Christopher Morse
Encyclopedia
Christopher Morse is an American
Christian
theologian. He is Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Professor of Theology and Ethics at Union Theological Seminary
in New York City
.
, Morse received a B.A. degree in philosophy from Randolph-Macon College
, an M.Div. from Yale Divinity School
, and an S.T.M. and Ph.D. from Union Theological Seminary. He is an ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church
.
tics and ethics
. He teaches extensively on the great systematic and dogmatic theologians, especially John Calvin
, Karl Barth
, Thomas Aquinas
, and F.D.E. Schleiermacher
.
Prominent in his main work, Not Every Spirit, is the notion of "faithful disbelief", a reference to 1 John 4:1. Essentially, Morse stands the older dogmatic traditions on their head. While most theologians argue for what Christians should believe, Morse argues for what people of faith should not believe, but rather actively "disbelieve".
Some examples of Morse's "Christian Disbeliefs" are:
He has argued that there is a charge from God upon the Christian community to discern the will of God again in every generation, time, and place and to we watchful for those aspects of the tradition which are unfaithful to the will and Word of God.
Morse's work shows that he has been deeply shaped by the theology of Karl Barth
. However, he is clearly no Barthian, and is additionally influenced by the classical theologies of Augustine
, Thomas Aquinas
, John Wesley
, Martin Luther
, John Calvin
, and Huldrych Zwingli
. Among recent theologians, Morse has been deeply influenced by the work of Reformed theologians Jurgen Moltmann
, H. Richard Niebuhr
, and Paul Lehmann
. Morse's work could be categorized as an example of the so-called Yale School theology.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
theologian. He is Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian and martyr. He was a participant in the German resistance movement against Nazism and a founding member of the Confessing Church. He was involved in plans by members of the Abwehr to assassinate Adolf Hitler...
Professor of Theology and Ethics at Union Theological Seminary
Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York
Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York is a preeminent independent graduate school of theology, located in Manhattan between Claremont Avenue and Broadway, 120th to 122nd Streets. The seminary was founded in 1836 under the Presbyterian Church, and is affiliated with nearby Columbia...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Education
Raised in VirginiaVirginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, Morse received a B.A. degree in philosophy from Randolph-Macon College
Randolph-Macon College
Randolph–Macon College is a private, co-educational liberal arts college located in Ashland, Virginia, United States, near the capital city of Richmond. Founded in 1830, the school has an enrollment of over 1,200 students...
, an M.Div. from Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School is a professional school at Yale University, in New Haven, Connecticut, U.S. preparing students for ordained or lay ministry, or for the academy...
, and an S.T.M. and Ph.D. from Union Theological Seminary. He is an ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination which is both mainline Protestant and evangelical. Founded in 1968 by the union of The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the UMC traces its roots back to the revival movement of John and Charles Wesley...
.
Viewpoints
Morse's areas of scholarly concentration are dogmaDogma
Dogma is the established belief or doctrine held by a religion, or a particular group or organization. It is authoritative and not to be disputed, doubted, or diverged from, by the practitioners or believers...
tics and ethics
Ethics
Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...
. He teaches extensively on the great systematic and dogmatic theologians, especially John Calvin
John Calvin
John Calvin was an influential French theologian and pastor during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism. Originally trained as a humanist lawyer, he broke from the Roman Catholic Church around 1530...
, Karl Barth
Karl Barth
Karl Barth was a Swiss Reformed theologian whom critics hold to be among the most important Christian thinkers of the 20th century; Pope Pius XII described him as the most important theologian since Thomas Aquinas...
, Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas, O.P. , also Thomas of Aquin or Aquino, was an Italian Dominican priest of the Catholic Church, and an immensely influential philosopher and theologian in the tradition of scholasticism, known as Doctor Angelicus, Doctor Communis, or Doctor Universalis...
, and F.D.E. Schleiermacher
Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher
Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher was a German theologian and philosopher known for his attempt to reconcile the criticisms of the Enlightenment with traditional Protestant orthodoxy. He also became influential in the evolution of Higher Criticism, and his work forms part of the foundation of...
.
Prominent in his main work, Not Every Spirit, is the notion of "faithful disbelief", a reference to 1 John 4:1. Essentially, Morse stands the older dogmatic traditions on their head. While most theologians argue for what Christians should believe, Morse argues for what people of faith should not believe, but rather actively "disbelieve".
Some examples of Morse's "Christian Disbeliefs" are:
- Refusal to equate the Word of God with an object, including the BibleBibleThe Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
, turning GodGodGod is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
into a thing. - Refusal to believe that God's Word in scripture violates witness of God to the heart.
- Refusal to believe that God's witness in the heart denies God's Word in scriptures.
- Refusal to believe that love, as defined with reference to God, can be defeated.
- Refusal to believe that God is other than Father, Son, and Spirit.
- Refusal to believe that God is three gods.
- Refusal to believe that any form of domination is from God that is not the dominion of love.
- Refusal to believe that the life of JesusJesusJesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
Christ is not fully human. - Refusal to believe that the Jesus Christ is not fully God.
- Refusal to believe that Jesus Christ is limited by time and space.
- Refusal to believe that the risen Christ is somehow different from the incarnate Christ.
- Refusal to believe that we can cause faith in another.
- Refusal to believe that God the Holy SpiritHoly SpiritHoly Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...
is not life giving. - Refusal to believe that evilEvilEvil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
is of equal status to good. - Refusal to believe that the future belong to any but God, or that there is no future.
- Refusal to believe that any situation is hopeless - any situation.
- Refusal to believe that humans do not need saving.
- Refusal to believe that Jesus Christ is too unlike humans to save them.
- Refusal to believe that Jesus Christ is too like others to be able to save humans.
- Refusal to believe that we are truly human apart from other humans.
- Refusal to believe that God dishonors the human body and that we will be raised as disembodied spirits.
- Refusal to believe that ChurchChristian ChurchThe Christian Church is the assembly or association of followers of Jesus Christ. The Greek term ἐκκλησία that in its appearances in the New Testament is usually translated as "church" basically means "assembly"...
members are more loved than non-church members. - Refusal to believe that the Church is limited by the successes and failures of its members.
He has argued that there is a charge from God upon the Christian community to discern the will of God again in every generation, time, and place and to we watchful for those aspects of the tradition which are unfaithful to the will and Word of God.
Morse's work shows that he has been deeply shaped by the theology of Karl Barth
Karl Barth
Karl Barth was a Swiss Reformed theologian whom critics hold to be among the most important Christian thinkers of the 20th century; Pope Pius XII described him as the most important theologian since Thomas Aquinas...
. However, he is clearly no Barthian, and is additionally influenced by the classical theologies of Augustine
Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo , also known as Augustine, St. Augustine, St. Austin, St. Augoustinos, Blessed Augustine, or St. Augustine the Blessed, was Bishop of Hippo Regius . He was a Latin-speaking philosopher and theologian who lived in the Roman Africa Province...
, Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas, O.P. , also Thomas of Aquin or Aquino, was an Italian Dominican priest of the Catholic Church, and an immensely influential philosopher and theologian in the tradition of scholasticism, known as Doctor Angelicus, Doctor Communis, or Doctor Universalis...
, John Wesley
John Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
, Martin Luther
Martin Luther
Martin Luther was a German priest, professor of theology and iconic figure of the Protestant Reformation. He strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God's punishment for sin could be purchased with money. He confronted indulgence salesman Johann Tetzel with his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517...
, John Calvin
John Calvin
John Calvin was an influential French theologian and pastor during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism. Originally trained as a humanist lawyer, he broke from the Roman Catholic Church around 1530...
, and Huldrych Zwingli
Huldrych Zwingli
Ulrich Zwingli was a leader of the Reformation in Switzerland. Born during a time of emerging Swiss patriotism and increasing criticism of the Swiss mercenary system, he attended the University of Vienna and the University of Basel, a scholarly centre of humanism...
. Among recent theologians, Morse has been deeply influenced by the work of Reformed theologians Jurgen Moltmann
Jürgen Moltmann
Jürgen Moltmann is a German Reformed theologian. The 2000 recipient of the Louisville Grawemeyer Award in Religion.-Moltmann's Youth:...
, H. Richard Niebuhr
H. Richard Niebuhr
Helmut Richard Niebuhr was one of the most important Christian theological-ethicists in 20th century America, most known for his 1951 book Christ and Culture and his posthumously published book The Responsible Self. The younger brother of theologian Reinhold Niebuhr, Richard Niebuhr taught for...
, and Paul Lehmann
Paul Lehmann
Dr. Paul Lehmann was a Korvettenkapitän of the Reserves with the Kriegsmarine during World War II and a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross...
. Morse's work could be categorized as an example of the so-called Yale School theology.