscenden-
tal dimension.⁷ It is both a promise and a task.⁸
 Jesus’ Proclamation of the Kingdom of God,trans. Richard Hyde Hiers and David Larrimore
Holland (Chico: Scholars Press, 1985; reprint of the edition published by Fortress Press in
1971).This is a translation of the first edition of J.Weiss’ book (the 2nd edition, published in
1900,wassignificantlyexpanded,from67to210pages).
 AlbrechtRitschl,TheChristianDoctrineofJustificationandReconciliation:ThePositiveDevel-
opmentoftheDoctrine(Edinburgh:T&TClark,1900),III:11.Thistranslationwasbasedonthe
thirdeditionofRitschl’sbook,originallypublishedinGermanin1888.
 Ibid.,12.
 Ibid.,205–6.
 “ItisanessentialcharacteristicoftheKingdomofGodthat,asthefinalendwhichisbeing
realisedintheworldandasthesupremegoodofcreatedspirits,ittranscendstheworld,justas
GodHimselfissupramundane.”Ibid.,281.