Christ Existing as Community: Bonhoeffer's Ecclesiology

by Michael Mawson

Overview

In Christ Existing as Community, Michael Mawson recovers and clarifies the German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer's early and important work on ecclesiology, focusing especially on his doctoral dissertation Sanctorum Communio. Despite occasional pronouncements of the importance of this dissertation, it has still received only limited scholarly attention. Mawson demonstrates how Bonhoeffer draws upon and reworks social theory in order to develop an account of the church as a reality of God's revelation and a concrete human community. On this basis Mawson concludes that Bonhoeffer's ecclesiology has ongoing significance for contemporary debates in theology and Christian ethics.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780192561008
Publisher:	OUP Oxford
Publication date:	07/11/2018
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	655 KB

About the Author

Michael Mawson is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Divinity and Religious Studies at the University of Aberdeen.

Table of Contents

• Abbreviations
• Introduction
• Part I
• 1: Beyond Troeltsch and Barth
• Part II
• 2: Theology and Social Theory
• 3: The Christian Concept of Person
• 4: Creation: Primal Sociality
• 5: The Fall: The Sinful Collective Person
• Part III
• 6: Christ, Spirit, and Church
• 7: The Concrete Community
• Conclusion
• Bibliography

Editorial Reviews

"This is a relatively small book that covers an impressive amount of detail. Rather than this resulting in a dense book, the clarity of the writing makes his argument, his descriptions of Bonhoeffer's concepts, and his agreement and disagreement with other scholars, unusually accessible. Anyone who reads, teaches, studies, or writes about Bonhoeffer would do well to read this book. It has been quite a while since I read the whole of Sanctorum Communio, but after reading Michael Mawson's book, I look forward to reading it again with far more understanding." — Nancy Duff, Retired Professor of Christian Ethics, East Windsor, NJ, USA, Theology Today

"...a valuable book, not just for those with an academic interest in Bonhoeffer, but also for the consideration of broader questions about the nature of church and the relation of theology to secular disciplines such as sociology." — Rev Sam Pollard, University of Bristol and Diocese of Chelmsford, Anvil

"[Mawson's] analysis of Bonhoeffer's thought is sharp and his argument is generally persuasive or even compelling. ...this is the finest monograph on Bonhoeffer I have read for some time, and it has sent me back to re-read Sanctorum Communio." — Jennifer Moberly, Studies in Christian Ethics

"Throughout, Mawson skillfully engages with the critical readings of key scholars as he argues persuasively for renewed consideration of this important work. His book is a must-read for Bonhoeffer scholars but interesting for others also." — Rev. Sam Pollard, University of Bristol, Anvil

"For budding Bonhoeffer scholars and those interested in nineteenth- and twentieth century theological developments, this well-researched volume is a must." — Barry Harvey, Scottish Journal of Theology

"...this is an important work that deserves to be read widely. Mawson does what many set out to do and few accomplish-namely, he offers a careful work of historical theology that is attentive to the import of Bonhoeffer's innovative thinking for theological work today. As such, he has done Bonhoeffer scholars, theologians more generally, and the church a great service." — Koert Verhagen, Journal of Religion

"Of all of the themes which have been amply investigated by Bonhoeffer scholars, his politics and his ethics chief among them, his doctrine of the church has been sadly neglected, with few exceptions. Thankfully, Michael Mawson's Christ Existing as Community aids in remedying this gap. Bonhoeffer's first work, a dissertation on ecclesiology entitled Sanctorum Communio, is the central focus of Mawson's work. Mawson does not simply exegete Bonhoeffer, however. He shows how the themes present in Bonhoeffer's earliest constructive work continue to surface throughout his life and how these themes intervene in contemporary debates about the nature of the church." — Myles Werntz, Review and Expositor

"In Christ Existing as Community, Michael Mawson steps into this scholarly lacuna to give a convincing and much-needed analysis of Bonhoeffer's otherwise neglected and misunderstood dissertation...Mawson's treatment is, perhaps necessarily, deliberate and meticulous. He addresses the more systematic material carefully and progressively, which the reader will appreciate." — JAVIER A. GARCIA, George Fox University, USA, The Journal of Theological Studies

"Michael Mawson's Christ Existing as Community - amazingly, the first book-length study of Sanctorum Communio in English - seeks to reinvigorate and redirect the conversation around Bonhoeffer's dissertation. In Mawson's estimation, even scholars who have looked favorably upon Sanctorum Communio have paid too little attention to how Bonhoeffer's argument actually works, which has resulted in various misreadings and misguided critiques. Crucial for a proper understanding of Sanctorum Communio, Mawson argues, is recognizing that 'Bonhoeffer's ecclesiology is organized around a theological dialectic of creation, sin, and reconciliation' (p. 5). One of Mawson's most significant contributions is showing how this dialectic is at the heart of Bonhoeffer's early ecclesiology, including his theological engagement with social theory." — Joel Banman, University of Otago, Reviews in Religion

"This was a delightful book to read. . . . Helping us to understand Sanctorum Communio on its own terms, Mawson demonstrates the extent to which Bonhoeffer's Christology is an ecclesial Christology. . . Sanctorum Communio is a text central to Bonhoeffer's corpus." — Christopher R. J. Holmes, Modern Theology

"Mawson adds clarity to Sanctorum Communio for anyone wishing to understand it." — Nicholas Byle, Reading Religion

"The accessibility of Mawson's prose means that no more is required of the reader than a basic level of theological literacy ... Anyone keen to find out how Bonhoeffer might enrich their understanding of the Church would do well to pick up and read this book." — Guido de Graaff, Expository Times

"Sanctorum Communio has been a neglected text in Bonhoeffer studies, largely due to prior critiques and misreadings of this notoriously complex argument. While providing a systematic and close reading, Mawson persuasively argues that Bonhoeffer's ecclesiology makes a vital contribution to contemporary debates about the dual nature of the church as a historical entity and a reality of revelation. In doing so, he highlights Bonhoeffer's attention to the role of the Spirit, the problem of sin, the relationship between the individual and the community, and concrete practices. With Mawson as our guide, Sanctorum Communio need no longer be ignored."—Jennifer M. McBride, President of the International Bonhoeffer Society, English Language Section

"Thanks to the author's clarity of exposition, scholarly precision, and theological insight, we can finally appreciate Bonhoeffer's often neglected and seldom understood first book as the classic it is. An outstanding contribution to Bonhoeffer scholarship, this book is not only a masterful account of Bonhoeffer's ecclesiology. It is also a rich resource for contemporary theologians and Christian ethicists who are once again asking Bonhoeffer's question: How can we understand the church as both a social community and one that is established by God?"—Gerald P. McKenny, University of Notre Dame

"This well-written book claims that Bonhoeffer's early academic work Sanctorum Communio should be read and taken seriously on its own terms. Bonhoeffer scholar Mawson draws the reader's attention to the inner fragmentation of the Church by taking up the dialectic in Sanctorum Communio, namely, that of creation, sin and reconciliation. This book is a must in the latest research on Bonhoeffer's ecclesiology."—Ralf K. Wüstenberg, University of Flensburg and the University of Cambridge

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