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WHDL - 00020791

Open and Closed: A Wesleyan Reflection on Christian Narratives of love

Phillip Davis

Resource Types

Academic (Thesis, Dissertation, Etc.)

Resource Languages

English

Institutional Repository

Description / Abstract

This study attempts to present a reflection on love which is both plausible for the current postmodern context and faithful to its understanding within the Christian tradition. Such a reflection is required, since Christianity itself is called into question by a postmodern critique. That critique flows, in part, from misery experienced in the previous century – a time when millions died in wars or death camps, while others lived in police states. Nations came under the sway of ideological narratives promising a better future. But these ended violently: in barbed wire fences and smoking ovens, in kangaroo courts and gulags, in sweat shops and economic collapse. Resistance against modernity’s vision(s) of utopia began among philosophers and artists, eventually spreading throughout Western culture. The postmodern critique of “grand narratives” touches the Church as well, since the Christian story of love is seen as one more oppressive narrative. Theology must engage this critique, taking seriously the thoughts and fears expressed therein. Our aim, therefore, is to propose a model for thinking love within a postmodern context, which draws inspiration for the Wesleyan theological tradition.

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Publish Year: 2014

Subject Index

KeywordsOppressive Narrative, Lyotard, Phrase Regimens, Genres of Discourse, Mythic Narratives, Capitalism – The Economic Genre, Lyotard’s View of Love, Boeve’s Dual-Approach,

Degree AwardedDoctor’s Degree in Theology

Awarding InstitutionKATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT

Supervisor or ChairLieven BOEVE

Peer Reviewed?No

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