In the risen Jesus we see embodied what the Christian philosopher Herman Dooyeweerd calls the inter-modal systastic harmony – that is the way all aspects of reality integrate harmoniously with one another. But this also involves our encounter with the Transcendent One, whom Jesus taught us to call Father, and by whom we have been adopted as the brothers of Jesus (the process which in the Eastern Christian tradition is called divinisation or theosis). It is this encounter with the Transcendent One which I suppose one might call a supra-temporal experience, but which I would rather call calling (as in Isaiah 6) or vocation. This is the basis of our individuality (which is a very different thing from individualism, and indeed collectivism – just as rationality is very different from rationalism and irrationalism). Our individuality deepens our appreciation of our relationships with others which we have in Christ (the One in whom all things hold together). It is our individuality which makes the giving of God’s gifts to us possible. In this encounter also, we meet the Person of the Holy Spirit, the God of Surprises (to use Gerard Hughes evocative term). It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that who we are is opened to God’s purposes, and God realises in us his calling and deepens our relationships.
Whether this is theoretical or non-theoretical is not important (we cannot limit the ways in which God meets us) – what is important is that this is a matter of faith commitment, it affects the whole of life (not just part), and is radically transformative.
jgaive
Apr 29 2003
03:26 pm
I’m sorry for the delay, but here is a start.
In the risen Jesus we see embodied what the Christian philosopher Herman Dooyeweerd calls the inter-modal systastic harmony – that is the way all aspects of reality integrate harmoniously with one another. But this also involves our encounter with the Transcendent One, whom Jesus taught us to call Father, and by whom we have been adopted as the brothers of Jesus (the process which in the Eastern Christian tradition is called divinisation or theosis). It is this encounter with the Transcendent One which I suppose one might call a supra-temporal experience, but which I would rather call calling (as in Isaiah 6) or vocation. This is the basis of our individuality (which is a very different thing from individualism, and indeed collectivism – just as rationality is very different from rationalism and irrationalism). Our individuality deepens our appreciation of our relationships with others which we have in Christ (the One in whom all things hold together). It is our individuality which makes the giving of God’s gifts to us possible. In this encounter also, we meet the Person of the Holy Spirit, the God of Surprises (to use Gerard Hughes evocative term). It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that who we are is opened to God’s purposes, and God realises in us his calling and deepens our relationships.
Whether this is theoretical or non-theoretical is not important (we cannot limit the ways in which God meets us) – what is important is that this is a matter of faith commitment, it affects the whole of life (not just part), and is radically transformative.
Yours in Christ,
Jeremy