Bearing Sin as Church Community: Bonhoeffer's Hamartiology

Hyun Joo Kim argues that Bonhoeffer reconstructs the Augustinian doctrine of original sin by shifting the hamartiological premise from God to the church, using Lutheran resources. He explicates how Augustine relates his epistemological premises to his formulation of original sin and how Luther's Christocentric standpoint transforms Augustines anthropology, leading to his relational hamartiology. Bonhoeffer's later hamartiology and ethics contain the most distinctive characteristics of his doctrine of sin, incorporating both active and passive dimensions and intensifying his notion of "vicarious representative action" towards the church community.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 232 pages
Publication date: 22 February 2024
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Hyun Joo Kim asserts that Bonhoeffer, through his utilization of Lutheran resources, significantly alters and reconstructs the Augustinian doctrine of original sin. He argues that Bonhoeffer's perspective diverges from Augustine's by shifting the hamartiological premise from the doctrine of God to the doctrine of the church. Bonhoeffer believes that Augustine's doctrine of original sin fails to adequately connect the concept of sin to the responsibility of the saints. To reform Augustine's hamartiology, Bonhoeffer appropriates Augustine's notion of the church as the entirety of Christ (totus Christus), which is central to Augustine's ecclesiology. Kim delves into how Augustine establishes a connection between his epistemological premises in his Christianized Platonism and his formulation of the doctrine of original sin. He also examines how Luther's Christocentric standpoint transforms Augustine's anthropology and ultimately leads Luther to his relational hamartiology. Kim contends that Bonhoeffer's later hamartiology and ethics exhibit the most distinctive features of Bonhoeffer's doctrine of sin, as he incorporates both the active and passive dimensions of sin and further intensifies his ongoing notion of "vicarious representative action" towards the church community.

Hyun Joo Kim claims that Bonhoeffer transforms and reconstructs the Augustinian doctrine of original sin by shifting the hamartiological premise from the doctrine of God to the doctrine of the church based on his Lutheran resources.

In Bonhoeffer's view, Augustine's doctrine of original sin does not fully relate the doctrine of sin to the responsibility of the saints. To reform Augustinian hamartiology, Bonhoeffer appropriates Augustine's notion of the church as the whole Christ (totus Christus), which is located in Augustine's ecclesiology.

Kim explicates how Augustine relates his epistemological premises in his Christianized Platonism to his formulation of the doctrine of original sin, and examines how Luthers Christocentric standpoint transforms Augustine's anthropology and ultimately leads Luther to his relational hamartiology.

Kim contends that Bonhoeffer's later hamartiology and ethics contain the most distinctive characteristics of Bonhoeffer's doctrine of sin, in that he not only incorporates both the active and passive dimensions of sin, but also intensifies his continuing notion of "vicarious representative action" towards the church community.

Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780567706621