Kenosis in Theosis: An Exploration of Balthasar's Theology of Deification

The perennial questions surrounding human identity and meaning have never before been so acute. How we define ourselves is crucial since it determines our conception of society ethics sexuality--in short our very notion of the good. The traditional Christian teaching of deification powerfully addresses this theme by revealing the sacred dignity and purpose of all created life and providing a comprehensive vision of reality that extends from the individual to the cosmos. Hans Urs von Balthasar is a valuable guide in elucidating the churchs teaching on this vital subject. Following the patristic tradition he focuses his attention on Jesus Christ whose kenotic descent in his incarnation and passion reveals both the loving character of God and the perfection of humanity. Christ is the concrete analogy of being who in his two natures as God and man unites heaven and earth. It is the Trinity however that brings to fruition the fullness of the meaning of theosis in Balthasars theology. The community of divine persons eternally deifies the cosmos by embracing and transforming it into the paradigm of all reality--the imago trinitatis--overcoming the distance between the created and uncreated while maintaining and honoring their difference.