Abstract:
What does it mean for the Christian Church to proclaim that God revealed Godself in Jesus
Christ? This article tries to capture the answer given to this question by Rowans Williams, who
defines and understands Christ as the ‘heart of creation’. The problem at the heart of Williams’
thought is the relationship between the finite and the infinite. If God is merely a being amongst
others, the finite and infinite disintegrate into identity. If God is totally other to creation, we
end up with a duality between God and creation. For Williams, the answer lies in the noncompetitive
union of the eternal Logos and the human individual in Jesus Christ, in whom the
finite entirely and asymmetrically depends on the infinite, whilst retaining its own integrity. In
clarifying Williams’ answer to the question above, firstly, I will illuminate his philosophical
and metaphysical assumptions to shed light on his interpretation of Christ as the logic (logos)
of creation. Secondly, Williams’ reading of the history of Christology, steering between identity
and duality, will be narrated; and, thirdly, the political and ethical implications of his
Christology will be discussed for the Church today.
INTRADISCIPLINARY AND/OR INTERDISCIPLINARY IMPLICATIONS : This philosophical and dogmahistorical
study into Christology as narrated by Rowan Williams claims that God reveals
Godself in a non-competitive relationship between the infinite and the finite, between God and
the human individual in the person of Jesus Christ. This asymmetrical relationship challenges
our modernistic competitive view of history, societies and human beings as consumers.
