A countervailing atonement: The meaning of equivalence in the American moral governmental theory of the atonement

Autor: Obbie Tyler Todd
Rok vydání: 2019
Předmět:
Zdroj: Scottish Journal of Theology. 72:375-384
ISSN: 1475-3065
0036-9306
DOI: 10.1017/s0036930619000590
Popis: In the American moral governmental theory of the atonement, the idea of equivalence is best understood in terms of a countervailing, or the achieving of a moral equilibrium. According to Jonathan Edwards’ disciples, Christ's atonement was not quantifiably equivalent to the penalty of the law, but morally and meaningfully equivalent. In other words, Christ's physical and psychological sufferings were not equal in amount or degree to a sinner's damnation. Rather, Christ's substitution for divine punishment exhibited sufficient displeasure against sin to effectively communicate his character and to offset the evil effects of sin. At stake was not the moral quantity of his crucifixion, but the moral quality. In this moral governmental scheme, Christ's was not a commutative atonement, but a countervailing atonement.
Databáze: OpenAIRE