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Systematic theologyWhat does it teach as a whole?

Theological anthropology

What is theological anthropology?

Theological anthropology is the Christian doctrine of the human person: what human beings are in the light of God. It covers creation in the image of God, body and soul, sin, freedom and grace, and human destiny. It is distinct from philosophical anthropology, a branch of philosophy, and from the anthropology of Christianity, the ethnographic study of Christian communities.

  • 107Sources
  • 14Traditions
  • 16Dated entries
  • 12Minutes

Study v1.1, 14 October 2026

Theological anthropology

At a glance

Why it matters for reading Scripture

What a human being is: the image of God, body and soul, freedom. Many questions about life and death rest on it.

What the study found

The Christian doctrine of the human person runs from creation in God's image to the fall, and remains active, with four readings of the image of God in open debate.

Where traditions divide

The Reformation and Trent divided the West on the will and original sin; Augustinian, federal and Orthodox models of sin, and different accounts of grace, remain distinct.

How the traditions compare

  • Roman Catholic

    The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that being in the image gives each human the dignity of a person, a someone and not a something, and that each soul is created immediately by God.

    Original sin is contracted, not committed: human nature is wounded but not totally corrupted. The Council of Trent holds that free will is weakened but by no means extinguished, and Catholic teaching adds a purification after death for those who die in grace but are not fully purified.

    Sources1–4

  • Eastern Orthodox

    The Orthodox Church in America teaches that bearing the image means growing into likeness to Christ without limit, and that the image is defiled, not lost.

    A Greek Orthodox parish catechism presents ancestral sin: mortality and corruption are inherited, not Adam's personal guilt. Salvation is theosis, through God's energies, and God does not deify without human freedom.

    Sources5–8

  • Oriental Orthodox

    A Coptic Orthodox parish page teaches that death, corruption and the loss of the image passed from Adam, and that theosis is central; Pope Shenouda III describes sin as the loss of the image, restored by grace and repentance.

    Ethiopian Orthodox teaching, as presented by the Mahibere Kidusan association, holds that body and soul come into being together from the parents.

    Sources9–11

  • Lutheran

    The Augsburg Confession (1530) teaches that humans are born without fear and trust of God and with concupiscence, and that the will has civil freedom but cannot produce spiritual righteousness.

    The Formula of Concord holds that original sin is an accident, not the substance of fallen nature, yet that the corruption is total in spiritual matters.

    Sources12–14

  • Reformed

    The Westminster Confession places the image in knowledge, righteousness and true holiness, as does the Heidelberg Catechism, and holds that Adam's guilt is imputed.

    It describes a fourfold state of the will: free in innocence, unable after the fall, freed in grace and free for good alone in glory. At death the soul neither dies nor sleeps but returns at once to God, and the dead are raised with the selfsame bodies.

    Sources15–19

  • Anglican

    Article IX of the Thirty-Nine Articles calls original sin a corruption of nature rather than the imitation of Adam, remaining in the baptized, and the Articles teach that grace goes before the will and works with it.

    Sources20

  • Methodist

    Article VII of the Articles of Religion calls original sin a corruption of nature, not the imitation of Adam, and their teaching on grace preventing the will is the root of the doctrine of prevenient grace.

    In the Arminian and Wesleyan account grace goes before the will and then works with it, and it can be resisted.

    Sources21–22

  • Baptist (Southern Baptist)

    The Baptist Faith and Message (2000) teaches the special creation of humans in the image of God and draws from it the inherent dignity of every person regardless of race.

    Humans inherit an inclination to sin, and only grace restores fellowship with God.

    Sources23

  • Mennonite

    The Confession of Faith in a Mennonite Perspective (1995) defines sin in relational terms, as unfaithfulness to the covenant with God and with God's people.

    Sources24–25

  • Pentecostal (Assemblies of God)

    The Statement of Fundamental Truths teaches that humans were created good and upright and fell by voluntary transgression, bringing physical and spiritual death.

    Salvation comes by repentance and faith, with renewal by the Spirit.

    Sources26

  • Seventh-day Adventist

    The Fundamental Beliefs teach that each person is an indivisible unity and that the image, marred in the fall, is restored through Christ.

    God alone is immortal, and death is an unconscious state until the resurrection.

    Sources27

  • Jehovah's Witnesses

    Teach that the soul is the whole living person and does not survive death: there is no immortal soul.

    Sources28

  • Latter-day Saints

    The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches a premortal life as spirit offspring of Heavenly Parents, agency as essential to the plan, and a spirit world between death and the resurrection of all.

    Its teaching stands outside the historic creeds.

    Sources29

  • Jewish teaching (Reconstructing Judaism, for comparison)

    Reconstructing Judaism teaches no original sin: imperfection is part of the human condition, each person has good and evil inclinations and answers for their own deeds, and repentance (teshuvah) is open to each person.

    Sources30

How the field developed

  1. Early church
    2nd century

    Irenaeus, in Against Heresies V.6, describes the human being as formed by the Father's two hands, the Son and the Spirit, distinguishes the image in human formation from the likeness given by the Spirit, and holds that the body shares in salvation.31

  2. Early church
    4th century

    Nemesius of Emesa writes On the Nature of Man, which Britannica calls the first known compendium of Christian theological anthropology.32

  3. Late antiquity
    388 to 430

    Augustine writes De libero arbitrio (388 to 395), De Trinitate and De Genesi ad litteram, and from 411 the anti-Pelagian writings. Augustine was the chief Western architect of the doctrine of original sin.3334

  4. Late antiquity
    418

    The Council of Carthage teaches that original sin is inherited from Adam and that grace enables good action. New Advent dates it to 1 May 418; the Early Church Texts page gives 417 or 418 for the canons.3536

  5. Late antiquity
    529

    The Second Council of Orange holds that grace precedes even the beginning of faith, condemning the teaching later labeled Semi-Pelagian that the will could make the first move toward faith; Boniface II confirms it in 531.3738

  6. Medieval
    c. 1267 to 1273

    Thomas Aquinas writes the Summa theologiae, left unfinished in late 1273. In question 75 of its first part the soul is the act of a body, incorporeal, subsistent and incorruptible, and the person a composite of soul and body.3940

  7. Medieval
    1312

    The Council of Vienne, in Fidei catholicae fundamento, defines the rational soul as per se and essentially the form of the body.41

  8. Reformation
    1524 and 1525

    Erasmus defends free choice in De libero arbitrio (September 1524), and Luther answers with De servo arbitrio, on the bondage of the will (December 1525).42

  9. Reformation
    1546 and 1547

    The Council of Trent teaches in Session V (17 June 1546) that original sin is passed on by propagation and that concupiscence is not sin in the proper sense, and in Session VI (13 January 1547) that free will is weakened but by no means extinguished.4344345

  10. Reformation
    1618 to 1619

    The Synod of Dort sets out in Heads III/IV the corruption of man and his conversion. Its doctrinal sessions end on 9 May 1619 and the Dutch sessions continue to 29 May 1619.224647

  11. Modern
    1941 to 1943

    Reinhold Niebuhr's The Nature and Destiny of Man appears, from Gifford Lectures given in Edinburgh in 1939. It describes sin as pride or sensuality arising from anxiety between finitude and freedom.4849

  12. Modern
    1948

    Karl Barth's Church Dogmatics III/2 treats man as creature, as covenant-partner, as soul and body, and in his time. Barth held that what a human being essentially is, is learned by looking at the man Jesus rather than by self-observation.505152

  13. Modern
    7 December 1965

    Gaudium et Spes teaches that Christ fully reveals man to himself (article 22).53

  14. Modern
    1979 to 1984

    John Paul II gives his 129 catecheses on the theology of the body, published in English in 2006.54

  15. Modern
    2 April 2024

    The Catholic Church issues Dignitas Infinita, approved on 25 March 2024, which distinguishes ontological dignity, which cannot be lost, from moral, social and existential dignity.55

  16. Modern
    28 January 2025

    Two Vatican dicasteries issue Antiqua et Nova, which holds that artificial intelligence performs functions but does not think in the full human sense, and that human intelligence belongs to the whole embodied person.56

How to study theological anthropology

The questions it asks

  • What does it mean for humans to be made, finite and dependent?
  • What is the image of God, and can it be lost?57
  • Is the person body, soul and spirit, or one whole, and does each soul come directly from God or through the parents?58
  • What happens to the person between death and the resurrection?5960
  • Is original sin inherited guilt or inherited corruption, and what of a historical Adam?
  • Can the fallen will turn to God, and if so, how?
  • Should the doctrine start from Christ as the true image, or from creation and what all humans share?5761

Its method

Start

  1. Read the Hebrew terms nefesh, ruach, basar and lev as aspects under which the whole person can be seen, set side by side rather than built into a system62.

  2. Weigh the disputed terms of Paul, above all soma, the body, and whether it means the whole person6364.

  3. Trace the doctrine from the Fathers through the councils of Carthage and Orange, the scholastics, the Reformation confessions and Trent to the anthropologies of the twentieth century3135374043.

  4. Decide where to start, from Christ or from creation; Kathryn Tanner argues that the starting point decides the result5765.

  5. Compare the accounts of the image of God: structural, relational, royal-functional and Christological57.

  6. Weigh the positions on body and soul, a debate shared with the philosophy of mind, from hylomorphism to Christian materialism4066.

  7. Bring the doctrine into conversation with the sciences, as in research on evolution, cognition, cooperation, morality and human distinctiveness6768.

  8. Apply the tools of analytic philosophy to original guilt, freedom and the metaphysics of resurrection, as analytic theology does697060.

What to read

Its primary witnesses

  • Genesis 1:26 to 28, the central text for the image of God57.
  • The Hebrew Bible's terms for the human being: nefesh, ruach, basar and lev62.
  • Romans 5:12 to 19, the main text for original sin, and the New Testament texts that name Christ as the image: Colossians 1:15, 2 Corinthians 4:4 and Hebrews 1:33457.
  • 1 Thessalonians 5:23 (spirit, soul and body), which Irenaeus read as describing one perfect human being311.
  • The Fathers: Irenaeus's Against Heresies, Athanasius's On the Incarnation, Gregory of Nyssa's On the Making of Man and Nemesius's On the Nature of Man31717232.
  • Maximus the Confessor's Ambiguum 41, on the human being as mediator of all the divisions of creation7374.
  • Aquinas's Summa theologiae, first part, question 75, on the soul40.
  • The canons of Carthage and Orange and the decrees of Trent's fifth and sixth sessions3537433.
  • The Reformation confessions: the Augsburg Confession, the Formula of Concord, the Heidelberg Catechism, the Thirty-Nine Articles, the Canons of Dort and the Westminster Confession121416202215.
  • Modern church documents: Gaudium et Spes, Communion and Stewardship (2004), In the Image and Likeness of God (2015), Dignitas Infinita and Antiqua et Nova5375765556.

Standard reference works

  • Hans Walter Wolff's Anthropologie des Alten Testaments (1973), with a 2010 edition edited by Bernd Janowski77.
  • Anthony Hoekema's Created in God's Image (Eerdmans, 1986), a standard Reformed evangelical textbook78.
  • Stanley Grenz's The Social God and the Relational Self (Westminster John Knox, 2001), a Trinitarian theology of the image79.
  • Christian Perspectives on Theological Anthropology, Faith and Order Paper 199 (2005), a multilateral ecumenical study80.
  • Marc Cortez's Theological Anthropology: A Guide for the Perplexed (T&T Clark, 2010), organized around disputed questions8182.
  • The Ashgate Research Companion to Theological Anthropology, edited by Farris and Taliaferro (2015, now Routledge), with 27 chapters from body and soul to feminism83.
  • The Christian Doctrine of Humanity, edited by Crisp and Sanders (Zondervan, 2018), the proceedings of the sixth Los Angeles Theology Conference84.
  • Farris's An Introduction to Theological Anthropology (Baker Academic, 2020)85.
  • The T&T Clark Handbook of Theological Anthropology, edited by Mary Ann Hinsdale and Stephen Okey, dated 2021 by the British Library and 2020 by New Books Network8687.
  • Theological Anthropology, edited by Burns and Trigg (Fortress, 2023), early Christian source texts revised and expanded from 198188.

Scholarship referenced in this study

The works below shaped the field and are cited in this study, from the earliest to the most recent. Hover over a book, or select it, to see its author and the sources behind it.

  • c. 180Against HeresiesIrenaeus of LyonAgainst Heresies (c. 180)Irenaeus of Lyon (c. 130 to c. 202)Sources89
  • 388 to 395On Free WillAugustine of HippoOn Free Will (388 to 395)Augustine of Hippo (354 to 430)Sources90–91
  • 1559Institutes of the Christian ReligionJohn CalvinInstitutes of the Christian Religion (1559)John Calvin (1509 to 1564)Sources91–92
  • 1939Geist in WeltKarl RahnerGeist in Welt (1939)Karl Rahner (5 March 1904 to 30 March 1984)Sources93
  • 1971Paul's Anthropological TermsRobert JewettPaul's Anthropological Terms (1971)Robert Jewett (1933 to 2020)Sources63
  • 1983Sexism and God-TalkRosemary Radford RuetherSexism and God-Talk (1983)Rosemary Radford Ruether (1936 to 21 May 2022)Sources94–95
  • 1985Being as CommunionJohn ZizioulasBeing as Communion (1985)John Zizioulas (10 January 1931 to 2 February 2023)Sources95–96
  • 1994The Disabled GodNancy EieslandThe Disabled God (1994)Nancy Eiesland (1964 to 2009)Sources9597
  • 2005The Liberating ImageJ. Richard MiddletonThe Liberating Image (2005)J. Richard MiddletonSources91
  • 2009Eccentric Existence: A Theological AnthropologyDavid H. KelseyEccentric Existence: A Theological Anthropology (2009)David H. KelseySources9198
  • 2010Christ the KeyKathryn TannerChrist the Key (2010)Kathryn TannerSources6595
  • 2026The Imago Dei: A Holistic AccountXimian XuThe Imago Dei: A Holistic Account (2026)Ximian XuSources99

Listed because this study draws on their published work; no association with or endorsement of Numa Verse is implied. Suggest a correction.

Key terms

The words that carry the most weight in this field, each defined from the sources of this study. Turn a card over to read its definition.

The image of God in which humans are made (Genesis 1:26 to 27), read in structural, relational, royal-functional and Christological ways57.

Irenaeus's distinction: the image in human formation, the likeness given by the Spirit31.

Aquinas's view that the soul is the form of the body and the person a composite39.

Rival accounts of the origin of each soul: created directly by God, or passed on through generation58.

The doctrine that every human is born in a state of sin, traced to Adam34.

The Orthodox account: mortality and corruption are inherited, not Adam's personal guilt7.

Disordered desire that remains after baptism; for the Council of Trent it is not sin in the proper sense44.

Grace that goes before the will and enables a first turn to God4521.

Deification: communion with God through his energies, which raises human dignity100.

The condition of the person between death and the resurrection5960.

Where it sits

Builds on

Theological anthropology

Leads to

Questions people ask

Philosophical anthropology is a branch of philosophy that tries to unify the empirical study of human nature101. The anthropology of Christianity is the social-scientific study of Christian communities, which Joel Robbins regards as largely a development of the twenty-first century102. Theological anthropology asks what human beings are in relation to God: creation, image, sin, grace and destiny103.

Not all. Christian philosophers divide on whether a human person has or is a soul10410560. The positions range from the view that the person is a soul who has a body to the view that the person is wholly physical, with the Thomist view between them, in which the soul is the single substantial form of the body4039. The traditions also divide on death: the Westminster Confession teaches that the soul returns at once to God, while Seventh-day Adventists teach that death is an unconscious state until the resurrection1927.

The traditions answer differently. Luther narrowed the image to the original righteousness he held was lost in the fall, while Irenaeus held that sin corrupts the likeness, which Christ restores57. The Orthodox Church in America teaches that the image is defiled, not lost, and the Seventh-day Adventist Fundamental Beliefs that it was marred and is restored through Christ627. Dignitas Infinita holds that ontological dignity cannot be lost55.

No. The Reformed confessions affirm that Adam's guilt is imputed, while Catholic and Orthodox teaching reject inherited personal guilt in different ways: for the Catechism original sin is contracted, not committed, and for Orthodox teaching mortality and corruption are inherited, not guilt1727. Since the Enlightenment, some Christians have read the fall as metaphor rather than history34.

Evolutionary science has reopened the question. Four Views on the Historical Adam (2013) sets out the positions of Denis Lamoureux, John Walton, C. John Collins and William Barrick68. S. Joshua Swamidass argues that a recent Adam and Eve could be genealogical ancestors of everyone alive, and William Lane Craig places Adam and Eve provisionally among Homo heidelbergensis106107. The Stanford Encyclopedia notes that a primal sin can be affirmed without a literal fall narrative69.

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  2. 2Catechism of the Catholic Church, Para. 7, The Fall, CCC 385 to 421 (Holy See)https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P1C.HTM (opens in a new tab)
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  45. 45Council of Trent, Session VI, Decree on Justification, in Schaff, Creeds of Christendom vol. 2 (CCEL)https://ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds2.v.i.i.iv.html (opens in a new tab)
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  48. 48Niebuhr, The Nature and Destiny of Man, edition notes (Open Library)https://openlibrary.org/books/OL6429552M/The_nature_and_destiny_of_man (opens in a new tab)
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  53. 53Gaudium et Spes (The Holy See)https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651207_gaudium-et-spes_en.html (opens in a new tab)
  54. 54Man and Woman He Created Them (Delibris)https://www.delibris.org/en/man-woman-he-created-them (opens in a new tab)
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  56. 56Antiqua et Nova: Note on the Relationship Between AI and Human Intelligence (Holy See Press Office)https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2025/01/28/250128b.html (opens in a new tab)
  57. 57Image of God, J. Richard Middleton, Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Theology vol. 2 (jrichardmiddleton.com PDF)https://jrichardmiddleton.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/middleton-image-of-god-oxford-encyclopedia-of-the-bible-and-theology-vol-2.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  58. 58Traducianism, Charles Dubray (Catholic Encyclopedia 1912, New Advent)https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15014a.htm (opens in a new tab)
  59. 59Review: Body, Soul and Life Everlasting, Stewart Goetz (Themelios 17.2, The Gospel Coalition)https://thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/review/body-soul-life-everlasting (opens in a new tab)
  60. 60A Materialist Model of Christian Resurrection: Lynne Rudder Baker's Opening Statement (The Table, Biola Center for Christian Thought)https://cct.biola.edu/?p=6945 (opens in a new tab)
  61. 61Christological Anthropology in Historical Perspective, Marc Cortez (Zondervan Academic)https://zondervanacademic.com/products/christological-anthropology-in-historical-perspective (opens in a new tab)
  62. 62Mensch (AT), Andreas Wagner, WiBiLex (Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft)https://www.die-bibel.de/stichwort/26893 (opens in a new tab)
  63. 63Paul's anthropological terms: a study of their use in conflict settings, catalogue record (Universidad Loyola Andalucía library)https://colectivo.uloyola.es/Record/T145692?lng=en (opens in a new tab)
  64. 64Gundry, Soma as the whole person: the rise of a definition, Soma in Biblical Theology ch. 1 (Cambridge University Press)https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/CBO9780511557538A008/type/BOOK_PART (opens in a new tab)
  65. 65Christ the Key, Human Nature chapter, Kathryn Tanner (Cambridge Core)https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/christ-the-key/human-nature/9EEE66AB20BA56054B8AA7C5583F4F56 (opens in a new tab)
  66. 66Faith and Philosophy vol. 12, issue 4, 1995 (ePLACE, Asbury Theological Seminary)https://place.asburyseminary.edu/faithandphilosophy/vol12/iss4 (opens in a new tab)
  67. 67John Templeton Foundation Awards $1.78 Million Grant for Human Distinctiveness Project (Department of Theology, University of Notre Dame)https://theology.nd.edu/news/john-templeton-foundation-awards-1-78-million-grant-for-human-distinctiveness-project/ (opens in a new tab)
  68. 68Four Views on the Historical Adam (Zondervan Academic)https://zondervanacademic.com/products/four-views-on-the-historical-adam (opens in a new tab)
  69. 69Sin in Christian Thought, Kevin Timpe (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/sin-christian/ (opens in a new tab)
  70. 70Review of Crisp, Deviant Calvinism, Themelios (Fortress Press PDF)https://ms.fortresspress.com/downloads/9781451486131_Review_Themelios.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  71. 71Athanasius, On the Incarnation of the Word (CCEL)https://ccel.org/ccel/athanasius/incarnation (opens in a new tab)
  72. 72Gregory of Nyssa, On the Making of Man (New Advent)https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2914.htm (opens in a new tab)
  73. 73Saint Maximus the Confessor's Mediation of Wholeness, Nevena Dimitrova, Logos 57, 2016 (Sheptytsky Institute)https://sheptytskyinstitute.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Saint-Maximus-the-Confessor%E2%80%99s-Mediation-of-Wholeness.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  74. 74Maximus Confessor, Saint (c. 580-662) (SAGE Knowledge)https://sk.sagepub.com/ency/edvol/embed/time/chpt/maximus-confessor-saint-c-580-662 (opens in a new tab)
  75. 75Communion and Stewardship: Human Persons Created in the Image of God, 23 July 2004 (International Theological Commission, Holy See)https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/cti_documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20040723_communion-stewardship_en.html (opens in a new tab)
  76. 76In the Image and Likeness of God: A Hope-Filled Anthropology, 2015 (International Commission for Anglican-Orthodox Theological Dialogue, Anglican Communion)https://www.anglicancommunion.org/resource/in-the-image-and-likeness-of-god-a-hope-filled-anthropology/ (opens in a new tab)
  77. 77Backhaus, review of Wolff, Anthropologie des Alten Testaments, 2010 edition (bbs 11/2014, Katholisches Bibelwerk)https://bibelwerk.de/fileadmin/verein/buecherschau/2014/BK_Wolff_AnthropologieAT.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  78. 78Created in God's Image, Hoekema (WTS Books)https://www.wtsbooks.com/products/created-in-gods-image-anthony-hoekema-9780802808509 (opens in a new tab)
  79. 79Review of The Social God and the Relational Self (Journal of Markets & Morality)https://marketsandmorality.com/index.php/mandm/article/view/527 (opens in a new tab)
  80. 80Christian perspectives on theological anthropology, Faith and Order (RelBib)https://www.relbib.de/Record/510025145 (opens in a new tab)
  81. 81Theological Anthropology: A Guide for the Perplexed (BiblicalTraining.org)https://www.biblicaltraining.org/books/theological-anthropology-a-guide-for-the-perplexed-guides-for-the-perplexed (opens in a new tab)
  82. 82Theological anthropology: a guide for the perplexed, 2010 (British Library catalogue)https://eld.bl.uk/catalog/019389036 (opens in a new tab)
  83. 83The Ashgate Research Companion to Theological Anthropology (Routledge)https://www.routledge.com/The-Ashgate-Research-Companion-to-Theological-Anthropology/Farris-Taliaferro/p/book/9781138051560 (opens in a new tab)
  84. 84The Christian Doctrine of Humanity (Zondervan Academic)https://zondervanacademic.com/products/the-christian-doctrine-of-humanity (opens in a new tab)
  85. 85An Introduction to Theological Anthropology (Baker Academic)https://bakeracademic.com/p/an-introduction-to-theological-anthropology-joshua-r-farris/41441 (opens in a new tab)
  86. 86T&T Clark Handbook of Theological Anthropology, 2021 (British Library catalogue)https://eld.bl.uk/catalog/020089306 (opens in a new tab)
  87. 87Hinsdale and Okey, T&T Clark Handbook of Theological Anthropology (New Books Network)https://newbooksnetwork.com/t-t-clark-handbook-of-theological-anthropology (opens in a new tab)
  88. 88Theological Anthropology, Revised and Expanded (Fortress Press)https://www.fortresspress.com/store/product/9781506449401/Theological-Anthropology (opens in a new tab)
  89. 89Irenaeus (Encyclopaedia Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/biography/Irenaeus (opens in a new tab)
  90. 90103 Doctors of the Church (evangelizationstation.com PDF)https://evangelizationstation.com/oldsite/Pamphlets/103%20Doctors%20of%20the%20Church.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  91. 91Image of God (saet.ac.uk)https://www.saet.ac.uk/Christianity/ImageofGod (opens in a new tab)
  92. 92History of Christian Doctrine 451 1650 (Wabash Center PDF)https://www.wabashcenter.wabash.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/History-of-Christian-Doctrine-451-1650.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  93. 93Karl Rahner (people.bu.edu)https://people.bu.edu/wwildman/bce/rahner.htm (opens in a new tab)
  94. 94On Rosemary Radford Ruether (cst.edu)https://cst.edu/news/in-memoriam-dr-rosemary-radford-ruether/ (opens in a new tab)
  95. 95Christological Anthropology (saet.ac.uk)https://www.saet.ac.uk/Christianity/ChristologicalAnthropology (opens in a new tab)
  96. 96On John Zizioulas (orthochristian.com)https://orthochristian.com/150827.html (opens in a new tab)
  97. 97Disability Theology (saet.ac.uk)https://www.saet.ac.uk/Christianity/DisabilityTheology (opens in a new tab)
  98. 98David Kelsey (faith.yale.edu)https://faith.yale.edu/people/david-kelsey (opens in a new tab)
  99. 99The Imago Dei: A Holistic Account, Ximian Xu, Elements in Christian Doctrine (Cambridge University Press)https://www.cambridge.org/core/elements/imago-dei/32634BDA81B711681ED9285922EC6175 (opens in a new tab)
  100. 100Deification (Encyclopaedia Britannica)https://britannica.com/topic/deification (opens in a new tab)
  101. 101Philosophical anthropology (Encyclopaedia Britannica)https://britannica.com/topic/philosophical-anthropology/Introduction (opens in a new tab)
  102. 102Robbins, The Anthropology of Christianity: Unity, Diversity, New Directions (New Directions, University of Edinburgh)https://www.new-directions.sps.ed.ac.uk/?p=2440 (opens in a new tab)
  103. 103What Does It Mean to Be Human? Exploring the Christian Doctrine of Humanity (Zondervan Academic)https://zondervanacademic.com/blog/what-does-it-mean-to-be-human-exploring-the-christian-doctrine-of-humanity (opens in a new tab)
  104. 104Review: A Brief History of the Soul, Mendelovici and Nielsen (Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews)https://ndpr.nd.edu/news/brief-history-of-the-soul/ (opens in a new tab)
  105. 105Book Review: Bodies and Souls, or Spirited Bodies, John Pilbrow (ISCAST Journal)https://journal.iscast.org/archive/book-review-bodies-and-souls-or-spirited-bodies (opens in a new tab)
  106. 106The Genealogical Adam and Eve, S. Joshua Swamidass (IVP)https://www.ivpress.com/the-genealogical-adam-and-eve-ebook (opens in a new tab)
  107. 107Who Was Adam? Review of Craig, In Quest of the Historical Adam, Fazale Rana (Christian Research Institute, equip.org)https://www.equip.org/articles/who-was-adam-a-book-review-of-in-quest-of-the-historical-adam-a-biblical-and-scientific-exploration-by-william-lane-craig-eerdmans-2021 (opens in a new tab)

Page record

Reviewed and approved by Duane Herholdt, BA (Theology), Chief Executive Officer, Numa Verse

Study version: v1.1, 14 October 2026 (theology map v1.27)

Last reviewed: 9 November 2026

How these pages are made

  • 9 November 2026: First draft from the approved study v1.1.