Wolfhart Pannenberg and Divine Action
International Conference from 24-26 April in Tübingen
The talk of God as agent is at the center of Christian theology and practice, but at the same time it is also the point where basic theological programs show deepest differences. After the topic had been the subject of intensive interdisciplinary research for several decades, its complex theological and philosophical presuppositions as well as questions of theological relevance have recently moved into the center of attention. Wolfhart Pannenberg stands out amongst contemporary theologians who have dealt with these issues and his work provides numerous impulses and resources for the current debate.
From 24 April to 26 April, an international conference will take place in Tübingen, at which Pannenberg's key concepts of his understanding of “divine action” will be explored and further developed. In addition, possibilities for further cooperation in joint projects will be discussed. Information on the conference programme can be found below.
We invite you to participate in the conference and the planning meetings and ask you to register at:
Detaillierter Tagungsplan
Wednesday Conference Venue: "Fürstenzimmer" Schloss Hohentübingen (Access: go through the inner courtyard of the castle - staircase at the back left) | Thursday Conference Venue: Tübinger Stift Großer Hörsaal (GH) / Kleiner Hörsaal (KH) / Clubraum | Friday Conference Venue: Theologicum (second floor) Seminarraum 9 (SR 9) / Seminarraum 10 (SR 10) |
1.00pm-1.30pm Reception + Introduction | 9.15am-10.00am Assoc. Prof. Dr. Andrew Loke (GH) On how to recognize divine action: a transdisciplinary evaluation of Pannenberg’s historical argument for the resurrection of Jesus and his theology of hope
| 9.15am-10.00am Josia Nathanael Sturm (SR 10) Infinity and Primary Causality in the Theology of Gregory of Nyssa and Thomas Aquinas. A Critical Reassessment of Pannenberg's Intellectual Historical Reconstruction
Kazuki Nishimura (SR 9) Pannenberg’s Critique of Analogy as a methodological Principle in Theology and its Significance in his early Thought - towards the Construction of his Concept of “Revelation as History“ |
1.30pm-3.00pm Keynote by Prof. Dr. Friederike Nüssel "The splendor of Tillich's synthesis" - Reflections on the significance of Tillich's theology for Pannenberg | 10.05am-10.50am Assoc. Prof. Dr. Johanne Stubbe T. Kristensen (GH) From Theism to Trinitarian Theology. Divine Action as Redemption of the Lost and Unredeemed
Rev. Dr. Edmund Fong (KH) Godʼs 'Self-Determination' or Godʼs 'Self-Actualization'? A Comparison of Karl Barthʼs and Wolfhart Pannenbergʼs 'Actualistic Ontology' | 10.00am-10.05am short break |
3.00pm-3.30pm Coffee break | 10.50am-11.15am Coffee break | 10.05am-10.50am Ass. Prof. Dr. Clement Yung Wen (SR 10) Sin, Meaning, and Eternity in the Light of Divine Action: Marilyn McCord Adams and Wolfhart Pannenberg in Critical-Constructive Dialogue
Dr. Manuel Zelger (SR 9) Divine Action and Eternity in Pannenberg |
3.30pm-4.15pm Dr. Thomas Oehl God’s Action in the World and Human Autonomy | 11.15am-11.50pm Student Papers Johannes Meier (GH) Divine Action Motivated by Emotion
Marko Eichele (KH) The object of theology and its objectivity (or subjectivity?) Ulrich Barth reacts to Wolfhart Pannenberg's thesis on the historicity of the resurrection
David Schmalzhaf (Clubraum) Pannenberg's Concept of Divine Judgment in History in Light of the Question of Theodicy | 10.50am-11.10am Coffee break |
4.20pm-5.05pm Prof. Dr. Christiaan Mostert Divine Agency in the Theology of Wolfhart Pannenberg | 12.00pm-12.45pm Dr. Jacob Chengwei Feng (GH) Divine Action in the Flesh: A Cognitive Linguistic Evaluation of Pannenberg’s Theology of Divine Action
Hyungjin Samuel Lee (KH) Wolfhart Pannenberg’s Theology of Love as God’s Action | 11.10am-11.55pm Rev. Dr. Andrew Hollingsworth (SR 10) Divine Minds, Fields of Force, Trinitarian Persons, and the Agency of God
James Lefeu (SR 9) The Contrast between Hume and Pannenberg's Theories of Causation with respect to Divine Action |
5.05pm-5.30pm Coffee Break | 1.00pm-2.30pm Lunch | 11.55-12.00 short break |
5.30pm-6.15pm Prof. Dr. Hong Liang "No theodicy without eschatology": Wolfhart Pannenberg's concept of theodicy with special reference to his critical dialogue with Jürgen Moltmann | 2.30pm - 3.15pm Mark Hertenstein (GH) The Self-Actualization of the Perfect God: Pannenberg and the Reconciliation of Inner and Outer Divine Action
Robert Stenzel (KH) Pannenberg: Christ as the Mediator of Creation and Divine Ideas | 12.00pm-12.45pm Dr. Benjamin Apsel (SR 10) The action of God in history in the tension between visibility and controversy. Principles in the theology of Wolfhart Pannenberg |
From 7.00 pm Dinner at the "Neckarmüller" | 3.20pm-4.05pm Prof. Dr. Derek Nelson (GH) Continuous Creation (and Continuous Dissolution) as Divine Action | 12.45pm-1.30pm Lunch at the university |
4.05pm-4.30pm Coffee break | 1.30pm-2.30pm Business Meeting (SR 10) Exploring further projects | |
| 4.30pm - 5.15pm Prof. Dr. Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen (GH) Divine Action without Intervention: A Pneumatological-Trinitarian Account of Divine Agency in the World | Optional (please register): 3.00pm-4.00pm Optional: Guided tour of the antiquities collection on the subject of "Divine Action" at Schloss Hohentübingen |
| 5.20pm-6.05pm Dr. Markus Adolphs (GH) The Incarnation as an Act of the Trinitarian God - On the Relationship between the Autonomy of Jesus and His destiny by God
Zachery Moffatt (KH) Wolfhart Pannenberg and a Subjective Account of Miracles | |
6.15pm Guided tour through the "Stiftskirche" |