The Doctrine of Humanity

At the end of the twentieth century the forces of race, gender, ethnicity, culture, social status, life-style and sexual preference threaten to disassemble any notion of universal "human nature" or "human condition." In light of this historical moment, the Christian doctrine of human nature is ripe for rethinking and reformulation. Charles Sherlock sees this theological task as demanding a "double focus." To reflect on the subject of human nature, he says, is like "moving around the different areas of an ellipse with two focal points": humans as made in the image of God and the particular realities of human existence. Both must be brought into sharper, more detailed focus in our quest to understand human nature. The result of Sherlock's "double focus" is The Doctrine of Humanity. Sherlock notably engages the communal dimension of humanity in its social, creational and cultural aspects before examining the human person as individual, as male and female, and as whole being. He offers a timely and engaging look at what it means to be human on the continuum between our creation in the divine image and our recreation in the image of Christ.