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Christus Victor revisited: A proposal for a thoroughly dramatic view of atonement

  • Mikael Stæhr Brorson ORCID logo EMAIL logo
Veröffentlicht/Copyright: 21. Juni 2025
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Abstract

When Swedish theologian Gustaf Aulén published his influential work on atonement, Christus Victor, he termed what he took to be the classical view of atonement “dramatic.” This article enters into critical dialogue with Aulén in order to discuss the necessary conditions for a thoroughly dramatic view of atonement. The article shows that Aulén’s conception of atonement in Christus Victor is not dramatic in a technical sense, but that this increasingly becomes the case in the later The Drama and the Symbols. Furthermore, the article proposes three necessary preconditions for a thoroughly dramatic view of atonement: (i) dramatic dimensionality between author, actor, and director; (ii) drama’s character of event; and (iii) drama’s genre. Lastly, the article outlines a proposal for a thoroughly dramatic view of atonement.

Zusammenfassung

In seinem einflussreichen Werk Christus Victor bezeichnete der schwedische Theologe Gustaf Aulén die seiner Meinung nach klassische Auffassung der Sühne als „dramatisch.“ Dieser Artikel tritt in einen kritischen Dialog mit Aulén, mit dem Ziel, die notwendigen Bedingungen für eine durchweg dramatische Sicht der Sühne zu erörtern. Obwohl Auléns Verständnis von Sühne in Christus Victor nicht im fachlichen Sinn dramatisch ist, zeigt dieser Artikel, dass dies in der späteren Schrift Das Drama und die Symbole zunehmend der Fall ist. Darüber hinaus werden drei notwendige Voraussetzungen für eine durchweg dramatische Auffassung der Sühne vorgeschlagen: (i) die dramatische Dimensionalität zwischen Autor, Schauspieler und Regisseur; (ii) der Ereignischarakter des Dramas; und (iii) die Gattung des Dramas. Zuletzt entwirft der Artikel einen Vorschlag für eine durchweg dramatische Auffassung der Sühne.

Funding

This research received no external funding.

Conflicts of Interest

The author declares no conflicts of interest.

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Published Online: 2025-06-21

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Heruntergeladen am 16.10.2025 von https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/nzsth-2025-0026/html
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