Author:
Zhang Xin, Associate Professor, School of Chinese Language and Literature, Beijing Normal University; Director, Institute for the Studies of Christian Literature and Art, Beijing Normal University.
Abstract:
Person (ὑπόστασις/πρόσωπον) and nature (φύσις) are key words in Christology and Trinitarian theology. During the process of their formation, they are closely linked to the anthropological concerns of the church. However, contemporary scholars pay less attention to the historical anthropological connotations of these two terms. The same situation also occurs in the Chinese academia. This essay adopts the methodology of historical theology, focusing on the formation process of three terms directly related to anthropology in the Christology of the Council of Chalcedon: ὑπόστασις (hypostasis), φύσις (nature), and πρόσωπον (person). It elucidates the anthropological implications of Chalcedonian Christology, concurrently exploring how Hans Urs Von Balthasar inherits and develops this tradition. The article is structured into three sections. Firstly, it discusses the anthropological significance acquired during the evolution of two concepts, ὑπόστασις and πρόσωπον. Secondly, it analyzes how the Chalcedonian Creed's reliance on the dyophysite doctrine led to a crisis in its anthropology, followed by a brief examination of how subsequent Ecumenical Councils supplemented the Chalcedonian Creed, emphasizing the unity of Christ's person and establishing the so-callded neo-Chalcedonianism. Finally, it reviews how Hans Urs von Balthasar's inherit and develop the Greek patristic doctrine of "person" and the current significance of his development.
Keywords:
Person, Human Nature, Chalcedon, Hans Urs von Balthasar
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