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Theodizee und Soteriologie: Ein kreuzestheologischer und trinitarischer Lösungsversuch des Theodizeeproblems im Anschluss an Bonhoeffer, Moltmann und Metz

Antragsteller Dr. Matthias Grebe
Fachliche Zuordnung Evangelische Theologie
Förderung Förderung von 2015 bis 2022
Projektkennung Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Projektnummer 269132558
 
Erstellungsjahr 2025

Zusammenfassung der Projektergebnisse

The research project Theodicy and Soteriology, funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG), addressed one of the central challenges of systematic theology: the question of God’s justice in the face of suffering and evil in the world. The aim was to develop a theologically coherent approach that integrates Trinitarian theology, the theology of the cross, and the doctrine of creation into a unified framework. At the heart of the inquiry stood the guiding question of how a theology "after Auschwitz" can be conceived – one that not only acknowledges suffering but interprets it from the very centre of Christian revelation. The project focused on the idea of a suffering God as a way of opening new perspectives on the problem of theodicy. Engaging both classical and contemporary approaches – particularly those of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Jürgen Moltmann, and Johann Baptist Metz – and in dialogue with Jewish theology and modern philosophy of religion, a theological model was developed that understands God’s self-emptying (kenosis) as a hermeneutical key and humanity’s deification (theosis) as the soteriological goal. The classical tension between divine omnipotence and love on the one hand, and the reality of suffering and evil on the other, was re-examined in light of creation and the cross within a Trinitarian theology of God. The project culminated in the formulation of a Trinitarian theodicy that does not conceive of God as a metaphysically detached absolute, but as a God who suffers, reconciles, and acts redemptively within history. The starting point was the thesis of a “successive kenosis”: God gives Himself step by step into the world – through creation, incarnation, the cross, and the sending of the Spirit at Pentecost – in a manner analogous to the unfolding of God’s revelation in history, in order to transform creation and lead it into participation in the divine life. To ground this approach, key theological texts by Bonhoeffer, Moltmann, and Metz were analysed, focusing on their interpretations of the cross, divine presence in suffering, and eschatological redemption. This theological analysis was complemented by Jewish voices and contributions from the philosophy of religion on the problem of evil. In this way, a theological foundation was laid for a cross-centred and Trinitarianly articulated theodicy. The initially formulated working hypothesis of a “successive kenosis” was further developed over the course of the project into a more comprehensive model of divine selfcommunication, structured around the three theological key concepts of kenosis (selfemptying), henosis (union), and theosis (divinisation). At its core is the insight that God does not respond to the world’s suffering from a distance but enters into it in love: through kenosis in creation, through henosis in the incarnation, and through theosis in the transformative participation of creation in divine life. Suffering and evil are not speculatively explained but interrupted through divine suffering and transformed in the economy of salvation. Theosis – understood as humanity’s participation in the divine nature – emerges as the teleological goal of divine self-giving: a participatory transformation in Christ that unites freedom and love. Here, theosis is not portrayed as a distant eschatological ideal, but as a process already inaugurated within history – through soul-making, spiritual maturation, and growth into the image of Christ (cf. Gal 4:19). Soul-making is understood as participation in the kenotic movement of God: a dynamic cooperation with divine action in freedom and love. This ethical anthropology integrates contemplative, ethical, and communal dimensions of Christian life. The question of theodicy is thus explicitly linked to the pedagogical and spiritual formation of the human person – to a theology that not only explains but also forms. The pedagogical dimension of this theology is especially evident in the understanding of soul-making as participation in divine self-communication. Christian education, spiritual formation, and moral development are not secondary consequences, but integral dimensions of God’s redemptive economy. The anthropological depth of theosis thereby opens new perspectives for spirituality, formation, and ecclesial life. In the final phase of the project, the original concept of "successive kenosis" was systematically integrated into the Trinitarian framework of kenosis, henosis, and theosis. The findings combine systematic-theological reflection with biblical and patristic resources (cf. Phil 2; John 17; Maximus the Confessor; Irenaeus of Lyon) and engage key figures in modern theology (Bonhoeffer, Moltmann, Metz). The project contributes to current debates on theodicy, Trinitarian theology, Christian anthropology, ecumenical understanding, and a theology of compassionate suffering and hope. It demonstrates that suffering is not to be speculatively explained but lived through, borne, and transformed within the salvific movement of divine self-communication. The theological conclusions will be published in a monograph entitled Kenosis and Theosis: A Trinitarian Approach to the Problem of Theodicy in Light of God’s Self-Communication in the Economy of Salvation.

Projektbezogene Publikationen (Auswahl)

 
 

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