Wolfhart Pannenberg

Pannenberg will have three chapters that involve certain phases of Christology. The importance of these three chapters ought to be obvious. Christians continue to trust Jesus with their lives, deepen their fellowship with Jesus, and represent him in this world. Successful Christology places these decisions on a secure foundation. In the Christian view, the man Jesus of Nazareth is the preexistent Son of God come to earth. Christology begins with the early Christian interpretation of the person and work of Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah of the Jewish people. He will agree with Moltmann in this assertion. [1] However, the difficulty in our secular age is great. He will want to bridge the gap. The early church quickly went to an exploration of the descent of the Son to humanity. However, since the Enlightenment, the historical picture of Jesus has removed itself from this theological tradition. The result is that the confessional statements become strange or impossible without sink...

I want to explore Jürgen Moltmann, The Way of Jesus Christ: Christology inMessianic Dimensions (1989, 1990) , the third in his series of contributions to theology. The first was his discussion of the Trinity and the second was his discussion of creation. In that context, what he will want to do is move from the metaphysical Christology of the ancients and the historical Christology of the modern era to a post-modern Christology that places human history in an ecological context. I want to expose any potential reader to what I think are the important insights of Moltmann. However, I also want to bring Moltmann and Pannenberg into dialogue. I will also point to some areas where this study has helped me to grow in my theological understanding. In the Preface, Moltmann says wants a Christology for men and women who are on the way in the conflicts of history, looking to get their bearings as they make their journey on the way of Jesus Christ. He contrasts his approach with a liturgic...