If Adam Had Not Sinned: The Reason for the Incarnation from Anselm to Scotus

by Justus H. Hunter

Publisher:

Catholic University of America

, 2020

Overview

Since the twelfth century, theologians have found a counterfactual question irresistible: "If Adam had not sinned, would the Son have become incarnate?" In the latter half of the twentieth century, Hans Urs von Balthasar, Hans Küng, Gerhard Ludwig Müller, Karl Rahner, Karl Barth, Wolfhart Pannenburg, Jürgen Moltmann, and Robert Jenson all considered this question on the reason, or motive, for the incarnation. Nearly every case refers to the classic disagreement between those who follow Thomas Aquinas and those who follow John Duns Scotus.

Though it is common to claim Thomas or Scotus as one’s authority, the theological debates among which Thomas and Scotus developed their own positions remain largely neglected. This study fills that gap. If Adam Had Not Sinned is a study of the medieval debates over the motive for the incarnation from Anselm of Canterbury to John Duns Scotus. While the volume is primarily focused on thirteenth-century debates at the University of Paris, it also supplies necessary historical background to those debates. As a result, the larger context within which Thomas Aquinas and John Duns Scotus developed their influential responses is detailed. This larger context permits an analysis that leads to the surprising claim, against widespread assumptions, that the responses given by Thomas and Scotus are substantially reconcilable.

Key Features

• Offers a study of the medieval debates over the motive for the incarnation
• Focuses on thirteenth-century debates at the University of Paris
• Details the larger context within which Thomas Aquinas and John Duns Scotus developed their influential responses

Contents

• The Reason for the Incarnation
• After Ansel
• Robert Grosseteste
• The Dominicans at Paris
• The Franciscans at Paris
• Ratio Incarnationis

Praise for If Adam Had Not Sinned

Hunter's contribution is two-fold: He gives a thorough account of the quesion as it developed in the 12th and 13th centuries and he introduces a series of distinctions that help to clarify the areas of agreement and disagreement among the figures discussed. Both of these are significant.

Frederick Bauerschmidt, Loyola University Maryland

An excellent piece of historical theology, not only because it considers a profound theological question at the heart of Christian faith--the so-called motive for the Incarnation--as asked and answered in the Middle Ages, but also because it does so with masterful historical contextualization and exquisite theological sophistication. It is exemplary in the importance of its topic, the selection of figures treated, and the nuanced analysis of the texts.

Boyd Taylor Coolman, Boston College

Today Catholic and Protestant theology alike commonly assume that God’s incarnation is the reason why he created the world in the first place and makes sense of everything else he does. It often goes unrecognized that this claim has already been thoroughly debated and the manifold options carefully scrutinized. With great clarity and rigor, Justus Hunter uncovers the origin and development of the medieval argument about why God became incarnate. He reshapes our understanding of the problem and offers much-needed insight into how we ourselves might solve it.

Bruce Marshall, Southern Methodist University

Product Details

• Title: If Adam Had Not Sinned: The Reason for the Incarnation from Anselm to Scotus
• Author: Justus H. Hunter
• Publisher: Catholic University of America
• Print Publication Date: 2020
• Logos Release Date: 2022
• Pages: 257
• Era: era:contemporary
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Reader Edition
• Subject: Incarnation › History of doctrines--Middle Ages, 600-1500
• ISBNs: 9780813232850, 0813232856
• Resource ID: LLS:FDMHDNCNSLMSCTS
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2024-03-25T19:43:05Z