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Sexuality and community in the theology of Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 February 2018

Michael Brain*
Affiliation:
Wycliffe College, 5 Hoskin Ave, Toronto, ON M5S 1H7michael.brain@mail.utoronto.ca

Abstract

This article suggests that the narrative of human community Bonhoeffer described in Sanctorum Communio, following the categories of creation, fall and redemption, provides the framework for understanding the various aspects of human sexuality found in Creation and Fall and Ethics. A comparative study of these texts reveals that marriage and sexuality in Bonhoeffer encapsulates the human drive towards community, preserved from the fall for redemption in Christ. Understanding human sexuality within the structure of this narrative allows for a new way of appropriating and evaluating Bonhoeffer's theological anthropology for contemporary ethical reflection in the Christian community.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018 

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References

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9 Ibid., pp. 50–1.

10 Ibid., p. 54.

11 Ibid.

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54 Ibid., p. 206.

55 Ibid., p. 211.